In case you haven’t heard me harping on about it recently, here it is again, relationships are key to building strong brand connections. Hence why people use social media as a?channel so they can connect authentically with their audience, or so they should be.?Salesforce?reported that “75% consumers expect a consistent experience wherever they engage (e.g., website, social media, mobile, in person) and on top of that, 52% of consumers are likely to switch brands if a company doesn?t make an effort to personalise communications to them”.
It’s important to make sure that your brand maintains continuity throughout the market, even down to the way you respond and engage with your audience on social media platforms. Today, we’re going to be talking all things Instagram with Brooke Vivoda from Village Management! I’ve been following Brooke for a while now and the reason I decided to speak to her is that I find her really authentic. She was carefree, didn’t care what people thought about her and she’s attracted the right audience because of it (read our blog on Why Being Different Matters here). On top of that, she is actively engaged with that audience, none of this ‘post and close app’ type method.
The thing is, social media is bloody hard work. It’s strategy, planning, engaging and really understanding your audience. It’s not just about numbers, cue paid follower/like accounts. So in order for you to really build an organic audience that will likely use your service or buy your product, you need to have REAL people engaged. This is why influencers are so successful these days, as they are actively building relationships with their followers, and they relate on a more personal level to a specific target market (read our blog with Charli Hoffmann on Influencer Marketing here). So I hit her up with a few questions that are common pain points for businesses when it comes to Instagram.
Tell us about yourself and Villa Management?
Oh hiiiiii I?m Brooke Vivoda (about to be Vulinovich in 1 WEEK ERMAGERD!) and I?m the Perth #girlboss behind Villa Management???I?m a Social Media speaker and donut lover and my mission is to make Social Media a fun, easy and enjoyable way to grow your business and reach more clients!
How long did it take you to build your audience??
It?s been a solid 12 months in the making but the bigger you grow, the faster you grow! Getting over that first 1, 2 or 3k is always the hardest. I swear once I hit 12k people just started coming from everywhere haha!
Why are?relationships so important on Instagram??
OMG WHERE DO I BEGIN! Relationships are the catalyst for growth on the ?Gram ? as the saying goes ?love makes the world go round? and when it comes to Social Media content is king but relationships rule the roost! Using Instagram for your business is JUST LIKE having another mobile phone.. it?s a communication platform which means when it rings YOU need to answer it!!! You need to respond to messages. You need to respond to comments. You need to engage with your community if you want them to engage with you. You need to show your followers that you CARE about them. Care breeds trust, trust breeds sales. Simples.
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How do you feel people can use it to build quality relationships??
Treat your followers like your friends! If you ignore your friends or talk to them about irrelevant stuff and things, will your relationship with them flourish or flop? I think you know the answer to that one! Your Instagram community is exactly the same! Make sure you profile who you?re attempting to communicate with on the platform in as much detail as possible.. WHY?! Because once you know who you are talking to (your market) you will be able to easily figure out what to say that they?re going to care about and be interested in. You can share relevant content that?s going to inspire, educate or entertain them and solve their problems! Focus on being a business to follow and watch your community blossom!
What is the most common problem you encounter from accounts wanting to be successful??
There?s no market for their product or service OR their market is not using Instagram. Instagram won?t create a market for your business. It?s so important that there?s demand for what you are supplying in order to have a successful business! If the fundamentals of business aren?t there, Instagram ain?t gonna help you!
Tell us about your membership and how we can join.
?Ooooooo this is the fun bit! My membership is a private Facebook community where I teach my simple but significant tips and tricks to growing your followers on the ?Gram and ultimately: your biz. I really wanted to create an affordable way for businesses of all sizes across the world to access my lessons and this is it! It?s only $29/month OR $149 for 6 months which gives you one lesson/week emailed to your Inbox with activities that you can implement straight away! I then do a Facebook live lesson in the private group once a week to teach it step by step in more deets and answer any questions that my community may have! And what a community I already have! From outback WA to Germany.. I?m absolutely humbled by the response so far! I only launched it at the end of December and just 2 months in I?ve already got almost 70 members! It?s insane! And MY MEMBERS ARE SEEING SOME SERIOUS RESULTS! This makes me a happy little Vegemite on toast! I love them!
Be sure to check it out, I LOVE her weekly emails, even if it doesn’t relate to me personally, the gifs are so worth it.
Website – villamanagement.com.au
Instagram – instagram.com/villamanagement
Facebook – facebook.com/villamanagementco
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