How to Market Your Small Business with Confidence

Mindset

Sep 29

Confidence in marketing is something that we all struggle with, but don’t often talk about. There is a multitude of guides out there that do a great job of teaching us how to use data and analytics in our marketing, but not many that teach us how much our own confidence can affect the content we’re putting (or not putting) out there.

So, let’s talk about it.

In this post, we’ll be covering…

All things overthinking and how to tackle it
Comparing ourselves to other business owners
How to utilise your strengths and interests in your marketing
How to take action on your goals sooner rather than later

What's at the Root of Your Overthinking?

In 2019, I bought the domain name creativebusinessmarketing.com intending to start a podcast. I launched the first official episode of that podcast in 2021.

On Friday 1st January I decided to finally take the leap, and by Monday 4th January I had the content all recorded. It took me three days to map out a content plan for the entirety of 2021, outline the first 15 episodes, set up Simplecast, figure out my microphone, and learn how to edit audio tracks on GarageBand.

So why did I spend 15 months thinking about it?

“Everyone is doing a podcast now.”
“I don’t know what to say in a 40-minute episode.”
“Who am I to do this?”
“What if nobody listens to it?”
“What if it’s a waste of time?”
“It feels vulnerable.”

What Are You Making Up?

When we overthink things, we are often making up scenarios. I don’t know the answer to things like “What if nobody listens to it?” because I haven’t done it yet.

Sometimes we can overthink the marketing in our businesses:

I don’t know what to say to my email list, so I just won’t email them.
I haven’t posted on social media for a while; how do I get over the awkwardness of the first post back? I’ll leave it for now.
I have a list of 10 things that could go wrong if I try a new marketing strategy, so I’ll just stick with what has been working.

The overthinking comes from stories we tell ourselves. For example, I might have told you five years ago that “Google Ads are expensive to run.” Then your opinion might be shaped by that, and when, five years later, you’re exploring new ways of generating revenue, your brain might say, “But Google Ads are expensive.” You might not even remember that I’ve said that, but it has become a reason for you to ignore Google Advertising.

The overthinking we’re doing usually has roots. The root might be some kind of fear or a belief we hold because of what someone has said to us in the past. We hold onto it because challenging it is uncomfortable. Being led by emotion isn’t always bad; it can help us with our creativity and problem-solving. But it can also hold us back and stop us from seeing the truth.

If you’re overthinking an element of your marketing or your business more generally, spend some time reflecting on whether it’s based on emotions or facts.

Are You Doing What Everyone Else Is Doing?

If you’re a creative business owner, your business is based on the unique way you see the world. You’re probably an out-of-the-box thinker, have a strong sense of individual style, and want to make the world a better or more beautiful place through creativity.

You have the basic functionality of a creative discipline: how to make marks, how to create files for print, how to use a camera, or how to write code.

Then, you have the form: things like composition.

A close up shot of a pair of women's hands holding a phone. The phone screen displays the podcast feed of Creative Business Marketing by Menekse Stewart.

And on top of that, you have your own spin on things, and your distinctive style, which sets your brand apart from the next.

But then we come to running a business, and it feels like there’s a “proper” way to do things we don’t know about. We get stuck in a rut because what we know about and enjoy is the creative process.

But marketing has the same elements to it. The basic functional things are how to post on Instagram, send an email newsletter, and publish a blog post. Then, we have the form: images, videos, and words. Finally, you’ve got your own creativity: your distinctive style, which sets your brand apart.

Perhaps you’re so stuck on the functionality and the form that your creative voice has been stifled in your marketing.

Ask yourself this:

What would you do if there was no rule book?
What social media content would you create?
What emails would you send?
How would you engage with and delight your followers, fans, and customers?

Don’t get stuck doing the same thing everyone else is doing. Your creativity is your biggest differentiating factor, and when you embrace it you’ll get more joy from it and create raving fans.

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Lean into Your Strengths…

Do you objectively know your strengths and how they impact your business?

About a year ago, I took the Clifton Strengths Finder assessment online. I’ve taken it in the past, but my work has changed dramatically since I last took it, so I decided to get an up-to-date assessment.

My top 5 strengths are heavily focused on strategic skills: finding alternative paths and solutions, spotting patterns and issues, developing ideas and connecting information.

I also have a strong “action” strength: turning thoughts into action and doing things rather than talking about them.

Meanwhile, Consistency and Competition were two of the lowest ranking results. That explained things like how frustrated I get with repetitive tasks and why I’m only truly competitive when faced with a game of Articulate!

So when I’m planning projects, including marketing campaigns, for instance, I know where I am going to be at my best and where I need to look at putting a system in place (the cheapest way of doing it) or hiring a team member like a virtual assistant (if you have some budget to spare) to help with the things that will be a bottleneck for me.

What do you love?

Maybe you love recording videos, but you find that you never get around to editing them.

Maybe you set certain goals but never feel motivated to reach them.

Maybe you love writing but have no idea how to set up an email campaign and find the tech overwhelming.

Knowing our strengths gives us insight into these tendencies, so instead of approaching life with a “Well, aren’t I rubbish for not doing that thing?” we get to the root of why things aren’t getting done, which is that certain tasks don’t align with our strengths.

Getting those things done then becomes more straightforward because instead of telling ourselves we’re rubbish and that’s why things never get done, we change the story to be “I am good at this, which is why I find this less interesting. But I do need to do this less interesting element, so I will schedule time in my calendar for it here.”

… But Also Your Interests

If you don’t like doing something, you don’t have to do it just because that’s the “done thing”.

If you hate writing, create videos.

If you hate video, create audio.

If you hate social media, use email marketing or SEO.

Everyone being on Instagram doesn’t mean you need to be.

Everyone starting TikTok accounts doesn’t mean you need to start one.

So much of our online time is spent feeling like we “should” be doing something or experiencing FOMO when the reality is this:

The best marketing you can do in your business is the marketing you enjoy.

Because when you enjoy it? You’ll keep doing it. And consistency will grow your business.

Stop doing stuff because you feel like you should do it.

Go all in on the stuff you enjoy doing.

You’ll likely need to do things you don’t enjoy as much, but the amazing thing about the internet is that you can repurpose the stuff you enjoy for the stuff you don’t.

For example, maybe you love making YouTube videos or podcasts: You can embed them in your website’s blog alongside a transcript of the episode and create content that is perfect for SEO. Or you can repurpose the transcript into an email for your list. Or, if you like writing, you can start with blog posts or emails and then repurpose that into content for your social media channels.

You don’t need to spend hours doing the stuff you hate: start with the things you enjoy most and go from there.

Remember to keep an eye on your business metrics such as revenue, website traffic, and conversion rate to track what’s working and what’s not.

Done Is Better than Perfect

Anyone can have ideas, but very few people execute them. It takes confidence and stepping out of your comfort zone. It’s messy.

We consume content because we think, “If I just have a bit more information, I can do it properly.”

But the reality is, it keeps us stuck in a place ruled by our weaknesses - focusing on the things that we could be better at, or need to know more about to have any sense of self-worth. Ideas staying in our heads are safe for us because they’re perfect constructs of our imagination; nobody can touch them, and nothing can challenge them.

But as soon as we start executing those ideas, the flaws appear. Things go wrong. We are faced with the fact that in the real world, it isn’t as perfect as it was when it was a figment of our daydreaming.

Online business coach Courtney Foster Donahue says: Beta Now, Better Later.

Understanding that there isn’t a full stop after completing something opens up a world of possibilities. If something doesn’t work, we can change it and make it better. It might be messy, but the mess is part of the creative process. It often takes a lot of chaos to create something beautiful and a big old pile of ashes to cultivate roses or phoenixes.

As I mentioned previously, I’d been overthinking my podcast for about 15 months. And it was messy, but now that I’ve done it and it’s out there? I wonder why it took me so long for me to just do it!

Jot down any ideas or projects stuck in the “Be Perfect Before Launching” stage. How can you take imperfect action to get them into the world? Maybe it’s marketing, like social media, emails, or writing a blog post. Maybe it’s a new product or service. Maybe it’s your business idea! But whatever it is - embrace imperfection, enjoy the mess, and know that the process will bring beauty.

Make A Plan

Achieving goals bigger than what we have achieved in the past requires us to change our behaviour and focus on our vision for the future.

If you need a hand planning your goals, here are some questions you can use to get started:

What are your goals? What do you specifically want to achieve this year?
What actions need to be taken to reach those goals?
What is working in your business that will help you reach these goals?
What is not working in your business that may hinder or slow your progress towards these goals?

What are you waiting for?

Creating a plan can be time-consuming, but you should be able to answer questions 1-4 with your morning coffee in around 15 minutes. Your plan can be an overview of the year by quarter or by month, or you can get granular and plan your week-to-week projects.

Action Builds Confidence

There are an unbelievable amount of incredible opportunities to grow your business online. People around the world spend billions of dollars online every day. I guarantee you that your financial goals for your business are possible.

I want you to hold onto that knowledge. Write it down. Remember it. Create space in your week to go back to it. Because that is what will help you consistently take action and reach those goals.