Establishing community is one of the most important aspects of growing your brand. It ensures that you’re building anticipation for what’s coming next and, also, makes your audience/avatar/lifers feel like they’re part of the process. Your co-creator, if you will.
Now, newer entrepreneurs tend to believe they’re supposed to just get all the kinks worked out before they start to tell their audience about this thing they want to share with them.
There’s a variety of reasons for this. Let me mention two…
Number 1: Fear of failure / criticism.
Bottom line: Afraid that we’re going to get it wrong; that we’ll be judged.
Hence, we want to have all the things right, like:
- colors
- logo
- price
It’s all gotta be perfect! This way — when we do have the big reveal to our ideal customer — there’s nothing for them to criticize (in our minds, at least).
Number 2: Stolen ideas.
This happens all the time! You come up with a new idea and you’re petrified that a:
- competitor will be watching and take the name of your workshop
- Silicon Valley developer is going to hear about your product, copycat it, and rush it to market
- random follower in the same niche will ask you many questions about your creation and secretly raise money to fund their own version
And frankly, in some instances, I suppose that could be valid.
But you also have to recognize that you’re putting yourself at a real disadvantage by not sharing your brand idea, with your community, at the earliest date possible.
There are very few exceptions where I might suggest not to talk about it (that might be for another blog). Regardless, even in those instances, there are still many ways to get your audience…
- involved
- excited
- anticipating
- feeling they’re part of the process
…without you having to give away trade secrets that otherwise might need to be protected by an NDA.
Start thinking of your customer as someone who’s just as knowledgeable, excited and passionate about your idea as you are.
In other words, a friend, a co-creator, someone in your community.
Listen, if you don’t have community, it’s time to start realizing that’s how you win.
Let’s be honest, followers — for the most part — are random people who rarely see your stuff. More often than not, they followed you years ago (and sometimes even by accident).
Trust me, that’s a different level of investment versus somebody who feels like they’re part of your brand/community.
For much more on WHY and HOW to involve your audience — as community — in the seeding of your product/brand, you must check out this episode of Build Your Tribe!
And don’t forget to subscribe to BYT for weekly episodes dedicated to you crushing your business — whether it be on social media or a brick and mortar!
