Five Online Marketing Strategies You Can Count on When All Else Fails

Online strategies aren't working the way that they used to be working.  

So what do you do when everything you’ve been told to do is failing? 

And do you ever ask yourself the following questions: 

• “Maybe it’s just me?” 
• “What am I missing?”
• “Why can’t I get any traction?”

I get it. In fact, recently my Facebook ads were denied. 

I have a FB ads team of experts… marketing ninjas that know their shit - and our FB ads were stonewalled and not allowed to run. 

The same ads that we’ve run for years to the same program.  No shifty promises in the ads...nothing new, and nothing we could do to change it. 

But that was okay because we have multiple ways we connect with our clients. 

Do you? 

If you’ve followed all the online growth steps and nothing is bringing in business fast enough, you’re not alone.

There are thousands of new businesses struggling to be seen in the online space.

Maybe your funnels aren't attracting buyers. Maybe you’re wasting hours on Instagram.

Maybe you’re overthinking the perfect caption to crack the algorithm code.

AND. IT'S. JUST. NOT. WORKING.  And let’s be real… you can’t hang out all day on social media. You have business building to do. 

So what’s a resourceful, business savvy entrepreneur like yourself going to do?

Well first of all, realize that online marketing is constantly changing and you DO need to keep on keeping on, but...

I want to share with you 5 ways you can grow your business without funnels, ads, and social media overload. 

1.  Create a collective of like-minded business go-getters. 

Create a network of like-minded women with other online businesses. 

Find five people online and reach out to them on Facebook or Instagram. 

You can start the conversation by simply saying, “Hey, I'm working hard to get my business noticed, and I can tell that you are too. I’d love to get to know you. Would you like to set a time to have coffee and chat?” 

It’s really that simple.

From there set up monthly, virtual coffee dates with them to support each other. 

By doing this, you become part of each other's lives and those relationships grow. You begin commenting on each other’s social media posts, and you begin referring each other to other people.

It becomes a natural snowball effect.

Having virtual coffee meetups and being intentional is a powerful first step, and it’s like having your very own monthly, mini mastermind.

This is gold to your company. These are the kinds of relationships that build profitable, powerful, 6-figure companies.  

They start exactly like this!  

2. Become an affiliate and sell someone else's services. 

Being an affiliate is simply selling someone else’s products or services. 

These are great relationships and a means to open the doors of networking and increasing your sales.

It also connects you with like-minded business ladies who can in turn promote you.  

There are three huge things that can happen for your business when you become an affiliate:

• You are seen as a leader
• You build relationships with other businesses 
• You increase your own sales

As an affiliate, you are automatically brought into a group of online friends which can lead to recommendations from others.

And recommendations are always more powerful than any self promoting you can do on any given social media to a cold audience.

So, if you see a program that you like, reach out and say, “I love what you're doing, and I believe in what you're doing. I would love to help.  How can I serve you?”

I’ve done this very thing by reaching out to a friend of mine to become an affiliate for her.

Doing this is how I have met my very best business girlfriends. 

It can work for you, too. Affiliates are great relationships to create, and they will open the doors of networking and exposure.

3. Become a speaker. 

This is really important. Find five local stages you would like to speak on within your local area.

Create a wish list of women's startup summits or health and wellness summits.

These can be dream stages that you would like to speak on in your own community or small town.

Get your ducks in a row and figure out how to join in to become a speaker. 

Do your research;  book yourself to speak; and then find the resources to learn how to speak to audiences effectively. (You can find resources on speaking at https://www.sweetlifeco.com)

By speaking at events, you make deeper, personal connections that only happen face-to- face.

And don’t discredit the small, offline events close to home. 

These are big opportunities that have the power to build just as powerful relationships as the huge events in major cities that seat hundreds of people.

4. Get press and media attention.

Press and media attention doesn't automatically create a marketing funnel; however, it attracts high-quality businesses and high-quality buyers to your business. 

It's an alternative to the media marketing standards because it immediately elevates you as an expert.

It's a publication’s way of saying, ”Hey, this chick knows what she’s talking about, and we think she's a reputable source.”

And by contributing an article or being quoted in a magazine, you are receiving an endorsement that will always supersede any self-promotion on social media.

This is a totally free strategy other than good old-fashioned sweat equity.  And I often share a resource called https://www.helpareporter.com/ .

This is an awesome resource to use to submit yourself as an expert and get in on some free media and press attention.

Go check it out.

5. Host offline events.

I’ve mentioned this before, but it bears repeating because this is powerful.

Host your own event.

This could be a small luncheon for a very small group of people. In fact, it doesn't have to cost anything to bring potential customers closer to you. 

This may simply be having lunch with people within your community and providing value. 

And this absolutely works if you have an online business because these local followers and attendees often become your biggest online cheerleaders. 

By simply volunteering your services and your time and your expertise at a small, local event, you will gain strides over your competitors.  

Always give first.  This will pay huge rewards when all is said and done.

When I launched The SweetLife Entrepreneur Podcast, the majority of my listeners were from right here in Colorado. 

Hundreds of people shared my podcast, and it catapulted us to the top of the charts for 20 weeks straight. 

And you know what? It all started locally.

There is no press-easy button.  

No one will just show up on your online, front doorstep without putting in some hard work. 

But keep it up. All of it. Because everything you are currently doing is still important.  

Just know that there are other ways to grow.  The answer isn’t always found in a shiny, online funnel or some super sexy, online marketing trick.

And you’re not doing anything wrong.

I just want you to take things back to the simple grassroots marketing of building deep relationships.

So spread out and rise above the noise. 

Even if you only choose to implement a couple of these to add to your marketing strategy, it will make a world of difference in your business.  

All of this takes work and intention and personal connection, but that’s why they have the power to grow your business in exponential ways.