This is the first part of a series on rocking your audience at whatever stage you’re at. As we go through each stage, I’d love to discuss it like crazy and do some q&a before moving on to the next one. So got comments? Leave ‘em. I’ll be adding everyone who participates to the Twitter list so that we can keep up with each other.
Everyone wants a community to be built right into their website. Because what’s a stage without an audience? Community = more content and more usefulness to your users. It also means credibility, which leads to more sales and/or opportunities to work with really cool people. Community also makes your site stickier so that your audience will grow even faster. In a nutshell, yay community!
But building a community takes a lot of work. And t-i-m-e. It doesn’t hurt to have a good dose of luck thrown in either.
We all want this growth to happen super-fast. Some of us don’t have the time, money, or patience to burn while we wait for our audience to gather strength. But every healthy site goes through growth stages of community, so we might as well be prepared for them.
The Peanut Stage: My site looks more like a ghost town than a party
If your site is strategically well-developed, it will only be a matter of time before this stage is a thing of the past. But while you’re in it, it seems like forever. When will people start leaving comments? When will I get past 25 subscribers? Le sigh.
Stuff to do while you’re in this stage
- Make the most of the credibility that you do have. While you may not have a force of people proving to others that you are awesome, you ARE awesome. Let that awesomeness shine through your amazing content, packages, and samples of work that you’ve done in the past. (Haven’t done any work yet? Kelly Parkinson’s got some ideas for rocking out case studies when you don’t have results yet.)
Show your work to its best advantage. Write stuff that doesn’t need others vouching for it for people to realize that it’s golden. Stick to your publishing schedule. In other words, do your thang as if 10,000 people were watching.
- Offer your services. Surely you can do something for people, even if your long-term goal is to sell products. You need lots of bodies in the door before your products start to sell enough to support you, your family, and your three dogs. You need a much smaller audience to successfully make a living selling your services.
- Tweet it up. Even if you’re a local business and people in your scene haven’t caught onto Twitter yet, start now. You’ve got the time after all. And when you’re way too busy to worry about things like getting followers, you’ll thank your savvy self.
Even if you’re not set up to offer products or services to the people on Twitter, their comments and sharing of your amazing stuff will be invaluable for your credibility and future reach. I do not care what industry you are in. Social proof is a powerful thing. Much of the time, it is the thing that makes the difference.
- If you ever plan on writing a book or developing products, start now. Once you’ve amassed your audience, it will be harder and harder to find time to work on long-term, non-urgent goals. Not just setting them, but putting the practical legwork in to reach them. Work a little on these goals each day in your gallons of free time.
What NOT to do in this stage
- Don’t advertise yourself as part of the lonely hearts club. If no one comments, stop mentioning the fact. It’s quite likely that people won’t even be looking at your comment numbers if you aren’t constantly saying “Please, PLEASE comment so that I don’t look like such a loser!” Or “To all of my wonderful readers (who, at last count, totaled 3)”. Self-deprecatingly funny, sure. But not worth mentioning. (Don’t ask me how I know this.)
- Don’t build a forum or social-networking functionality. Forums and social networking features work best when they naturally extend from the desires and goals of a thriving community. If you build it when your community is small, it will earn the reputation of sucking before it even has a chance to thrive.
- Don’t do giveaways or contests. Yes, the point of a giveaway is to attract more readers. But you need at least an inkling of a community before a giveaway or contest will be successful. The last thing you want to do is offer up a fantastic prize and only receive 10 entries. Don’t do this to yourself unless some A-list blogger has written a pact in blood to promote your contest for you.
- Don’t despair. If your goal is to work for yourself full time, you probably need less of an audience than you think. As I mentioned before, service-based businesses do not need an audience of thousands to thrive. If you’re selling products, start brainstorming how you could supplement them with a service until you’ve got a large enough audience to support your e-commerce endeavors.
If you’re in the peanut stage (or have…ahem…a “friend” who is), what are you struggling with right now? If you’re past that stage, what helped you get where you are? Questions? Comments? Pie? (Mmm…pie.)
26 Comments
Great post and great idea for a series. I know that I have the ghost town feeling on a few of my sites, but that is just motivation for making them better so that I attract the right kind of people.
Can’t wait to read the rest of the series.
Thanks,
Chris – @chris_speaks
Chris Elliott´s last blog ..Why You Are Not As Good As You Think You Are
This is one of those posts that seemed to talk directly to me. I’ve been giving all these issues a lot of thought lately and want to be more effective in using my site/blog to build and nurture a community.
Thank you for kicking off this series. I look forward to reading more.
Russ Thornton´s last blog ..How Chipotle, Pinkberry, and others win big by doing just a few things well
Great points.
It is also worth mentioning that your community doesn’t have to have big high walls around it. So joining other related communities and being active there can really help bring people to your blog. I’ve joined an e-mail list on a related topic, for example.
JoVE´s last blog ..A PhD doesn’t prepare you for a career
Chris: I’ve totally been there, so I know exactly what you’re talking about. Loved your last blog post, by the way. Good stuff.
Russ: Hey, what’s up with emailing me like I don’t know you? LOL. Can’t wait to see what you’ve got up your sleeve.
JoVE: Very, very true. Reaching out is a great way to attract like-minded people.
All great tips, but having learned the lesson about contests first-hand, that was my favorite
. It can be so frustrating to have something really yummy to give away and get, like, 3 takers. Then again, it did make my second attempt at a contest a lot more satisfying as I watched the entries pour in 
.
Really enjoyed the post and look forward to reading the rest of the series.
I’m definitely in the ‘Peanut stage’ and looking to up a coaching business in the New Year.
I’m actually squeezed for time trying to create content and get things in shape in between changing diapers and feeding small children. So, reading posts like this with clear focused steps I can take is a real help.
Cheers.
Love how you say to stick to your publishing schedule – total clairaudience for me – I just filmed a tv pilot & the producer urged me to do a daily video blog – I was just video blogging when ‘i felt like i had something to say’ – forcing myself into the routine has really gotten the ball rolling! I also wish I’d gotten your tip about not having a contest in your ghost town – i did & it totally sucked. Keep the tips coming – they are truly appreciated – thanks for doing what you do!
You so totally rock at posting super practical and useful-right-now tips for biz owners (so happy you’re doing your thing in this world).
“Everyone wants a community to be built right into their website.” – Yes, yes we do. I’m in this fun hibernating stage of re-imaging what I offer for my right people. So one of my questions is, how do you know what will “stick” for your community before you, well, have a huge community? I know what my ideal clients stay awake at night thinking about, although I’m still marinating right now in what is *most* urgent for them (and for me to want to work on).
Dave: John helps me a lot with the kids, but at one point I was struggling with that, too. Once you’re able to get help with your kids, it makes such a difference. You can run a business with a family in tow, but you might not be sane at the end of the day! lol
Jessica & Susie: I know, the contests…sigh. It’s one of those things that SEEMED like such a great idea at the time.
Ana: Things that will stick will be things that are directly beneficial to your community. Things they actually, really need and can’t get someplace else easily. And certainly not stuff that is “useful” but is mostly thinly veiled self-promotion.
It is hard to get all of that to balance, but keep brainstorming — think of things that no one has done yet in your industry. Or maybe that no one has done online.
Love this list! So helpful. I grew my business by working with people who don’t generally read blogs. Now I’m branching out. So my business is more mature and ladylike, but my blogging habits are still in preschool. It’s like having really short arms and really long legs. I look funny! What to do? I’ve given myself between the hours of 8am and 10am on Tuesdays and Thursdays to write blog posts. It’s helping to segment my days into ‘project work’ days and ‘talky networking-y’ days.’ Guess which day today is?
Well done, Sarah! Concise, witty, right-on tips that remind and encourage. Thanks for this gift!
I, too, am in the early stages of biz existence. Thanks to validating my thinking about contests…I will definitely wait until I have an audience. I have a personal-promotional blog, http://www.SupportDensleys.blogspot.com/ I only point that out in case you want to see my baby beginning; otherwise, don’t look at it
I am working on making a schedule and sticking to it, I like the idea also from Kelly P about having “project” days and “network-y” days. Thanks so much for the info!
Great tips, Sarah! I would also add, don’t be afraid to contact others who are doing better than you are or are more established. Maybe not the A-listers quite yet, but chances are the “mid-level” people very vividly remember what it was like to be a peanut and will want to help you out. Joining forums and such helps too, and definitely get on Twitter – that way if you see any of your friends mention they need a guest post or anything, you can help them out and get some traffic too!
Michelle´s last blog ..Closet Confidential: A Review
Wow Sarah! This is timed perfectly for me! I’ve just gotten started with my site, and I’m working on getting my name out there.
The steps I’ve been taking so far are to participate in other communities, and to post regularly, as well as all that SEO type stuff
I am SO GLAD that I read to NOT do a contest or a giveaway. I was going to do one! After reading the many comments here stating how badly it went, I’m going to hold off. Maybe I’ll do a 100th follower giveaway. Something where I’ll at least have more than 3 people participating!
Thanks so much, and I look forward to reading the rest of the series!
-Josh
jforest´s last blog ..JForestPhotos is live, and first snow of the season!
Insightful!
Quality, top-notch material, Sarah.
This really touched me: “If you ever plan on writing a book or developing products, start now.”
I’d better get my other projects running before it’s too late! I want to start up a pin-up art blog where I post more of my non-graphic design artwork and write more about me sorta stuff.
I also want to put up a site related to foreign affairs. Ack! I’m all over the place! 
I also LOVE what you’ve listed under “What NOT To Do At This Stage.” Makes me feel relieved that someone has been through this too. You have a knack for making your readers feel comfortable and adequate, Sarah, hahaha. “Don’t start a forum or social networking function.” So true! So many of my clients jump onto that just ’cause it seems like something they’ve GOTTA do, but nothing makes me click off a forum faster than to see it empty.
What I’m struggling with? I guess I’m still struggling with generating an audience and making meaningful connections with people online, especially through Twitter. However, I realize form your posts that my sporadic blog posts may have something to do with it.
I’m going to shift the bulk of my efforts into the content behind my site, i.e. blog posts, art work, design work, client showcase posts, etc. and see where that takes me.
LOVE LOVE LOVE your content! You are a true rockstar- a soulful gem among the (sometime) soul-less arena of tribe building online!! Thanks- we will be watching! Sarah
Great insight, as usual.
A word about blog contests. I love to do giveaways on my blog. Most are sponsored by me–which means that I buy something cool that I want to share with my readers and I pay to have it shipped to the winner. I have had companies sponsor giveaways of their products on my blog before and I hated it because I felt pressure to produce a certain number of entrants/comments to “look good.” Too much stress and it took the fun out of it for me.
Some of my giveaways only get 35 entries but I don’t care. I use contests as a way to thank my readers. Once I was giving away something awesome and I got hundreds of entrants because a few people mentioned it in other places. I could tell that the people leaving comments to enter the giveaway weren’t my usual crowd and I hated it. For me, contests are about building a tighter following, not drawing in a one time crowd.
Sarah, your posts are so practical and your style of writing always hits it for me. I look forward to this series. Thanks for the work you do.
I’m definitely in the peanut stage. It will all come together though. Struggling right now with staying authentic. Why should that be a struggle?! LOL. Something about perceived audience changes how I write. I’ll figure it out.
Dan, good luck in the New Year. That is my goal for the new year as well. Your site is beautiful!!
I don’t know what constitutes moving out of the peanut stage for you. I think I’ve been there for a good while, very happily. Recently I searched for myself on Google Reader and discovered that I had 150 subscribers, on Feedburner I have 250. I was surprised. I had the impression that only a handful of people were reading and I was happy writing for them. How did I get from 20 to 250? Just by carrying on carrying on. I had no strategy. I made friends with other bloggers who sometimes linked to my site, I tweeted, I left comments on other blogs when I was inspired to do so. I wrote about things that moved and excited me. I’m no big time blogger, by a long shot, but I’ve found a small but loyal online community who connect to my journey and my style. I’m excited to read more here about that journey for others, and where to from here.
Marianne´s last blog ..A place to land – best of 2009
Kelly: I totally love the talk-y network-y days concept. I really struggle with that when I’m flat-out going mad with work. But I’m learning not to schedule myself so thin. Having John around to schedule things for me really helps…he’s nicer to me than I am.
Michelle: You’re right on point about not being afraid to talk to people who are more established than you. A lot of people are more approachable than you’d think, even though it’s easy to get aggravated/hurt at the ones who aren’t. I ADORE YOU, why won’t you TALK to me?!?! lol
Havana: I am right with you in the wanting to do all sorts of stuff. I finally had to quit starting new blogs and new ventures and just focus on my One Big Thing. Maybe one day other things will pop out of it, but for now, this is my thing. I am here, and I’m here (in some form) for keeps.
Brittany: You actually have a larger audience than you give yourself credit for. And your audience really responds well to giveaways and that sort of thing. If it works, go for it! Don’t stop just because some “expert” tells you not to do it. I write from an authoritative POV simply because it’s easier and more pleasant to read than something that says “I think this may possibly work for you”. But yeah…different strokes for different folks.
Marianne: It’s the ultimate in happiness to love the stage you’re at. To realize that there are ups and downs to every stage and that you’re going to revel in them all. Kudos to you and the wonderful community that you’ve built!
Adding one more to the peanut gallery! I am in the itty bitty baby stage of getting a website going to promote my rockstar QuickBooks service business so this is all very new to me. Well, not new new. I’ve been reading about it for a few months and only recently worked up the courage to make a go of it. So I’m actually looking forward to the peanut stage where I get 20 subscribers. I suppose that means I’m currently in the pre-peanut stage
In any case, I’m happy to be able to join in on this awesome discussion. Thank you for the wonderful tips, Miss Sarah!
Welcome, Jennifer! (QuickBooks service business? As in…accounting? I wanna know MORE!)
Hi lovely! Yep, I was referring to accounting and bookkeeping when I mentioned my QuickBooks service. I’m kind of a numbers freak. What can I say? Something in me is just hardwired to derive a perverse pleasure from monkeying around with balance sheets and income statements. Go figure.
It’s not entirely my fault, however. QuickBooks is such an addictively fun program that it’s hard not to become obsessed. Really, forget Farmville and World of Warcraft, it’s all about the QuickBooks baby. Reconciling bank accounts, setting up payroll, creating job profitability reports, updating fixed asset lists, simplifying time and expense billing procedures, cleaning up the chart of accounts . . . I love it all.
Sorry if I went overboard there. I could go on forever when it comes to this stuff. Are you in a pickle with QuickBooks? I would be happy to answer any questions you might have. Just send a little message my way (info AT pdxbookkeeper DOT com) and I’ll do my best to help. My specialty is with the accounting side of things, but I’ve worked with the program long enough that I’m pretty good at solving technical difficulties as well. Either way, feel free to ask away.
Whew! OK, enough about me already. I gotta say, your website kicks bootay. My 3 favorite things? This is Me/This is You, Top 10 Reasons Not to Hire Me, and your blog of course. Also, you seem like a genuinely nice person and you made me feel special when you replied to my comment, so thank you for that. I know I’m in the “gonnabe” category right now but you made me feel like a rockstar and for that, you will forever be on my cool people list.
I’m so far behind with my reader that I just saw this today, but YES, YES, YES. Your content is so awesome. I’m really hoping to biggify a blog this year (ideally, both my biz blog and a totally separate one) and I’m excited about this series. <3
I just found you today through Gwen Bell, and in the nick of time, too! So far, I haven’t done anything on your “Don’t” list, but I’m in the process of designing a forum for my site. Thanks for the reminder not to launch it too soon.
what is an a-list blogger? arrianna huffington? I am serious or is an a-list someone in my field? yoga in my case