I swear a lot. I have to remind myself when I am teaching yoga to use words like "seat" instead of "ass" and "challenges" instead of "bullshit." I eat meat, I love wine (anything with bubbles), I worry too much, and I can't get enough of the Kardashian's. This does not necessarily paint the most perfect image of me, so... why am I telling you this? 

Because it makes me a real person. 

Now don't get me wrong - I am also hyper-organized, motivated, intelligent and well-spoken. I have excellent customer service skills, I can manage myself in front of a crowd, perform under pressure, and teach a heck (hell) of a yoga class.  But if that was all I told you about me, would you relate? 

Here's the thing - there is SO much NOISE out there today. By noise I mean marketing and advertising. We are constantly being sold to, marketed to, fed content and click-baited. That being said, pause for a moment and think about what you actually choose to click on and engage with. 

If I had to guess, it is highly likely you choose to dive deeper into topics you feel passionate about, news that affects you or your community, articles that help you improve a skill or teach you something that you can apply to your work or daily life, and probably also a few vice clicks as well - sports, celebrity gossip columns, etc. I can only assume you do not like to be tricked into clicking on something, only to find out you have been led somewhere entirely different. 

My point? You click on things you CONNECT with. If I am a representation of my brand, and I want to connect with you, then I have to share a bit of my story with you. I have to be transparent or you probably won't trust me. This does not mean that I have to tell you my deepest, darkest secrets. It does not mean I have to tell you what I have for breakfast everyday. I can still maintain a level of privacy, professionalism, and clarity with my content while sharing a piece of what makes me and my business unique. 

When your brand can set itself apart from others by being authentic and honest yet still very clear with your messaging and mission - THIS is what will separate you from the noise. From there, the people who are a good fit for your business and your services will connect with you and likely stay loyal because they trust you. Need help figuring out how you can do this with your brand? Let me know, I am happy to help!

#TransparencyIsTrending 

Additionally, when your business is represented across multiple platforms (your website, Facebook, Instagram, etc.) it shows your consumers that you are active (that is... as long as you are engaging with your audience on these platforms!). In other words - you are open and ready for their business! Consumers can also use social media to "check-in" at your physical location, further validating that you do in fact exist. 

2. Word of Mouth 
One of the best ways to market your business is through word of mouth. Since everyone lives on social media these days, it is the perfect place for people to talk about you. Social media platforms can be used for reviews, ratings, to share photos and tell stories - the possibilities for others to promote your business across social media are endless.  

3. Influence
People are easily influenced by their friends. If my friends are all posting delicious looking food pics from a local bakery - you better believe I'm going to try it out! When it seems like everyone in my feed is posting vacation photos from Palm Springs - I'm booking the next flight to the desert so I can get that instagram worthy photo in front of the cactus, too. 

4. Customer Information
Social media platforms provide a plethora of information about our consumers that we can use to make strategic and educated marketing decisions. By keeping track of our browsing habits, search history and personal information (that we all so willingly share), social media platforms know a great deal about each of us. Far beyond basic demographics - both Facebook and Twitter provide incredibly detailed and interesting information about who is visiting our business profiles. This information can be used to our marketing advantage: We can send specific messaging to targeted groups, find new potential customers that share similar interests and profiles to our existing consumers, and beyond just our social media pages, now we can even link our business website to Facebook and get details on who is browsing our site. 

​5. Everybody's Doing It
Truth - Mindwell Marketing is all about being an individual, in fact, we preach being your own badass business self. But that doesn't mean be a loner... we need our community of consumers to keep our business afloat! So get online and engage with your consumers there, and then get excited to greet them in person when they come to your business!