Sometimes I catch myself saying I need more professional photography, better website copy, or a more intricate sales funnel and I have to stop myself because the truth is: No fancy website design, copywritten landing pages,  or sales funnel in the world matters if I don’t have brand visibility- and the same goes for you.

Trust me, no one knows this better than me. I’ll admit I’ve wanted a logo refresh so many times in one year I can hardly type this without getting the itch to tweak it myself as we speak BUT…

I also know that without eyeballs actually landing on my website or me posting to social that no one will see that logo, that new blog post I spent hours writing, or the new promo for my latest lead magnet.

And without people actually landing on my pages my business won’t grow.

So today, as I find myself getting sucked into the branding vortex and distracted by #allthemarketingthings that aren’t really my problem–I want to share:

11 THINGS KILLING YOUR BRAND VISIBILITY AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT THEM

#1 Your engagement rate.

The social media algorithm doesn’t change every few months, it changes whenever Facebook feels like it and the name of the game, if you want to stay at the top of your follower’s feed, is ENGAGEMENT. That means all the likes, comments, shares, story views, and DM’s in your feed (or lack of).

The formula is: Number of likes + number of comments per post / total number of followers.

Take a peek at this number if you feel like your social media traffic is dwindling down and try some new engagement strategies to boost your rate back up.

#2 Your Inconsistent social media routine.

Simply put: Less posts to social media equals less chance of your brand being visible (plus less engagement like we just talked about in #1, duh!). Try to post at least once a day and always lean to the side of quality over quantity if you’re feeling like your post is “just another post” or you’re posting for sake of posting. Just keep it routine so your audience knows what to expect. The algorithm also loves to see how quickly your audience responds to your post so check out when your users are most active in your Instagram insights and get more regular with posting when your users are more likely to engage. You can also pop into your Instagram stories throughout the day as well to increase your chances of your brand getting seen and the algorithm will really start to show you some love if you get the DM’s–so encourage your audience to send some your way!

#3 Your non-existent SEO strategy.

I know, I know- SEO is so boring to talk about but hey, I can’t have you thinking that social media is the end-all-be-all to getting traffic to your website, ok? In fact, I would be doing you a disservice because you should never put all your marketing eggs in one basket! So that said, make sure you’re naming all the images on your site, using the alt text on your blog images, making those headlines (and subheadlines) searchable with long-tail keywords, showing up on Pinterest, and writing about things people are actually searching for on  Google! 

Tip: If you don’t know what they’re searching for, plug some main keywords into the search bar and look at the auto-suggestions that pop up when you’re typing to see what phrases are most commonly being searched for.

#4 Your insecurities.

You know those decisions you make based out of fear? Like why you won’t get on Facebook live, post more pictures of yourself, or talk about selling your product or your real life struggles? Those insecurities, fear of rejection, fear of not being enough or not getting it “right” are all costing you your brand visibility. And while we all want the latest tip or hack to skyrocket our business, sometimes we have to hear that it’s ourselves holding us back and have the courage to stand against it so we can put ourselves out there and get SEEN!

When you recognize you’re not promoting your brand out of fear and insecurities, you can overcome the negative self-talk and mindset holding you back and pull the trigger on all those future promos.

#5 Your blog.

If your blog isn’t providing high-value, quality content to your readers they won’t be coming back. And when they don’t come back, you can’t create the “like, know, trust” factor that’s necessary to closing a sale or creating loyal followers. And no, you can’t just “have a blog”, you need to be routinely keeping up with that puppy, using the high-value content to promote your site on the regular, and driving email subscriptions with your content upgrades and calls to action at the end of your blog. #themoneyisintheblog

#6 You don’t use clear call-to-actions (CTA’s).

I know it sounds so silly but honestly, it’s not very hard to forget. Make sure you have a crystal clear call to action in your emails, in your blog posts, and social media. What specifically do you want your user to do after they read the blog? What link should they click, email opt-in should they sign up for, or what URL can they check out for more info? Tell them exactly how to do it, where to do it, and screenshot it even for a new Instagram story idea if it makes sense.

#7 You never message your email list.

Girl, your reader gave you their email address which is basically code for “I’m your new BFF”. They trusted you enough to give you access to their personal inbox so stop worrying about feeling spammy/salesy or thinking you don’t have anything to tell them. On average, less than 10% of your social media followers actually see your feed, so make sure you’re letting your email list know about all your promos, what’s going on behind the scenes in your business, and how you’re doing as a person to keep building that relationship! And PLEASE let them know about your products and services so they actually have the opportunity (and clear call to action!) to work with you.

#8 You don’t have an actual strategy.

“A goal without a plan is just a wish.” is hands down one of my favorite business mantras and should be yours too! I know you have all the heart-eyes and soul behind the business, but you need an actual game plan and road map to get you there, keep you on track, and make sure those dreams come to fruition. You can snag your free website audit right here and let me tell you the #1 marketing thing I think is holding you back and jumpstart your brand visibility today.

#9 Your faith.

If you’re here, you know I’m all about my faith (and YOUR faith) and without it, our businesses can’t thrive. Without faith, our brand won’t get the traction it deserves, the visibility we crave, and the success we know we were destined for. No marketing strategy in the world can compare to what the Good Lord has in store for our business, but we have to have faith, trust, and hope. We need to ask for it and believe we have received it. And we need to keep Him at the center of all that we do. So if you’re struggling with your business I invite you to check in on your faith walk. I invite you to pray boldly for brand visibility, confidence to promote yourself, and contentment for your circumstances. Meditate, journal, or do whatever your go to method is for hearing from God and drawing near.

#10 Your hashtag strategy.

Probably one of the most important social strategies you can use to boost your social media visibility, in particular, is your hashtag strategy. Those little pound signs actually serve a purpose so make sure you’re using them with every post! Hashtag categories vary from relevant/seasonal hashtags, branded hashtags, personal hashtags, campaign hashtags, geographic-based hashtags,  and so many more. Try a planning app like Planoly to store your hashtag combinations and see which are getting you more brand visibility using their easy reporting feature. Also try using more hashtags that are less popular so it doesn’t get lost in the feed like one that has millions of posts.

#11 You aren’t tracking your progress.

Nothing will light a fire more to boost your brand visibility than to see that your brand doesn’t have any visibility or is losing visibility. Using tools like Google Analytics to see how many folks (ie: “sessions” and “visitors”) are coming to your page and which content is getting you more folks to your page takes you from “marketing” to “strategic marketing” in a jiffy, BUT you have to track them! Make sure you’re pixels are placed and you’re routinely checking in on your progress so you can test, measure, and change where need be. You can also use Google Analytics to find out which pages historically had the most traffic so you can rinse and repeat that same strategy or similar type of content.🤗

 

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The bottom line is this: if you aren’t promoting your brand no one will know about it.

And real talk? If your brand visibility is sucky, How will you support your calling? Write or sell that book you’ve been thinking about? Take that dreamy vacay?  Or get that kitchen remodel you’ve been eyeballing on Fixer Upper??

How will you make any money, honey?

Unfortunately, you won’t. So promise me you’ll work on getting more people to your page, deal??

And don’t forget my invite to that dreamy vacay, deal?

Deal 😉