Do you dread sitting down to create content or build out your marketing plan? In today’s episode, Jen Olmstead of Tonic Site Shop joins us to share how she went from dreading writing her emails to showing up for her community by making a few shifts in how she approached marketing. Listen in as she highlights why you need to make marketing fun, create content you enjoy, and share relatable messaging that your audience will love!
Tonic Site Shop: Empowering Entrepreneurs to Show Up Online
In 2013, Jen was questioning why so many entrepreneurs didn’t have beautiful websites. At the time, she found that websites were either a really expensive investment or were done with a DIY approach, yet were embarrassing to show off. She met her business partner Jeff, which was the start of a beauifully platonic love story.
Soon after, they launched Tonic Site Shop, which were beautifully crafted cocktail inspired customizable website templates. Since then, they’ve focused on empowering entrepreneurs to show up online with confidence in their brands.
Making Marketing Fun: Approaching Content with Interest, Not Importance
While Tonic Site Shop experience mass success at it’s launch, the actual marketing wasn’t something the did well in the beginning. Jen realized that she hated it and didn’t want to do it. Instead, they built a product, launched it, then went back into the cave of creating. This meant the were having to work really hard on marketing each time they launched a new product—something that didn’t align with the message they wanted to share with their audience.
They built an email list, yet any time she sat down to write an email, she dreaded it. Her brain was wired to focus on what she’s interested in rather than what’s important.
A marketer that Jen was chatting with earlier this year had said, “You need to stop interupting what people are interested in and be what people are interested in.”
It was in that groundbreaking moment that everything changed for her. That’s when she realized she needed to turn her marketing and content creation process into something she enjoyed and looked forward to creating.
Your Content is Your Marketing Strategy
In the space we’re in, content creation is your marketing strategy. Whether you’re ready to admit it or not, as a business owner in 2023, you’re a content creator. The powerful aspect of the marketing world we’re in is that you get to choose what content you enjoy creating and want to do with your own marketing.
When it comes to the actual content creation process, you have to determine where you’re going to show up and what type of content you’re going to create. For Tonic, they show up on Instagram to have fun and connect with their audience, but 90% of their sales come from their email list. They had to figure out this marketing based on their audience, their brand, but also what they enjoyed.
Content Creation: Serving Your Audience with Content You Enjoy
So how do you figure out what content to create? There is an interesting balance in creating content that you enjoy, while creating content that your audience will relate to. A few things to consider include:
What is in this content for my reader?
How will this benefit my audience?
Does this make them laugh?
Am I teaching them something new?
How can this transform them?
Jen’s friend Mike calls this the swerve—this is my story and this is how it relates to you. There are two things Jen does in her content: she looks at what their concerns or struggles are. Rather than asking your audience what they want to hear about from you, instead ask what they’re struggling with or give them options of the content you could create for them.
If you’re still struggling with feeling the need to show up everywhere, remember this: do less, but better. The reality is that you only need to pick one, then build from there as you can.
But, I’m not seeing the results.
One really important complaint that Jen sees in entrepreneurship is people complaining about the results they’re not getting for the work they’re not doing. Oftentimes, we hear complaints about the algorithm, yet it might be the content they’re putting out there.
When you give more in your content, you will see better and bigger results.
Then, when it’s time to drop the content, make sure you’re hyping it up to get your audience engaged in unique and fun ways each time.
Unpopular Opinion of Content Creation
While Jen’s a big fan of sharing her opinions in their newsletter, one thing that she highlights is that if you’re not having fun, no one else is either. Don’t forget to ask the questions:
Wouldn’t it be fun/funny if…
This might be a bad idea, but…
If you’re not enjoying what you’re doing, that’s within your control. Correct it in your business, your content, and your marketing.
When you are a creative entrepreneur, time management is the number one key to preventing burnout! Click to join the list and download my free worksheet.