How to Let Your Marketing Reflect Your Values
The other day I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts, the StoryBrand podcast by Donald Miller. And he was interviewing the wildly successful owners of Canlis restaurant in Seattle. Canlis is renowned for its customer service and care. Truly, it is unparalleled in the restaurant industry!
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At the end, Donald asked the brothers what business advice had stuck with them over the years. One of their answers was this:
“Your values are only your values if it costs you something.”
If you own a restaurant that is committed to serving the highest quality food, you are going to have to purchase that organic, grass fed beef – even though it cuts into your profit margin. If great food is TRULY your value, it costs you something.
If you have certain standards at your business and an employee is not measuring up, will you fire them? If those standards are TRULY your values, it costs you something.
And truth be told, this advice rings true in both your business life and your personal life.
But as you look at Marketing on Social Media for your business, how does this truth apply? Your values are only your values if it costs you something.
Why are you on social media for business? Sure, you are marketing your brand and product.
But more than that, you are on social media to be in relationship with your audience. You are there to give them great content. To ask them questions. To talk with them. To answer their questions and solve their problems.
Truth = Relationships take Time.
If you truly value relationships with your audience it will cost you your time.
Now, there are two sides to the coin here.
On one hand, you need to be putting in the time to make the relationships happen. Doing social media marketing well takes time, no doubt.
But if you find yourself all too often saying, “Ugh! I don’t have TIME to be scheduling posts! There’s no TIME to respond to all these comments!” Then I would ask if caring for your audience is truly a value for your business?
That was my “tough love” portion of this article. Of course there are always ways to manage the load. (Find tips here on managing the load and batching your social media posts.) Even, hiring someone to do your social media. But the point is, there will always be a “cost” in this area if you uphold relationships with your audience as a value.
On the other hand, this fact is wildly encouraging. If you ARE putting in the time to build relationships with your audience and are spending the time on great content – your time MATTERS.
You are spending time in a way that directly builds on your values as a business. You are meeting your audience and connecting with them – no matter how small your audience may be at this point! You are doing a great job.
Your values are only your values if it costs you something.
Be encouraged. Put in the time. And be proud, knowing that your time and energy spent is a direct reflection of your values.
