How To Show Up For Your Audience - Even If You’re Scared

I talk a lot about audience building. And there’s a reason for that. When you’re launching a subscription box, you need to have people to launch to - your audience. I’ve also talked about how you don’t need a HUGE audience in order to be successful.

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There are online businesses that have hundreds of thousands of followers. And some that have millions of followers. A business called My Cupcake Addiction has 5.4 million Instagram followers. Y’all, that’s a whole lot of people!

If you listen to my podcast, you may have heard a recent episode where I talk about maximizing the value of a small audience. When you finish reading this post, definitely take a listen. The episode is full of tips and strategies you can put into place to make the most of your small audience.

I’ll give you a bit of a spoiler, though. The most important thing you can do - the absolute MOST important thing - is to show up for your audience.

That is my not-so-secret secret. I show up for my audience.

Let’s talk about how you can show up for your audience - even when it feels scary.

How I Got Over Being Afraid Of Showing Up.

Y’all, when I say I understand being afraid to show up, I mean it.

When I started my subscription box business, I didn’t want to be the face of my brand.

I let all my insecurities get in the way. I told myself all the reasons I was sure I wasn’t “enough.” 

I wasn’t:

• Young enough
• Pretty enough
• Skinny enough
• Tan enough
• Professional enough
• Good enough

Why would anyone want to listen to me?

So, I tried to find an influencer I could hire to be the face of my brand. As I looked, I realized something. Most of these influencers looked the same. 

They were all:

• 20-something
• Beautiful
• Skinny
• Blonde
• Tan

In other words, they weren’t me. I thought that was what I wanted. Until the day I had a huge lightbulb moment.

I realized my customers weren’t going to relate to these influencers for one very simple reason.

My customers were me!

• My customers looked like me. My most popular sizes were large, extra large, and double extra large.
• My customers were southern, so they sounded like me. They y’all-ed all day long, too!
• And my customers weren’t 20-something. They were in their 30s, 40s, and 50s. I’m 43.

My customers wanted to see me.

They wanted to talk to me. They wanted to see how cute my products looked on me - someone who looked a lot like them!

That huge mindset shift changed everything about my business. It allowed me to drop all the fears I had and just show up as me.

When you show up for your audience - and you need to - show up as you. You are who your customer is buying from. You know what your customer wants and needs. You can build those relationships that turn customers into raving fans.

So how did I start showing up?

I started with Facebook Lives.

Was I scared? Absolutely.

Did I do it anyway? Yes, because I needed to do it for my business - and for my customers.

To make things easier for me, I put a few things in place. They helped me and I know they’ll help you, too.

1.  Set a schedule.

Get your calendar out and pick days and times for your Lives. But don’t just write it down - let your audience know you’re going to be Live. Tell them what you’ll be talking about and get them excited about joining you!

2.  Invite some friends.

When we talk about going Live, one of the first things that comes up is, “What if no one comes?”

I had the same fear. So I invited some of my friends. I made sure a few friends would always be there - that way I could say hello and have people to interact with right from the start.

I also gave my friends questions to ask me so I wouldn’t sound salesy. Like if I was wearing a pair of earrings I wanted to talk about, I’d have one of my friends ask me about them. That made it all easier and more natural.

3.  Do something that makes you feel good about yourself.

The biggest hurdle I had to overcome when it came to doing Lives was my confidence. I decided I needed to do something that made me feel good - something that gave me confidence - before going on camera.

For me, that means getting my hair done. When I have my hair done, it makes me feel more confident. I find myself sitting up straighter, presenting myself with more authority, and just plain feeling better about me.

Figure out what your version of “getting your hair done” looks like. Maybe it’s wearing a favorite outfit that you feel good in. If you work from home and don’t usually bother with makeup, maybe putting on makeup before going Live gives you that boost. Strike a power pose, dance to a favorite song, choose a pretty background to sit in front of. Whatever makes you feel good - that’s what you need to do before you go Live.

Now, if you’re not currently going Live with your audience, get out your calendar and pick a date and time. Make a commitment to yourself and to your audience. They want to see you. They want to get to know you.

Beyond Facebook Lives - other ways I show up.

Showing up for your audience is more than just hopping on Facebook Lives. Look for ways you can show up and provide value to them. Remember the importance of serving before you sell. 

Ways you can show up and provide value to your audience:

• Engage in the comments - Facebook and Instagram.
• Send regular emails in your voice.
• Use 2-way text/SMS communication.
• Create short videos through your day with IG stories or reels.
• Podcast.
• Serve inside other groups.

You don’t need to be extreme. It’s not about who’s the loudest or the trendiest or the most outrageous. It’s about being you.

It’s time for you to show up!