Social Media Tips From a CEO Who Built Her Biz on Instagram
After getting laid off, Nicole Hamzeloo decided to turn a setback into a come-up. Armed with a degree in marketing and finance, and her previous work experience, she went into business for herself. As founder and CEO of Thrive Collective Co., she (and her team) works directly with entrepreneurs and small businesses on social media strategy. The goal? To help them standout among competitors to grow and increase their profits.
As someone who built her business from the ground up with zero leads and capital, Hamzeloo knows how vital social media can be for awareness and growth. Of course, your business shouldn’t solely exist on social media—the website is your foundation and social platforms should amplify that space. But when word-of-mouth is low and you’re just starting out, knowing how to share your mission and connect with people on social media is a skill worth learning.
Ahead, and in her own words, Hamzeloo shares ways you can help grow your business on Instagram, Facebook, and more.
Build Relationships
“There’s a reason this is first on the list—it’s really that important. Business and selling is all about the relationships you build and the network you have. If people don’t feel comfortable with you and don’t trust you, they will not buy from you.
I recommend viewing social media almost like you are at a networking event. Even if someone isn’t a potential client, the connections you make can ultimately lead to great opportunities. So don’t just show up on social media and wait for people to come to you, be an active participant who provides value, connects people and serves those that can use your help.”
Share Your Story
“People connect with stories, especially ones they relate to. And truthfully, a lot of marketing comes down to storytelling. You aren’t selling a product or service, you’re selling someone a story. So then when it comes to your business, sharing your own story can be extremely powerful and provide a huge connection point between you and your audience.
When people know that someone has gone through the same things they are going through it builds the know, like and trust factor. Whatever your brand story is, talk about it and share it often.”
Be Yourself
“You also want to be honest and authentic. Now it might sound obvious but it is really easy to get wrapped up in what other people are doing and trying to emulate that. And of course, sometimes it’s smart to see what others who came before you are doing and what worked for them, but ultimately you want to take all of that with a grain of salt.
Being yourself is one of the best things you can do to stand out among competitors. Capitalizing on your unique qualities and abilities sets you apart and provides you with your unique positioning, without you even having to do anything. When you are yourself, you automatically will attract the right people to you, the people who will see your value, relate to you and want to buy from you.”
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Actually Sell
“This may seem super obvious but there are a ton of businesses (especially in the service space) out there that you can’t even tell what they actually sell. It is not clear who they’re targeting, what they can actually help you with and most of those businesses aren’t talking enough about what they offer to get a lot of their audience familiar with them and what they do. To grow your business on social media, you have to show up and sell what you have to offer. If you never talk about how people can work with you, you can’t expect to sell online.”
Optimize Your Pages
“Your bio and social media profiles have to be clear and consistent. It has to be obvious what you do from the very first seconds you land on your page and you want to have consistency with your branding and messaging across all platforms. People have short attention spans and are not going to take the time to decipher what you do and if they can’t tell that your page is for them, they’re going to leave right away. So what does that look like?
Beyond your bio and initial look of your page, your content should be ‘bingeable’ to new people coming onto your page. You want to have a variety of content (especially video) that is made specifically for your audience. There needs to be a ton of value and engaging content that keeps people on your page and coming back for more.”
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