Episode #23: How To Be A Content Leader (Instead of Following the Crowd) with Lacy Boggs

Terra (00:00): Well, welcome back to The Fast-Track Entrepreneur Podcast. I am super excited to feature today's guest. She's been a long time friend of mine. And back in the day we actually co-hosted a podcast together. So prior to recording this we were laughing that we are getting the band back together. So let me introduce to you today Lacy Boggs. So Lacy is a content strategist and she's the author of the bestselling Kindle ebook, make a killing with content and she's the director of the content direction agency. She helps personality driven brands create and implement content marketing strategies tailor made to support their customers to reach their goals. So please join me in welcoming Lacy Boggs. How are you Lacy?

Lacy (01:07): Great, how are you?

Terra (01:09): Good. It's so good to be chatting with you today up and catching up.

Lacy (01:14): It's been a hot minute.

Terra (01:15): It's been a hot, a hot minute. Totally. So Lacy is in the Denver area, right? So and I'm in Houston and so we just like, we're catching up and like reminiscing on our old podcasts that we had together and just like giving it an awesome giggle and totally talking about how things have shifted so much in the last few years. So let me just dive right in. So Lacy is a wealth of information when it comes to content strategy. So let me just start with some basics, Lacy. So when we talk about the term content strategy, what does that mean to you?

Lacy (01:53): Yeah, so content marketing or content strategy to me is anytime you are trying, if you are having a conversation with potential customers with the intent that it will eventually result in a sale. So the idea being that could happen on your Twitter, that could happen in Instagram live, that can happen on Facebook, it could happen on Tik Tok wherever you are. But it's anytime you're, you're putting out content, words, video, podcasts, whatever it would the idea of engaging your, your audience to into a conversation that eventually leads to a sale.

Terra (02:28): I love that. It's so cool. So what is like some of the tips that you have for women entrepreneurs when it comes to thinking of a content strategy? So just I know a lot of women just get overwhelmed with when they even think about social media, let alone like should I be blogging? Should I be, where should I be doing? And Oh my gosh, this all seems overwhelming. Should I just hire somebody? Like what needs to be the step one that comes from the woman entrepreneur that's really driving our business?

Lacy (02:59): Totally. Well, first of all, you can hire me if you go to the place where I start with my clients is always identifying their bigger goals, right? So I think a lot of times we hear, Oh, you've gotta be on Facebook, you've got to be on Instagram, you've got to have a podcast, you've got to have a blog. And so we do those things, right? We run out and say, great, I'm starting podcasts, but we don't really have a bigger business goal behind those channels. And so a lot of times if you ask somebody, what's your goal behind your podcast, we'll be like, well, I want to serve my audience and that's awesome and there has to be another way. And that's why are you doing for your business? So you know, that could be, I want to reach new people, I want to generate leads, I want to become a thought leader.

Lacy (03:44): I want to build a platform so that when I publish my book, the publishers will be super excited about it. Whatever that looks like for you. There could be very different reasons you're doing things. But once you know the goal, creating the strategy behind it becomes a lot easier, right? Because each one of those different goals will have a slightly different path to reach it. So that's the first place we start with a client is say, what are your bigger business goals? And then we say, what are the metrics you're going to use to track it? Because I think that's, I know you're a data person Terra, but I think that's a place where newer entrepreneurs especially and women in general fall down is where we're a little shy of the numbers. We're shy of the data and so we don't put metrics to it.

Lacy (04:29): So you know, for example, if you told me that you wanted to do this podcast because you were hoping to reach new people and drive leads for your business, I would say, awesome, how are we going to track that? So it might be downloads, it might be conversions to a lead magnet that you set up or something like that. And then we might set up some kind of intake form where we, where you would say, where did you hear about me? And we'll track how many times people say, I heard you on your podcast. Right? Those would be the kind of metrics I would want to track to see if then this is helping you reach those goals. And so then that's step two. And then step three is actually creating the strategy backwards. So once we know the metrics and the goals, we can say, great, how do we get there? Because now we have an end point, we have a destination and we can create the path to reach it.

Terra (05:18): Oh, that's so good. And yes, data to me is like, data doesn't lie and sometimes we get so mad at ourselves because we weren't staying consistent or we get mad at the platform because now Facebook's not showing my post to everybody how dare them. And instead of just looking at the data and then making adjustments, right? Like so I love, I love that you said that. And that is huge. She's a hundred percent right. Especially newer entrepreneurs. They don't even think about tracking the data. And then even ones that have people who've been in business forever, it's such an eyeopener. When they actually go back and look at the data, look at the clicks. How did you hear about me?

Lacy (05:58): Right? Sometimes we're looking at the wrong data, right? Sometimes we're looking at vanity metrics because it's easy or it strokes our ego. You know, if you've got a really great Instagram channel for example, and you get hundreds of likes on every picture you put up there, that's fantastic. But are those likes translating into new business? Maybe, maybe not yet. Not if you're not tracking it, we don't know.

Terra (06:21): Exactly. Exactly. And you know, being authentic and being you and you know, there's plenty of people who even, you know, purchase followers on Instagram and we get like, Oh my gosh, you know, what is the magic one that is 15,000 followers? And then you get the, yeah, right. And it's like we look at some people and we're like, Oh, they're so insta famous. How do they do that? And it's like, it doesn't matter because it's really, like you said, it's about engagement. It's about, you know, why are you creating this post? Is it about building awareness or are you looking to do a conversion? Right. And you know, and I, and to me that was a big aha in the last year was, you know, I was just putting stuff out there. Yeah, of course. I have like a system of, I like to talk about five things, that type of thing.

Terra (07:11): But it really was like the intention behind the posts. Is this to just do awareness or is this to actually get somebody to engage in action or to take action and like, Hey, you know, work with me kind of thing and there's a season for all the different ones and I didn't know that and that was a total game changer for me as well. So I love that you're already driving in some really awesome stuff here. Like ladies, this is like gold and I'm so happy we have Lacy on the podcast. So one thing we've talked about was the difference between being a leader in the market and awesome. And then there's people who follow the crowd and I was giggling again like giggling like a school girl I guess. Like, cause I would told you about this little meme that I put together last night and I was talking to my friend at midnight and I ended up sending it to her.

Terra (08:04): I was like, I'm doing a meme on that. Cause it was something, you know, I think I said to my husband, I'm like, you know, I'm just feeling where I'm getting bothered by just seeing such recycled quote unquote content and thought leadership out there that is really just coming from I think a few people and people are just repeating it. So I told my husband, I said, you know, I'm really need to focus more on being a thought leader and less engaging with people who are just being a thought repeater. And I thought later it repeated and it rhymed and I'm like, I'm doing a meme and so I was telling you about it. I was like, you know, like follow the thought leaders instead of the thought repeaters. And you know, when we were talking, I know something you do really well is you help personality brands be a leader in the market instead of being the people who are following the crowd.

Terra (08:55): And I know this for two things and of course I'm going to, we're going to hone in a little bit more on this and your thoughts behind it. But you and I both had the same, we've worked with the same brand strategist, right? You know, a woman who doesn't repeat brands, right. Ever, ever. And it's so cool. Right? So it's like, and you know, and that's really a great way to, you know, visually put yourself out there, you know, when you're ready to really stand out in the marketplace and then, you know, work with a copywriter or someone like Lacyy that really helps you differentiate yourself because sometimes we're being consumers of other information instead of creators. And when you're a consumer you sometimes get confused on was this my thought or was this so and so and so and so and so and so's thought, right.

Terra (09:42): We get a lot of, you know, samesies out there. And when I, before I worked with, and the woman we worked with, her name's Sara Ashman and when I went to work with her and we were just, you know, I am being on Facebook and stuff like that. And I said, I was showing up as the business coach that had the pictures of me working in the coffee shop. And I was like, I don't even work in a coffee shop. Like I couldn't because it's too loud. Right. Going up like this. And she goes, Oh, so you're being, you're a me too brand, you're tired of being a me too brand. And I was like, yes. I have continued to feel called and called to like step into my own uniqueness. And you know, while I'm not the biggest rebel in the world, I'm, I'm a pretty tight line rule follower for the most part.

Terra (10:28): But I also, you know, I have some different viewpoints and whatnot. So anyway, so you know, based on that, that's how I know you're all about like helping people show up as a leader because you do as well. Like your website is, I always tell people like go check out her website. It's awesome. It's lacyboggs.com cause it's just awesome and it's stayed consistent and it's on brand and everything about it. It's fabulous. So what are your thoughts on how people can show up as a leader in their marketing, their content marketing, their blog, even from everything you do integrate. So like, even from the branding perspective, how they show up as a leader instead of just following the crowd.

Lacy (11:11): Right? So, you know, I think you started out talking about thought leadership was just so important. It's a term we bandy around, but what does it really mean? You know, and I don't think there's anything wrong with standing on the shoulders of giants, right? We all do that. And you know, in fiction writing and in art, they're saying that like there's nothing new under the sun, right? We're all borrowing from something else. We all have influencers. But the same is true in business, right? We all have people we listen to, we all have influencers that we follow. What's important is a, you quote your sources. So it's really important to say like, if I'm going to share, be a thought leader, not a thought repeater. I say I learned this from Terra Bohlmann. Right? rather than, than claiming it as my own or, or just not sourcing it.

Lacy (11:59): Right? Because then a lot of times people just sled it in under the radar. Like, Oh, no, no, I didn't say that. I just didn't put the quote right. So quote your sources. That's the first one. Cause there's nothing wrong with that, right? We all learn from other people. There's always people that came before us or have more experience or doing other things or just that we like what they're saying. Right, right. You know, Michelle Mazer did this just the other day and I thought it was so great. She wrote a really great blog post about how to market during a crisis and when she posted it on social media, she tagged me and she said, a lot of my thinking was influenced by Lacy Boggs and Tara Newman. And I thought that was such a nice thing to do because she didn't directly quote me anywhere in there, but she had seen something I had done and it had influenced her.

Lacy (12:43): And so she said, my thinking was influenced by that, which I thought was great. Really, really good way to show up as a leader. But then the second part about it is like be very discerning about what you're consuming, right? I think we all, you know, we need to Marie Kondo our social media feeds, especially when it comes to people in your own niche, right? I think it's very easy to get caught up in the crowd and not even realize it. Not even realize that we're reading, we're detailing some of the same stuff because we agree with it or we're moved by it or whatever it is. And so where you can kind of distance yourself from people in your own niche, follow thought leaders in different niches, you'll be excited to see what you find. But you know, for example, when I'm writing fiction, I can't read fiction in the same genre.

Lacy (13:31): Otherwise it starts showing up in my original work. It's not something I do on purpose, but I'm just so inspired by whatever I'm reading that I have to, I have to really distance myself. I have to read something else completely nonfiction or biography or whatever. Something different. Right, right. And can be true when we're talking about our thought leadership. Yeah. And then the other half of this is like thought leadership is like what we're saying. But I also think we need to be leaders in our strategy. In other words, how we're saying it, because let's face it, we've all bought the blueprint or the course or the formula or the whatever that promise is, it's going to get us the six figure launch or the the, you know, the best selling book or the podcast that shows up in new and notables or whatever. Right? Right. And these things sell for a reason. They work like let's not throw shade, they work. But the thing is, we can be a leader in our marketing as much as we are in our industry, right? You can take bits and pieces of what works and create a leadership model for yourself, which is what I advocate people do. You know, don't just buy the formula and then slap it down and say, this is going to work for me because cookie cutter marketing very rarely works.

Terra (14:48): Right? Right. Yes. And it wasn't until I, then there's two parts that really come with it. A making the decision to be not cookie cutter and then a stand out and that's one piece. But then the second piece is having the mindset to step into that, to show up that way without feeling like we're going to offend someone. So I have, you know, like many entrepreneurs, you know, I've been at this a decade and it really wasn't until the last few years and really the last year has made the biggest impact where, you know, I myself didn't want to be polarizing cause I don't, I never wanted to hurt anyone's feelings. Right? I didn't want, you know, want to put too much of a stake in the ground because I didn't want to offend anyone. And I remember my first like I'm going to put the stake in the ground around plans.

Terra (15:39): I know like, and this was my first real like you're not my people. If you don't believe a plan will change something for you, right? There's two types of people, planners and people who refuse to plan and they're just going to manifest their way to millions without a plan. Hey, I think manifesting is awesome. I do it, I do my affirmations, I'm all about it. But it is faster and more intentional when you have a plan behind it. So that was my first like, Oh yeah, I'm a be a rebel here and I've got my plan tribe. And for the ones that like roll their eyes at it and say like, that's a waste of time, why would you ever do a business plan? I remember like they're just not my people and I don't have to spend the time and energy to move them over to me, you know, when it's too much work.

Terra (16:25): Right. So that was my first step out of like, you know, being polarizing, which probably isn't even that polarizing, but you know, I'm a baby stepper. So I baby step my the way to like big things. And then it was just like, okay. And then you know, now my brand and my message and my voice is showing up a little bit, even more with a personality, right? Like I've been accused of being a robot. I don't know if I've, we may have talked about that before, but I literally went and got a shirt that says I'm not a robot. And you know, with the little check mark and like, cause I love sayings, t-shirts and, and to me it was like, okay, I don't want to be that person. And yes I can solve any, honestly I'll say this without being braggy. Like I, I know I can solve any business problem.

Terra (17:10): It's how my brain is wired. So, and I, the messier the better. Like it's more interesting for me and when I, you know, I can put that out there confidently because I'll figure it out. If I don't have an immediate answer, I, I will think on it and you know, and, and know that I can come up with an answer. But it's also when I put that out there as my brand of like, you know, being a constant problem solver around business, I'm going to continue to always get the problems, which then sometimes like it's exhausting to be the person that's always solving the problems in my business. I made a decision this year that I'm going to have more fun doing and so I have to show up with a little bit more fun and personality. So, yeah, I now am totally fine with saying I am a recovering, not even a recovering.

Terra (18:00): I have Starbucks shame. I try to quit. I have paid thousands of dollars to health coaches and nutritionist to try to quit the dang Starbucks. But I keep going and like I will, if I get a phone call during it, like I won't even answer it because I cannot admit to anybody that I'm at the Starbucks drive through. But you know, and I was like, you know what, I'm just going to own it. Like it's just kind of part of who I am. It's, I have Starbucks shame. My dog is on the wall. She has a picture on the wall. I mean, it's just kind of who I am like, and so when I decided that it was like, okay, I'm gonna have I'm going to embrace my Starbucks shame. I'm going to embrace the fact I have this ridiculous addiction to Chanel. Broaches I don't know why, but I will. It's about the hunt for me, you know, and I like reality TV and I watched general hospital and I never felt comfortable sharing these kind of quote unquote personal things about me because it wasn't quote unquote business related. And now I'm just kind of like, it's true. It's who I am and you know. Yeah. So how can you like, you know, based on what you do, like how can a woman entrepreneur showcase more of her true self and kind of the things that may seem like irrelevant to business in her own content?

Lacy (19:14): That's such a good question cause I think a lot of times I get the question like how much is too much? Where's the line? When is it oversharing? Right. And there's a lot of oversharers and bless their heart as we say in Texas, you know, bless their heart. Yeah, I think so. I have thoughts on this. Obviously share the thoughts. The first one is like, we are not looking for what I'm going to call vulnerability porn. Okay. Yeah. Looking for the the extreme stories of your hardship or whatever that have nothing to do with your business. Now that said, if you have been through something in your life, even if it feels like it had nothing to do with your business, but it really did, it influenced some way that you feel, go ahead and tell that story. If that wound is healed enough for you to tell that story, go ahead and tell that story, right?

Lacy (20:05): Yeah. I was speaking to a colleague recently and we were talking about getting on podcasts and she asked me, she said, have you ever struggled with infertility? And I was thought that was such a weird thing to ask. And I was like, no, I haven't. And she goes, Oh, because it's part of my story and I've been on a lot of podcasts around him and I was like, wow. But it's part of her brand is part of who she is. It's what she has gone through. And again, that wound has closed over enough for her to make it part of her brand. Right. So then the next part of that, so that's the one side, the oversharers where is it appropriate? When is it possible that the flip side is what you were talking about, like which of those little quirky things about us are worth sharing, appropriate to share as a part of your brand?

Lacy (20:49): I think those things that you just talked about, like your Starbucks addiction and your love of Chanel broaches and all that, those are perfect because you know why people do business with people they know like and trust and I will sort my site, my source that's something Kendrick Shope says, but I believe it a hundred percent people will do business with people they know, like and trust all things being equal, all things being equal. Right, right. Yeah. Well come to me all the time. You were talking about my website and I'm like, I love your website and I love the way you write. And what's funny is I have a team of writers under me. So you know, most of the time, two thirds of the time at least, they're not actually hiring me to write for them. Right. They feel like they've gotten to know me through my website, through my content, through the stories I tell.

Lacy (21:33): Right. And so they trust me and they trust me to say, I think Terry can write for you. I think Marie can write for you. Right. It doesn't actually matter that I'm not the one writing for them. Right. So those types of stories sets you apart. They become a part of your brand in that way. I have a really great story for this, if you don't mind, please. I love stories. So I had this client for about four, four and a half years. It was actually through Sarah. The brands helped them with their rebrand, brought me in to help do the copy for the website and then they hired me to help write their blog. And what had happened was this is a men's technical clothing company online only. They had gone with this like I don't even know, Madison Avenue branding company. They had spent tens of thousands dollars on a new brand and it totally tanked. They ins house, they called it the sad model brand because it was all these like fashion models making slightly pained looking faces and whatever and it taped. It didn't resonate with their people. So they went back to what had worked in the first time, which was bringing their CEO's personality into the brand, right? So they hired me to help him blog. And what we found was that when we were telling his stories, that's when we got the most engagement, right?

Lacy (22:47): All over the world. He had all these crazy, ridiculous adventure stories and he would, that's what we would blog about. So about three years into the business, he decided to move away from Kickstarter, which is how they'd always funded their products and do a round of angel investing. So we wrote a blog about it from his perspective, why are we doing this, et cetera, right? Sent out an email and at the bottom of the email we said, PS, if you're an accredited investor, reply to this email and you can talk to stuff. And about it, he got like 16 replies and of that, three of them turned into $300,000 in investment for his business from, you know, he wasn't really from one email. It was from three years of blogging. No like interest, Stephen. There you go.

Terra (23:34): And that's true. And I, funny enough, Sarah was a guest featured guests at my last mastermind I had in Miami. And she, I think it's probably the similar client cause you know she sharing the same type of story too of how you can add that personality back into your brand and that's what makes people know, like, and trust you. So that wasn't her words, I'm paraphrasing. But there's so much about that that that people be like, wow, one email made me a half a million dollars and okay really like maybe,

Lacy (24:04): I wish I could say that,

Terra (24:09): Right? And charge a million dollars for it, you know, for the one email, you know. But it really is like we talked about earlier when we were just talking one on one, cause we always do like a pre-catch up before we record, but it was very much like it's a long game and it's the know like and trust that is built on the consistent contents right on the blog, on the social media and showing up and you know, not being the person that changes our hair color 500 times in one year. And like it's all that kind of stuff that builds up to when you send the email for the ask, right? That i.e. CTA call to action that then makes it a $500,000, you know, revenue generating email. So yeah. So you're so right on that. So it is just about consistency and kind of locking down and what you're going to talk about rather than being,

Lacy (25:01): A lot of my clients struggle with that. They struggle with the consistency. Not so much in the messaging I would say, but the actual like consistency of showing up. Right. And what I find is that generally what happens is marketing falls into that important but not urgent quadrant of our to do list. Like we know it's important, but there's no client standing over our shoulder saying I need you to get that to me by Monday. Right, right. So it falls down to the bottom of the to do list. And what happens is, so when we're in good times marketing, because we're like, man, I don't need to mark it. I have all the leads I can handle. I don't need to do it. And then all of a sudden something happens, something shifts or just your contracts and whatever it is and you're like, Oh crap, I need to mark it again.

Lacy (25:50): And that's not consistency, right. When we go through those feast and famine cycles, right. That's not doing us any favor. So when I try to help people do is be more consistent just by putting out that useful content, being in people's email inboxes every week or on their Instagram feed or in their Facebook feed, wherever you're turning up. Right. But being consistent with it because that is what's going to get you the money. Money over time. Right, right, right. I actually just had two clients two weeks ago, I guess, tell me that they, that I'd been on their like vision board or whatever.

Terra (26:27): I love that, yeah.

Lacy (26:29): Years, years. My book came out in like, I want to say 2016 and this guy told me he bought it right when you, when it came out. And he's just now at a point where he's ready to work with me. Like he had been hanging onto it for that.

Terra (26:44): I love that,

Lacy (26:44): Which is amazing. I feel really good about that. But it also proves that like people are listening, even if you don't know it, even if they're not telling you that people are listening, they're watching and they want that consistent content so you stay top of mind. So when they are ready, they come to you and not somebody else. That's not the truth. I mean, and I've had the same thing and I think because we've been in business for awhile, it's like the coolest thing when people say that. I haven't had anyone say out on the vision board, so, so, well they didn't use the words vision board. That's me projecting.

Terra (27:16): I love that. So I'm going to, I'm going to do a visualization of me on, you know, on vision boards. But no, that's really cool. But what I have had people say is, you know, I've been wanting to work with you, but I knew I had to be ready because I know like you're kind of no nonsense. Like, let's get to work. And I, you know, wasn't in a place because, you know, I, I knew, I don't know, like apparently I show up somewhat scary, but I mean I, and I tell people, I'm like, I don't want your money unless you're willing to do the work.

Terra (27:46): Like that doesn't feel good to play. It doesn't feel good to me. Like I don't, you know, some people are like, Oh, just if you do an online course, great, everyone will buy it, but only 10% actually do it. And I'm like, no, that's not one of the same way.

Lacy (28:00): I don't want to work with you unless I believe I can get you a return on your investment. Amen, because you know, if I don't think I can help you, I'm gonna take your money.

Terra (28:08): Same thing with when people write the book and people be like, I bought your book cause my was my first entrance into this influencer game. You know, a decade ago I wrote a book and wish I didn't have a marketing plan. Like, you know, whatever. That was one of my lively lessons in life. But you know, I wrote this book and people would be like, I bought your book. And I'd be like, Oh my gosh, thank you. Like, that's so great. But it really, the people who would say, no, I bought your book but I've read your book and I really enjoyed it and I learned something. So it's like, you know, it's still kind of changes, you know, things, right. It's like you can write all the blogs and social media posts, but if people aren't consuming it because it's not interesting or it doesn't matter. Right. So, and I'll never forget like my, it was like a distant cousin that was like, I bought your book and I read your book and I'm like, and it was all, it's called the Boss in Bunny Slippers plug.

Terra (29:02): It's on Amazon. I think it's still out there. It's still out there getting printed on demand. I think I make, you know, five bucks a month on it or something. But you know, but she liked wasn't a work from home person and like, but it just meant the world that she read it or you know. And that's when, you know, you're creating like, you know, content. Nobody writes books to be millionaires usually, unless you're like Oprah. Which I just read her, I listened on audible. Like I'm so old school, like I found out you can download this app and like, and listened to books and I was like, Oh, this is a quotable thing in my life. And

Terra (29:41): So the first audible I read or listened to was a path made clear by Oprah and you know, and it was like having Oprah in your ear and like that whole immersive like thank you, like that is beyond. So anyway, plug for Oprah's a path made clear it was a total game changer. Had to pull over cause I would tear up and this girl that I cry twice a year usually and it was so impactful. So you know, not only has content, you know, shifted a bit, but it's like how we consume it has shifted to podcasts are huge. Right. And I hear blogging is dead all the time. Half of my leads come from the SEO on my blogs. It's a, like you said, it's a long game. It's a long game. Yeah. I have blog posts from 10 years ago that are funny to go right now cause bless my heart.

Terra (30:35): But like, you know, they could just return some good SEO, so whatever, you know, I got it. I'm going to keep it out there because if I can help draw people in and help change their business, like that's what I'm all about. So yeah, it's all about the long game. So what do you think from a trend perspective before we wrap up here, what shifts have you seen? Especially for like 2020 now that we're in a new decade, right? Like that you know, what's working now versus maybe what wasn't working 10 years ago.

Lacy (31:05): Yeah. So I think 10 years ago especially, people thought you, well this was true. You could write a blog and people would just find it, right? You could put content out there and people would just discover it and you would be big overnight. And like I'm thinking about the bloggers I used to follow back then, like they just became famous because people found their blogs and share their posts and things like that.

Lacy (31:25): Right? That is like a thousand percent less likely to happen. But I think it's been ingrained in our psyche somehow. We all have what I call the field of dreams problem. We think if I write it, they will come, or if I podcast it or if I have totally, and that's just not true anymore. So we have to think about our channels, not so much as discovery channels, but distribution channels, right? So even let's talk podcasts for a second. You used to be even a year or two ago, iTunes was considered a discovery channel, right? People would go on there and scroll and search for podcasts. They wanted to listen to new things. Much less true these days because there's just so much, right? There's so many podcasts. It's much less likely to statistically that people are just going to stumble across your new podcast and love it, right?

Lacy (32:16): So the same is true with blogs. The same is true. So YouTube channels, et cetera. So what do we do instead? Right? How do we fix that problem? This is not to say you shouldn't start a podcast or that you shouldn't have a blog, but rather that we have to make sure that at least a part of our energy is dedicated to promoting the content as well, right? So we can't just get away with, if I post it, they will come. We have to actually get out there and promote it and not just to our inner circle, right? We can't just be preaching to the choir. We have to actually get outside of it. So I always ask people, you know, what's your plan for promoting this? And it doesn't have to be expensive. You don't necessarily have to run ads. You mentioned SEO. That's a great one.

Lacy (32:57): If you can do just some basic SEO research, find out what people are searching for in your niche and then optimize your posts. It's actually very simple. You can do the same with a podcast, right? If people are searching on iTunes, they're typing in certain keywords, right? So if you optimize your description, your episode description and your general description of your podcast for those types of keywords that people might be searching for, you're going to get found more. Right? That's free. Do that, right? No brainer. But another way is just like how can you get outside of your existing circle? So that might be like if I wrote a really awesome post, I might say, Hey Terra, I wrote this really good post. I think it will really resonate with your audience because X, Y, Z. Would you like to share it? Here's the link.

Lacy (33:42): The end. Like if that showed up in your inbox, I mean obviously we know each other, we're colleagues, we're friends, but it's like you'd probably be like done and done. I need something to share on Tuesday anyway. Right. Perfect. Yeah. A lot of times if we just take that half an extra step, send it out to five people, you know, five different people every week, a different article say and, and tell them why. Like, I think this will resonate with your audience because even if it's people that you don't know, the worst thing they can do is like just hit delete, right? They're not going to hate you. And the best thing would be they'll tweet it out or share it with their audience somehow. And you'll get some new eyeballs, right? That's free. It takes 10 minutes to do. You could even have a VA do it like that. Absolutely easy. That's super easy. And that's a great like, Oh, it's free. Basically, it's free. You have to be thinking, how are we reaching those new audiences instead of just reaching our existing? So when you just post it to your Facebook, your Instagram, et cetera, you're just reaching people that already know about you. So how can we get outside of that?

Terra (34:40): We want the ripple effect. Right. You know, and, and, and that's huge. I mean, and I don't know who quoted it, cause now I'm all self-conscious and I have it, I have it in my office and it just, there's no quote. It says, you know, there's, it's never crowded in the extra mile. Right. There's no competition in the extra miles. Another way I've seen it and that's exactly what Lacy's saying is don't just share it. Well, Hey, like don't just create the content and put it out there and be like, take it the next step to have it put it as part of your marketing strategy to, you know, share it and then go the extra mile. And high touch is so huge right now. This is what's so amazing to me is like we were talking earlier again like we should probably just record green combo because I feel like we're constantly like addressing that.

Terra (35:27): And sometimes the stuff that talk, you know, just in casual conversation is so good. But you know, I'm, I'm kind of about the live events. Right. And it's, I think I met like one, I think seven now, 147 live events. Wow. Yeah. Like I know over the last 10 years kind of crazy, but you know, but I, you know, the landscape is shifting and you know, virtual is going to be much bigger thing and you know, so it's just a matter of like keeping focus on the plan. The longterm plan, like my messaging is not going to change but the medium is going to write and that's going to be, that's why I created the podcast, right, is like as low as many podcasts are there are right now. You know? And thank you so much for listening. I mean I truly treasure everyone who listens to this podcast, but it's like, you know, it's just getting started.

Terra (36:20): I feel like, like when you look at the numbers, like how many blogs are out there, what's the statistics on that?

Lacy (36:27): Millions and millions.

Terra (36:27): Gazillions. That's not even a word. Gazillions. But like podcast are still in its infancy stage even though there's like a lot of them, but it's just the way we're consuming is a little different. And you know, one thing, another free strategy is like, you know, cause I'm in like a podcast group, you know, like with some of my friends who have podcasts and whatnot, we have a Voxer group and we share all of our strategies and whatnot. The one thing that, you know, we're all doing as well as doing roundups and I remember the blog roundups like those were a huge way to turn around and get some additional backlinks and whatever to your, to your own website. But like podcasts roundups where you can send that out and people will listen to the ones that resonate with them, write or share the Roundup. So you know, the high touch like Lacy was saying is huge. You know, send, you go through all this effort to create something amazing and make it your best. Share it with five people a week, once a month, do a Roundup of your best stuff and share that. Right. And ask people to share it. So share it. Yeah.

Lacy (37:32): Well and also like think about it this way, like if a podcast, whatever your main, your main form of communication is right now, be that a podcast, a blog of log, whatever. Yeah. Think about how many other ways can you repurpose that content too, right? Because as you said, to your point, like you spend all this energy creating great content that people need to hear, why not put out, they put it out there in many different ways.

Lacy (37:55): So if you are a podcaster, why not have it transcribed and turn it into an article that you can post to your blog or, or cross post to medium across post to LinkedIn, right? Those two places just don't accept audio content yet. I'm sure they will at some point, but right now they don't. So you could create an article vice versa is also true. Like if you're writing great blog posts, why the heck not record yourself reading it, turn it into some kind of podcast, right? So we can do this many different ways where we're not reinventing the wheel, but we're promoting the same piece of content in many different ways. So that it's also an accessibility thing, right? Because there's always going to be people that for whatever reason, can't or choose not to listen to a podcast. The same is true for a blog. There's always going to be people who can't read it or choose not to read it, right? So if we make it available in different formats, we're reaching a larger audience just right there.

Terra (38:46): Absolutely gold. Love it. Yeah. Same thing at the beginning of this in our pre-call, she's like, are we recording this for YouTube? Pronounced like, absolutely. So you're going to find this podcast on my, the YouTube channel, my YouTube channel on top of it being, you know, put out onto iTunes, Spreaker all the different channels. And then it also on my website, under podcast as a blog, like it's not about consuming more, it's about how do we recycle what we have, right? So, and then we'll figure out a way to break this down and do some social media posts and whatnot. So yeah, it's work smarter not harder because we don't want to present ourselves out cause we got it.

Terra (39:31): We're in this for the long haul. You know? Yeah. So very good. Well thank you. This was so good and I truly appreciate you. If people want to learn more about you, where can they go?

Lacy (39:42): Sure. You can go to lacyboggs.com is the best place to find me. I have been blogging for about almost eight years, so there's quite the back catalog there. You want to get to know me and if you'd like to, if you're interested in working with me or learning more about working with me, go to lacyboggs.com/undercover I go undercover as you, which is why we say that I love when you can learn about how we work with clients and put together a strategy and implement your content strategy as needed.

Terra (40:11): So I love it. Thank you so much. And before we go, I got to ask you because this is something we did back in our, when my cohosted a podcast back in the day, which is like, you know yesterday. So I'll ask you this question, if lifetime or hallmark, I am a huge hallmark fan, especially during the holidays. Like just leave me alone. I've got, there's an app and you can download it and there's a list of all the movies you can watch for the holidays. And I check them off and I really take a lot of, you know, responsibility.

Terra (40:44): Right? Yeah. It's like I do, I watch them so I can check them off. Even they all have the exact same plot, you know, it's, I get it and I drink my hot cocoa with my marshmallows. Oh my gosh. Just the whole thing with my matching t-shirt that this is my hallmark watching shirts. So if hallmark were making a movie about the life of Lacy Boggs, what actress would play you?

Lacy (41:09): First of all, I feel like that would be a very dull film because I work like sit here and do this. I will set that aside. What actress would play me? I have no, I don't know. I have been told I look like Maisie Williams.

Terra (41:23): Yes.

Lacy (41:24): Which is very flattering because she's probably at least 15 or 20 years younger than I am. So I'll take it.

Terra (41:31): I totally can see that. Yeah. I love that.

Lacy (41:33): On TV, people always play like they always cast younger people to play older people. Right.

Terra (41:37): So that is very true. That's very true. And I can ask you this because you're also a fiction writer, so I'm totally gonna put you on the spot here. So lifetime or no, lifetime or hallmark, whatever Mazie is playing you. What's the plot like? Are we talking librarian meets prince that moves to town? Like what are we thinking?

Lacy (41:59): Are we going for reality here or?

Terra (42:01): No, this is fictional. It's hallmark channel.

Lacy (42:04): Oh excellent. My favorite trope for those sorts of things are like where you're stuck in some kind of situation. You're in a cabin in the woods, there's a snow storm and there's only one bed. So this is a little more saucy. So it's lifetime. This definitely to be like, it doesn't have to be like pornographic, but like the unresolved sexual tension or or fake dating and fake married. I like that.

Terra (42:33): That's a good one.

Lacy (42:33): I enjoy those. Like for whatever reason we have to pretend yes.

Terra (42:37): And then we really magically fall in love. Yes. During our, cause we had to kiss and it just, the spark was there. So I love it. I love it. So perfect. Okay, so let's definitely check out Lacey on her website. You'll see what I mean when I talk about her like brand. You'll have brand envy, lacyboggs.com and you know, and definitely check her out. And if you're struggling with your, you know, creating your own content strategy, that's her jam, you know, so reach out to her. And I so appreciate you having just sharing all your goodness with us and being in service to, you know, women entrepreneurs all over the world. So it was awesome catching up and we'll talk soon.

Lacy (43:23): Thank you so much.

Terra (43:23): Bye.

Outro (43:26): There you have it. Another episode packed full of strategies and motivation that you can use every day to put your business on the fast track. For a podcast recap and more resources, visit TerraBohlmann.com. Don't forget, subscribe to the podcast and get what you need to help fast track your five year business plan.