Can You Grow a 6-Figure Business… Without Social Media? with Amy Traugh
- Amy Traugh
- Mar 19
- 10 min read
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Navigating Business Growth Beyond Social Media
The Social Media Conundrum
Social media platforms have been enticing with promises of visibility and connection, presenting themselves as 'free' tools to attract clients. Yet, the reality is far from free. It costs your time, energy, and can even impact your confidence. While creating content might make us feel productive, the return on investment often doesn't justify the effort.
Imagine fishing with a small net in the vast ocean; you might catch something occasionally, but it’s sporadic. Over-reliance on social media can be similar. Algorithms are unpredictable, platforms face issues like potential shutdowns, and most users are on these platforms for leisure rather than business transactions.
Power of Referrals and Relationships
Referrals and relationships are some of the most powerful tools for business growth. Satisfied clients can become your best marketers. Think of your favorite restaurant – when you love it, you naturally share it with others. It’s the same with businesses. Even I had a client, a coach who realized that 80% of her top clients were through referrals, not social media. Doubling down on this strategy led her business to grow without having to increase social media efforts.
Building Through Email Marketing
Shifting focus towards email marketing can be transformative. Unlike the crowded, chaotic environment of social media, your email list is a more intimate setting where you can engage directly with people who are interested in your offerings. This is your owned space, akin to hosting a cozy dinner party rather than yelling in a crowded room. Approach it as a two-way conversation, sharing stories, and asking questions to foster a genuine relationship.
Leveraging Guest Opportunities
Establishing authority without social media is possible, especially through guest speaking and appearances. The short-term nature of social media interactions contrasts sharply with the sustained impact of podcasts, virtual summits, or networking events. Recently, one of my clients landed a podcast interview that garnered more traction than months of social posts. Speaking directly to an audience allows for building the essential know-like-trust factor. Be strategic about where your potential clients spend their time outside social media and position yourself there.
Rediscovering Grassroots Tactics
Remember, businesses have thrived long before social media was even a concept. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by constant posting pressures, it’s okay to pause and explore other avenues. Focus on grassroots tactics like direct client interactions and optimizing existing networks. Select just one strategy that resonates with you and commit to it without trying to juggle everything at once.
Taking Action Beyond the Platforms
Commit to taking an actionable step every week towards client acquisition without relying on social media. This could be reaching out to past clients for referrals, setting up a simple email opt-in, or pitching for a podcast interview. These efforts, albeit less talked about, bring tangible results.
In essence, while social media is a tool, it should not define or confine your business strategy. With a focus on solid, sustainable strategies, your business can thrive well beyond the confines of social media. If you're ready to redirect your efforts towards more meaningful growth, visit amytrad.com to explore how I can guide you on this journey. Remember, your business solves a problem, and it’s your responsibility to share that solution far and wide. Until next time, let’s focus on growth that truly counts.
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Transcript for Episode 405. Can You Grow a 6-Figure Business… Without Social Media?
Amy [00:00:18]:
Have you ever. Hold on, I gotta change my mic. Okay. Have you ever felt like social media is completely draining your time and energy, but not actually bringing in clients? Ooh, I don't like how that sounds. We're going to start over. Do you ever feel like social media is draining your time and energy and it's not actually bringing in clients or, or qualified leads? You're showing up, posting, engaging, yet you're just not seeing that return on investment. What if I told you that social media isn't the only way to grow your business? In fact, it is completely possible to build a six figure business without relying on social media at all. Social media is just one tool that you can use, but if you're treating it like your entire marketing strategy, you're quite honestly putting your entire business at risk.
Amy [00:01:26]:
Think about it. Algorithms change, platforms go down, they get shut down. I mean, right now, let's look at the state of TikTok. One day it's on, one day, it's not like nobody knows what's really going to happen with that. And let's be honest too, like most people aren't scrolling, especially on Instagram 24. 7, looking for their next investment. They're there for entertainment. They're there because they're looking for that escape from reality.
Amy [00:01:55]:
So why do we as solopreneurs rely on it so heavily? Because it was marketed as an easy way, as a free way to attract clients. Platforms promised visibility, connection, virality, all of it for free. But what it is in free dollars also comes at a steep cost. In times of your time, your energy and even your confidence. At the end of the day, creating content, it's time consuming and then once the content's created, then we want to remain relevant. So we're constantly feeding the algorithm, right? By engaging, responding to DMs, all that time adds up. I mean just open your phone and look at how much time you've spent on Instagram or whatever social media platform that you use. Look at how much time you've spent on a given platform in the past week.
Amy [00:02:59]:
Now I want you to actually look at the ROI of that. How many qualified leads, how many sales did you make that you can attribute to that platform. It's exhausting. The pressure, the constant need to stay relevant, get the engagement, keep up with the trends. You know, it just, it, it leads to burnout, it leads to self doubt and it's not the only way. And then we throw in the algorithm that dictates our reach and is constantly changing. You know, one day A post is performing amazing, but then the next day it's buried. And the lifespan of those posts just, it's not there.
Amy [00:03:40]:
LinkedIn has a little bit longer longevity, but it's rare over on Instagram that I see a post that's more than two days old. You know what happens then is we're scrolling, we're posting, we're engaging, and it feels like we're working. It feels like we're being productive because we're doing something, quote unquote. But does it actually bring in revenue? And what, what we're doing as business owners is we're trying to build our businesses almost like these influencers that we see in the online space. And then we're getting frustrated when we don't have the thousands and thousands of followers and we're comparing ourselves to these influencers with these massive followings. And then we end up resenting social media because we feel like we always have to be on, we always have to be creating the post, we always, always have to be doing the thing. But you don't have to solely rely on social media to grow a thriving business. So instead of pouring all of your efforts into a platform that you don't actually own, you can shift your focus to strategies that create sustainable growth for you.
Amy [00:04:55]:
I want you to think of social media like fishing. With a tiny net in the middle of the ocean, you might catch something once in a while, but if you had a deep sea fishing boat with the right tools, you know, the fancy, like sonar, and they know like exactly where to go and they can find the schools of fish you'd bring in that steady, reliable catch. Our business is the same thing. So let's talk about four powerful strategies that you can use to stop relying so heavily on, on social media with that tiny little net and start building something that is sustainable, that works for you. And the first way I love to do this is through referrals and relationships. This is one of the most effective ways to grow your business without spending all day online. Satisfied clients, happy clients, clients that have, they just rave about you. They are your best marketers, but you need to make it easy for people to refer to you.
Amy [00:06:06]:
Think about your favorite restaurant. If you love it, what are you gonna do? You're naturally going to tell people about it. Just like when that new restaurant opens up in town, it's like, oh my gosh, I just went there. You have to try this. And then the same principle think about this applies to our business. If you had such a transformation, like, oh my gosh, I just worked with this person and really got this result. It makes it easy for people to be, keep you top of mind. This is what I do with my clients all of the time.
Amy [00:06:41]:
You know, one of my clients, she's a coach, she started tracking where her leads were coming from and she always thought she had this head drama that they were all coming from social media. But 80% of her clients, especially those clients you really like to work with, came from referrals. And when she doubled down on asking for introductions, her business grew without any extra effort on social media, without spending hours online. She just simply was like, hey, who do you know who? And then that opened the conversation, that opened the door for that relationship to bloom. And it's, it's so simple that it's hard for us. It's so hard for us partly because of our ego. You know, we like to see all of those thousands and thousands of followers. That feels good.
Amy [00:07:41]:
It feels good to get that hit of dopamine when you see, oh my gosh, people are really liking this. But go back to relationships, go back to what social media was intended for. We somewhere along the way took out the social and shifted to media. Let's be human. And another way, what I really like to do is I like to use social media to nurture, to humanize my brand. So social media is like a really crowded networking event where you're shouting to be heard. What we want to do, we want to pull those people aside to a list that we own. And this is our email list.
Amy [00:08:34]:
Email marketing is like hosting just like a quiet dinner party. You're already speaking directly to people who shown interest in what you offer. But remember again, don't treat it like a one way street, blasting promotions without engagement. Think of it as a two way conversation. Tell stories, ask questions. Your email list, you want it to feel like an invite only club where people that have already opted into your world actually want to hear from you. You can really build some amazing relationships through email if you just take the time to be intentional, to ask questions, to make it that two way street. So remember, social media can be like very loud, very obnoxious, everybody's vying for attention.
Amy [00:09:31]:
But invite people in, pull them over to a list that you own. Another way we can really start to grow our business without relying so heavily on social media is through guest speaking, guest appearances, really developing that authority. Social media rewards that short term attention. We want to be loud, we want to get noticed, we want the likes, comments, shares, but we want to build authority and it's hard to do that through short form content. So what can we do? We can start to lean in towards podcasting, virtual summits, networking events. I want you to think, think about it. Where are your people? Where is your target audience other than social media? And how can you position yourself in front of them? This is that deep sea fishing analogy in action. We want to be exactly where they are so we can position ourselves in front of them where we have their attention.
Amy [00:10:55]:
Think about it. If you spend 30 minutes talking to an audience of 25, 50, 100, even 500 potential clients, isn't that far more impactful than spending hours creating content that Only what maybe 1% of your followers are actually going to see? One of my clients recently landed a single podcast interview that got her seen, that got her noticed, more than months of posting on social media. Why? Because when people hear you speak, it builds that know, like and trust factor. Again, you're building those relationships. And what we're forgetting about this is instead of trying to build the audience from scratch, why are we not tapping into audiences like this? Why are we not tapping into podcasts, the speaking engagements? Why are we not asking people that are already in our world? Again, don't over complicate it. So social media is feeling just heavy, overwhelming, ineffective. I want you to know that it's okay to take a break. I want you to pause and quiet the noise.
Amy [00:12:25]:
It's okay to stop forcing it and start using strategies that actually bring in clients. Businesses have been doing this for years, since the dawn of mankind. Right, let's go back to it. Let's shift back to those grassroots tactics. I want you to know you don't have to do everything all at once. See what feels good for you. Just pick one. Pick one strategy and commit to it.
Amy [00:12:59]:
And ask yourself, what is one action I can take this week to bring in leads without social media? Maybe it's something like reaching out to your past clients for referrals, setting up a simple email opt in, or pitching yourself for a podcast interview. But whatever it is, the most important thing is you do that. You do is take action. Because at the end of the day, remember, social media is a tool. It's not what's going to make or break your business. It is just a tool, but a solid strategy. That's what will get you to grow to six figures and beyond without spending all day on your phone. So if you are ready to regain control, start leveraging your metrics and grow your business in a way that is simple and sustainable.
Amy [00:13:53]:
Make sure you hop on over to amytrad.com and learn all about what I can do to support you. I am here for you. Let's build these businesses because you have the solution to a problem, so it is your responsibility to share it. Until next time, stop guessing and start growing.
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