Bee Turcotte joins us this week from Busy B Social, to talk about how you can effectively (and time efficiently!) grow your social media influence in the trades.
Your time is valuable, so she walks us through how to pick the top 1-2 platforms to place your focus, what content trends are hot in social media right now, and how much time you need to realistically spend to build a loyal following for your trades business. Spoiler alert: it only takes a few hours each week!
Customers are only going to be giving more of their attention to social media in the coming years. Whether you're new to the game or a technology savant, hear some of Bee's best tips and tricks in this week's episode!
Feel free to check out more from Busy B Social:
Email List - Monthly updates on what’s new in the social media world mixed with some Social Media Strategy Tips - link: https://view.flodesk.com/pages/61cdd821b0306b55f06cad36
Instagram: @busybsocial
Facebook: www.facebook.com/busybsocial
LinkedIn: www.LinkedIn.com/brittanydturcotte
Connect with us:
Head to Apple Podcast for more episodes.
Bee Turcotte joins us this week from Busy B Social, to talk about how you can effectively (and time efficiently!) grow your social media influence in the trades.
Your time is valuable, so she walks us through how to pick the top 1-2 platforms to place your focus, what content trends are hot in social media right now, and how much time you need to realistically spend to build a loyal following for your trades business. Spoiler alert: it only takes a few hours each week!
Customers are only going to be giving more of their attention to social media in the coming years. Whether you're new to the game or a technology savant, hear some of Bee's best tips and tricks in this week's episode!
Feel free to check out more from Busy B Social:
Email List - Monthly updates on what’s new in the social media world mixed with some Social Media Strategy Tips - link: https://view.flodesk.com/pages/61cdd821b0306b55f06cad36
Instagram: @busybsocial
Facebook: www.facebook.com/busybsocial
LinkedIn: www.LinkedIn.com/brittanydturcotte
Connect with us:
Head to Apple Podcast for more episodes.
The word. That's great. I think it's fantastic. Especially if you've been able to build a significant portion of your business off of it. Um, but at the end of the day, your social media and your word of mouth can work hand in hand for sure. all right. Welcome back everyone. To another episode of inside the trades as always, you have Matt and Derek here from Foundry today, we have our special guests. From busy bee social, she's a social media expert and she's going to be sharing the best tips and tricks that we can find on how to grow your social media following, build a brand and hopefully bring in more sales to your trades business. Uh, so Derek can be welcome. Uh, we're thrilled that you're both here. B uh, I'll turn to you first. How are you? How are, how are you doing. Good. Yeah. Thank you for having me on the show. I'm really happy to be here. Um, yeah, so again, my name is B I am a social media strategists, uh, and some would say expert, uh, out of midway, Massachusetts, and I work with small business owners, small to medium business owners and entrepreneurs, uh, throughout the U S to help build their online presence and overall profits. So that's what I. Um, yeah. And you have, so before you got in social media, do you have very different banks? Which I think we're going to be surprised to hear about, but it's also an awesome story that I know Derek and I have heard a little bit, but we're excited to share it with everyone else. How you made your transition from what you were doing prior into social media. So do you mind giving us a little bit of the origin story and kind of how you got to. Yeah, absolutely. So, um, one thing that Derek and I have in common is we are both UMass Amherst, alumns going mess. Um, so that is where my origin story begins. Um, you know, I am the younger sister to a overachiever, so I went to UMass Amherst, uh, and went through the. Program. I did, you know, I, I went through the program. It's a five-year program. I did it in four. Um, and on the other side of it, I came out with a really great tax position at a large firm in downtown Boston. So I, you know, and that was my idealization of success at that time. Right. Because when, at least, you know, for me, uh, a millennial, right. I was raised to be told, you know, you're going to go to college, you're going to get a job. You're going to work that job nine to five, and you're going to retire. And. That's when you live your life. And, you know, I was fine with it at that point. And, you know, I kind of carried on my way and went up through my career and I was able to transition into a finance position right before COVID hit. Um, and I was working with, um, Really large sums of money, uh, you know, fast transactions and things like that. And, um, unfortunately I like many people when COVID hit, due to being the last one hired, I was the first one let go. Um, and for the first time in my life, uh, you know, my ten-year plan kind of went out the way. Uh, and I was set to scramble. So that was, um, kind of the pivoting and turning point for me, which kind of created this brainchild of dizzy be social, you know? So, um, I kind of had to sit down and figure out, did I want to continue to go down this path and finance and be working in these like 80, 90 hour weeks, you know, without any end in sight while also trying to like build my personal life, have a family and do things like that. Um, and so I, you know, had a lot of time to sit down and think about that and. Luckily, you know, my, you know, my partner at the time was super supportive about it and we were on a stay at home order anyway. So, you know, I kind of took that time to do a lot of insightful thinking and realize that I had, I had been marketing since I was probably like 13 or 14 years old, just naturally, because I had had, you know, four businesses before I was 18. So I know. They're all over the map. I did an online magazine. I did a fundraiser with a bunch of my friends to raise money, to send kids abroad over, you know, four years in our, our high school. And all of those things required marketing and I loved it and I was successful at it. And in that four years, we were able to raise between like three and four grand to be able to send kids abroad. And that was coming from the minds of like teenagers. Right. So it was crazy. Um, but yeah, so ultimately after sitting down and, you know, ruminating. I'm learning and figuring out what it would take to get into the space. I made the jump. I invested in a, you know, coach and really got my business off the ground. And ever since then, you know, I nailed my first client a few months after that, and I'm still working with them with a client on Newbury street and, you know, my business. Growing from there. And the pivot from accounting to social media was definitely something that, um, I would've never guessed for myself, but you know, here we are and, uh, I'm flourishing and really enjoy what I do every day and get to help people directly. So I always thought the accountancy to social media influencers, a very linear journey. So I've been proven wrong. It's a very, you know, up and down, especially with the education required around it and to be able to really put your best foot forward for these people. You know, of course, of course. Yeah. I love your story. It really resonates with me. I know it resonates with Derek as well because we, you know, we've kind of been on similar paths. We've kind of taken similar journeys with. Speaking for me. I started in finance too. Like I was always in finance and strategy and marketing roles, uh, and, and I, and I get it. And then again, when the pandemic came around, it kind of forced me to be very introspective and think about what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. And it was kind of like, I don't want to sit in a cubicle desk from nine to five every single day. I want to do something that's impactful that I enjoy doing that I think is going to help other people. And that's kind of where Foundry came from. And, and that was a significant leap that I made to go in a complete different direction. Um, but I don't regret it for a second. Yeah, absolutely. The creative, when you ignite that creative section of your mind, that has been like stifled for so long, it just like gives you so much empowerment and enjoy because it helps you like know that it's the right path for you, you know? Yeah. And, and once you do ignite it, I feel like it can lay dormant for a little while and talking to a lot of people. They're like, oh, well, I'm not sure if. Really want to be an entrepreneur or a business owner. And I don't have an idea. And where's that idea supposed to come from? It's like a muscle. You really just have to start writing things down and experimenting with different things and the more you do it, it gets, it really gets easier. And now I can go around and look at just on a regular day, say, Hey, that looks like a problem I could fix. That over there, it looks like a problem. I could, I could, I could create a company that fixes that. It just becomes second nature after you do it. Yeah, it's true. Like it's like a muscle that needs flexing and toning and building. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. It's like, you're able to see the matrix for the first time and suddenly you're like, oh, wait a minute. Now I have an answer for all these problems where I didn't like three years ago or two years ago. I guess we took the blue pill guys. Right? Was it the blue pill? The red pill. I'm going to go like. Oh, come on. I know. I think now I'm saying, I think it's a red pill. I I'm almost positive. It's the red pill. Cause everyone's it's yeah. Oh my God. Now everyone knows. I'm not cool. Don't tell anyone. We just lost our cool cards right there. Sorry, folks. Good pod. Well, let's, let's bring it back closer to home. So be getting into social media. This is a topic that some people love it. A lot of people hate it, but it's obviously becoming more and more critical to small business owners in the trades and in any. Um, so let's start getting into, you know, some of, some of your advice that you might have for these people who I think, I think a lot of small business owners are intimidated by it. They don't fully understand it. There's so many different platforms. If, if you're not on social media yet, but you want to start or you're you're on there, but you still have a small following. What are the, some of the first foundational things that you would recommend people. Sure. Um, so first of all, I always like to start with. Don't feel like you have to be present on all platforms at once because that just ignites this like immediate reaction of overwhelmed, because why wouldn't it? That is a very overwhelming task to master, you know, four or five different platforms all at once. That's a big ask, right? So I always tell them to, you know, break it down into steps, right? If you're not at a position where you're ready to hire a professional to do it for you, um, Educate yourself, make sure that you are creating as much, um, you know, free flowing knowledge around social media as you can. And that just, you know, that could go to just following some leaders in the industry to kind of figure out what they're talking about and, um, you know, follow their guidance, um, and all the way to like, even like branding experts. Like if you're starting a business and you don't really understand, um, who you are, who you serve, things like that. These are all questions. I really, I really advise people to dig into, um, before they actually, you know, um, well, not before, right? I shouldn't say that. I shouldn't say that. Let me take that back now, before figure out these questions. Um, Continued to be present on the platform that you choose, the one that you choose to start with, um, because that'll definitely help get you out of your shell and at least like learning how to use that platform. Um, and then, you know, that content and that graphic creation and your bio that will all come secondary, make sure you're present on at least one to start and, you know, then get into your branding, your content and. Answering the questions of who you serve, how you do, what you do, um, and really educating people around it because I find the more that my clients actively educate their consumer base or their demographic on, uh, things that might be repetitive to you as a business owner, who, what you do, who you serve, um, the products that you make, all of that, um, even though. Behind the scenes, like what goes into your products? Um, that education part of it can really make you stand out from your competitors. So, um, if you're just starting, you know, make one platform, create your branding and content and graphics as you go and learn, um, because you just want to make sure you're present and then finally, you know, educate and. You know, redundancy is key. It takes people eight times to really recognize what they want before they actually actively pursue that. So, um, it might be redundant to you, but it's not going to be redundant to an audience that is actually like receiving your message now, now be that that's great advice. So going back to your first point of, of picking one platform for people in the trades, how should we be thinking about which, how do we know which one did. Sure. So this is pretty, um, heavily dependent on your demographic, right? So it's who you're targeting. Um, Honestly, I would say that Facebook and Instagram cover a fairly similar demographic, but not identical. Right. You're going to have on Instagram and Tik TOK, like the younger generation too, probably like you're 35, 40 year olds that are using it actively and daily, um, just with their lives. Right. Because like we grew up with this platform and so it kind of carries us in through different seasons of our lives, whereas the older generation, right. Or just, I would say probably a little bit skewed from like 32. 70 right on that Facebook, because that's a really like family focused oriented space, um, that they can get updates on their loved ones and news and all that kind of stuff. Um, so it really comes down to your target demographic and who you're looking to, um, really resonate with. And if that is Facebook, that's great. Uh, you know, really dig into that and figure out how you can maximize that. Um, but at the end of the day, Some people, honestly, and this is kind of like a hot topic may not belong on either. Um, if you are kind of like a service industry person, um, where you're primarily offering like, you know, financial services or things like that, your demographic might actually be on LinkedIn and that's kind of a platform that some people don't think about. Um, I know that, you know, All of us on this little chat have already discussed, like things like LinkedIn podcasts and things like that, that, um, you know, would be really great for people in service industry, looking to build their, you know, professional demeanor and things like that. So, yeah, it all comes down to like your demographic and who you're looking to attract into your business. For sure. I think to piggyback on that one, too, just looking at it. Just the terms of being a homeowner. If we're looking for a plumber, electrician contractor, somebody that can do our, um, uh, hardscape in our yard or anything like that, I would feel that Facebook is probably going to be a good medium for them to channel their message, because that's where people are most likely going to be consuming that type of content. Now saying that. What would be some, what would be some manageable, uh, content ideas that you could share for people that don't have a production company or are not looking to flex a ton of creative, um, energy to adding that other aspect into their, into the grind? Sure. Yeah. So honestly, it's going to sound odd, but when you're, if you're in like a, an industry, like for instance, like a landscape company, if you're a landscape company and you're looking to build your audience on a Facebook page, right. People that are following your Facebook page are already interested in your services, but what you're going to be utilizing on there, it's showcasing, showcasing your before and afters showcasing. Um, you know, showcasing your reviews and having happy customers, even like make, even if you want to ask them to make a quick video of saying like what they loved about like their, their yard transformation and things like that. Um, those were all the things that people that go on Facebook to review or look into companies are going to be looking for, um, that. For lack of a better word, like tangible, um, results kind of really resonate with that kind of a demographic, because like you said, for a company like that, And in that kind of an industry reviews really drive your sales and your growth. And that's just something you can't get on Instagram. Like you can post your reviews from other platforms, but they don't live on Instagram like they do on Facebook. Um, because you can have a five star review on Facebook, you know, um, and have those reviews to back it up. So, um, that would definitely be an to get that content. I would honestly just say. Like, if you're going to do a big project, set up your camera on a tripod that costs maybe$10 and do a time-lapse video from beginning to end of the project. And then you could probably break that video into like two or three different pieces of content over the next three months. Quick, easy, not a lot of time commitment, and you're not using your phone anyway. So why not put it to work for you while you're. Nancy I-phones to have a time lapse feature in the camera. So you can, those always make compelling videos where you get the laps and everything's moving a thousand miles an hour, but you've got to you've. You've got to condense this down a seven or eight hour project and you know, 30, 40 seconds. Yeah. And people love to see that beginning to end. Right? One of I had a client that has grown from like a hundred followers to over a thousand, just because we've been posting these like update videos on renovation projects that they do, you know, and, and it's not even like we're selling to anyone. We're not actively being like, let us do your renovation work. We're just literally saying, this is what we're doing. If you're interested, check it out. And you know, we've just hit a target. Yeah, I do think the hard sale on social media is a tough one because that's not really why people are going to social media. They're going to be entertained or to kill time or just kind of mindlessly scrolling. And if all of a sudden you start flashing ads or sales pitches, or trying to get them to open their wallet, like it's kind of disrupting their experience. Um, So I do, I do like the idea of just putting really compelling content out there and say, Hey, check it out, check us out. Follow. Yeah. And like for certain industries, that makes more sense. Um, because like, if you're buying for instance, like luxury candles, right? Like a lot of people would go to Instagram to see if that company had an Instagram and had an Instagram shop, um, because it makes it more. I dunno, accessible in their mind that they're already inside of an app and able to kind of like put that in a car and just buy it right in the app. Um, but yeah, like to speak to like a service industry, like, like a landscaping company or something like that, um, it really is about just that like compelling content and showcasing that. And, um, that can build your business just as much as shoving the sales and you know, people's face. So yeah, they both can. And I think to, to further that is it doesn't have to be a compelling content and then hire me. It can be. A process where okay, like follow, share if you like this. And then hopefully by them following that, then you've got a lot of the features and capabilities within, especially Facebook where you can reach out to your audience and ask them targeted questions. Or when you have those people in the fold, whether it just be a poll or some other posts. Helps grab them and gets them to respond and getting them the building up to the whole no like trust factor. I agree. Yeah, for sure. Um, can you just hit the nail on the head that no, like trust factor is going to be your biggest, you know, your, your best friend on your business journey. And I guess I'll say. Social media quote, unquote gurus out there. Right? You have people offering courses and digital videos and saying, Hey, here's how to hack your Instagram account or at 50,000 followers in a month or whatever it is, is any of that stuff legit. Like, I just feel like there are so many people out there. Trying to sell a product like they have this magic potion or they have this unicorn solution, but I don't want our listeners to go out spending money on things that aren't, aren't going to work. Are any of those YouTube courses, digital courses, whatever. Are they legit in your opinion? Like, is there a formula for how this works or is it more random? So that's, that's a very loaded question, Matt. Um, you know, it's, um, there are there's people that I I've learned from since the beginning of my social media career, you know, and that honestly went back to really resonating with the content that they were putting out there at that time of my career, because I was looking to learn what they were offering. Right. Um, I will say, though, you, you should be weary to, um, For a few things. If you are following a guru count that has like a hundred million followers, but they're posting like very random and sporadically and only getting like 10 or 20 likes and not really getting any engagement. Chances are, that's probably like a fake guru because they. They probably paid for followers. Like, you know, that's a very, um, big issue in my industry is pay for play, you know, you pay for those followers. And the problem with that is that it throws the algorithm off because these are bots. These aren't like real people that are following you. And overall, it's going to hurt you. Like in the long run, you're going to see very bad growth, stagnant growth, even, um, you could get shadow banned for activity like this. So, um, I would definitely ask you to do a little bit of research into it and kind of test your, your common sense. Um, because when you look at little things like that, like the following to engagement ratio, um, or even just going to, you know, a website, uh, there's a bunch of websites that you can literally type in an Instagram handle and it'll tell you what their engagement rate is. Um, and from that, at least for someone like me, I'm able to kind of gauge if this is, um, I guess, legit or not, you know? Um, so that's definitely something that. I would always say, do your research before you make any big investments. Um, but as far as a formula, You know, there is no real secret sauce. It just comes down to the hard work and the consistency and what you can put in. Right? So if you're taking that time to do your market research with your ideal audience and cater to their questions and their needs, and also taking the time to be personable with them and silly and things like that, the growth just comes organically. But, um, Anyone that tells you that they're going to get you 50,000 followers in a month? I would say, definitely look into their, um, you know, statistics and things because. You know, the first thing I say to anybody is I can't guarantee you results. What I can guarantee you is the strategy and the thoughtfulness behind it and everything, you know, with the consistency is projected to go this way and together we can make that happen. As long as you know, there are. Cause there's deadlines for anything, right. You have to make sure that there's consistency that's met. Um, and that takes work on both ends from the client and from the service providers point, like, you know, in this industry, um, coming down to like copywriting, graphic creation and things like that, to make sure that we're nailing it and nailing your content and hitting it on the head so that your audience just grows because it resonates with them so much. And that's, you know, the responsibility of your social media service provider. Um, But yeah, so unfortunately, no secret sauce, but consistency really helps. Um, and engagement really, really helps if you're actively engaging with your audience and, you know, taking the time to, you know, post polls to your stories and show up on your stories and, um, comment on other people's posts that resonate with you and save things. You know, there's a bunch of different things that can really help you. Get closer to the success that you're looking for and reach those goals in a more timely manner. As long as you know, consistency is key. I was just going to say the engagement piece of that. I don't think you can overestimate that because that is in that. The direct link to your audience that is letting them know you're human being and you're actually listening and appreciating that they're taking the time out to acknowledge your work and that they're following you and that you appreciate that they're there. And that's a perfect time for you to be able to warm up those waters. Yeah, absolutely. And that's building your know, like trust factor. It all comes back to that. And, um, you're more likely to buy someone that you buy from someone, or, you know, at least pursue looking into like a service provider, you know, contract, if you feel comfortable with that person already on a level that isn't just strictly business. Uh, small business is so much more than just a business. It is literally a livelihood and a dream for the person that has created it and their baby, for lack of a better explanation. And like, it's your responsibility to help, you know, grow that and help it prosper as much as possible. And, um, you know, at least that's something I take very seriously for all my. Yeah, just going back to that engagement piece again, I will say in our experience and our biggest channel is Instagram. When, when we're engaging and posting versus just posting, there's a, you see a clear difference. You see a clear difference and number of followers that come in from that likes and shares and posts, then the engagement piece is huge. But this is going to bring me to my next question B, which comes down to time commitment, but for a local trade owner, obviously everyone is strapped for time. How much do you recommend they really put in on maybe a daily or weekly basis to see gains, to see growth brought without necessarily. Sidetracking all of the other many priorities that they have. Sure. Yeah. Um, so honestly, I would say the first place to start is monthly, right? Because all goals start with attainable expectations and. Busy business owners can also be, you know, busy parents and busy, you know, relatives and just like overall busy in every aspect of their life. So, um, for someone like that, I would really suggest taking. Two hours a month, right? Maybe once every other week on like a Saturday or Sunday, a day that you already have put aside, um, for like your stuff, you know, your personal stuff, take an hour out of that and see if you can come up with different ideas and ways to, um, You know, create content and things like that, or at least ideas for content, right? So over those next two weeks, you can then start being like, oh, I have a project coming up. And that was a piece of content I had thought that I should create. So let me be mindful around that goal and bring something with me to help make that happen. Um, you know, because. Even if you don't actively make, sit down and make content in that hour, you're still actively thinking of ideas that you then may stumble upon during the next two weeks month or whatever it is. And you're able to get that content because you already have that idea. Um, you know, so that's your monthly goal. Your weekly goal should be to show up on stories. Um, if, especially if you're using Instagram stories are very under utilized, um, you know, show up on stories at least three times a week. Um, They don't have to be long stories. They could even just be like, Hey, I'm out here on the site today. Look at what I'm doing. You know, this is, you know, and show the team actively working and things like that. Just to show people that like you're still present and, you know, actively engage with them in the DMS and make sure that you're checking. Um, you know, there are a lot of small business owners that don't realize that there's a whole folder in your Instagram that you may not be seeing. Um, and it's hidden message requests. Um, so I would really, I would really be who've you, if you have an Instagram and don't know about this, um, I would take a minute, pause this podcast and go to your Instagram. Check in your inbox and see if you have any like requests all the way to the right and blue. And if there's a number there, click on it and then you'll see all of the hidden messages that you haven't seen because you don't follow those people. Um, if you're not actively following somebody on their Instagram, chances are, if they message you or they reach out for information, they're going to be sent to that Phantom for. That isn't your general or your direct messages. Um, so definitely check those on a weekly basis as well. Um, okay, good. Excellent. There's also hidden in that folder too. So check that. Yeah. Good, good. You follow you followed the rabbit all the way down the hall. That's good. Um, great. So, yeah, and I honestly, at the end of the day, and that's all you can do and, and you know, you're doing your best then. You know, it, keep doing it, keep the grind down because at the end of the day, your business is building. And just because you can't take 2, 3, 4 hours a week to pour into your social media, you're still doing what you can to keep your social media up to date until you're able to outsource that and really give it that direct attention that will really help skyrocket you a couple other items to help with that as well. And it doesn't cost a lot of. Is M is finding other accounts that you can, that you're looking to benchmark and seeing what they're doing, not necessarily directly ripping them off, but getting an idea of what content they're posting up there. Just, just to be able to build up some ideas. And another area that I found has been really helpful is finding out all the vendors and if they have accounts and either tagging them. Or responding and corresponding with them or engaging with them on their own feed and letting them know, you know, one year a loyal customer and that, you know, you're, you're brand loyal to their products. Um, but it's another good way of them highlighting the work that you're doing. So if you've got a hardscape job and you're using Unilock pavers and you tag them on to post on that, They will share that. And I know that because they've done it for us. So definitely a, and that takes moments to do, if you're scrolling through your feed and you've got your, um, vendor, uh, profiles that you can click on and just give them a little, give a little love. That'll definitely come back to help you to, yeah. Collaboration is honestly key when it comes to trying to grow. Um, and like you said, it takes seconds. So I mean, as well, right. But you mentioned outsourcing a second ago, when would be an inappropriate time for a small company to start thinking about outsourcing. And this is directly where your services come in, what are the kinds of things that they can expect from you or a social media expert? If they weren't. Sure. Um, so honestly, like there's never really going to be like a perfect time to really outsource that service. It just depends on the work that you put on social media. Basically it comes down to right, because I've had clients that hired me, you know, to help them grow their presence and things like that when they had a shoestring budget, even though it was a stretch, um, and we were able to really show those. The growth and business, you know, so they took that chance and they were able to kind of like take that leap out of their comfort zone and make that investment that ultimately showed the returns. You know, so it's, it's, I don't necessarily think there's ever like a key time, but it all, it all comes down to like the worth and the importance that you put on social media, in the aspect of growing your business. If that makes. Um, and that, that could be different to many people. I don't try to, you know, dictate that I know everyone's situation is different. So, um, you know, my goal here is to just be here to support them. Um, and if they have questions or ever want to, you know, pursue that, you know, I'm here to talk because my passion is growing your business so that you can be successful as you want to be. You know? So, um, when working with a service provider, that feels that way, um, You should, you should be able to feel that, I guess, because you know, that means that we're passionate about our work and especially in the social media space, a lot of time comes around like that content creation. Um, so that's definitely something you can, you can expect to be taken over by someone in my field. Um, it's pretty standard, you know, just like writing those posts for you and also creating a strategy behind it so that it. You as the business owner and that you feel that you are still present in the messaging that's being put out there on your behalf? Um, I think that that's something that a lot of service providers can kind of gloss over. Um, especially if they're just starting out and that's okay. Like we're all in the learning, you know, we're all learning, but, um, there really needs to be an emphasis on, you know, that individual owner's voice because especially if they want to be known as the. The face of the business. Um, it's important that you're making them heard as the face of the business as well when marketing their, their products, their services, anything like that. Um, so I'd say that that is definitely something that your social media service providers should be doing for you is really looking into your strategy and also comparing you to your biggest competitors. I always perform SWAT analysis for any of my, my clients that I onboard. Um, okay. Like Derek mentioned earlier in the podcast. Uh, it's important to see what other people in your space are doing and what they're doing successfully and see if maybe you can put your own spin on that and find success. Um, so yeah, that's definitely what you should expect for sure. One of the things that we've heard from a few of, a few of the businesses that we've worked with and talked with. The word of mouth marketing. Well, we don't really need the social media as much. We just, you know, we're really big on word of mouth. So, you know, when it comes to the marketing piece of that, we're just, we're, we're all word of mouth and, and we're doing great and we're three months out and we're just going to stick to the word of mouth. Cause that's working. Could you speak to that and also speak to that in terms of what that means for also. Um, development or talent or spotting talent and for hiring. Sure. Yeah. So, um, you know, word of mouth is great. That's honestly how I got a really large portion of my business when I first started. So like, I'm not harshing that mellow at all, like ride that out. Um, but social media doesn't have. The word of mouth is something I think people really rely on as a crutch and not flexing the social media or developing the social media muscles that are going to come in handy when either times are lean or they need to start hiring people. And yes. It's, they don't have a visible and tangible product that is demonstrated in a way for people to consume, whether it be on social media or something like that. So I was getting to. How is it like stressing the importance of that for folks that are, that are really relying on the word of mouth and that's going to save them. I was trying to say, you can use it hand in hand. And I kept saying, I was trying, I was looking for the word either, or, but I meant to say. Um, you, you could use your word about, and your, um, social media hand in hand to work off each other for when times are lean, like you was saying. Yes. You know? Um, so yes, uh, yes, for that, you know, the word of mouth. That's great. I think it's fantastic. Especially if you've been able to build a significant portion of your business off of it. Um, but at the end of the day, your social media and your word of mouth can work hand in hand for sure. Um, and they, they will, I mean, naturally because people that are spreading the word of mouth. I'm going to go to my mom and I'm going to say, Hey, you know, I'm at this guy, Derek today. He does X, Y, and Z. He's great. What is my mom going to do? She's going to hop on her phone and she's going to type in your business. And she's going to look up if you have social media, because she's going to want to binge all of the content you have there, because she's going to be looking for someone to do her, you know, landscaping or paid her house or something like that. And looking for, you know, proof that these, that the trades that are being, you know, sold to her are. Being done well, right? Because at the end of the day, everyone just wants everything done well and safely and things like that. Um, but it kind of goes a step further to also talk about like, you know, talent acquisition. Because if I am someone that's looking to grow my talent in landscaping and I'm looking to switch my job from one business to another, um, and I'm looking to really like develop my creativity around like certain like flat floral arrangements or things like that. You know, there's a bunch of things that go into it, but, um, I'm going to be looking for that business that can offer me that like next level design education experience. Right. And how are you going to know that they offer that? And they do that unless they have a presence on social media, you know, and it kind of just serves as a, as a gallery, if you will, of your finest works, um, to kind of put your best foot forward for those situations. So that if you, you know, at the end of the. Extended job offer to this person. That's looking to really like develop their skill in your trade. Um, it's a no brainer for them to say yes, because they already feel like they're present and with you and like on these jobs, because they've seen the results that you've done and like the process behind it and things like that. So, um, definitely. And you know, at the end of the day, You know, word of mouth is super great and it can happen wherever, but we just came out of a two year long pandemic. And if you were a business that wasn't on social media, you know, you could be spread on word of mouth, but if you had that proof already working for you, you could be making money while you. You know, um, so in, you know, these crazy times that we live in, it's always smart to be omnipresent, um, in a time efficient manner of course. Um, but yeah, social media should definitely be a no brainer at this point, for sure. Yeah. I mean, even if you have great word of mouth marketing, there's not a single purchase made today without the assistance of a phone or a search engine or some kind of digital interaction, even if your best friend, you know, or, or, you know, your closest family member came to you like, Hey, you really gotta go hire this contractor. Well, the very first thing you're going to do is they're going to pull up their phone and they're going to go. Yeah. So I totally agree. They go hand in hand and there's really no downside, even if you're amazing at word of mouth, there's no downside in something. Exactly. Think of it. As in addition to, instead of exclusive, you know, one or the other, no. Use them hand in hand, it's a, a smart and efficient marketing strategy that will just help you down the line. Exactly. Yeah. Now. Okay. So B for people who they're, they're exclusively word of mouth and they listen to this and we just convinced them. W what are some of the hot topics today in social media, like recent algorithm changes or where I'm going with this? We we hear all the time. Now you gotta be on reels. Like you need videos. It's gotta be video on that photo. How much merit are there to those common changes? And if someone was really going to dive deep, Into one type of content right now, what do you think it should be sure. Um, right off the bat, like immediately video video is where content is going. Whether it's short form, video, long form video, you know, definitely videos should be part of your content strategy. Um, and if you're just starting a. I would like to give you a word of advice. Um, you know, changes are scary, right? And we all feel very comfortable in our monotonous, you know, routines, but if you're going to embark on the journey of social media, you have to embrace change. And when you embrace change, like for instance, when reels was released, right? Anyone that hopped on that real trend, once it was released immediately saw. A huge spike in growth because when these updates are released for the algorithm and for these apps, they way higher on the algorithm, right? So that means if they release a new app, they want as many people to start using that update on the app as possible, because they believe that that is the future of this. So as many as, so as many people can join that trend as possible, we'll see that instinct growth because that's weighing higher on the algorithm. So if they're starting to adapt to it early, that's a no brainer. The algorithm is going to say, wow, okay, they're really liking this. So we're going to showcase their content to people to get them to do it too. Um, so. Definitely keep an eye out and keep up, um, your knowledge and keep abreast of changes because, um, if it's something that is being released, there is a reason it's being released and a reason that it's an update, um, because it's kind of like an overall marketing plan for the company as a whole. And if you're supporting that, they will ultimately support you as well. It's just kind of, you know, tend to tat if you will. All right. Well, be in Derek. I know we're coming up on time. Um, so why don't, why don't we start the rundown before we get into that B I'll give you the floor, any final thoughts that you want to share with the listeners today about social media? Sure. Yeah. So, you know, the one thing that I would definitely encourage is to figure out someone in the industry that you really trust and has reliable knowledge and, you know, See, if they can keep you abreast of changes, right. And anything that comes down the pipeline, including updates, um, possible, you know, just like rumors of leaks and things like that, because that's where you're going to find your edge when creating your content, um, is in these updates and strategy tweaks that you can make along the way. Um, and yeah, so just saying. If you're looking for one, I do have a newsletter, so definitely, um, hop aboard. It goes out once a once a month at the beginning. And I give you, um, a rundown on all of the updates and upcoming rumors, you know, for multiple social media platforms, not just exclusive to Instagram or Facebook. So, and how do we find you to be able to subscribe to your newsletter? So give me a follow on Instagram at busy bee social that's busy, the letter be social, um, and you know, you'll find it in the link in my bio right there. You can join the hive newsletter along with 50 other incredible small businesses in the area. You will have a push to your email once a month. That gives you all the information you need to be successful with your social media strategy. And is there anywhere else we can find you online? Yes. I have a Facebook group, um, for busy, be social. You can look me up there and then you can also, if you're on LinkedIn, you can give me a follow at B Turcotte, B E T U R C O T T E. Great. Thank you so much. B I think that's a great place to wrap. Uh, like you said, be sure to check out busy, be social on all her social channels. Make sure you get on that newsletter. They're going to be lots of great insights there. And as always, you can listen to these episodes of inside the trades, come out every Monday available on all major podcast stations and on the topics of social media. Make sure you check out Foundry, social media. Uh, give us a follow and give us a like as well. It's always much appreciated. Thanks so much for your time today, Derek. Same to you. Great conversation. And, uh, we'll talk to everyone later. That's always a pleasure. Thanks so much for joining. Yeah, thank you for having me. It was a, it was a blast as always guys take care. Have a great weekend. Everyone. You too.