Building Your Brand: Leveraging Storytelling & Social Media to Inspire Your Target Market
Before investing in marketing materials and campaigns, stop and think: “Who is this message designed to reach?”
You’ve launched your labor of love - your new brick-and-mortar store, service offering, or business idea. You’re so excited about what you’re doing. Or, maybe you’ve been passionately building your business for a while now, but you’re struggling to get traction with customers and you aren’t sure why.
You are confident everyone who hears about what you do will be just as enthralled as you are. Right?
WRONG. New and experienced business owners alike need to refine the way they communicate through marketing and branding, to get their customers excited! Think about the following:
Who is my target market? Who are my marketing materials designed to reach and inspire? (Hint: The answer is NOT “everyone”)
How can I reach & inspire my target market on social media?
How can I determine what content will resonate with my target market?
Who is my target market?
Before investing in marketing materials and campaigns, stop and think: “Who is this message designed to reach?”
There should be alignment between your social media posts and blog content, and your business’s ideal customer or “target audience.” This doesn’t mean that you dismiss potential clients who don’t perfectly fit your ideal customer persona. But your ideal client is someone who is already seeking or pre-disclosed to patronize you, doesn’t need to be convinced about why they should invest in your value proposition, and has the disposable income to pay for your services.
Your marketing efforts should be targeted toward this persona, as they present the clearest and least difficult path to consistent revenue generation for your business. Your branding, marketing and prospecting techniques, the delivery of your services/products, and your operations should be geared to attract and retain your ideal client.
Remember, being a profitable, competitive business owner requires spending the least amount of resources (time and money) required to secure customers, retain them, and transition them into brand advocates who are highly motivated to refer new clients to you.
The most successful entrepreneurs are purposeful regarding the aforementioned. Click this link to hear a quick story about how purpose can supercharge your business.
How can I reach & inspire my target market on social media?
In a world of curated lives - the constant stream of steak & eggs, trips to exclusive vacation destinations, and celebrations of people living their best lives online - your prospects want to know that you are a real, authentic person. In the beginning, you are the brand.
Do you have the academic knowledge and business experience to deliver quality work for them?
Are you passionate about what you do, or is your business just here to part prospective clients with their hard-earned money and fund your lifestyle?
Have you ever done this work before, or would I be your first client? Do you have receipts and client testimonials?
What inspires you?
Find 3-5 topics that capture who you are, what you do, and why you’re doing it. Everyone has a story to tell because everyone comes to the table with differing life experiences. These could be topics like:
Why I believe entrepreneurship is empowerment
Why I believe dancing is your way of introducing sunshine into people's lives
What is the backstory of launching my stuffed pepper business
Why or how did your upbringing impact your approach to mental fitness
What does your creative process look like before you step on stage
Then, consistently drive your social media posting and messaging toward these 3-5 topics across the specific social media platforms that your target market is using. If you are new to using social media, or feeling overwhelmed by posting about 3-5 topics consistently, concentrate your efforts on the 1 social media platform that gives you the most traction first. After you get the hang of 1 social media platform, you can expand to the others.
Use these tactics to establish consistent messaging and tell a consistent story about yourself and your business. A word about concerning yourself too much about the reactions of people you may know.
How can I determine what content will resonate with my target market?
As you think about what to post on social media, try to identify particular things that your target market will be interested in. Here are some questions to get you started:
Think about the target customer you identified above:
What is their occupation?
Are they married? Do they have children?
How old are they?
What are their hobbies? What do they do for fun on the weekends?
Where do they live - rural, suburban, or urban?
Do they eat out, or cook lunch and dinner themselves?
Do they drink beer, wine, liquor, or no alcohol at all?
What kinds of foods do they like?
Do they have a morning routine? If so, what is it?
Do they prefer reading, watching videos, or podcasts?
Do they prefer comedy shows, concerts, ballet, or smoky bars?
What is the job that your target market is hiring you or buying your product to perform?
How will your products or services save the day?
How have the lives of your existing customers been changed as a result of working with you? What positive results have been produced in their lives?
What client testimonials and proof do I have to share?
If you’re still concerned about what to post, or concerned that you don’t have time to post consistently, start by sharing glimpses into what you do every day. Show them how you make the donuts. Don’t overcomplicate the process. We all start somewhere.
Note: If you’re doing the work, you’ll never run out of stuff to post.
Are You Looking for Support?
JSB Business Solutions is here to help.
Take the first step towards elevating your performance by scheduling your consultation. Click this link and schedule a day and time that works best for you.
The world around us wasn’t built by the exceptional. It was built by everyday people who were willing to do exceptional things. Go build something.
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