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Weekly newsletter brought to your inbox every Wednesday, by your friends at Elite Blog Academy®—full of valuable marketing tips, tricks and inspiration to help you keep pushing forward when the days get long. 

FEATURED READS

The part of your business that social platform outages can’t touch

Were you affected last week when Meta went down for a few hours? It couldn’t help us think about how thankful we are that our business isn’t built on someone else’s platform. 

It’s no secret that your email list is key to building a successful online business. It’s your chance to connect to your people no matter what the algorithm does, or no matter what happens with social media apps. 

Last week when Meta went down, we received an email to our inboxes from EBA alum, Jennifer Maker, that was genius! She wanted to let her people know that even though Meta was down, you could still fill the time with the crafts and tutorials found on her site. What a great way to utilize your email list AND provide serious value at a moments notice.

Today we’re sharing a post from the EBA vault from Jennifer (while in her second year of business)—How I Gained 3610 Subscribers While I Was On Vacation. 

The post will walk you through the mindset shifts she made to think of her email list as a main focus instead of just a part of her business, and give you some essential steps to do the same.

POWER MOVES

Enhancing brand experience through your story

Crafting a compelling narrative is the cornerstone of successful content marketing. It will help you bring authenticity to your brand and connect with your audience on a whole new level.

So, what is a narrative? A narrative is essentially a story or account of events, experiences, or a series of related occurrences, whether true or fictitious. And in online marketing your narrative is your brand’s story (usually your own), highlighting where you started and what you went through that brought you to where you are now. 

Most importantly, your narrative helps your target audience see how you can relate to their own struggles and how you can help them overcome them. 

Your narrative builds empathy and makes you relatable. It also builds credibility by showing the experiences you’ve gone through and how they made you who you are. 

Your narrative also builds trust with your audience, showing your vulnerability and efforts to be authentic. 

Your narrative is also memorable. People won’t remember all the facts about your credentials and expertise, but they’ll remember a compelling story you shared.

So how can you create a compelling narrative that draws your audience in?

Step 1: Tell your story. With a partner or small group, just start to share! Start from the beginning and share your experiences, important lessons and milestones along the way. Don’t worry about filtering, that is what the next step is for.

Step 2: Pull out the nuggets. Ask your partner or group to write down any “golden nuggets” as you’re speaking—the parts that really resonate or seem most compelling. Talk through these to narrow down to the ones that fit with your messaging and business.

Step 3: Bring it together. Take the notes you have and write your story!

Step 4: Edit and refine. Ask your partner from earlier to review your rough draft and give any possible feedback. Edit, hone in and refine your narrative until you’re happy with it. (It’s going to be a work in progress—so don’t let yourself get stuck in the “making it perfect” phase!)

Step 5: Practice. Now that you have your story, practice sharing it! This is something you’ll want to be able to tell over and over until it sounds natural.

So where do you use your narrative? Everywhere! It’s going to be a core element of your brand. Your narrative is something you’ll use on your home page, about page, emails, content, sales copy, etc. So take the time to craft the narrative you feel speaks to your brand, and then start sharing away.

WE’VE GOT TO TELL YOU ABOUT

Free on-demand training

The online world changes fast. Are you keeping up? In our brand new training, Ruth breaks down the strategy your business needs to thrive not only right now, but also adapt to changes in the future. The best part? It’s on-demand, and you have 5 days to watch! Click HERE to request the training.

MINDSET MATTERS

Never stop learning

Online professional development is important in the workforce, and in the ever-changing world of online marketing, it is no different. Perpetual learning is a must. Online marketing changes fast, and those who are willing to continually grow and adapt to the changes are the ones who thrive.

In the ever-changing world of online marketing, keeping up is key to winning. The digital scene is always on the move, with new tech, trends and customer habits changing the game fast. This means you've got to be in a constant state of learning, always ready to pick up new skills and knowledge.

By embracing continuous learning, marketers gain a competitive edge. They're better prepped to jump on fresh opportunities, create innovative strategies and connect with audiences in the constantly changing online world. Plus, keeping the learning going sparks adaptability, creativity and strategic nimbleness, helping them to tackle the twists and turns of online marketing with ease.

Diving into continuous education not only boosts your skills but also connects you to a lively professional network, opening doors to collaborations and mentorship. Really, keeping up with learning in online marketing is more than just essential—it's a game-changer for both personal and organizational growth. It equips marketers to excel amid industry changes and achieve standout results.

LEVEL UP

Want to get the most out of ChatGPT?

Revolutionize your workday with the power of ChatGPT! Dive into HubSpot’s guide to discover how AI can elevate your productivity and creativity. Learn to automate tasks, enhance decision-making, and foster innovation, all through the capabilities of ChatGPT.

Download the offer for actionable insights and tips on harnessing AI for a more efficient, impactful professional life. 

SHE MEANS BUSINESS

Jennifer Chauvin of The Brilliant Homeschool has been in our community for several years. 

She originally started her business back when she started homeschooling her son. At the time, she didn’t know anyone else that was homeschooling and she was not getting a lot of support from friends and family. So once she started figuring it out, she wanted to create a place where parents could come as they began their own homeschool journeys sharing ALL the things she wished someone had shared with her when she was starting.

Ultimately, she wants her business to have a positive impact on the world by making homeschooling as easy and stress-free as possible for families. How awesome is that?

And while Jennifer had products available and was making money, her offers were no longer working like they used to and she really started to feel like she had hit a wall in terms of growth and she was unclear on her next steps in her business.

She took advantage of the beta enrollment in EBA® Powerhouse and has already been finding so much clarity.

While we knew that the framework is fantastic for brand-new business owners, we were so excited to hear about the progress Jennifer is seeing in her existing business as well. 

She started the program with an open mind and a clear goal: to get her business back on track. 

In the beginning modules, she really took the time to go back and redefine her why, get clear on her dream customer and determine what her rallying cry is for her business. 

And that has really opened her eyes to more ways that she can make clear connections with her audience. Through these exercises, she has been able to see how her current marketing language wasn't really personal and therefore wasn’t resonating with her potential customers. This led her to see a brand new market within her niche that she can now reach.

We love seeing this shift because where there once seemed to be a brick wall, a clear path forward is coming into view.

If you are reading about Jennifer and thinking “Oh that is exactly what I am going through”, first, know you are NOT alone.

If you are interested in seeing how we are helping business owners adapt to the new economy, we would love to invite you to sign up for our brand new ON DEMAND training, Firestarter: 3 Red Hot Secrets for Building an Online Business in 2024 That No One is Talking About. Click HERE to have it sent your way right now! 

MARKETING FUN FACT

Less than 1% of Google searchers will navigate to the second page. To tap into the power of Google, you should focus on a combination of strategic efforts, including SEO optimization, high-quality content creation and building backlinks. Find some tips on how HERE!