The rule of seven
It is said that, on average, a customer needs to see your product or offer seven times before they buy. Assuming someone sees every post you share (which is unlikely!) you need to talk about it at least seven times - and that's in between sharing your more entertaining, personal or educational content.
The problem with that rule is that it's an average. Some people will buy from you the first time they see your new product or service, while others might take months or even years to admit to themselves that they need it in their life.
When to start mentioning...
Please note that the following is a guide, not a set of rules!!
Periods we all plan for
Examples: Christmas, New Year, summer holidays, Halloween, etc...
You can always mention the next one coming up - that's what your audience will be planning for. This means that now that summer is behind us, the next one is Halloween. So if you've got any spooky products, scary events or services that could help those who are really busy around Holloween, it's a great time to start talking about them.
The exception to the above would be Christmas. #ChristmasInJuly is a thing and is becoming increasingly popular as more and more people are trying to spread out the cost of Christmas throughout the year.
Events you are organising
Examples: A workshop, a networking event, a show, a big launch, etc...
I'm definitely one for making plans last minute because I get too excited and want it to happen already but I've learnt the hard way that you really do need to give yourself the time to promote it. If we consider that rule of seven again, giving ourselves seven weeks to promote the event allows us to promote it without it being the focus of every single post.
But, as I said, this is a guide and not a set of rules. If people can attend and benefit for free, you don't need to give yourself so much time. If, for your ideal client's budget, it's expensive you need to give them more time to think about and find a way to make it work.
For example, on October 1st, I'll be launching a workbook. I started to mention it in April and started to promote it in July!
Events you are attending
Examples: A networking event, a fair, a market, etc...
As an attendee only, you don't need to promote the actual event. The goal of your posts isn't to convince people to come along too - although that is always a bonus when it happens! Your goal is to make sure that those who follow you who are also going to the event know to look out for you. You don't need to give yourself too much time for this, and actually people are likely to forget if you say it too soon!
For events where you hope people will say hi to you, I'd mention it the day before so it's fresh in their minds. For events where you hope people will buy from you, I'd also mention it a week ahead (and tag the organiser!) to give newbies a chance to have a nosey at what you do and who you are.
A day or two (or even a week!) later, it's great to mention this again - and again tag the creator so other attendees can find you!
Features that promote you
Examples: A blog or podcast you guest on, an award you win, etc...
You want to mention these are soon as you can!! But also you don't want to forget about them. You can absolutely share them again a month, two months, even a year later. You could also mention an upcoming guest spot. You could start mentioning it a week or two before it goes live, especially if you think that your audience could benefit from following that creator.
What am I mentioning in September?
♥ Periods we all plan for: none. I will do in October, but for now, they are too far down my priority list to get a mention.
♥ Events I am organising: The Launch of my workbook. This includes an Early Bird Offer and a live masterclass on October 1st.
♥ Events I am attending: Visibly You Online Networking on September 18th at 10 am. I have actually already mentioned this one on my Facebook Page.
♥ Features that promote me: Guest speaking spot in the Joyfully Different Community on September 18th at 11 am and Podcast Guest on The Tropic Pianist Gamer's podcast on September 22nd.
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Tesni xx
