Social media, blogs, emails, paid ads, analytics, SEO — oh my! When it comes to marketing your business, it can quickly become overwhelming. If you’re doing it all alone like most entrepreneurs, the pressure to perform feels even heavier.
Let’s just be honest: great marketing can feel really hard. That’s why there are entire agencies dedicated to it! But if your pockets aren’t that deep (yet), we’re sharing three ways to simplify your marketing so you can actually grow your business without losing sleep.
1. Take inventory of what you’re doing
First thing’s first: make a note of everything you’re currently doing to market your business. Even if you did one random marketing thing that one random time, write it down! We’re talking about your website, that one time you promoted a Facebook ad, your emails, your outreach/pitching, all of it. Why? It’s time to assess what’s working and what’s not. Because the truth is, even if you are doing it all, it’s not all going to work. Here’s an example…
Let’s say you have a business or product in a really saturated market, like graphic design. You may have tried to update your website using an SEO strategy based on “graphic design” as your main keyword. That kind of work is not only complicated, but it can be near impossible to secure high page rankings against well-established competitors. Plus there’s just a lot of other people optimizing for the same keywords.
But if you’ve seen success with other marketing tactics like emails or engaging Instagram posts, put more of your effort there! Your time is precious, so spend it on things that work, and cut out the stuff that doesn’t.
2. Review your marketing calendar
A marketing calendar and a solid content plan are crucial for any business, but they can also create a lot of frustration. How? Let’s say you set an intention to write a new blog post every week or post on social media every day — both of which are great goals! But then life happens and suddenly you can’t keep up.
From there, you might start to feel overwhelmed, rushed, and resentful. That’s not ideal when it comes to your marketing! That’s why it’s so important to review your marketing calendar and figure out where you can scale back or plan ahead. What feels overwhelming to you? Have you left any time for your personal life or self-care? Ask yourself the tough questions and be honest with what you can handle.
Maybe instead of a new blog every week, you opt to write two a month. Maybe, instead of posting on social media every single day, you make space to go quiet on the weekends to give yourself a break. Remember: quality always beats quantity, so there’s no shame in downsizing your marketing efforts to focus on what makes the most impact (and doesn’t drain the life out of you).
3. Assess your weekly + monthly tasks
If we’re being honest, the life of an entrepreneur is a little less glorious and a little more tedious than some might believe. Emails, inventory, scheduling, posting, commenting… all of those smaller marketing tasks can really add up and can impact the time you spend on things you actually love doing.
So, once you determine what your more menial weekly and monthly tasks are, start to ask questions like:
- Can you batch tasks to save time?
- Can you outsource things you hate doing?
- Can you research and find free tools or programs to help with scheduling or automation?
- Can you hire an assistant to help keep you organized?
- Are there any manual tasks that can be solved with digital solutions?
Chances are, the answer to at least one (or all) of those questions is yes. While it might take more time to the right solutions, the payoff will be priceless.
Simplify your marketing strategy with Styled Stock Society
We have absolutely no doubts that you can do it all. But we’ll let you in on a little secret: you don’t have to do it all! With a simplified marketing plan, you can successfully promote your business while still making time to do things you truly love — professionally and personally.
To make your marketing even more simplified, sign up for Styled Stock Society! With more than 1,000 professionally designed, customizable templates, we’ll help you save tons of time while helping your brand look better than ever. Your membership also unlocks access to our digital library of over 5,000 stock images that are perfect for any marketing plan. How simple is that?!
