You know, that Destiny’s Child song is a classic.
Besides that though, the title is, “Say My Name” because it’s what your business should not-so-secretly be hoping for in regards to media platforms in 2019.
It is a feasible way your brand can experience sudden, exponential growth.
Nowadays, there are many opportunities for this to happen- for your brand to be exposed on an established platform, and for your business to take off like a viral sensation.
Here are some realistic ways this can happen.
The Opportunity Age
There are a seemingly infinite amounts of niches and a plethora of media platforms available to you to build an audience in- It is the golden age of personal branding.
This is a huge revolution in business and networking that you don’t want to let pass you by.
I can assure you, if you’re willing to be the real deal, and provide real value– the world is your oyster. Don’t worry- that’s the only cliche I’ll use today…
First of all, let me clarify why having an audience is important to your brand:
Having an audience means you can add value on scale. That means- if you actually have a good product- you can add a lot of value… to a lot of people… at the same time.
it also means you can make a lot of money.
We’d all love that, wouldn’t we?
It would be so nice to have a private pool of wealth that we can reinvest into our mission.
I mean, that’s why we have businesses, right? To see our vision bear fruit.
Well, there is a fast track to this audience.
You can get to the front of the line in almost an instant. You can get your brand of value out to a lot of people and build an audience really quickly.
This can happen when you make the business equivalent of the request: “Say My Name.”
See, you don’t have to hope and pray for these platforms to heed your request…
What you can do, instead, is give 2 million dollars to Kylie Jenner… go, “Say My Name”. She’ll then post a shout out on her Instagram account…
And- just like that- you have an audience of god knows how many people… 147 million, last time I checked.
Instant connectivity and reach.
And, relative to traditional means of brand marketing, at a snap of a finger.
Now, go and add value to your new-found audience 😉
At the very least, I hope that you can see that this is an amazing opportunity that major businesses had no access to just 20 years ago.
The true opportunity lies in the fact that it’s now available to everybody.
There’s Another Way To Go About This
Okay, you might not have a couple of million dollars.
Obviously, Kylie Jenner is the big leagues of personal brands, and 99% of businesses are not scaling their marketing at that level. Certainly, not yours.
Her platform is simply an example that emphasizes how swiftly brands can get massive exposure in this day and age…
Now, maybe you’re not that confident of your product. At least, not confident enough to drop 2 million dollars for a huge platform to “Say My Name”…
You might not even have a marketing budget at all.
Despite all that though, this age of rapid exposure via digital media platforms can still benefit your business. Whatever size it may be.
This is because there are thousands of digital platforms that are of varying size, in any niche you can imagine. Networks of platforms that you can take your place in, and build your own audience.
Even better, you don’t need a 2 million dollar marketing budget, or any marketing budget whatsoever…
All you need to do is put out value within your niche, hone your craft, and ceaselessly aim to create a better product. All in all, you need to have your shit together and be a professional.
No way around that, of course. And it is no walk in the park.
Consistently do those things… until you get to the level where, eventually, your peers will notice.
Eventually, when you are able to add value to your peers, when you really have shown that you’re the real deal, they will put you up:
What this means is: Your peers will mention your name on their platform, and you will grow exponentially.
Now, before this sounds like your free meal ticket… There’s an important caveat to emphasize there: When you are able to add value to your peers– only then, will they put you up.
And it goes to say, only then will you even have content that will sustain an audience.
Naturally, established businesses do not want to be associated with half-assed content.
You know what you do when you run into half-assed content? You bounce.
You know what you do when people ask you to promote their half ass products? You ghost them.
At the end of the day, Like Bill gates said, content is king.
He implies that the internet is going to be centered around content.
He predicted that there is going to be a lot of content… and therefore, a lot of competition. He’s right, as he tends to be.
Put this way, it is obvious that creating depth in your content is a lot more important than “marketing strategy” and “outreach”… things that don’t do much to separate you from the pack.
As you can tell by now, even though it is ultimately your goal, you’re not going to go up to big platforms and demanding, “Say My Name!”
You’ll be accomplishing it the right way.
The Way To The Top
In a way, so that your peers notice the value you give- notice that you get that content is king. Only then will they gladly engage in collaboration with you.
They may even reach out to you.
They may want to put you up on their platform, so that your value can reach and benefit their audience.
They will want to say your name.
“Be so good, they can’t ignore you”, Steven Martin famously said in a Charlie Rose interview.
In Conclusion
I don’t know of a better, more cost effective way for your business to grow than for you to create a product so good that your peers, who already have major platforms, value it and want to share it with their audience.
While this can be expediently accomplished by shelling out a tonne of cash to established platforms, you may find that growing your audience by genuinely networking and growing in your skill-set to be a lot more fulfilling.
I hope you got a burst of inspiration from this essay, and I wish you the best in your journey!