We live in exciting times. Huge opportunities and challenges seem to come up every day, and we each have so much expertise, wisdom, talent, and help to contribute.
But we can rise to the moment only if we are able to share our messages, experiences, and offerings.
In other words, we need to gain visibility.
This is true whether you’re a businessperson, a coach, an artist, an activist, or any other way of being in the world. To expand your reach and connect with more people and make a bigger impact, you need to get some attention.
Raising your visibility in order to grow your impact is a long process; more of a marathon than a sprint. There are four elements that help make sure you succeed. Here’s how I’ve come to use each one — and how you can, too.
1. Know what you want to become known for.
Often people stumble in reaching for attention because they don’t know, or can’t quite express, exactly what they want people to pay attention to.
Mark Schaefer writes about this in his book KNOWN. You really have to answer this question for yourself. Otherwise, how will anyone else know why you matter them? They’re not mind readers, and they’re busy and mentally filled up too.
I wanted to become known as the go-to person to help people overcome their fear speaking, whether it’s live on camera or on stage. I didn’t set out working with public speakers, rather entrepreneurs who wanted to be on camera. But people started to come to me who were speakers, and I was getting results for them.
So I decided to put myself out there, clearly, in this way. It’s somewhat awkward because some of my public speaking clients have far more public speaking experience than I do, but what I offer is working, and it is 100 percent what I want to become known for.
Ask yourself some questions to figure it out:
“What do I want to be known for?”
“What do I want to be the go-to person for?”
“Why do they come to me and not somebody else?”
2. Show up.
To get attention, you have to show up consistently in places where people can find you. That might be Instagram Stories, or Facebook Live, or podcasts, or print magazines, or tv spots, or your own blog.
Find the platforms that you feel drawn to and try it out. See what feels right or where people respond to you. And then go with it. Challenge yourself on how much you can commit yourself, because the more consistently you show up, the better results you’re going to get.
The going might be slow at first. I circled the idea of weekly Facebook Lives for a year and a half. People were telling me over and over that I had to do it, but it just didn’t feel right.
In the meantime, I kept showing up a little bit here and there on social media, a little bit with YouTube videos, with Periscopes. And then, this past January, I finally made the commitment to do a weekly show. I said, I’m going to do this every Monday. If I’m on the road. If I’m sick. I am going to do this.
I used to worry I would run out of things to talk about. Showing up every week has challenged me to find more topics inside my topic.
Having a weekly commitment also gives me time to study the live streaming process: script and delivery, promotion, audience engagement and conversion. Steady focus makes for steady improvement.
So even if you’re uncertain of your main focus like I was, pick something to try. Give it some time, say, a few months, and see how it sticks. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. Try something else. Just keep asking “what can I do to help people find me?”
3. Don’t give up.
This part speaks to the importance of consistency — but it’s also about getting back on the horse when you’ve fallen off or just decided to spend some time on other horses.
I’m the first to admit that I’m erratic in my newsletter writing. I have been erratic in social media. I’ve been erratic in many, many ways as I’ve worked to grow my brand and impact!
Slowly, but surely, I’ve made certain commitments. I now have my TV show on Thursdays (most Thursdays!) and the Monday Facebook Lives. I use the platforms that work best for me and I don’t spread myself too thin by trying to be on all the others. But it took two-and-a-half years to get here!
In spite of my inconsistency and overreach, I’ve made progress. Yes, it might have been faster or bigger had I found my groove earlier, but it hasn’t been a standstill either. So even though it’s better to be consistent, don’t sweat if you’re not. You just haven’t yet found the right time, the right platform, the right alignment.
Give yourself some slack. Allow yourself to experiment, knowing that you’re doing the best you can. If there’s a closed door here, go to the open door over there. Don’t give up. Be undeterred. Because you will get there.
4. Leverage everything.
When you have something that you’ve done — a Facebook Live or a talk, or a podcast appearance, or a quote in someone’s article, anything — don’t consider it a one-and-done.
Put it on social media. Write a blog post based on it. Make a super-quick-tip video based on the blog post and put it on LinkedIn. Make it the centerpiece of your next newsletter. Make your live talk into a video, or make a video about giving your live talk!
Adapt it for different segments of your audience, or use it as the seed of a pitch for a magazine article. Every piece of content has at least nine lives, which is nine different ways you can use it to be of service to your people and grow your reach.
I leverage as much as I can, though here, too, I don’t always live up to the ideal. Sometimes I only send out notification of my live stream 10 minutes in advance, giving my audience little lead time.
And I was on a podcast recently and I still haven’t posted it yet on social media. I like to do a lot, and this means that it takes me a long time to roll everything out. Maybe it’s time to get some outside help.
But I know for sure that I will eventually get to it. That content isn’t going anywhere!
The point is to let yourself be proud of what you are doing rather than beating yourself up over what you aren’t.
So, what excites you about getting more visible? What platforms interest you? What kinds of leveraging sound doable and exciting to you? Let me know in the comments below.
Remember, you’re doing important work. There’s nothing more exciting than trying to make the world a better place. Growing your visibility and becoming known is a thrilling part of this ride.
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