In this episode, I’m walking through six clues that help you figure out which marketing channels are actually working for your business and how they can help you decide what to keep, cut, or bring in.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Personal Business Journey
00:37 The Turning Point: Hiring a Business Coach
01:37 Lessons Learned from Focused Marketing
02:45 Current Marketing Strategy and Future Plans
03:23 Choosing the Right Marketing Channels
04:17 Six Tips for Evaluating Marketing Channels
06:06 Website Power Up Plan
06:42 Tool of the Week: Bright Local
07:17 Recommended Podcast Episode
07:59 Conclusion and Call to Action
Resources
- Tool of the Week 👉 BrightLocal.
A local SEO tool used by both business owners and SEO professionals. See who your competitors are in the Google map pack and track your keywords for the maps also. Super handy. - Recommended Podcast 👉 from Diary of a CEO, called Anxiety Is Just a Prediction. It’s one of their most replayed moments. The host, Steven Bartlett, interviewed Lisa Feldman Barrett. It blew my mind. I knew of the concept already but not quiet in this way. And it’s one of the reason I continue to listen to episodes even if the title sounds like something I already know. Different people, different perspectives and ways of explaining things.
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A few years into running my business, it got stagnant. I had been hoping for referrals.
Side note, hoping isn’t a great marketing strategy. I shared very strong opinions about that back in episode 72.
And I was on all the channels so why wasn’t I getting leads?
Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Facebook, a newsletter, a blog… I had them all. Not because I had a brilliant plan in place. More because I thought I should be everywhere. Because you never know, right!?
Around 2022-ish, I hired a business coach. And in hindsight, that was the first time I made an intentional move toward marketing my business. He coached only on LinkedIn. That was his entire focus.
At the time, I was targeting photographers, and photographers aren’t exactly scrolling LinkedIn for SEO help.
And I knew that, deep in my soul.
But I still followed the plan for a while, because I thought this guy had the answer to get more leads.
And he did, but not for my business the way he was teaching.
I’ll say this though… the clarity I got from that coaching was worth it.
- My teaching/coaching process became clearer.
- My client journey made more sense.
- My lead magnet finally connected to my paid offers.
And I started to see what happens when you put your attention into one channel instead of bouncing between five of them.
Eventually, I stopped the coaching because it didn’t feel right anymore. (I’d still recommend him; nothing bad happened, it just wasn’t for me anymore.)
And looking back at that experience I can see when I fully committed to that one channel, I didn’t feel scattered or confused.
Today, things look different.
- The environment is more fragmented.
- AI search is changing how people find businesses.
- And I personally don’t have the capacity or desire to keep every channel spinning.
My core channels currently are this podcast, my newsletter, and my blog. They support each other. They give me a rhythm I can keep up with. And next up is video, because it adds a level of real-human presence that’s becoming more important as more businesses lean heavily on AI. (Plus it’s great for repurposing and distributing to multiple channels.)
Here’s the part that matters for you.
If you’re a few years into your business, you probably already have a handful of channels in motion. The problem usually isn’t which one should I start. It’s which ones deserve my energy and that will provide a return on that energy (and of course related spend in the form of labor or boosting or other financially related things).
Here’s what I recommend…
Choose the one, two, or three places that make the most sense for your audience and for your capacity. The ones you can show up in consistently. The channels that give you real conversations or real traffic. And let the rest go.
6 Clues That Show You Where to Market
- Where your inquiries actually come from
- Not where you wish they’d come from. Look at the sources that consistently send you warm leads. Even if it’s way lower than your other ones. Because it’s likely a proper strategy just hasn’t been given to that channel.
- Where your audience already spends time
- If your people live on Instagram, be there. If they open emails, be there. If your clients are using TikTok (🤢), be there.
- What feels doable for you week after week
- If a channel drains you, it’s not a good fit. Pick the ones you can stick with without fighting yourself. Or hire it out.
- Where you can show your strengths
- If talking is easier than writing, consider podcasting. If writing flows, email or blogging may be a better fit. Use what you’re naturally good at.
- What gives you useful data
- Some channels show traction quickly. Some don’t. If you’ve been consistent and you’re still hearing crickets, it might not be a channel to prioritize right now.
- And some channels might not show up in your analytics like you need them to. Here’s where you might have to get creative with your metrics.
- Whether the channel builds long-term visibility or has repurposing potential
- Platforms like your blog, podcast, or YouTube can compound over time. Social posts tend to disappear quickly. But you could repurpose things and get creative with reusing older content.
And if you’re looking at this list thinking, “Okay… I know some of my channels aren’t pulling their weight, but I’m not totally sure what to keep, cut or bring in,” that’s exactly what my Website Power-Up Plan™ helps you figure out. It gives you a clear read on where your website has the best chance to pull in more qualified traffic. It’s $99 and gives you specific prioritized next steps you can implement the same day!
The Takeaway
When you know where your audience actually spends time, and you choose channels you can realistically commit to, marketing becomes simpler. Not effortless, but simpler and more calm. And clarity tends to lead to better results.
