Does creating content and posting to Instagram overwhelm the CRAP out of you? You’re just freaking tired, there’s SO much you feel like you have to be posting, and you’re just plain exhausted. You’re over it. The algorithm. Everything. You constantly are wondering if you should or shouldn’t post something? Everyone says to be personable, so should you share your dog? You don’t know.  

Today we have the talented Allee Williams on the show – and when we tell you this episode is LITERALLY a free social media marketing coaching call – we’re NOT kidding. Allee speaks directly to your heart today and gives you a 4 step plan to knowing WHAT content to post on Instagram every day, week, and month. She breaks down 4 different content pillars that you can apply to ANY industry of business you’re in. She’s a firehose of marketing GOLD and if you skip this episode I guarantee you’ll be missing out big time. 

Allee was raised in a small town in Kentucky and got her start in marketing with sports marketing and Coca-Cola. After feeling called higher, she fundraised her way to a residential entrepreneurial program in Silicon Valley when she was just 23. Since, she has started multiple companies, worked in ministry at Propel Women + Christine Caine Ministries, and is a nationally recognized digital strategist with her agency Malibu Social! She is a business mentor and a podcast host focused on cultivating transformation in the lives of women ready for more in life, faith, and business. 

You can see why we HAD to have her on the show. Today Allee is going to give you JUST as much food for your business strategy as she does for your soul. She’s incredible.

 

Allee’s Story 

At 26 years old and currently living in Los Angeles, California, but a Kentucky girl at heart. Stayed in Kentucky for high school and college and then did a crowdfunding campaign to attend an entrepreneurial program in Silicon Valley. 

Recognizing a huge disparity for the opportunity, from her perspective, for women and business owners in the southeastern part of the United States. Compared to women on the west coast or in New York. Calling it the permission slip because we knew we didn’t have this permission slip. 

During the program, she studied and learned so much and over the last three years have built multiple businesses and startups. Owning an agency and coaching women in their business and helping them understand the zoomed-out perspective. 

You are building a legacy, building something incredible, beautiful, a solution and it doesn’t have to all weigh on you with stress. So often business becomes stressful when you don’t have the right perspective. 

 

Four-Step Plan on What Content to Post 

Let’s start first with a deep breath. Breath in, breath out. 

Look at this from a bird’s eye view and understand it is not this huge issue that is on you, that you can avoid and needs to be perfect. It is something that can create a 1% difference that will get you where you want to go after decades. Put that mindset on with us because so often we’re worried about- “do I put my boyfriend on my story or my dog, can I talk about personal life or business”? No, we are going to put all of that aside today and you’re going to get excited! 

 

Step One 

There is a reason why you started your business. There is a reason you have this dream. There is a reason you are listening to this podcast and you are allowed to talk about it in a holistic and collective wholesome way.

Start with the why. If you are having a freeze, don’t know what to post, posting is a burden, and you hate this. That is fine. Those feelings are valid. Allee does this for a living and has those feelings plenty of time but when you remember your why it makes it a lot easier. We are going to first start with looking at the creation of content and letting it be something that is living, breathing, and growing with you in your business. 

Define your why. It all starts with a feeling. You probably felt a feeling when you got the idea to start your business. You felt it over and over. There are days when you don’t feel the feeling, it’s not so good, but you always come back to that magic and there is reasoning for it, right? Then the product of what you are doing, you hope creates a little bit of magic in the person that you are serving. Get in the zone and find that feeling. Write it down. What is your goosebump zone? The ballpark, where we can hit a home run. We need to know where the ballpark is. What does it feel like? What’s the magic? Write it down. 

Then from there, we can use the feeling. Feelings are cool but what do we do with them? We can’t slap a price tag on a feeling. We slap a price tag on an offering that creates and cultivates a feeling, but what does it mean? 

Define the meaning of how you are serving someone. Of what your business is. Of how you are showing up. What does it mean? That can be to you or your customer, everyone thinks about it differently so get creative.

Then the last part is finding the words for your why. Your feeling created that fire. The meaning, when you gave the feeling a meaning, when you finally realize this is what I am going to do, this is how I can go about it or this is what it could mean and how I could run with this idea. Now give it legs. Your why is the transportation, that vessel that is going to get you to the places you are going no matter how your business or you evolve. 

Write down your why based on that feeling and the meaning that you are giving it. Sit with these questions and things will come out of it. If you do feel resistance, give yourself space to feel it, maybe you need to feel it for the first time. 

That is your step number one. Love our business. If you love your business, it can love you. If you love your clients, they can love you. If it is an obligation to pay your bills and you have to do it. How could you ever cultivate magic in it? Keep that in mind in the first step. 

 

Step Two 

Think about what is happening in your business. A lot of times with marketing and content, when you are looking at one post, people will say just throw some value at them. But look at what your business is, what are your revenue goals? How many people are you trying to serve this month? How are you trying to expand? What are you wanting to do in this quarter of the year? Get clear on that and you have a business plan! This allows you to figure out what you want to communicate. 

Then from there, we break down what you want to offer, what your goals are, who/how you want to help them, and market to that. Allow yourself to figure that out. 

Having a clear business plan is going to help your content because then it has a purpose. It’s not just you talking about an area or idea. Get those business plan goals down, do that however you usually would, but always revisit them and are clear as we jump into step three- the four content pillars. 

 

Step Three

1. Viral, viral content. Things that can go viral. If it gets more attention than the things you usually post, that counts as viral. Think about how you can get a little bit more attention. These are often things that are easier to share. It’s the white quotes, the things that go out. Figure out how you can make that more of your brand as viral is very very powerful. 
2. Stalkable content. Stalkable is fun because when they come to your page they are like, “Oh my gosh I am kind of obsessed with this”. Whether it is a business or you. Whatever it is, they scroll through and are like, “She has a cute voice or I love that she talks about this”, it shows them and keeps them sticky on your page.
3. Educational content. They found you because you did something viral, they are stalking you because you are interesting, educational…dang that is when value matters. “Here are three steps to do something that you have been craving to do and you don’t know how to do”, boom that is going to help them! When they implement it, when they are cleaning their fridge or onboarding a client, they are going to think of you. We are wanting to add that value that comes from a place of, “I want to help you” because that identifies a fueling within them when they are implementing it.
4. Human content. Human is you. Whether you have a brand or you have your personal account, whatever it is that you are thinking about while doing this exercise, it needs to be human. No one cares about something that is not human when it comes down to it because humans want love and we want to connect. When they see another human on the other side things change. Connection on a new level is possible. These are fun types of content that can remind them that no matter how many followers you have or what you offer, you are human and glad they’re there. 

 

Step Four 

Think about those pillars, what could those look like for you? Now assign those to days. The reason we have content pillars is so we can batch them with that specific mindset. When you’re human you can make Tik Toks or different Reels that are going to make you excited and show your personality and how witty and cute you are, whatever that is. Allow yourself that space for creativity. That’s why we do those content pillars and then assign them to days so we don’t have to think about it. There are so many pieces to the puzzle when doing your business, how are you going to make another decision day in and day out. Go Monday to Sunday, figure out what you want your ideal follower to feel every single day they encounter you. And it doesn’t matter how many likes it gets, it really doesn’t matter. Your business is not about your likes. 

Think about what they will feel? If one person feels it, you win. Monday’s what are they feeling? Tuesday’s what are they feeling? On Monday’s people are usually overwhelmed and need some motivation. On Tuesday’s people are a little bit more open. On Wednesday’s they are ready to get the week over but also are a little coachable, a little ready for some wisdom. On Thursday’s, short-form information, tips, and tricks. That’s going to serve people. On Friday people are ready to celebrate. 

What can you do with your business and your voice every single one of those days? Then adding Saturday and Sunday that is going to enhance their human experience if they encounter your content on your profile. 

Figure out that feeling and then what kind of content from your pillars that is going to serve them best. Is your Tuesday best for an educational video that’s a Reel? Awesome stick with it. Batch ten of them for the next ten Tuesdays and then you don’t have to think about it. Then set times in your calendar where you can come back and be inspired and creative. When you’re inspired and excited when creating, your audience can tell. 

Stop trying to be perfect, be everything and show up in all the right ways, allow yourself to show up in the way you are supposed to. With that, the content and in those different pillars will meet people where they are.  

 

Specific Content in Each Pillar 

Looking at Allee’s content as an example.

Viral: 

• Quotes from Allee
• Quotes from others that inspire her, that align with her mission for her personal Instagram
• Different viral Bible verses or things faith wise that ground her 

Those are three things that she has found easily go viral. For viral, this is such a big hack, people like to talk about themselves. People like to be comforted personally. And people like to share things that identify with themselves and they think might identify with others. It is just a subconscious truth. For that, in viral, let it be something that someone can internalize and then share. A lot of Allee’s viral quotes are YOU. It is a formula for “you can”, “you will”, “you are”, “you’ve got this”. They are reminders and when someone reads it they feel like you are talking to them. These don’t have much to do with you, they have to do with them. They have to do with a current event that they identify with. 

 

Stalkable: 

• Trader Joe’s haul- showing the things that are seasonal, what I like, and if they taste good. 
• Informational travel 
• If you’re a photographer- unpacking your bag and talking about the things you always have with you. 

Stalkable is half human, half educational. You are adding value while showing who you are but it is not about you. They get to see your mannerism or the way you process things. Focus on something specific to what your genre is. Things that show your process, that will add value to people and they’ll watch the whole thing. Stalkable is when you get to minute four of a video and you realize you just watched that entire thing. That is stalkable content and even if it’s not pertinent to you but you watched it, it was stalkable. 

 

Educational:

• Mindset and your truth 
• The Bible 

We see a lot of education in this space but education is going to be listed out, long-form in the caption but also through a Reel or something else. Examples are, “five ways to psychologically overcome burnout”, “how to prevent burnout”, “how to pour into a client extra”, “how to go the extra mile”, “how to underpromise, over-deliver”. Focus on two educational zones. You don’t want to be an expert in everything, you want to be an expert in one thing and a human in everything. Figure out where you are showing up in. 

 

Human:

Everyone has a different prerogative, so whatever feels true to you is right. You’re going to know what human is for you. 

Some people say you have to earn that right to know the name of my dog, overtime you need X amount of followers and this and that. That’s great, that’s their prerogative. If you want to just be known as a business or as a photographer you will know the boundaries around that. Show that you’re human no matter how you are showing up. 

If it is a personal profile, yes show your boyfriend, your dog, your travel, a Q & A on XYZ. That shows that you are human. Showing your face is very important. Allee’s rule is every nine squares she is there. No matter what it is, if it’s her agency or anything else, every nine. Sometimes it’s different, depending on the campaign and your initiatives, just be able to show that you are human and that they are welcome. 

Usually, your quirks and the things that you don’t like about yourself are the things on social media that people are enamored with. Figure out what you are comfortable with sharing. Joseph Campbell says, “Where you stumble there lies your treasure”. In your social media, have the boundaries that you need but also understand that often the places that you might want to hide, the places that you don’t want to show up are the places that will set you apart and show that, yes, you are human and you are lovely. Your audience will be even bigger fans. 

 

Creating Engaging Content in a Time Efficient Way 

Creating content does take time. So often we think, “how I can do this as quickly as possible” and it’s a dangerous game. Understand that creating the best content does take time but you can do it in a way tactically that doesn’t suck your soul out. 

Tangible Steps: 

1. You need to have an ideation day. Allow yourself to have space to figure out where your business is going, what you want from your business, and how you can communicate that. When you have that line and the content pillars clear, it is a lot easier to sit down on two different days a month. Give yourself two hours, with 45 minutes on and 15 minutes exploring. Think about what to communicate and create, and then you can pull and create around that. You know what you are good at. If you define your lane, you know exactly what to talk about, you just need to know your lane. With that, you know what you’re doing so give yourself two-three hours, with 45 minutes of just writing it down. 
2. Have that day where you write it all down and then you have another day where you shower, put on makeup (or not if that’s not you) whatever is going to make you feel confident and show up, and that’s the day you’re going to be recording and creating. You can create really beautiful quality content for a month in less than six hours but giving yourself that space takes the pressure off.
3. Schedule that in, when you are discovering and when you are creating. Having that and keeping that promise to yourself. Integrity is the backbone and the foundation of everything that you do as a businesswoman. Sometimes we have it and sometimes we don’t because we are imperfect people but, being able to honor yourself by getting organized in the content that you are putting out and prioritizing it. Is only going to teach your clients to trust you as an authority. And yourself to trust you as an authority. Those two will aid in the impact that YOU feel psychologically when you put something into the world and take the pressure off the likes and the views.

There are going to be times and seasons in your business and life where you don’t want to create content. And that is okay, listen to yourself.

 

Where to Post What Content Where

It depends on where you are rich in your life and your business. If you are time rich in this season and are excited and inspired to learn how to steward Guides or Reels. Craving expansion, new followers, and new exposure. Then anything new rolled out for Instagram is really where you can put that time and effort. 

If you are time-poor. Don’t feel guilty that you can’t do that. A lot of the time we won’t do something unless it is perfect. Perfectionism and procrastination are best friends, they work super hard together and they are liars. Understanding that if you have that time and you can do that, use that time and space into creating Guides and Reels. That is going to be fruitful for your business. 

On the other side, challenge yourself to figure out how much time you do have. If that means you need to delegate out to a graphic designer and just create lots of feed posts or whatever your normal process is and that is what serves you right now and you can consistently show up within that? Do it! Don’t have shame if you are not doing Reels right now. Understanding your priorities and your bandwidth is important because this is a very slippery slope to never showing up. 

Try to prioritize new features at least four times a month. If you can get four Reels out a month, once a week that is amazing. If you can do all Reels, doing two a day, amazing! That takes optimization, time, and resources and you can do it, but make sure that your business isn’t backsliding when you do. 

Content is king, but business and impact within your business that is the real king. You can never beat that with content production. 

Understanding that as long as you are communicating a built together message that is presenting those different types of content and is telling a story that will pour into your audience, you will build loyal followers. You’re going to be building a community and a base which is the overarching goal for all of this. 

Figure out what you can do. Understanding what you have bandwidth for and what is going to tell a holistic picture. If Reels are not your calling right now, you’re good. Have a holistic existence for your Instagram. If that means lower engagement on some of the lower features on Instagram that people land on and feel very held and taken care of. That is worth it. 

Tactically understanding what you’re craving, what you can do, and then implementing it. A great way to do that too is figuring out one type of content pillar that is always going to be Reels, and then one type that will stay in Guides. Figuring out how to not completely throw yourself off but to integrate the new things is a great middle-ground between both of those. 

 

Greatest Blessing in Business

It’s in imperfection that your excellence is often bred. 

Allee started her business like a bat out of hell. Straight up. She was ready and grew so fast that she didn’t know how to prioritize her needs and how to steward what God had given her, so she drowned. Very much. 

In the end, she didn’t know how to charge what she was worth. This ended up translating far beyond once she realized how to charge what she was worth, in other areas of my business.  

Often it is so much easier to lead somebody else to water than take yourself there first. There’s a reason on airplanes when they say put the mask on yourself and then help the person next to you. She remembers hearing that when she was little and thinking it was the most obscene thing she had ever heard in her entire life. In her business, she was failing because she couldn’t prioritize her needs and heart, and those areas needed to heal.  

Almost quitting, but understanding those areas that you are coming up against right now are mirrors. They are not there to stop you. They are to heal you. To help you. It was in that, that she understood the tendency and became more whole in every element of her life. 

Your business can sting sometimes and know that is normal. The reason there is that mirror is so you can look at yourself in a place of curiosity, not judgment, and become better. Remember, where you stumble therein lies your treasure. Allee would never be the fireball that she is and the content that she just took us through if she had quit.  

Understand wherever you are that there is a purpose in it and that it is bigger and better. At the struggle, it can sting and that is a valid feeling but it is going to serve a bigger purpose when you allow it to. Don’t judge it, just be curious and understand how step by step by step you can get better. Just like creating content, creating a business, creating a life; it takes time and there is a reason it was designed that way.

 

 

 

Episode Links

www.theheartuniversity.com/challenge

www.theheartuniversity.com/guide-freebie

 

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