This article is written by Danielius, the most read self-development blog in Lithuania - Debesyla.lt - the author. Read on.
I had a nightmare that day. No, I didn't have to go to school, no one chased me, I didn't find a hidden room in the house and… Er… *Searches for a list of common nightmare scenarios*… My teeth didn't fall out… Jo. That didn't happen either.
Instead, I woke up without 21.7% subscribers. I lost 909 people. Somewhere!
Why did these people start to dislike me? What did I earn? Is something wrong? my blog, facebook? Someone lied about me? WHAT IS HAPPENING???
Because the image looked like this:
And this does not look happy... Especially when those 4.2 thousand you raised people yourself, marketed, communicated with them, sent letters and otherwise - you've been creating content for 5 years.
What happened? It turns out to be a funny thing…
I rejected these people myself
I deleted 909 people who subscribed to my thoughts by email. by letters.
Am I a lunatic and don't remember how I did it?
Apparently not a lunatic, but I really didn't remember how I did it at first. Just after checking your email mail delivery service (Active Camping, I recommend) I saw - after all, I had set up the automatic checker half a year ago:
Contact has not opened any mail in [180] days -> delete.
Just. No lia lia, we delete it and put it together.
I calmed down when I saw it. In the last six months, it gradually deleted more than 1.1 thousand. contacts (potential buyers!!!) and I'm sad that you can't do something like that on Facebook. I would also like to lose at least 20% of my followers on Facebook.
…Why?
FIRST: These people cost money.
And if you have an audience (regardless of: on Facebook, e-mail, otherwise visiting your page or physical store) - it costs you too.
- It costs me e. sending letters, because I physically couldn't handle such quantities - I wouldn't be able to send manually through Gmail.
- Facebook advertising costs Jurgitai, because the more followers of a Facebook page, the smaller the amount (percentage) that sees messages without advertising. Check out the Classical Art Memes Facebook page, who has over 4.9 million followers, but only get thousands of reactions to the posts. Even the page's posts that get the most attention (~49k reactions) account for… Just 1% followers. Not to mention inferior ones.
- Costs space, regardless of hosting or physical space in the city.
And that's just euros.
SECOND: These people are not listening to what you are saying.
They are like friends who say they want to start doing X, but don't even after 3 years of urging. They're like your ex who said "I love you so much" but really loved the size of your wallet or the existential hole between your legs. They just don't listen.
…Of course, doesn't mean it's bad. Maybe we don't need to listen to you - you talk nonsense. Maybe they just passed the moment when they needed your help and moved on.
But the fact is that they don't listen.
And the time you spend preparing exclusive messages, letters, gifts for these people is essentially wasted. And what else will you not buy? That's right - the pleasure of re-watching your favorite series again... And time. You can't buy love yet, but that's another topic.
Although…
THIRD: These people did not love you.
Only he didn't sing it with Jordana. They weren't your biggest fans anyway - they joined because maybe you made a mistake and organized a "like and win" contest, maybe they joined because they expected something else, maybe you even bought contacts...
"You are your focus" in his book says the music author Martynas Jocius. And what do you give your attention to?
I think it would be much more helpful if you take one of your biggest fans, write them a private message and invite them to just meet at a local coffee shop or your office. It would be more useful if you get to know him and what motivates him to buy your services... Rather than shouting in a deaf Facebook market.
Haven't you noticed that it's easiest to sell to someone who has already bought from you?
That you also buy from where you are used to buying? If you have an iPhone, do you buy the second model? And you probably have a favorite shopping center? What about the author of the blog who signs the texts as if he were constantly eating? M?
So who are you paying attention to? Is it really for the people who love you anyway?
FOURTH: Nothing is guaranteed.
These 21.7% lost leads are not completely lost. They will come back if they want, and I will receive them. But such changes in the follower curve help to learn. Just like you learned when you broke up with your teenage crushes.
When you work in your field long enough, you get used to your level. And it can be catastrophic, as it was for Kodak or Nokia corporations.
...And maybe you got used to your e-mail. the opening of letters reaches 10% (for Debesylos subscribers - about 44%), and "they will buy from me every month..." is included in your plans as a guaranteed fact.
But really? There are other things that are not guaranteed either, but they are much more guaranteed than leads.
These are:
- The value you bring to your customers and followers. Even if not forever, but they will remember.
- Your personal knowledge. They are also not eternal, because the world is changing, but some of them are useful even longer.
And I think that such experiences, when you say "Thank you, next time" to some customers or try to lick the wounds caused by a failed product, are an opportunity to learn.
What's left when you don't have followers?
Finally, imagine a day like this. In the event of a major disaster - a solar flare would erase all data on hard drives, and your Facebook, e-mail mail, even snapchat contacts would disappear. It's quite possible, you know.
…What is left then?
What did you create?
- People whose lives have become better thanks to your work? People who, even without having you in their contacts, even without endless reminders, will remember that you exist and want to say thank you?
- People who are just relieved that that pesky parasite is gone?
One of my favorite authors, business process philosopher Seth Godin, often asks himself these questions. I recommend his blog and books. After this incident with subscribers, I started asking myself these questions more often.
And I saw that by deleting inactive recipients, I really don't lose anything.
…Just making room for new people to love. This helps to refine the model of the typical buyer, it pays off better financially.
Finally, I began to believe that the number of contacts is not the point. The point is length.
How long have you known THAT person? Each of them? How long and deep is your relationship? Are you an advertiser-person or a friend-of-a-friend?
Because quality content persists.
Well, at least that's what I started to believe. what do you think Is this true? Or maybe I'll talk? I try to learn from various sources, please share your experience!
PS Click to get my FREE booklet: "4 reasons why your creative engine stops and what to do to start it again". For developers and creators.