Where to start SMM for small business: 3 simple rules
Printed 2013-04-20
Most people dream of starting their own business, which will allow them to travel and have fun while receiving money. The problem is that 99 percent do not. But it's easier to do than you think, at least if you create SMM agency of promotion on social networks.
Ty Lopez, a member of The Oracles Entrepreneurs Club, says this: “If I had to start all over again without money and experience, I would look for small companies that would pay me up to 10,000 dollars a month for managing your social networks. ”
Lopez uses social networks to launch dozens of new businesses and scale existing ones. He has one of the 20 most popular lectures on TEDx, and YouTube videos are used by some professors to teach marketing. Why? Because he is not afraid to experiment.
"I spent $ 20 million on crazy experiments on social networks to see what works and what doesn't, and I earned tens of millions."
Lopez quickly noticed that many small business owners are afraid to go into social networks and prefer simpler and more understandable traditional marketing channels. “There are many technical innovations and everything is constantly changing. If you are not immersed in SMM with your head, it's hard for you to keep up with how all social networks are developing. ”
He emphasizes that this creates opportunities for marketers. “The secret to making money is to become valuable to others,” Lopez explains. “Even just knowing how Facebook and Google work can make a difference for small businesses. They will be happy to pay you constantly if you help them. ”
According to Lopez, on average, customers in the United States are willing to pay $ 1,500 per month for working with their social networks, even if you're not working full time. Five customers will securely bring you $ 9,000 a month.
Lopez talks about how to create your own marketing SMM agency and sell your services to small businesses. Here are seven steps to get you started.
1. Apply SMM to yourself
“Start promoting yourself,” Lopez says. His viral video “In My Garage” on YouTube was watched billions of times and was shot only on the iPhone, “but convinced people that I was a capable marketer.”
2. Choose profitable niches
Social media marketing is a business model that requires a lot of work at first, but then gives dividends for a long time (the opposite is a business on the treadmill: if you stop working, your income drops to scratch.)
Lopez recommends focusing on attracting highly paid professionals such as doctors, lawyers and dentists as clients, because it will not be a problem for them to find money.
“If you know how to promote one dentist, it's easy to scale and get the same results for other dentists,” Lopez explains. “You will escape the death trap when entrepreneurs simply sell their time for money. Instead, you will create a predictable cash flow from multiple customers. ”
3. Product line
“Customers want different things, and some of them always want a premium package,” says Lopez. “If you have only one service with one price, you will lose customers who need more.”
Instead, he recommends creating four packages: $ 997, $ 1.997, $ 4.997, and $ 9.997. Thus, you will have a basic product and a VIP option. The difference is in the amount and type of work that you will do.
For $ 997, you could optimize the client's site so that it better converts traffic to leads. And create a simple email funnel - and this is a very valuable asset - to increase LTV.
For $ 1.997 you can manage all client accounts on social networks and pack them properly.
“For $ 9.997, you could offer the same services as the $ 1.997 package, but invest $ 4000 in ads on Google and Facebook,” says Lopez.
4. Quickly find customers
“The best way to get orders is with friends, family, and recommendations. If someone has never worked with you, he will not hire you at the risk of money, ”Lopez explains.
“Do a free audit of their sites and accounts on social networks using a ready-made template. Then you can say with confidence: "This is what you are doing wrong and this is how I will improve the situation."
“Choose one or two of the most loyal customers and ask them to make written or video reviews,” he adds. "Success stories confirm your competence and inspire confidence in other potential customers."
5. Storytelling
Lopez quickly gained over a million Snapchat subscribers. It would seem that he just shares his funny lifestyle, showing top models, supercars and cool friends. But if you read between the lines ....
“My definition of branding is to make a business interesting,” says Lopez. “Jaden Gross, one of my first students, makes over $ 100,000 a month at her SMM agency at 22 years old. He told me that the most valuable thing I taught him was how to create a “brand history”. ”
Instead of traditional marketing that drives sales, Lopez recommends creating a captivating, exciting, behind-the-scenes, adventurous story that continues day after day. “It's like a continuous commercial that will attract people and make them come back to watch every day.”
“Become a master at storytelling,” adds Lopez. “Start with a simple video [about their story] for their site.”
6. Track your results
“To earn money, you must earn it,” says Lopez. “You have to prove that you are making money for your customers. So use tools like Hootsuite to track your marketing results. ”
7. Hire People
Lopez emphasizes the importance of becoming a“ general ”who creates a team to do complex work. “At the very least, you need a personal assistant and accountant to do your daily business and manage your money.”
He shares the advice of his second mentor, Allan Nation, “You will never earn big money by working for yourself. You will earn them when other people work for you. ”