In this series, we’re looking under the hood about some of the common business advice we’re told and asking, “Does this add up for my business?” Did you miss week 1 about VIP days? Read it here.

Week 2: Daily posting on the socials - aka The content-marketing hamster wheel.

We all hear the advice.

About social media:

“Feed the algorithm!” “Post daily on the socials!” “Show up in stories!”

“Post in the am and RT (retweet) in the pm to get that engagement.”

“Don’t just post and ghost - social media should be social!”

About newsletters and podcasts:

“The gold is in your list.”

“Gotta be consistent in your content, week over week.”

But the question is… who is this guidance for?

Social media engagement is slowing down lately (except TikTok).

And the people who are growing on social media?

So many of them are meta (h/t Tara McMullin).

Growing on LinkedIn by talking about how they’ve grown on LinkedIn and teaching you the secrets.

Growing on Instagram by talking about their success of growing on Instagram and by teaching you the secrets.

And social media has changed:

In short, massive audience growth is the hallmark of a creator, teacher/trainer or product-based model.

Podcast or YouTube monetization. Courses. Digital products. Large communities. Software as a Service or tech-backed startups.

Versus relationship building to fill an expertise- or service-based business. 1:1 or small group coaching. Consulting. Done for you services like graphic design, copywriting, or podcast production.

Let’s look at the math.

Audience Math

If you’re making money from your business through a course or community, versus a 1:1 service, you may need to enroll 100 people per year. The conversion expected here is much lower because it’s not a relational service, where you’re having real sales conversations.

At a 2-3% conversion rate… you’ll need 3000 people to visit your sales page or see your email. And if only 50% of your list reads your email?

You will need upwards of 6000 new subscribers to your list each year.

There’s no way you could have relationships with 6000 people. The only way to build the sheer number of people on your list is through leveraged distribution on social media, content creation, collaborations with other established audiences, and (most likely) ads.

Your goal here is scaled relationships.

But let’s say you run an expertise-based business. A business where you need to work with 10-20 clients per year. If about half of the people you talk to in discovery calls book with you, you only need to have conversations with 20-40 potential clients per year (that’s 2-3 sales calls per month).

Your goal here is conversations and connections.

Probably, the 20 clients you have send referrals your way. (I go out of my way to send referrals to my trusted partners). You do a few podcast interviews and guest teach in a community or host some workshops to invite more connections into conversations. You connect with real humans in the communities you engage with. You can build relationships with 40 people through conversations and connections. It may take time, but the relationships compound.

One of my clients needs only 3 clients every year… and many of those clients renew for a second year. She will always fill her business through curated conversations and relationships - and not through content creation as an attraction mechanism.

These are wildly different numbers - for wildly different business models.

Energy Math

The problem with using social media as a discovery engine in 2023?

Generic content doesn’t cut it anymore to grow your audience unless you started with a big or borrowed audience.

The algorithms reward shares and comments. And on the Meta platform, unless your work is spicy enough to be shared in messages and stories… new people won’t find you.

Especially early on in my business, I didn’t have sharp enough messaging. I didn’t know my clients well enough to go beyond generics. I didn’t know myself enough to have confidence in my points of view.

So what I created was generic… and I spent a ton of energy wondering why it wasn't working.

And as you'll see below, I found better uses of that time and energy.

Time Math

So let’s add up the time you (might) spend on content creation:

• Let’s say you spend 30-60 minutes to create each daily post and graphics
• Another 30-60 minutes each day to engage on the socials to boost the algorithm (and to connect with real humans)
• Lots of time checking each post for vanity metrics (no shame, I do this more than I admit)
• Spending 2 hours on a weekly newsletter or a podcast

You might be spending 10 hours a week on content creation! And unless you get really efficient at repurposing that content… the impact on the socials is very short. Growing your newsletter or podcast still requires getting in front of new people.

Are you seeing your client roster grow in exchange for that 10 hours?

Or would you be better served with that 10 hours per week:

• Inviting 2 colleagues or or people you find interesting to 30-minute connection calls
• Emailing your past clients with podcasts or articles you know they'll love
• Creating a limited audio podcast series outlining your best points of view that new listeners can binge when they hear about you
• Inviting people into an experience of your service (either paid in money or paid in their time)
• Participating in aligned communities and building relationships
• Hosting a monthly masterclass or roundtable
• Publishing a monthly newsletter
• Writing long-form posts for your website with optimized SEO

In a relationship business, content should be the “soft landing” where people who hear about you can learn more about you and how you work to see if you’re a fit.

Unless you need massive audience growth because your business model is a creator or community/course builder… is social media the right investment for your time and audience needs?

Here are some resources to think about the “math” on your marketing strategy, especially if you are a service-based business.

(Because I’ve learned about different marketing from these experts. Go learn from them!)

​Networking that Pays - Michelle Warner​

​Off The Grid Podcast - Softer Sounds Studio​

​Rebel Uprising Podcast - Dr. Michelle Mazur​

​The Social Slowdown Podcast - Meg Casebolt​

(And if you’re ready to take a break from Instagram, check out the Quiet Quitting offer from Angela Morris and Leanne Knight).

I have different teachers I learn from for the creator/teacher model, including Wes Kao, Jay Clouse, Jay Acunzo, and the Ship30for30 and other digital writers online.

Community and Reads

​Regenerate Together Events | Sister Seasons: Join Sister Seasons for two events this summer.

Regenerate Together workshop Friday, June 16: In this two-hour interactive workshop, we’ll introduce you to our unique cycles-based framework that will teach you how to revitalize your own well-being and our planet's at the same time, so you can start building the regenerative future you know is possible right now and without burning out. Tickets include live session + 30-day access to replay.

Regenerate Together Mastermind: The Regenerate Together Mastermind is an 8-week live companion program to our signature workshop that helps you deepen your learning and start practicing our cycles-based approach to co-creating a thriving future. You’ll expand your knowledge, receive hands-on support, and conspire for a more beautiful world through weekly calls and daily cycle tracking with an intimate cohort of badass menstruators who know a different way is possible.

​Unthinkable Podcast - Speakeasy Business | Jay Acunzo: "In marketing today, there's the widely used, noisy way to market your business, but then, just maybe, there's a calmer, quieter, perhaps more effective way."

​Accelerate your Business Growth Podcast| Diane Helbig and myself!: Do you need a little bit of Jessica in your ear? Check out my latest guest spot with Diane Helbig. "On this episode of Accelerate Your Business Growth, Jessica Lackey tackles some of the biggest myths surrounding entrepreneurship. Listeners will gain a greater understanding of the profit-at-all-cost mentality, the importance of investment return, and the necessity of evaluating the likelihood of making money back on a service. This episode is filled with valuable insights for any entrepreneur looking to master the art of running a profitable and sustainable business."

Break free from the business machine and build your Rooted Business.