How To Build A Targeted Audience That Trusts You

Most creators don’t have a growth problem. They have a trust problem. You can collect thousands of followers and still feel like you have no real authority, no real community, and no clear path to monetization if you’re talking to the wrong people or switching messages too often.

We get honest about what it actually takes to build a targeted audience online. I share my own journey through confusion, slow growth, learning to build an email list, and realizing that “more content” is not the same as the right content. We talk about the hidden cost of choosing a niche just because it looks easier, how that mindset leads to burnout, and why belief and clarity are the real engines behind long-term creator growth. If your positioning feels messy, or your Substack and socials attract a wide mix of readers, you’ll hear practical ways to simplify your focus so people immediately understand why they should follow you.

You’ll also learn why consistency works like planting seeds, not like instant conversions. We dig into depth over virality, how a small loyal audience can beat a large disengaged following, and why feedback and testing are essential if you want sustainable results. The goal is not to chase numbers, it’s to become someone worth following and to build quiet trust that compounds.

If you’re building a creator brand, growing an audience, or trying to monetize through subscriptions, products, or services, listen through and then tell me what you’re struggling with most. Subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review so more builders can find the show.

Transcript

Followers Without Real Authority

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Did you know that most creators, guys, with a large audience and uh many followers don't actually have a real presence, real authority? The reason is that behind the scenes, with thousands of followers, millions of likes, if you don't target the right audience, it's like having not at all. So, how can we avoid this mistake? We don't know that yet. But that's what we are going to talk about today. Hi guys, my name is Fabio from Journey to Success and welcome. When I started my my journey, I didn't know what to do. I thought I knew it, but I didn't know. Once I figured that out, I realized that I didn't know how to build a following of interesting people. And after that, I learned I didn't know how to create an email list. And when I finally figured that out, I still didn't know how to monetize my efforts, you know. I'm still struggling because I'm learning how to position better myself to achieve a stable monetization. And uh meanwhile, I realized that many other people might be facing the same challenges as I am. Online, guys, it it seems everyone is eager to promote their products in an easy-going way, you know, in an easy-going way, like making money fast, uh learning to play piano, becoming a chef in just one day. I don't know. But the truth is it's not that simple. You need to build trust first, uh trust with the right audience. So let's talk about it. But before we move forward, as always, please subscribe so I know this is the right direction to lead you guys, to drive you and to guide you towards your journey to success. Let's get started as always. So, first of all, the reason growing an audience feels so hard, it may be because of competition, some people would say. There is no doubt about it. Certain audiences grow more slowly because of high demand and hike competition. Okay, so when the market you choose is full of people, growth becomes challenging, guys. At the same time, if there is high demand and less competition, that works in your favor. But do we really have to choose our target audience based solely on what is convenient for us? That's the critical question. If if if you pick a niche that you don't genuinely like, but you just do just be because you think in this way you can grow faster, the truth is that it can lead to burnout. My podcast, for example, is about personal growth, right? It's about personal growth, productivity, motivational speaking, similar to thousands of other podcasters around the world. After three years of consistent effort, I finally start to see real growth. I'm funding my own voice, my own originality. So while demand and competition uh are high even in my case and are important factors, okay, the real challenge is not about that. It's not about uh, you know, be in uh a more or less uh environment. The real challenge lies in believing in what you do. So if you lack belief, clarity decreases, and without clarity, you will not find a targeted audience, which will slow your growth, of course. So that's your first problem. The second problem is not about having more content, it's about reaching the right people. Currently, I'm writing on Soupstack about how to grow an audience, and at the same time providing episode recaps of my podcast, you know, that centers around the journey to success. So my my core focus is still personal growth, but I also write, you know, about how to grow an audience, and uh that's is also my course, the the course that I'm selling these days. However, I cannot expect a hike open rate for audience growth unless I better position myself with this intention in mind. The truth is that right now I have a dual purpose. So it's helping people, helping people grow their audience and reach their dreams while also creating personal growth content. So I do two things on Substack, okay? Substack is the social media where there is my community right now. And what is the point here? It is already challenging for any digital or even physical creator to establish themselves in just one subject, guys. Can you imagine do it with multiple subjects? Like in my case, it is even harder. It's not impossible. And it is not impossible for your follower to be seen as a leader in two categories if you implement strong positioning. Okay, it's not impossible, but it's not easy. So be focused on one topic and stick with it, at least initially. If you ever want to expand, do it, of course, but with awareness. For example, Tony Robbins, you know, also Tony Robbins, focused on personal growth, yet also sells vitamin D on his website. So you can do the same, but approach it with awareness because it is not simple, at least in the beginning. It's wise to stick to one type of audience, okay? Number three, understand their pain and desires. This problem centers on uh understanding your audience pain and desires, guys. I relate to the strangles of growing an audience because I've been on this journey for over a decade. So my desire is to help others achieve this goals, this goal faster than I did. Okay. On the other hand, in my personal growth journey, I've learned from my experiences and mistakes over the years. So my goal in this case is to alleviate the pain for those aiming for success, making their path faster. Now, the point is in this case, consider your own situation. What are your pains and desires, guys? You need to answer to this question in a way that you can connect better with your ideal community, okay? Then we have number four. Once you finally connect with your community, you know, it means you are truly speaking their language. I've mentioned this before, I mentioned so many times. I use grammarly.com. Grammarly helps me to write my scripts, you know. I'm not doing free speaking podcasting. Sometimes it looks like, but I'm I'm not doing it. I rely on grammarly.com to correct my text. Yes, sometimes I take the lead, and surely sometimes you can even notice because I sometimes do some uh I make some uh grammar mistake, like now, for example, you know, right now I'm taking the lead. But generally I like to follow a script, you know, and I'm the one crafting the script, but it is as if I have a proof reader by my side, you know. Now the question is, do you really mind? Of course not. If you are here, if you are listening, I think we reach already 10 minutes, it means you don't mind. Because we are speaking the same language, and I'm not just referring to English, we are currently communicating in our language regarding what we are aligned on, okay? I understand you and you understand me, and that's the reason we are here, okay? Number five, create content they actually need. So once you resonate with your audience problem, guys, and learn how to communicate, it is time to persist in creating the right content, okay? It won't be perfect, and you will likely make so many mistakes along the way. But that's okay. Think of it like a friendship. So your audience will accept you despite any errors, and they will be happy for your improvements without expectations, as long as you continue to speak their language, of course. Okay, their way to communicate the topics. Number six, consistency builds trust. One of the significant mistakes I made, and still partially make, guys, is thinking that the more I show up in my streams, in my lives and articles, the more directly I will monetize my efforts. So I used to believe that one live stream equals one at least one person who will like my product and buy it, you know. However, it does work like that. It doesn't work that way. It is not a straightforward line from point A to point B. It's more like planting seeds, guys. So you don't see them grow immediately. You know, you show up one day and nothing happens, you show up again and still nothing. Then suddenly someone follows you, someone subscribes to your email list and uh trusts you enough to buy a product from you one day. So consistency is not about instant conversions, it's more about building quiet trust over time. People don't buy or are generally not interested in what you do when uh they see you just once, guys. They buy when they feel like they know you, okay? So every stream, article, reel, and post adds another layer of familiarity. So instead of thinking this live stream, real or post should bring me a sale, shift your mind, shift your mind to something like this live stream is one more brick in the foundation to become what I inspired to. Number seven, building a loyal audience. Depth over virality. It is important to have a loyal audience rather than just random views. You may have here that you can make a living with just 1000 or 2000 followers. I don't know if the people who promote these thoughts actually make money at the end of the story, if I have to be honest with you. But let me defend this kind of perspective because it is indeed possible. If you have, let's say, a deeply engaged audience of 3,000 people, right? 3,000 followers, 3,000 people who more or less engage with you, who are truly loyal, at least, even if they don't engage so much and and know you well, that's very important. So let's say that you could offer a$9 monthly subscription for a valuable product. If if around 280 people decide to pay that amount at a 9% conversation rate, we're talking about$2,500 per month. So you can literally achieve financial freedom with this amount in um at least 70% of the world. Okay, so you can just live within uh uh inside in this 70% of the world, uh and you can live with it. You can live with$2,500. Okay. Reaching this conversation rate is challenging, guys, but it is not impossible. Your audience must truly trust you, and uh earning that trust, of course, takes time. This is something I'm still working on. Additionally, your audience needs to be a real target audience, okay? As for me, for example, like I said before, not in the case of my podcast, my podcast is uh pretty targeted, but my Substack audience is formed of people interested in personal growth, people who want to grow their audience, and uh others with a mix of this interest, but no particularly focus on any specific area. So if I were to achieve a 9% conversation rate, guys, I would I would be excited to share it with you because I would be very surprised. However, I don't believe that will be the case for me, and that's okay because my Substack audience is becoming a little wider than before. So it's important to acknowledge what you do to build the path related to your target audience, okay? So this way you can make sure your expectations match the results one day. Number eight, learn from feedback and adjust. You must always be prepared to adapt to the situation, guys. Follow your instance and try out different approaches, okay? Don't just guess. When you have an idea for optimization, test it, try it out. If the idea doesn't work, keep pushing forward in a repetitive way with different ideas until you find the right solution. Okay. I know it is frustrating, I know it looks like it's never enough. I know that. I feel you for real, guys. Believe me. But you have everything you need at this point, okay? The right path and the right tools in your hands. But there is one key that can unlock everything and uh lead you to fulfillment. You just need to find the last golden key. That's it. The last piece of the puzzle that will finally make you say, Yes, okay, I did it. Number nine. The long game of building an audience. This is very easy. Patience, clarity, and repetition. Patience, clarity, repetition. Okay, once you have everything settled, you know, it's done. That's what you need once everything has been settled for the best. And lastly, number 10 becomes a one worth following, guys. Did you know that for the first one year and a half, maybe two years, I didn't even like hearing myself in the podcast. I felt ashamed. I thought this doesn't look right. There is something wrong. Because it is like opening a bakery and not liking your own bread, you know. Trust me, you you will not sell it well. But eventually I found a way to improve myself. So when I finally reached a moment where I thought, yes, I will listen to myself now. That was the right door, okay? So the best way to connect to connect with your audience is to be your own biggest fan first. You are a reflection of your audience, guys. Remember that. It is a mirror between you and the people in front of you, okay? Ah now. Before we we wrap up, okay. What did we talk about today? Today we discussed the realities of building an audience and gaining genuine authority as a creator. I share my own challenges when I first started, and I struggled to find interesting people to follow me. And I had to learn how to build an email list organically. And this journey is not just about having thousands of followers, of course, but it's about having uh followers, or let's say more mindful people who are aligned with your vision, okay? We talk about how some creators may seem successful, but actually lack a true connection with their audience. This is often because of not targeting the right people. The question is: should we choose our audience based on what seems easy for growth? The truth is that picking a niche just for quick wins, guys, can lead to burnout, okay? So it is better to focus on something you are truly passionate about. That's where real growth starts. Over the years, I've learned that believing what you do is essential, of course. So when you are clear about your message, it is easier to find an audience that resonates with you. The challenges is not just about creating uh more content, it's more about making the right content that reaches the audience you want to serve. So understanding what your audience cares about, that's also very important. Their pain points, their desires. This helps you create a deeper connection. Okay. It is also important to communicate in a way that matches your audience language and understanding. By doing this, you build a relationship based on trust and resonance. And consistency. Consistency is another key point. I used to think that showing up often would lead to immediate subscriber or sales. But it's more about building trust, just like planting seeds. You won't see immediate results, guys. You will not. But with time and consistent effort, growth will happen, okay? We also discussed that it's not just about the number of followers, but the quality of the audience. A smaller, loyal base can be more valuable than the larger, disengaged mess. If you can connect deeply with even a few people, that can lead to a sustainable income, okay? One day, not soon, of course, but one day, yes. And learning from feedback also. Learning from feedback is also crucial. It is important to test uh different approaches. If something doesn't work, you need to adjust and keep moving forward until you find the right path, guys. And lastly, we emphasize that patience and persistence are key in this journey. So building an audience is not an overnight process, guys. It's all about believing yourself. If you uh can can be your your own biggest fan, right, you will attract an audience that appreciates what you bring to the table. Now, I I really really want to hear from you. What challenges have you faced in building your audience and what strategies have you found helpful in connecting with the right people? Send me a message, connect with me on Soupstack, and uh just write me. I generally want to know your journey. Uh if you find value in today's episode, please subscribe so you can uh stay updated on all things related to uh to journey to success. And don't forget to share this episode with a friend who might also be navigating the uh complex the uh the complex stuff, let's say in this way in this way of audience growth and personal connection. Thank you for joining me on this journey, guys. Remember, together we are learning and growing towards a life filled with purpose and authenticity. I'll see you in the next episode. Cheers.