So, I’ve gone to a few in-person networking meetings recently where we’ve all been workshopping ideas for someone and, in my opinion, we’re coming up with some absolutely fantastic ideas. But after the one I went to today, I can’t help but feel like we also may have overwhelmed the person asking with too many ideas. I think this is a problem that happens frequently in marketing honestly, even when you’re on your own.
If you’ve ever read through an article, or blog post, or viral video trying to figure out what your next big marketing move is going to be, then this post is for you. There are MILLIONS of possibilities out there for how you can market your business. And everyone (marketers, other business owners, even your mom probably) has their own opinions on what the best methods are.
It’s so easy to become overwhelmed by all of this. There’s just so much information out there and there are too many possibilities. Where do you even start?
- Make a list. That’s right. Write down all of the things that made you think, “oh, that’s a great idea!” Don’t worry about the options that confused you or didn’t feel like they would work. Maybe in the future you’ll hear about them again and think differently, but right now, they’re not worth your precious time.
- Figure out which ideas are actually doable for you. Even great ideas aren’t worth their weight in salt if you have no possible way of implementing them. Scratch those ones off of the list. Again, maybe things will change in the future, but first you need to focus on the here and now.
- Pick one idea and run with it. That’s it. Pick just one idea that feels doable and then do it. This doesn’t have to be the very best idea, just the easiest for you right now.
Your marketing builds over time, just like you built your business brick by metaphorical brick. Every little idea that you implement will build up to eventually become an amazing marketing machine.
Let’s say, for example, that you want to build up your email list. You’re going to get a thousand ideas even just doing a quick internet search. By breaking it down to just the one idea that you feel like you can get done today, you’ve accomplished something great.
You built that lead magnet, or you created that landing page, or you made that one really good Instagram post, or you tidied up your backend so that things flow more smoothly. Whatever you chose to do helped your business and helped move your marketing forward.
You can always go back and pick a different idea to do next week or next month. Just don’t let yourself get overwhelmed with everything or you’ll start to spiral and who can get anything done while they’re spiraling? You don’t need to do everything all at once. Just pick the easiest thing on your marketing list and do it. Then watch as those ideas build on each other as you go.
All the best,
Ryanne Zender
Disclaimer: While marketing is based in part on statistics and psychology, it is not an exact science. Every business and market are unique. What may work for one business, will not necessarily work for another. There are no guarantees in marketing, and this post is for informational and educational purposes only and does not replace professional advice. You can check out the full list of disclaimers and disclosures here.
