7 Action Items For Instagram Reels That Get More Likes + Follows

Instagram Reels can be time-consuming to create and edit.

And, in the end, after you hit post you may be totally disappointed by the lack of engagement. Was it even worth it?

When you’re strategic with your Reels though, you can grow and nurture an audience of engaged ideal customers or clients who will be excited to join your email list, interact with your content, and becoming paying, raving fans.

Here’s a list of action items for your 2024 Reels to help your business be more visible and profitable on Instagram:

01 Talk To The Camera

The content that seems to perform best on Instagram right now is short-form video that shows your face in which you speak directly to the viewer. It’s like you’re talking to a friend on FaceTime.

It’s just human nature to be drawn to people’s faces and voices, so you’re making it more likely that people stop their scroll when you talk to the camera.

You don’t have to have your hair and makeup done to create Reels like this, either; I encourage you to show up as you are (comfortable). Sometimes this creates the feeling of intimacy and humanizes you and your brand. Yes, professionalism is important, but there’s a real relatable aspect to showing your audience what you’re like “off the clock.”

what to talk about

Try establishing content pillars, or “buckets” of topics that are important to you and your ideal customers or clients.

02 Use Reel Templates

You’ll post more Reels and get more momentum when it’s easier to get through the editing phase, and dragging-and-dropping your video clips into existing templates makes editing MUCH EASIER.

To find Reels templates, navigate to the Reels tab in your Instagram app, click the camera icon to start making a Reel, then select Templates at the bottom right of your screen. You can choose from Saved or Suggested templates. Just add video clips from your camera roll, and a caption.

03 Get Real With Your Followers

You don’t have to spill your guts to grow your audience on Instagram, but I encourage you to think about how you can get real with your followers:

  • Tell a story

  • Be a little vulnerable

  • Bring them behind the scenes

  • Show your face

People like to work with people and buy from people they like and trust. This is probably no surprise to you. But think about the content you like to consume online: It’s personal. There’s a story. You see a human on the other side. It teaches you something or inspires you. It’s probably relevant to your life experiences.

04 Lean Into A Personal Brand

The clearer you are about your online persona or your brand as a business owner, the easier it is to craft content that really resonates with the right people. Personal branding is how we create a recognizable, consistent identity for a person as the face of a business. Just like you probably recognize and have a lot of strong associations with logos like the Nike Swoosh or the Starbucks mermaid, a personal brand is helps your audience remember and create a connection with your work.

I often say: “People like to work with people.” It’s true; how much more likely are you to stop your scroll on social media and read a caption when you see a personal story than when you just see a corporate message?

A personal brand means you get to show up as a fully-formed human instead of a logo.

A PERSONAL BRAND CAN GIVE YOU EASY CONTENT IDEAS

It can be really tough to figure out what to say in social media posts, emails, or blog posts when you’re trying to represent a whole brand. But when you just have to represent yourself, you. can probably think of a lot of stories and experiences your audience will find relevant or interesting.

Plus, you already have a “voice,” or a way of communicating, so you don’t have to invent one for a new brand. I usually tell my clients to write for their personal brand the way they would speak to a customer or client.

Start by listing some of the things you feel very strongly about as a person and a professional. What are your non-negotiables? Your core values? Your soapbox issues? Create Reels about these topics and you will find that you attract more of the people you want to work with.

Read more about personal branding here

Brenee Brown, speaker and author, has a very clear personal brand.

05 Write Juicy Captions

Don’t leave your followers wanting more when it comes to your captions. I often find that women business owners skip the captions or just use it as a place to park a few hashtags.

But — think about it — if someone likes your photo or video, the first place they’ll go to learn more about you is the caption. They’ll hit the “More” option and see what else you have for them.

I actually recommend that my clients write their captions first so they get clear on the point of their post before they jump right to the Reel or photo: What is the “so what?” of your post for your audience? What’s the takeaway? What’s the hook?

what to write

  • Tell a story

  • Include a hook

  • Share recommendations

  • Share action items

  • Include a CTA (call to action)

  • Use a “top-line teaser,” or a compelling statement in the first line of your caption, so it is visible without expanding the caption with the “more” button

Your caption helps you get found by the right people when you include the right keywords.

06 Think About Keywords

Keywords or keyword phrases are the words your ideal customer or client would use to describe your work, industry, or niche. It’s important that you think about the language your audience actually uses. What would your ideal customer or client actually type into the search bar on Instagram that would lead them to you?

Instagram SEO

Instagram is a little, baby search engine. More and more, Instagram is cataloging their content to be found by search engines. And, within the platform, your audience is searching for creators and content that are relevant for them and their needs. The more you create content around the search terms your ideal customers or clients are using, the more likely you are to show up in their feeds.

what to do

  • Create content inspired by long-tail keyword phrases

  • Use hashtags inspired by your keywords (I recommend Slay.so, previously known as Hashtag Slayer, for this!)

  • Write captions! Include your keywords in the caption

Blog Post: 4 Steps To Start Keyword Research For Small Business

07 Optimize Your Instagram Bio

If your Reels viewers like your content and your caption, the logical next step for them is to click to your profile. Does your Instagram bio give them the information they need to know that you are relevant for them?

Your Instagram bio needs to clearly communicate your value for your ideal customers or clients. The questions your bio should answer for your ideal followers are:

  1. What can you do for me?

  2. Why should I follow you?

  3. Why is your content relevant for me?

what to write in your bio

The key components of a good Instagram bio are:

  1. Your offer

  2. Your ideal customer

  3. The outcomes or benefits you provide with your work, or your job title/industry

  4. A call to action (CTA)

If you’re a location-based business, you need your city or area in your bio, too.

Blog Post: 4 Things You Need In Your Instagram Bio To Attract Ideal Customers

The Takeaway

The whole reason you post Reels as a business owner is to grow an online audience of people who will actually consume your content, and book or buy. Make sure you include these action steps when you create Reels so you can get the most bang for your buck.

 

Your Instagram content should be a sales machine for your small business.

If it’s not, you need a Profitable Profile Instagram Audit.

In your Audit, I’ll take a look at your profile and make you a custom list of changes to make to start seeing more followers, engagement, and sales every time you post, so you can grow your audience and your income.

 
 
I (finally) published my Substack 🎉 HYSTERICAL reveals the unseen truths of womanhood and motherhood Get the link in my bio 🖤 #innerchild #innerchildhealing
“… and nothing — NOTHING — was controlled, least of all, her tummy.” — based on a true story that may or may not have played out in my bathroom last night What is it about shorts season that makes us squeamish
The longest healthy relationship of my life is with nature. Tell me in the comments if this is true for you, too ↓ When you grow up with a dysregulated nervous system you learn that nature is a safe place to be because it is neutral in its moti
Swipe for a 7-year Time Machine ➡️ IMO, a supportive partner is the ULTIMATE life hack 💯 I would 100% not be where I am in my business — and my life — if it weren’t for @. And I think we laugh about “life hack” becau

Upcoming

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6 Ways To Come Up With High-Performing Content Ideas To Attract Paying Customers

You need to continually show up in front of your audience to make consistent sales.

But it can be challenging to churn out original content ideas that engage people on social media.

Here are six ways to generate a whole new list of content ideas that help you stick out from the crowd and stop your ideal customers mid-scroll. Use these strategies to come up with content ideas for:

  • blog posts

  • email newsletters

  • YouTube videos

  • social media content

  • webinars or trainings

01 Lurk In Online Forums

Online forums are often where people turn to get expert advice or feedback from people in-the-know in very specific niches or interest groups. You can find an online community or forum on just about any obscure topic, and you can be sure that people interested in your offers will post or scroll there, too.

reddit

Reddit is a mostly-anonymous site with forums called “subreddits.” Search Reddit for subreddits where your ideal customers or clients might hang out, and pay attention to the questions and topics of conversation you see posted more than once.

Facebook groups

You can also search Facebook for topical groups and do a little market research. You don’t even have to post in the groups; just take note of what people are asking or discussing. What do members seem to need or want?

02 Review Social Media Comments

Many business owners fear getting “trolled” on social media, or harassed in their comment sections, but comments — especially the negative ones — are a great source of content inspiration. Respond directly to comments, positive or negative, with a post or video.

You don’t have to just stick to your own comment sections, either; take a look at comments on content from other creators in your industry. Answer questions, respond to hot takes, and get a good sense of your audience’s viewpoints.

03 Use Google’s People Also Ask Sections

This is one of my favorite places to get inspiration: When you search for something on Google, you can use the autosuggestions for content ideas (what popular searches does the search engine suggest when you type something into the search bar?), AND you can scroll through a results page to find the “people also ask” sections. There are a goldmine for content ideas because they are curated based on highly-related searches. If a question appears in this section, you know that lots of people are wondering about it, and will be grateful when you show up to help them navigate their challenges.

For example, here is a PAA section on a results page for “prenatal yoga.” ↓

 

Pro Tip: Click the downward arrow icons to expand each question and find more relevant, specific ideas. You can keep expanding until the questions start to feel irrelevant or beyond your expertise.

04 Answer Quora Questions

Quora is a question-and-answer site designed to help people find “high-quality” answers to their queries. When you sign up for Quora you select at least 5 topical areas to follow. It curates a “feed” for you. Navigate to the Spaces on your menu to see questions posted by other users. Note the questions you feel qualified to answer in your own content. You can pretty much guarantee that if someone posted it to Quora, there are thousands of other people out there wondering the same thing.

 

05 Ask ChatGPT To Describe Your Ideal Customers’ Pain Points

ChatGPT is an AI chatbot that can give you serious clarity about what your ideal customers or clients want to hear from you. When you educate ChatGPT a bit about your ideal customer, it can take their perspective and give you a list of needs and desires you may address to get in front of the right eyeballs.

What to do

  1. Log into ChatGPT via OpenAI (use a Google or Outlook email address to sign in for free, or use the paid version, ChatGPT 4)

  2. Start a new chat dialogue

  3. Tell ChatGPT about your business and what you know about your ideal customer or client (if you’re coming up blank, use the 10 Steps To Your Ideal Customer Avatar workbook)

  4. Ask ChatGPT to create a “detailed ideal customer persona” based on that information

  5. Ask ChatGPT to describe your ideal customer avatar’s current pain points, problems, or frustrations related to your industry or niche

  6. Create content that answers these questions or, at least, describes the pain points or problems

More on creating engaging content here

When you create content that reflects your audience’s needs, experiences, and desires, you show them that you understand their perspective and can be a trusted authority or thought leader.

06 Address Industry Myths + Controversies

Brainstorm controversies and myths regarding your industry or niche; controversial takes can help you reach new ideal followers on social media!

If you’re not sure where to start, you can ask ChatGPT to come up with a list of controversies or industry myths to get you started. You may also check out Google Trends and type in keywords to see what people searched for regarding your industry.

The Takeaway

Creating original content for social media, blogs, and email newsletters sets you apart and helps you attract people who are ready and willing to pay for your offers. Use these 6 strategies to generate content ideas and grow your audience.

How To Use FAQs + AI To Discover Exactly What Your Ideal Customers Want To See In Your Content

It can feel hard to know what your audience wants to see from you on social media, receive in your emails, or read on your blog. What will stop your ideal customers in their tracks?

If you’re unsure what to write, publish, or post to attract the right customers to your business, try using FAQs (frequently-asked questions) and AI to create an endless list of content ideas.

You can create rich, engaging content by listing frequently asked questions (FAQs) and using search engines and ChatGPT to elaborate upon what your ideal customers are actually searching for.

The clearer you are about what your audience wants and needs from you, the more you integrate their desires into your content. When you reflect your ideal customers’ experiences and challenges, you will attract people who are a great fit to book or buy.

What Are FAQs?

FAQs — frequently-asked questions — are the most common things you help your customers or clients navigate. Your FAQs are probably the topics you feel like you address on repeat.

FAQs are important for your marketing because you create authority and trust with your potential customers when you show them that you understand where they’re coming from. Addressing their questions or concerns can help them move forward in your relationship and, ultimately, lead to a sale.

The easier you make it for them to feel comfortable making a purchase the more likely they are to invest with you (and come back for repeat purchases!).

Read more about FAQs here.

Example

Sweet Whimsy @sweetwhimsyshop in Savannah, Georgia uses customer and follower FAQs to inspire Instagram Reels content, like:

How To Store Cake Pops

By educating the audience and answering their questions, the business owner creates a connection and establishes credibility.

Your potential customers are more likely to want to follow and consume your content if they know they’re going to get a little “nugget” of useful information from you.

 

How To Use FAQs + AI To Create Content Ideas

Step 1. List FAQs

One marketing best practice I often recommend to my clients is keeping a document to list FAQs when they communicate with customers or clients. When you’re in a consult, have an event, or strategy session, or even when you’re just scrolling through social media, you will likely come across the same audience questions or concerns over and over. These are important pain points to address in your content to make the customer journey to purchase feel effortless.

If you don’t have an ongoing list of FAQs, you can open a document or spreadsheet or start a Note in your Notes app and start brainstorming questions you often field from your audience.

  • What common concerns do you hear from people considering your offer(s)?

  • What are some well-known stumbling blocks for customers or clients in your industry?

  • What do you hear yourself saying over and over again in your work?

  • What anxieties or uncertainties do people often have about your industry or niche?

  • What are common misconceptions about your industry or offers?

→ This can also be done by reviewing emails, social media comments, customer service inquiries, and feedback forms.

Step 2. Organize and Prioritize

Next, organize the FAQs into categories. This could be based on product/service, customer concerns, how-to guides, or any other logical grouping that makes sense for you. If you have a content library in a project management tool (I use Asana), you might cluster or organize your FAQs into lists or content pillars. We want to keep these FAQs handy so you can easily use them to create content later.

Then, prioritize: Which questions are asked most frequently or seem to be of most concern to your audience? These are top-priority for your content.

Step 3. Do Search Engine Research

Now that you have an organized and prioritized list of FAQs, you’ll do a little search engine research. Type each FAQ into a search engine — Google, YouTube, Pinterest — and notice what the search engine autosuggests.

The autosuggest feature is something search engines do to help you quickly and easily find answers to your questions. The search engine tries to complete your search like this ↓

Why do we care about autosuggestions?

The reason this is important for you is because the search autosuggestions are based on top relevant searches. This means that, if a search is on this list ⬆️ it is because lots of people are looking it up. And, based on your browser settings, autosuggestions may be based on the top searches in your geographic location.

Therefore, autosuggested searches give you your best guess of what your ideal customers or clients want and need from you. This is GOLD!

Search engine data is the “internet’s truth serum.” This process really gives you a shortcut in understanding what topics your audience will find relevant.

 

Step 4. Use ChatGPT

Now, for each prioritized FAQ, you should have several related and specific FAQs from your keyword research and autosuggestions. You’ll use this list to help ChatGPT, an AI chatbot, generate more related questions you can use to inspire your content. Read more about using ChatGPT here.

Prepare a prompt for ChatGPT that includes the question, any background information, the context in which it’s usually asked, and any specific points you’d like to address or include in the expanded content.

Type each FAQ and its prompt into ChatGPT and ask it to generate more content ideas based on your suggestions. You may also ask for actionable ideas, and solutions that could be helpful for your audience.

Based on the expanded answers from ChatGPT, brainstorm different content formats that these answers could be adapted into, like blog posts, email newsletters, social media content, video scripts, or infographics.

 

Pro Tip: You’ll get the BEST ideas from ChatGPT when you teach it about your ideal customer or client. Then, it can tailor its suggestions toward your exact specifications and your ideal customers’ interests.

In this example, ChatGPT had generated an ideal customer avatar named “Emma” before I asked it to give me a list of her FAQs.

Use the 10 Steps To Your Ideal Customer Avatar Workbook to get complete clarity about yours here.

Step 5. Plan Content

I almost always recommend to my clients that they write the takeaway of their content out first, like as a caption or hook. So, for each of your FAQs, write out the answer to each question and how your audience can take action. When you start with the take-home message, you won’t get distracted by trends or audio or any of the other, less important aspects of content creation.

The most important thing is that you clearly show your potential customers or clients that you understand their perspective and can be a guide and resource for them in your niche or industry.

Example

Taylor — @denvertrademarklaw — addresses an industry FAQ in her Instagram post:

“What should I do if my client wants a refund?”

By answering common questions her ideal clients might have, she shows them that she is a valuable source of information.

content distribution

At this point, you may also decide on the best channels for distributing each piece of content. Always start by considering where your audience is most active and the content format. This could be your website, email campaigns, YouTube, Instagram, etc.

Read more about content distribution here

The Takeaway

This process of using FAQs and AI to generate highly relevant content ideas for your audience makes it really effective for attracting people who are likely to book with and buy from you.

It’s ALWAYS a good idea to create content starting with your ideal customer or client’s perspective, but ChatGPT and search engines will save you lots of time by generating lots of relevant ideas.

Don’t forget to use CTAs (calls to action) in your FAQ content!

Using TikTok + Instagram To Grow + Nurture Your Small Business Sales

“I feel like I need to show up on all these different platforms for my business, and it gets totally overwhelming! I don’t know where to start or what to prioritize.”

Can you relate? 👆🏻

There are a lot of places you could be spending time online as a small business owner to promote your offers and grow your audience, and the sheer options may feel overwhelming. Where can you post to get the most “bang for your buck?”

TikTok and Instagram are two of the top recommended platforms for small business owners, but they have two distinct “jobs” in your marketing. When you know how and when to use each of these platforms to grow your audience and make sales, you can get results without feeling stretched thin.

TL;DR: TikTok is great for helping new potential customers discover your business, and Instagram is better for helping to stay in front of those followers and move them to your email list or toward a purchase.

🗞️ Also, earlier this month, US Congress passed a bill that could lead to a TikTok ban. How might this affect your business?

Using Social Media To Make More Sales

Social media is one of the most powerful tools in your small business “tool belt.” Your ideal customers or clients spend hours scrolling on social media to be entertained, find inspiring content, see little helpful “nuggets” of educational content, and to get a little pick-me-up. When you show up consistently in front of your audience, you can motivate them to take action and join your email list, download a freebie, or experience a “win” with you, which naturally qualifies them to be a good paying customer.

Though they are both free ways to organically attract potential customers, small business owners in 2024 get different benefits from TikTok than Instagram (and Facebook). The general function of social media for your business, though, is to create:

  1. Awareness: Creating a first impression with potential customers or clients, like with a Reel or TikTok that describes their experiences or desires

  2. Interest: Showing your audience that you can help solve their problems or satisfy their desires with your product or service (like in your captions and Stories)

  3. Desire: Offering your followers a freebie or invitation that allows them to experience what it’s like to work with you or use your product, but on a low-risk level; this motivates followers to take the next step with you and “warms them up” for a purchase

Read more about your customer journey here

“Which Platform Should I Use?”

Which social media platform that is best for your business depends on:

  • your offer (product or service); what do you sell?

  • your ideal customer or client (which is dictated by your offer)

  • your industry

… but, usually, when my clients ask which platforms they should focus on, I recommend more than one. TikTok and Instagram, for example, can work together in your customer journey to attract and nurture potential customers or clients and turn them into loyal, paying fans.

TikTok Helps Grow Your Audience

TikTok is an incredible platform for growth and discovery for small businesses, and now, with over 1 billion users, it’s one of the biggest social media platforms in the world. TikTok collects a lot more data about its users than Instagram, which:

  • is one of the main reasons the US government purportedly takes issue with the platform

  • makes it really fun and useful for its users!

You may have noticed that, if you use TikTok as a consumer, it recommends a wider variety of content from various niches and seems to have a good understanding of you and your interests. Lots of creators have pointed out the predictive power of the TikTok algorithms! Read more about finding your niche audience on TikTok here

This makes TikTok powerful for small businesses; the algorithms recommend your content to people who are a good fit for your product or service and can put you in front of a large, fresh audience. This is also why you may have seen businesses “blow up” on TikTok since the rise of its popularity during the pandemic.

TikTok may also be a good alternative for you if you get tired of the grind of creating and editing Reels; the majority of TikTok creators say they find it easier to create content on TikTok than on other platforms because of its editing features.

us TikTok ban

According to CNN on March 7, 2024:

“The measure that sailed unanimously through the House Energy and Commerce Committee would prohibit TikTok from US app stores unless the social media platform — used by roughly 170 million Americans — is quickly spun off from its China-linked parent company, ByteDance.”

It is not clear that the US TikTok servers would be completely shut down in the event of a ban, but US residents would not be able to download the app from app stores if they don’t already have it. If you’re on TikTok now, focus on motivating your audience to join your email or SMS list, so you own their data and can reach them no matter what happens with the app! A lead magnet is the best way to do this and to continually grow your email list.

Create a link in your bio for TikTok

“What should I post on TIKTOK?”

One of the refreshing things about TikTok is that creators tend to show up in a very authentic, unfiltered way. Their content is less curated than you will find on Instagram, where many business owners still feel pressured to have a “perfect grid.”

Because there is more emphasis on showing up authentically on TikTok, there is more original content. This also tends to mean that trends originate on TikTok and make their way to Instagram a week or two later.

 

Instagram Helps Nurture Your Audience

TikTok may be great for discovery, but it doesn’t entirely replace Instagram as a way to reach your small business audience. Instagram is a good platform to stay connected to your current following. That isn’t to say that it is impossible to grow a massive following on Instagram — you certainly can — but you may find that while your following grows more slowly, you show up more consistently in front of the same loyal fans.

Why does this matter?

You need to get and stay in front of your potential customers in order to be a successful business. Your existing audience is crucial for your sales; repeat customers are the bread and butter of a small business. You need repeat sales to create a solid foundation and income. It takes:

  • repeated exposure to your content and business before most people purchase

  • exponentially more time and content to convert (make a sale) new customers than to sell to your existing customers

Think of your Instagram profile as your fan club; new people can always join, but most of your reach will be to people who already know you. And your fan club is easy to sell to!

Now, your VIP fans are on your email list (more on that here), and that’s where you REALLY MAKE sales!

“What should I post on instagram?”

3 Reasons Why You're Not Standing Out On Instagram In 2024

Does posting on Instagram feel intimidating for you right now? Maybe posting Reels even feels pointless, because you’re not getting the reach or engagement you need from your potential customers.

The Instagram algorithms change all the time, but if you’re not getting a response from your audience, it’s not personal; the platform favors accounts that get engagement from their followers. You’re not “shadow-banned” or getting ghosted by the platform. It really comes down to how well you can speak to your followers and motivate them to take action.

If you’re not standing out on Instagram in 2024, the most likely culprit is your lack of clarity about the type of content your followers want to see in their feeds. And YOU are in control.

The whole point of posting on Instagram is to attract potential paying customers or clients and nurture your relationship. When you get and stay in front of those folks, you can create a steady flow of sales and subscribers.

Here are 3 reasons why women creatives and service providers aren’t standing out on Instagram right now:

  • No clear point of view

  • Not understanding their followers

  • Not making it easy to engage

 

Reason 1: You Don’t Have A Clear Point Of View

Instagram is noisy. There is SO MUCH CONTENT being published every day that you have to be strategic to really stand out and make it in your followers’ feeds. When you give bare-minimum effort, it’s no surprise that the algorithms do not recommend your content to your audience.

You have to distinguish yourself with your content. You have to make your message SO CLEAR that it’s like you’re shouting your followers’ names in a crowded room: Highly relevant content makes you impossible to ignore. More than that, it brings a flock of potential customers knocking at your door.

To distinguish yourself in your content and attract the right followers, you need to be super clear about WHO YOU ARE as a brand and a business owner. You don’t have to create a new niche; you just have to show up as yourself and know what you and your followers have in common. When you highlight those things you make it clear that you are someone they should follow.

ask yourself:

  1. How do I want my clients to describe my brand to others? This can help you understand the perception you want to create with your content. What is the tone of your business? If your brand was a person, what would their dominant personality traits be? Sassy? Sweet? Cheeky? Blunt?

  2. What trends or gaps in my industry can I capitalize on? What are your strengths and skills in your niche or industry? What can you teach your audience about that they won’t learn elsewhere? This will help you identify where/how you can show up for your potential customers or clients.

  3. How can I consistently deliver value to my audience? Thinking about long-term value can help in planning content that keeps your audience engaged and loyal. How can you use your experiences, personally and professionally, to help your audience feel seen, heard, validated, prepared, or informed? And don’t limit this just to your professional life: You have so many lived experiences and stories that your followers will resonate with! Showing up with a bit of vulnerability is a powerful way to distinguish yourself, because no one in the world has the same life story you do.

  4. What are my strong values and beliefs? Make a list of your nonnegotiable beliefs about your industry or business. Include some of your strong values OUTSIDE of your business. Which do you think will resonate with your audience? Which do you share with your ideal customers or clients?

The goal

Bring YOUR life experiences and ideas and skills to the forefront of your content. Content that aligns you with your ideal customers’ or clients’ beliefs will cut through the noise.

Read more about creating valuable content here

 

Reason 2: You Don’t Understand Your Followers

The most common reason women creatives and service providers aren’t getting traction on Instagram is because they don’t approach their content from their ideal customer or client’s point of view. You aren’t thinking about what they want or need; you’re thinking about how YOU APPEAR on the platform.

And, I get it. It’s your face and your space and your business and your voice in your content. But — and here’s the truth — it’s not really about you. You are the mirror you hold up to your ideal customer or client to show their reality.

I promise you that, when you start thinking about your content with your ideal customer or client at the forefront of your mind, you’ll start to get momentum. The more tailored your messages are to their beliefs, needs, and questions, the more they will want to engage and follow you wherever you go.

Ask Yourself

  1. Who is my ideal client? Beyond basic demographics, what are the psychographics (interests, values, pain points) of the people you’re most passionate about serving? Who is it that buys or books with you? If you’re not 100% clear about this yet, use the 10 Steps To Your Ideal Customer Avatar workbook here.

  2. What problems do I solve for my clients? Pinpointing the specific challenges you address can help you focus you messaging on solutions that resonate with your audience. Your product or service solves a problem or satisfies a desire for your audience, and that’s really what they’re looking for (and what they will pay for).

  3. Why do my ideal customers or clients get on Instagram? What kind of content will get them to stop their scroll? Do they want to be entertained, informed, or connected? Do they want to know that they are not alone? Do they want to get useful nuggets of advice?

Once you know what your ideal followers and potential customers/clients want and need from content on Instagram, you can do some keyword research to generate specific content ideas that address their top questions and frustrations.

Example

Tacoma real estate agent Katie Hersey created this Reel to address one of the most critical steps for her clients in actually buying a home. She is clear about what they want and need, and she breaks down the preapproval process for them.

Keyword research will help you generate a list of things YOUR audience wants to know from experts in your industry, so you can create hard-hitting content like this.

 

Reason 3: You Aren’t Asking Your Audience To Engage With You

Engagement is crucial on Instagram. If you’re not actively engaging with your followers or other accounts, your visibility might decrease. Instagram's algorithms favor accounts with high engagement rates.

So, not only does it help when YOU connect, chat, comment, and share, but you need to make it easy and enticing for your followers to engage with you, too.

CAlls to action (CTAs)

A CTA or call to action is a direct instruction to your audience for how to take action when they consume your content. Do not just leave it up to them to figure out how to engage with you; tell them exactly which one step to take to move forward in your relationship.

I say “relationship” because that’s really what you’re developing with your audience: You are trying to create trust and moving them forward to the point where they feel confident and comfortable booking and buying.

Your followers (or potential followers) need a NUDGE. Use clear CTAs in all your content, especially on Instagram; it’s too easy for them to just scroll away if you don’t appeal to your followers to like, follow, comment, share, save, or send you a message.

Call to action (CTA) examples for Instagram:

  • “Send me a direct message (DM) to get [lead magnet]”

  • “Follow for more on [your content pillars]”

  • “Click here to get [lead magnet]”

  • “Read more at the blog post here”

  • “Save this for later”

Read more on CTAs for Instagram here

Example

Alyssa, social media strategist of Inspired Media Co, tells her audience in the top line of her Reel caption to READ HERE. You might assume it’s obvious that they should click to read the caption, but we often need CTAs to point out the obvious.

The Takeaway

To grow your following on Instagram and see results like more traffic, engagement, and sales in your business, you need to distinguish yourself in your content and take your ideal customers’ point of view. You will get momentum when you approach your content thoughtfully and make it easy for them to engage with you. Don’t assume that your followers know how to take the next step; always use a call to action that tells them what you want them to do.

 

Upcoming FREE training for women creatives and service providers

DOUBLE YOUR ENGAGEMENT: STRATEGIES FOF MAGNETIC REELS

Join me, live and recorded, on Thursday, March 28, to get your action plan for how to USE these ideas and break through your current Instagram stagnation.

 

The Personal Is Political

I had just moved to Texas in 2013 when Senator Wendy Davis filibustered in her pink running shoes for 13 hours to block a bill that severely restricted women's reproductive rights. I couldn't take my eyes off the livestream (maybe the 180,000 other viewers felt the same). Republicans struck her out 2 hours short of the deadline when she let someone help her with her back brace.

She didn't stop talking for 11 hours. She couldn't sit, eat, or go to the bathroom, stray from the topic, or lean on her desk. She read stories of women who have been affected by reproductive healthcare laws and got emotional because she BELIEVES in it.

Senator Davis became one of my personal heroes that day, and she was part of the reason I went on to become a communications director in the Texas House. I eventually got to write her introduction when she ran for governor.

I went on to write speeches and resolutions about women’s reproductive freedom in Texas, but I learned that nothing is as powerful as stories told about our lived experiences. My political career in Texas became a really important chapter in my life that coincided with my own anonymous egg donation, which led to a decade of reproductive healthcare struggles.

Like icon Gloria Steinem and, now, Senator Eva Burch from Arizona, who recently shared in a speech at the Arizona state Senate that she plans to get an abortion for her nonviable pregnancy, Senator Davis told her deeply personal abortion story. She wrote in her memoir about seeking an abortion in the 1990s when she found out the fetus had a brain abnormality, and again for an ectopic pregnancy.

 

The Personal Is Political

“The personal is political” is been a longstanding feminist motto since the Civil Rights movement in the US in the 1960, and it still rings true: Politics touch every aspect of our lives, from our homes to our schools to our exam rooms.

The more privilege we have the easier it is to ignore the effect of legislation, but it’s harder to paint issues like reproductive freedom with a broad brush when we hear about the circumstances from the people who survived them. This is especially true for topics like abortion that are historically taboo.

Stories like Senator Burch’s (and Senator Davis’s) cut to the core because they resonate with millions of women with similar experiences. They force voters to think about the real impact of legislation they might otherwise ignore.

Ultrasound requirements

Arizona law requires Senator Burch to have a medically unnecessary ultrasound before she can terminate her pregnancy. Over the past 30 years, some states instituted ultrasound requirements as a part of abortion services, even though they aren’t necessary in the first trimester. The ultrasound is an additional hurdle women have to jump through in order to obtain their reproductive healthcare.

I have personally been present at a medically unnecessary but legally required ultrasound before a first-trimester abortion. The healthcare provider was required to perform the ultrasound and the patient was required to hear the fetal heartbeat and view the ultrasound image before she could have her procedure the next day. None of this was necessary nor swayed the patient’s decision to obtain an abortion, but it did make it much more traumatic.

Vulnerability Is Strength

We’re all drawn to stories. The more personal, the better. It’s just how the human brain works. Hearing about ultrasound requirements from Senator Burch brings me right back to a dimly-lit exam room in the Midwest, witnessing an ultrasound that no one wanted.

Attaching personal narratives to our beliefs and ideas goes a long way. That’s why I often encourage my women business owner clients to think about life experiences they have that resonate with their ideal customers or clients.

That’s also a reason I was inspired to start and keep writing my memoir manuscript about infertility, motherhood, and entrepreneurship: Our businesses aren’t just professional; they’re personal. And the personal is political.

Tasks To Prioritize In Your Small Business Every Week To Generate More Income

As a small business owner, you have a ton of things you could do every week that would feel productive and meaningful.

Since you wear a lot of hats, you could have anything from “create Reels” to “file quarterly taxes” on your to-do list.

Because there’s a wide range of responsibilities for business owners, we often find ourselves gravitating toward the activities that feel “comfy” or low-pressure, like: Fiddling with Canva templates or the colors on our website or scrolling for “inspiration.” These low-stakes activities feel vaguely productive, but they don’t really move the needle in your sales or bookings, though.

And you’re in business because you want to see sales rolling into your inbox and money in your bank account. Am I right?

If we spend a lot of our working hours each week on the low-important but “easy” tasks, we won’t see meaningful results in our businesses. And, trust me, I have been there! I found a lot of comfort sitting with my coffee cup scrolling through “brand inspiration” on Pinterest. It’s not that that isn’t cool or important, but it does not directly contribute to my sales.

If this sounds familiar, I encourage you to nail down your income-generating activities so you can use your precious business hours to product consistent sales, traffic, and engagement.

What Are Income-Generating Activities?

Income-generating activities are the things you do in your business that directly lead to new sales, bookings, customers, or clients.

📧 email marketing campaigns

Building an email list and sending regular newsletters or sales emails to potential and existing customers is almost always an income-generating activity. When you show up consistently in your subscribers’ inboxes with little nuggets of value and with relevant offers (products/services), you’ll tend to convert loyal, repeat buyers and generate more sales.

Pro Tip: Don’t forget to segment your email list to deliver personalized emails; this can increase your email opens, clicks, and conversions. Emails that announce new services, limited-time offers, or exclusive content encourage your subscribers to take immediate action!

Read more about segmenting your email list

🏷️ CREATING ENGAGING CONTENT WITH CALLS TO ACTION (CTAS)

Creating high-quality, valuable content tailored to your ideal customers’ needs and interests generates new leads. This could look like blog posts, videos, or social media content that addresses common questions or challenges. Include a clear call to action (CTA) in each piece of content that directs viewers to book a consultation, purchase a product, or sign up for a service.

Read more about CTAs for Instagram

If you notice that you see bumps in your social media engagement and more opt-ins to your lead magnet, for example, after you share some intentional, thoughtful content, this is an income-generating activity.

👋 Following Up with leads

If you have potential clients who “ghosted” you, never got back to you, or seemed interested but did not commit to your offer, following up with them is an income-generating activity. The same goes for leads on wholesale accounts or “warm leads” for product purchases. Often, people need more nudges or reminders than you think to take action, even if they are interested and the offer is a good fit.

Other potential income-generating activities

  • Sharing to your Stories with a link button

  • Going live in your Group or on Instagram to promote a lead magnet

  • Doing free consults

  • Creating a new offer based on customer feedback

 

Identifying Your Income-Generating Activities

To determine income-generating activities in your business, start with your most recent or successful sales or bookings. What did you do directly before someone bought or booked that contributed to them taking action?

Your nudge, activity, email, message, or suggestion that contributed to the sale is an income-generating activity.

This is a “buyer’s journey” or customer journey, which shows how your audience goes from first impression of your business to booking or buying, and coming back for more ↓

  • Awareness Stage: Since you only have a couple seconds to get your ideal customers’ attention before they scroll or click away, you have to know what messages will feel relevant and important. Your content has to make an instant connection to create Awareness.

  • Interest Stage: One of the BEST things you can offer your audience in the Interest stage is a value proposition, or 1 sentence that tells them exactly what they’ll get from you and your business. A value proposition is like the “headline” of your business. You can also share educational or inspirational content that helps your audience address a need or desire, or makes them feel seen or heard.

  • Desire Stage: Lead magnets are a good way to increase desire for your offers AND move your audience forward in their customer journey. Lead magnets are a free tool or incentive you give in exchange for potential customers’ contact information (usually an email address).

  • Buy-In Stage: When your potential customers or clients arrive at the point-of-purchase (POP) — your e-commerce site, sales page, or checkout — they are in the Buy-In stage. At this stage you need to give your ideal customers key pieces of information to help them feel comfortable taking action and committing.

  • Loyalty Stage: The final stage in the customer journey is most important: You can and should make the majority of your revenue from your existing audience. It takes a lot more time and energy (and marketing) to move NEW ideal customers all the way through the customer journey than to keep current ones engaged in the Loyalty stage.

Consider what you do in your business or marketing that creates desire and interest in your products or services in the Desire and Buy-In Stages. What do you do that motivates your audience to click, book, commit, or buy?

Read more about the customer journey

 

How To Prioritize Your Income-Generating Activities

I recommend making a list of your income-generating activities and keeping them in your planner, in a project management software like Asana, on a Post-It Note, or on a whiteboard where you can see them in your workspace. By the end of your work week, I want you to check in on that list. Have you accomplished your income-generating activities?

Before you spend time doing low-value activities like endless scrolling, make sure your income-generating activities are done.

Once they’re checked off your to-do list, you know you made the best use of your work time and everything else is pretty much secondary.

You may laminate them or put them in your calendar each week as your “scorecard,” and grade yourself on how well you completed your income-generating activities each week. I guarantee you that your “score” each week will correspond with how many new customers, clients, sales, or bookings you have!

I have a list of 6 income-generating activities that I write in my planner each week. Throughout the week I pick through them so I consistently cover my bases with the highest-priority things that drive sales in my business. It feels so good to know that I am completing the tasks that really matter. AND there is always time to do things that bring me more joy but aren’t necessarily as income-driven!

The Takeaway

There are endless ways you could spend your day as a small business owner, but if you want to consistently see more sales, traffic, and engagement in your biz — and income in your bank account — identify and prioritize your income-generating activities each week. This will help you feel more focused and decisive about what you’re going to do with your work time (no matter how much you get!).

You Need A Professional Email Address With A Custom Domain For Your Small Business

Starting April 1, 2024, email providers will enforce new email compliance rules for senders that affect small business owners.

You may have heard about these regulations when they were put into place in February, 2024.

One of these new requirements is that people (like small business owners) who send emails to a list must authenticate their email platform with their domain. This means that, to send emails that actually reach your subscribers, you must connect your “sent from” email address that you use in your email platform — like Flodesk, Klaviyo, Mailerlite, Mailchimp — to a custom domain name. Read more here

Your domain name is the address where your website probably lives. For example: my domain is micahlarsen.com, and my professional email address is micah@micahlarsen.com.

→ To send marketing emails, you MUST have an email address through your domain.

This is what I mean by professional email address: It is not enough to have a Gmail or Yahoo email address with your business name, like: businessname@gmail.com. Not only is this not ethical in terms of using Google’s personal email service, but it also will put your business at risk.

  • ✅ Professional = business@businessname.com

  • 🚫 Personal = business@businessname.com

Why You Need A Professional Email Address

When you send marketing emails to a list of subscribers and use a non-professional email address — like business@businessname.com, instead of business@businessname.com — your subscribers’ inboxes will now start to sort your emails into spam OR block emails from you entirely.

This is important because email marketing is KEY for sustained success in your business; email marketing has one of the highest ROI — returns on investment — of all marketing channels. It’s one of THE most important and valuable pieces of your business; you own your email list data!

Whether or not you currently send marketing emails or know that you would like to in the future, here are reasons why you need a professional email address (through a custom domain):

🏷️ Brand Identity and Credibility

A professional email address that includes a custom domain (e.g., business@businessname.com) reinforces your brand identity and conveys a more professional image. It helps in establishing trust and credibility with customers, partners, and vendors. When you use a generic email address (like @gmail.com or @yahoo.com), it gives a less professional and authoritative impression.

🔒 Control and Security

Having a custom domain for your email allows you to have greater control over your email system and security. You can implement security measures like two-factor authentication, custom spam filters, and encryption to protect sensitive information for your clients or customers.

📫 Email Deliverability

Again, you NEED a professional email address through your custom domain to send emails to a list of subscribers starting now, in 2024. Google, Yahoo and other inbox providers are using more sophisticated security measures to protect their users from spam and hackers. Domain authentication is a step in making sure that you’re a legitimate sender with a real business and not someone trying to steal information.

How To Get A Professional Email Address

There are a few pieces of the puzzle you need to put together to have a professional, working business presence and do email marketing:

  1. A custom domain (like micahlarsen.com)

  2. A site at your custom domain (like this website!)

  3. Google Workspace

  4. Professional email address from your custom domain (like micah@micahlarsen.com)

Get a custom domain

If you have a name for your business, or would like to use your own name for a personal brand, buy your domain name at a registrar site like Google Domains or GoDaddy. Search for your business name and choose an available domain. You may choose one ending in .com, .co, etc.

Create a site on your domain

You don’t need to have a complex, fancy, or perfect website at your domain right now, but you DO need to have an established web presence. Create a website at your domain with a platform like Wordpress or Squarespace.

Get Google workspace

Google Workspace is what allows you to have an email address AT your custom domain, associated with your website. This will pull all the pieces together. You’ll even have an inbox through Google that you can use to correspond using your professional email address. You can get Google Workspace starting at $6 USD/month here.

Authenticate Your Domain

Now, you have a domain, website, and a professional email address. The next step is to authenticate your domain in your email provider’s platform. If you have an email list or platform already, log in, and go to settings. Locate your DNS records, and connect your custom domain. This involves copying-and-pasting the exact records. You will need to access the settings in your domain, website, and your email service provider.

send emails from your professional email address

Make sure your new professional email address is the “Sender Name” in your email platform. When you email your list, it should appear to be from your professional email address, the one from your custom domain. This tells your subscribers’ inboxes that they are receiving an email from a legitimate business associated with a functional website (and not a scammer or someone who spoofed your account).

What Happens When You Do Not Use Your Professional Email Address?

When you do not use your professional email address, you aren’t giving your business the professional impression it deserves. Plus, you’re putting your business and your subscribers at security risk. And, as we established, you won’t be able to send marketing emails to a list without ending in spam or blocked.

The Takeaway

You need to take a few action steps to secure your email marketing, business security, and professional web presence. This will help you land in your subscribers’ email inboxes, allowing you to follow up, nurture your sales, and get new customers and clients.

Read more about email marketing here

Power of Personalization: Write Emails That Speak To Your Subscribers, Get More Clicks, And Convert Customers

Do you ever look at your marketing email insights and feel like you’re just “shouting into the void”

… because no one is bothering to even open your emails, let alone click or actually buy? Now, if that’s the case, how much time do you take to personalize those emails? Do you tailor them to the readers? Do you stop and think about what will be relevant for subscribers based on their needs, preferences, or purchases?

If not, then we may have identified the problem: You need more personalization in your emails.

Personalization goes a long way to make sure your message is received and acted upon when it hits your subscribers’ inboxes. In fact, 72% of customers say they only interact with personalized messages.

I mean, think about it: You probably have an inbox chock-full of messages, too. Which ones stick out to you? Which ones to you actually bother to open and read?

What’s personalization?

I’m willing to bet that the emails you actually interact with are the ones that have subject lines that feel like they are shouting your name. I bet your eyes stick on the emails that speak directly to something you want or need.

This is personalization: The process of tailoring your messages to the person or group of people who will receive it. You may personalize your emails based on your subscribers’ characteristics, needs, past purchases or behaviors, or other factors like their location.

The challenge is that sending emails that feel personal and relevant to each recipient might feel like it takes a lot of time. Fortunately, if you know which basic personalization steps you should take in your email marketing, you can start seeing a big difference in your opens, clicks, and conversion.

This blog post will give you actionable steps for personalizing emails in a way that resonates with your audience, so you can see the results: More website traffic, paying customers, repeat clients, and sales.

Understand Your Audience

what the people want

Your first step in writing personalized emails that get your audience to open, read, click, and buy is understanding what they want from you: What problems do you address for your customers or clients? Why might a potential customer seek you out?

When you are clear about what problems you solve and the desires you satisfy with your products or services, you can write emails that feel particularly relevant and meaningful for your audience.

Here are some questions to ask yourself to understand what your audience wants:

  1. What challenges might my clients or customers experience before my product or service?

  2. How does my product/service make their lives better or easier?

  3. What might my client or customers type into Google that would let me know they are a good fit for my offers?

  4. What are the most common questions I get from my customers or clients?

HOW TO GET CLEAR ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE

If you don’t have immediate answers to these questions, gather insights about your audience, such as surveys, social media interactions, and feedback forms, so you can create content that really resonates.

  • Poll your audience in relevant Facebook Groups

  • See what value is so important to your past customers or clients that they chose to mention it in your reviews or testimonials

Read more about getting feedback from your audience here

CREATE AN IDEAL CUSTOMER AVATAR

  • Creating buyer personas help you better visualize and understand the various segments of your audience.

The more clarity you have about your ideal customer or client the easier it is to segment and personalize high-converting content.

For example, this Instagram caption describes an ideal customer: “nontraditional nature enthusiasts.”

With clarity about your ideal customer and their values and beliefs, you can start generating content ideas that attract the right eyeballs.

Get the bestselling 10 Steps To Your Ideal Customer Avatar workbook here

Segment Your Email List

Segmenting your list means looking at your marketing email recipients and finding meaningful ways to group them so you can send emails that feel relevant. Your email subscribers are not all in the same stage of the customer journey, or their relationship with you. They don’t all need the same things or have the same level of familiarity with your business.

When you break your email list down into meaningful groups or “segments” based on their needs, preferences, and history, you can really enhance the power of your emails. More specific segments make it a lot easier to write better:

  • content; you can speak directly to the segments’ needs and desires

  • subject lines; you can address their common concerns

  • calls to action; you can point the segment toward the most relevant offer

  • If you do in-person events or have a brick-and-mortar, you may want to segment people based on where they live; emails about local events won’t be very relevant for people who do not live in your area.

    Alternatively, if you do annual events or markets, you may want to segment people based on which event and location they attended, especially if they join your list while they are at the event; you can email them annually to invite them to the next pop-up, market, or fair and make it easy for them to add the date to their calendars.

  • This is my favorite segment of all; create a segment of your top customers or clients. Often, I recommend segmenting your top 20-ish% of customers or clients based on their lifetime spend, for starters. If you have a clear idea of who your “best customers” are, put them on a VIP list.

    You get to decide what “VIP” means in your business, so try to identify what that tier looks like and what a customer or client must do to be considered a VIP.

    Once you have a VIP list, reserve your best incentives and perks for these folks. Read more on VIPs and repeat customer loyalty here.

  • _

  • COLD

    Waitlist

    Most Engaged Subscribers

  • Item description

benefits of segmenting your list

Segmenting your list makes your emails a win-win:

  1. more personalized value for your readers

  2. more engagement for you

how to segment

  • Offer tips on how to segment email lists effectively using email marketing tools.

Writing Personalized Emails

  • Discuss the significance of using the recipient's name and other personal information sparingly to add a personal touch without overdoing it.

How to personalize marketing emails

  • Suggest ways to tailor the email content based on the recipient's segment, such as highlighting relevant services, products, or content.

  • Share ideas for creating content that addresses the common pain points and aspirations of your ideal clients, making the emails feel more relevant and engaging.

Using Automation For Personalization

  • Introduce the concept of email marketing automation and how it can help personalize emails at scale.

  • Caution against over-reliance on automation and the importance of maintaining a personal touch.

Example

Brands like makeup company Il Makiage automate personalized emails to go out to recipients before their subscription orders are fulfilled. This email reminds me of my customer perks and gets me excited about what’s coming.

Plus, this type of automated email reminds me that I have control over the replenishment, which helps me edit the subscription to best suit my needs.

This type of personalized email is sent at just the right time to be useful, which creates a better customer experience.

The Power of Personalizing Emails

Email personalization matters for several reasons. At its core, personalization enhances the effectiveness of email marketing by making communications more relevant and engaging for each of your subscribers. Here’s what email personalization can do for your email marketing:

🔥 Increases Open Rates and Engagement

Personalized emails are more likely to catch your subscribers’ attention. Even just including their name in the subject line or tailoring the email content to their interests will help you increase open rates and engagement levels. If you don’t know what your subscribers care about, this is a super-helpful resource.

👯‍♀️ Builds Stronger Relationships

Personalization helps create a feeling of a one-on-one conversation between you and your subscriber, like you’re talking to them more intimately. Everyone wants to feel seen and heard, and personalized emails will help your customers and potential customers feel acknowledged.

💸 Boosts Conversions and Revenue

By sending relevant offers and content, personalized emails directly contribute to more traffic and sales. People are always more likely to take action when your messages resonate with their specific needs and interests. Your best bet is to really drill down on the problem or pain point your offer addresses for your customer or client, and put it in language they would use and will understand!

😉 GIVES A BETTER Customer Experience

Personalized emails really help you give people a better experience, because you write emails that are more relevant for their immediate needs and long-term success. You’ll be much more likely to snag their attention and compel them to take action in your business if you show up at the right time, like when you know they might be ready for your product, service, or freebie. Breaking your audience down into relevant segments really helps this process along!

🏆 Differentiates Your Business

In a competitive market, personalization can set totally set your business apart. By showing that you understand your customers’ and clients' needs and preferences, you suddenly appear miles ahead of any business that sticks with a one-size-fits-all approach. Like I often say: When you try to please everyone, you reach no one.

👩🏼‍💻 Reduces Unsubscribe Rates

When emails are personalized and relevant, recipients are less likely to hit unsubscribe. And, in 2024 and beyond, it’s doubly important that you keep your unsub rates down; this is part of email compliance!

✍🏻 GIVES YOU MORE INSIGHT

Personalization requires you to get some real clarity about your audience, which will help you make better decisions in all aspects of your business. Understanding your audience's behavior and preferences allows you to refine your overall marketing strategy and create more effective content.

The Takeaway

  • Summarize the key points discussed in the blog post.

  • Reiterate the impact of personalized email communication on building stronger relationships with clients.

  • Encourage readers to start implementing these strategies in their own email marketing efforts for better engagement and results.

Call to Action:

  • Invite readers to share their own experiences or tips on personalizing emails.

  • Offer your services or an invitation to a webinar/workshop for those looking to dive deeper into effective email marketing strategies.

How to Optimize Your Content For SEO to Get More Website Traffic

Right now there are thousands of people out in the world, whipping out their phones or opening their laptops because they need or want your product or service. They’re actively searching Google, Pinterest, or YouTube because they have a problem or a desire that you address in your business, but they can’t find you easily because you don’t pop up at the top of their results pages.

When you know what your ideal customers or clients are searching for, you can optimize your content to attract the right eyeballs and drive more traffic to your website where people can book and buy.

What’s in this blog post:

  • Why you should optimize your content for SEO

  • Understanding your ideal customer

  • How to optimize your content for search engines

Why Optimize Your Content For SEO?

Attract Potential Customers Who Are Searching For You

The people who are actively searching for a product or service like yours, or typing relevant problems into search engines, are the easiest ones to convert into paying customers or clients because they are aware that they have a need or desire, and already chose to take action. All you have to do is make it easy for them to find and engage with you, so they can book or buy.

It takes much more energy, time, and effort to attract and convert people who don’t even know that they need or want your offers than it is to sell to people who are very problem-aware. Those potential customers who are typing relevant search terms into Google or Pinterest are already problem-aware; they’ve identified that they have a question, desire, or pain point, and they are motivated to find an answer or solution.

You don’t have to do nearly as much work educating and nurturing with an actively searching audience to get them to book or buy.

For example, people in your local area searching for “dog groomers near me” already know they need to get their dog groomed, are motivated to find a groomer, and not just any groomer, but someone in your location.

Meanwhile, people who have never searched for “dog groomer” may still need to be convinced or educated about the benefits of dog grooming, or may never have even considered getting professional grooming. Selling the service to these people will likely take more touch-points and more nurturing with emails, posts, and ads.

You don’t have to be an seo expert

Just hearing “SEO” can be enough to intimidate business owners who haven’t done search engine work before. But you don’t have to know anything about the back end of your website or search engine rankings to get started and start seeing results from your content marketing.

Read more about SEO here

First, get clarity about who you’d like to attract with SEO ↓

Understanding Your Ideal Customer

Who is already out there searching for you? To answer this question, we need some clarity around who is a good fit for your product or service. The clearer you are about your best-fit customer or client the easier it will be to attract more of them.

Define your ideal customer

Your ideal customer or client is someone who wants and needs your product or service. They experience pain points, desires, or problems that motivate them to buy and use your offer. They desire the benefits and outcomes you provide with your product or service.

You don’t have to know your ideal customer’s hair color or what color car they drive, but you DO need to know what might qualify someone to be a good fit for you and your business. Here are some questions you may answer to define your ideal customer or client:

  1. Who are my current customers, and what characteristics do they share?

  2. What problem or need does my product or service solve for my customers?

  3. What demographics (age, gender, location, income level, education level) are most common among my current customers?

  4. What are the psychographics (values, interests, hobbies, lifestyle) of my ideal customers?

  5. What pain points or challenges do my ideal customers experience that my product or service can address?

Polished Prints has a very clear and defined ideal customer avatar.

what are your ideal customers searching for?

What are your best-fit customers typing into search engines that is relevant to your business, expertise, or industry? They have needs and desires that you address. Now, what is it that they actually search for?

Here are a few ways you can answer these questions:

  1. Keyword Research Tools: Use keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, or Ubersuggest to discover the specific terms and phrases that your audience is searching for related to your business, expertise, or industry.

  2. Customer Surveys and Interviews: Ask your existing customers or target audience about the terms they use when searching for products or services similar to what they offer, like, “What questions do you have about [topic]?”

  3. Competitor Analysis: You can analyze the keywords that your competitors are targeting, like with SEMrush’s competitor analysis tool.

  4. Social Media Listening: Use social media platforms, forums, and online communities where their your ideal customers hang out. Pay attention to the questions, discussions, and topics being discussed. Note common pain points, interests, and needs.

  5. Google Search Suggestions: Typing relevant keywords related for your business or industry into Google's search bar and notice the autocomplete suggestions; they are based on popular search queries. This can give you ideas for potential keywords and phrases your audience might use.

Google’s autosuggestion feature attempts to complete your search query. The list of suggested searches is based on the top searches with those keywords, so you know lots of people have been asking Google those questions. Autosuggestions usually make great blog post topics or ideas for email newsletters, trainings, or tutorials.

keywords and phrases

The words and phrases your audience uses to describe your industry and offers are keywords and keyword phrases. The more familiar you are with your business keywords, the easier it is to come with highly-engaging and relevant content, because you know you can speak to your audience’s questions.

Read more about keyword research here

Action Item: Identify keywords and phrases your ideal customers use when searching for products or services like yours

How to Optimize Your Content for Search Engines

Keyword placement

Incorporate keywords naturally into your content so you are more likely to come up in your ideal customers’ search results. The words and phrases you use in your content tell platforms like YouTube, Google, Pinterest, and Instagram what your content is about, so they can promote it to the appropriate users. Hashtags, for example, are really just strategic keywords that tell Instagram about your content.

Sites like Google use AI “crawlers” to identify keywords and phrases you use in your content and website pages to decide how to show it in search engine results.

titles

Write titles for your content — pages, blog posts — with keywords and searchability in mind. And don’t forget that you need to write it for humans to read it, too; if your title doesn’t clearly tell your readers what your content is about, they won’t click or consume it. Web crawlers and search engines tend to put the most weight on the keywords in your content titles and meta descriptions.

Meta Descriptions: Ever wondered what those short blurbs under Google search results are? They're called meta description tags, and they're like little previews of what your webpage is about. Google uses them to help users find the most relevant info. So, it's super important to craft unique, descriptive, and on-point meta descriptions for your pages.

You can edit the meta descriptions on your website pages and blog posts in settings. Add appropriate keywords that will help the right audience find the content.

headers

Use header tags (H1, H2, etc.) in your blog posts and site pages to structure content and improve readability for your users. The easier it is to find and access your content the more people will find and use it. Web crawlers also take headers into account when assessing what your content is about. Some SEO experts even suggest targeting a specific keyword phrase with each page on your website to help you rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs).

Content Creation Strategies

Create content for your ideal customer

Creating high-quality, engaging content that resonates with your audience is always a best practice, but it will also help you get found by people searching for your industry or offers. I always recommend starting your content creation process with your ideal customers’ questions or pain points. That way, you can be confident that you’re creating something that will be relevant and meaningful, and it’s more likely to attract people who will actually buy from you.

For example, using long-tail keywords to inspire your content could help you blog posts that attract your ideal customers and guide them through tutorials or recommendations.

Long-tail keywords are specific and detailed keyword phrases with three or more words. Unlike broad keywords, which are shorter and more general, long-tail keywords target a narrower audience with specific search intent. They often have lower search volumes but higher conversion rates because they cater to users seeking very specific information or solutions.

For example, "crib sheets,” is a general keyword phrase, but “organic cotton crib sheets with animal prints” is a long-tail keyword that targets a specific search intent and product type.

Address their problems

Addressing common pain points or questions your ideal customers have with your content (blog posts, Reels, TikToks, Instagram captions, Lives, webinars, Threads, Facebook posts). Answering relevant questions will help you attract and nurture your relationship with the right audience.

Use relevant keywords

Incorporating relevant keywords and phrases throughout your content helps you show up in the SERPs — search engine results pages — on search-driven sites like Pinterest, Google, YouTube, and Instagram.

What To Do

Take Action and Optimize Your Content For Search Engines

  1. Conduct keyword research using free tools like Google Keyword Planner, Answer The Public, or Ubersuggest

  2. Optimize existing website content with identified keywords and phrases; rewrite titles, metadescriptions, and organize headers

  3. List content ideas for future content using keyword phrases and long-tail keyword phrases

  4. Incorporate keyword phrases in your content, especially in titles and headers and hashtags

The Takeaway

Optimizing content for search engines will help you attract the most relevant traffic for your business and drive it to your website where your ideal customers and clients can book or buy. And you don’t have to be an SEO expert to get started and start seeing results.

What happens when you invest time in SEO ↓

  1. Increased Visibility: By optimizing their website for search engines, your clients can improve their website's visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs), making it easier for potential customers to find them.

  2. More Organic Traffic: With improved visibility comes increased organic traffic to your website. This means more people visiting your site without the need for paid advertising!

  3. More Credibility and Trust: Websites that rank higher in search results are often seen as more credible and trustworthy.

  4. Cost-Effectiveness: It may take time to optimize your existing content and create new content based on keyword research, but the long-term benefits often outweigh the time and effort. Compared to other marketing strategies, SEO offers a higher return on investment over time for women business owners like you.

  5. Competitive Advantage: Having a strong SEO strategy can give you a competitive edge, because you can attract more customers ahead of your competition.