No One Cares About You
Hey there. Tim here.
My son is now swan diving off the top of the couch. There is only one way that this will end.
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1. No One Cares About You (Which is Your BIG Opportunity)
When I was building Sober Nation, I remember getting recognition from my friends and peers about how popular it was becoming.
People started calling me a "guru" (barf) and people started asking me how I was growing so fast. What was my secret?
When I gave them the answer, they would always look disappointed, as if they were thinking "no, it can't be that simple."
But it is that simple. I will prove it to you.
Do you want to know the easiest and fastest way to build an awesome brand?
MAKE YOUR BRAND ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE.
Sober Selfies and Going Insanely Viral
Sober Nation got popular because I would post pictures of other people on their sober anniversaries. I called them "sober selfies." I would post the pictures on Facebook and Instagram, tag the person, and congratulate them on their sober anniversary. They would go INSANELY viral. I'm talking 100,000 likes and 20,000 comments type viral. (This was back when Facebook was actually fun and effective.)
Over time I learned SEO and I also met David who became my partner and that had a huge impact on the business.
But in the beginning, the only real growth strategy I had was to make Sober Nation a platform for other people to tell their stories.
Like I said, it's simple.
Guess What? This is Still the Best Way to Grow
This week on the podcast, Ethan and I talked about this brilliant company called Volley. (See the podcast below to learn more about Volley and to listen to the episode.)
For almost the entire episode, we talked about the business, how smart it was, and how much value it would bring for coaches and consultants.
The episode was all about Volley. It had nothing to do with us.
And what do you think happened?
Somehow, the creators of Volley caught wind of the episode and reached out to me on LinkedIn.
Now obviously it's cool and flattering to get messages like this. It's good energy and good vibes all around. But, the fact remains that this has pragmatic growth applications as well.
Let's look at what happened next.
BAMM! Free promotion all around.
I now have a new friend on LinkedIn, Josh's entire team knows who I am and knows about my podcast, and they are WILLINGLY sharing my podcast with their audience.
It's simple, effective, and fun!
No One Cares About You
Don't take it personally, it's just human nature.
What all of us care about most is ourselves.
And this is one of the biggest opportunities in all of marketing. If you talk about other people, they can't help but share your content and your brand.
I built Sober Nation to 400,000 followers without spending a dime. All I did is gave people a chance to talk about themselves. When they saw their "sober selfie" posted on the Facebook page, they would always share it, because everyone's favorite subject is themselves.
If you are thinking about starting a brand, the absolute worst thing you could do is talk about yourself.
Dedicate a year to writing stories about other people and highlight other people's success.
Watch how fast you grow. Your success is virtually guaranteed.
2. How Freaking Cool is Volley.app?
This week on the pod, Ethan and I talk about an awesome new application I found called Volley.
Volley is a platform that allows coaches and consultants to work asynchronously with their clients. It's the perfect solution for coaches and consultants who may not have the ability to show up to a zoom meeting or meet for phone calls at a specific time.
I don't think I've ever gotten so excited on a pod before. I'm obsessed with this company.
Click here to listen to the full episode.
3. It is Time to Promote Your Brand
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4. How to Get Big on Social Media
A few years ago, I decided I wanted to build a social media following.
I approached it with the same thought process that I used to grow my companies through SEO. I figured the trick was to spend a lot of time to make the best content possible. I thought that quality content was the most important factor in whether I would be successful or not.
I was wrong.
Click here to learn the real secret to my huge growth on social media.
5. Final Thought - "No One Knows Anything."
I've had a revelation. This revelation has brought me more peace of mind and serenity than almost any other lesson I've learned.
Like most of you, I'm annoyed and exhausted from all the bickering, complaining, and arguing in our society.
Everyone is so certain that they are right, and that the "other side" (whatever that means) is wrong.
So people spew nonsense on Twitter and on the news and they make sweeping statements with such confidence and certainty.
In the moment, many times those statements seem valid or even correct. So then we all feel good about ourselves for being right.
And then what happens? Well ... life happens. Time continues on and the world keeps changing and morphing into whatever new reality it decides to become.
Over time, all of those "facts" that seemed so obvious are no longer obvious.
Now things are different, and dare I say "nuanced."
People want so badly to be right. They want to be angry. They want to blame the government, or Covid, or vaccines, or liberals, or republicans, or rich people, or poor people, or idk … squirrels.
But as time passes, we always discover that the truth might not have been as true as we thought. Or maybe it was a little true, and now there is new information.
Okay Tim, what's your point?
The point is that you should be very weary of anyone who makes statements with absolute certainty. Because in reality, no one knows anything. How could they? No one has all the information. No one knows what they're doing. The successful people simply observe and adjust. They don't waste time being right, but rather they make continuous adjustments.
That's why my marketing philosophy is "I have no advice to give, I only have experience to share."
My goal isn't to be right, my goal is to be helpful. I am successful because I don't waste my valuable time or mental capacity trying to be right. I don't play stupid games for stupid prizes. I spend my time adding value to the world.
In doing so, I am constantly reminded of the one fundamental truth that reigns supreme.
That truth is that "no one knows anything."
Not even you.
Love you guys. Talk to you next week.
Tim