Many coaches and influencers are panicking as Instagram, Meta, TikTok, and other platforms implement major changes. But the solution isn't complaining - it's adapting your strategy and doubling down on creating exceptional content that truly connects with your audience..."
Let's address the elephant on the social streets- where people are losing their minds over the Instagram Algorithm changes, the meta-verified shenanigans, and the eventual demise of TikTok.
As with all big changes, it highlights and separates the business, marketing, and coaches based on their reactions. What you're seeing right now is how long these people have been in business.
I could go off on a tangent here, but I promise I'm not going to. I'm going to make this helpful for you.
The bitching and complaining come directly from people who are “newer” and have put all of their marketing efforts into one basket. That basket could be Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, or whatever your social platform of choice is here.
I'm seeing how business owners understand marketing and social media as a whole. Here's what I mean….
Since the beginning of the Facebook business page in November 2007, we have been incredibly blessed as business owners. We've had a place for our business to connect with others on social media for FREE. And then, when Instagram went from iPhone only to all other phones in April 2012, we were extra blessed with an additional FREE void to shout into about our businesses.
So, it's fascinating that most people are shocked to learn that they might need to pay to play- because it seems a bit overdue.
When I took my first marketing classes, Facebook was for college students only, and businesses needed to pay physical and expensive marketing and advertising expenses. E-commerce—wtf was that? To "succeed," a business needed signage, advertising in newspapers, radio, TV, and direct mail to gain traction. All of that with no real way to test and track its return on investment.
It was expensive back in the 1900’s to reach people because you had to do actual advertising. To understand this better, in this day and age, do you know what 10M views on TikTok are worth in paid media? Based on Tok's $10 CPM (Cost Per Mille), aka Impressions average, it's about $100,000, and there are people who are getting that for FREE.
I'm sorry to jump platform talk, but I need to give you an idea of how this exactly plays out in the paid world today.
Because my next point is that organic content is still alive. With this new Instagram algorithm update and the Meta updates that are expanding to other countries, and eventually the US, people are freaking out that to be seen; they are going to have to pay. I don't believe this to be true as of right now, and here's why- I don't believe that organic is going anywhere. The primary goal of social media platforms is for many people to disassociate and spend lots of time on the platform to keep their advertisers happy.
If there aren't people on the platforms, scrolling along and wasting their days, there are no advertisers.
If the platforms only showed paid content from mediocre creators, people would abandon them in mass, which would lead to less revenue for the platform.
Because once again remember, you are running a business on another business.
Your feeds won't be overrun with junk ads, as that wouldn't be in the users' best interest. So, the rules essentially stay the same: the best content wins.
The Meta Verified isn't going to change that once it gets to the US.
Producing great organic content will gain exposure. I get that it feels like sometimes you have to create 100 shitty pieces of content before something sticks but you do have the luxury of figuring out by looking at your analytics monthly what content your community wants from you.
But with all of these changes and "challenges" happening, it's more important than ever to figure out what is working. Be in more than one place. Build your email list. Focus on the following you already have. Provide exceptional service.
The most important thing of them all is to connect with human beings.
Keep Learning. Stay Consistent and get creative.