We all know we need to create content for our brand, but how can we create content that stands out? Today, I am sharing 3 lessons from my own content that has gone viral and how you can use them in your business.
Gaining visibility on social media can be a challenge. However, whenever one of my pieces of content performs well I am always trying to study it to see what lessons can be learned and today I am spilling the beans with you.
In this episode we will discuss:
Busines FREEBIES:
Grab my FREE resource guide and get 30 plus resources to level-up your home bakery business click here to grab my FREE guide and get more tips from me every week.http://bit.ly/bakersresources
Are we friends on Instagram? If you enjoyed this episode TAG ME at @bakingforbusiness
I really do appreciate each and every one of you guys and LOVE meeting new baking friends.
We all know we need to create content for our brand, but how can we create content that stands out? Today, I am sharing 3 lessons from my own content that has gone viral and how you can use them in your business.
Gaining visibility on social media can be a challenge. However, whenever one of my pieces of content performs well I am always trying to study it to see what lessons can be learned and today I am spilling the beans with you.
In this episode we will discuss:
Busines FREEBIES:
Grab my FREE resource guide and get 30 plus resources to level-up your home bakery business click here to grab my FREE guide and get more tips from me every week.http://bit.ly/bakersresources
Are we friends on Instagram? If you enjoyed this episode TAG ME at @bakingforbusiness
I really do appreciate each and every one of you guys and LOVE meeting new baking friends.
Hey, sweet friends, my name is Chef Schaumburg. I started my baking business with a bottle of DeSerono and one Bundt cake pan. Fast forward to today, from news to magazines, speaking on national stages and more. I can truly say that baking has changed my life. So now, as a bakery business coach, I get to help others have the same success. I've helped hundreds of my students across the world in my global membership program six-figure businesses, mainly from home.
Speaker 1:The Baking for Business podcast is an extension of that, from actionable tips to valuable tools and resources that can impact you as a business owner. I truly believe y'all. We would never have been given a gift if we couldn't profit and prosper from it. So come on, darling. What are you waiting for? Well, hey there, sweet friends, and welcome back to the Baking for Business podcast. I am so excited to be here with you guys today. This is actually my first episode since I took a sabbatical. So for all of you guys who listen, who were subscribed to the Baking for Business podcast, thank you so much for all the kind words, all the requests. I really do appreciate it. I shared that I started a third business, which I'm super excited about, and not only that, but at the beginning of the year, I opened my program, the Entrepreneur Experience, and it had amazing response. So shout out to all the entrepreneurs who sign up. But also, I do like to be present in my programs, and so I wanted that time with my students, and I'm grateful that I took it. And so to anyone who ever feels like you need a break, and so to anyone who ever feels like you need a break, you need to breathe or you want to get away, do so. Do so, because taking a step back will always help you to propel forward.
Speaker 1:And nothing was missed. The podcast is still one of the top ranked. You guys still listen. There's still so many amazing gems on this show. This is actually episode 80. Yes, wowzers, so we will continue to grow and continue to keep moving forward, going forward. I know I do want to do some YouTube, so the schedule of the podcast may change. It may just be biweekly, but it'll always be here, and I have some awesome guests that are already lined up for the rest of the year some cookbook authors and some amazing people. So I can't wait to share that with you guys.
Speaker 1:And then also next month, I'm going to be in DC, and so I'm so excited for that. Meta, aka Facebook, will be flying me out to DC. This is my third time working with the brand, and so I really look forward to being able to go to DC. I get to meet with local lawmakers and advocate for policies including cottage baking, digital products and anything else that is near and dear to my heart, and I'm always thankful that Metta rewards particular creators and those who are within the network of all of their leaders, and they allow us the opportunity to do so within the network of all of their leaders and they allow us the opportunity to do so. So shout out to Metta and any students who are in DC. You can always DM me on Instagram. Let me know if you're in DC or the surrounding areas.
Speaker 1:I do think I'll be having a meetup or something, and I would love to meet with you guys in person, and so today we're talking about three. Today we're talking about three lessons I'm sharing from some of my most viral reels, and I figured I would come back and talk about content, because I know content is just something that everyone struggles with. Although we're not necessarily content creators, we are business owners who create content After doing this for so many years. There's always lessons to be learned from everything and, as I have a lot of coaching calls one-on-ones whenever I talk to you guys and you guys book a one-on-one I noticed content is always one of those core things that so many people struggle with, and so today I thought I would share three lessons, and these aren't the tangible lessons, like use a hashtag or do a reel or you know, but actual underlining things that really make up the bigger picture of what our content strategy should entail and what it should look like. And so, without further ado, let's go ahead and get into it. Oh, and, side note, today's my birthday. Yeah, as I'm recording this, happy birthday me I am 39. So I'm super excited to be back with you guys on this beautiful day and shout out to the Lord for allowing me to see another day, all right.
Speaker 1:So what are these three lessons? Well, one of the first ones is I have lots of different content that goes viral and I'm always looking at it and paying attention to the hook. What did I say? The messaging and a lot of you guys who follow me on Instagram at baking for business you should all be following me. You know that I love to type long messages because I kind of like my post to be like little mini blogs or to actually give a lesson, and so one of the biggest things that I've learned is be okay with being controversial, and I know sometimes as women, we think well, church, religion, politics there are certain things that we shouldn't talk about.
Speaker 1:Online. I'm trying to sell my baked goods. There are even times where even I've ran across people, different races, and they may not want to show themselves. They're like well, you know, I want to hide and I definitely don't believe in that. We should all put ourselves our face. You know who we are out there.
Speaker 1:But be okay with being controversial, and I say that because there's a couple of pieces that I think are pretty interesting and I'm going to share with you some of the lessons. I know I have one piece of content where I purchased a pound cake for $99. And the crazy thing is is that there are more bakers who commented on that than actual piece, than actual people. Some people felt it was a waste of my money. I can do better with my money. It's crazy. They sell their pound cake for 20. So who would pay that? And it's like that type of content.
Speaker 1:Be okay with sharing things that maybe people don't see an opinion on or they don't see the same opinion on it as you do. Another piece of content that was pretty controversial I shared I quit making custom cakes and of course people were like I shared I quit making custom cakes and of course people were like well, it's going to be hard to get orders. Most people were truly supportive, but there are always a certain select of people who feel the need to share their opinion, and I get it. This is America, we're all entitled to one. But it kind of goes back to rule one on one, like if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all, and then, plus, sometimes I think people forget that there is an unfollow button. You know, if you don't like what it is that I'm saying, you can always unfollow me at any particular point. I share my life, my journey, my experiences, as well as the experiences for my students.
Speaker 1:So in your business, if you feel a certain type of way, be it about Trump, be it about a cottage law, be it about something that's going on in your community, something that you feel you wanna take a stance on, something that you've invested in and maybe other people don't necessarily see it as an investment. Be okay with being controversial and just sharing your opinion and not doing it from an angle of ooh, I want to just get people riled up, but here's the thing about it Content should have a strategy, and so if I'm not showing up and if I am not being a disruptor in my industry and if I'm not speaking on things that people think should be hush hush or they should be kept to the side, if I'm not addressing those topics and I don't think that's fair to call myself a leader, especially in this industry. And all of us are leaders, every single one of you guys listening to this. You are a business owner. You are a leader in your community in your own right, and so just think about that.
Speaker 1:I know another pretty controversial post, you can call it. I purchased some cookies from LA Crumb that were like $120 a dozen and again I had way more bakers and other people commenting. You know I don't think that's right. That's crazy. They're ripping people off, but you have to understand that they have created a brand for themselves and they are a powerhouse, and more than anything, most of the time I will say this hopefully it's none of you bakers that are listening to this podcast, but if so, let me go ahead and put it out here.
Speaker 1:If you're a baker and you feel a certain type of way because another baker is charging more, please don't bash that person because I'm trying to control my tongue. But number one it says a lot about you and your character. Number two if someone is able to get more money than you on a particular item that they're selling, what you need to do is pull up a chair and take notes, because it could be the fact that they're doing something that you're not. At companies such as Last Crumb, such as Southern Girl Sweets, other companies that I choose to order from and to learn from and to use as an experience in order to further our industry as a whole, pull up notes, take a chair, see what you can learn from those, but telling me oh, you could have bought cookies from me, or I could have bought. Yeah, I could have.
Speaker 1:But guess what? I don't know you. And why do I not know you? Because you don't post? Or because you don't show your face there's no trust element or because you don't have cookies that look like they're literally worth 10 or 13 dollars per cookie. So why would I? And that's the harsh truth that a lot of people don't want to hear.
Speaker 1:And so I say all that to just say, please do not be that baker, because I know pricing is something that we struggle with so much in our industry, and it's different because all of us have a different rate of labor that we charge. All of us have different expenses, different costs. The same flour I use won't be the same flower that you use. However, when a person publicly puts their price online, tearing down that person because they charge more than you, because you're aka afraid or scared or you use cheap shit, and this person is using Ghirardelli and Calibo and you don't, that doesn't really give you grounds to come and attack that person. And I'm not the one or the two, and whenever it happens on my posts, you definitely will get told something, because I don't think you get to come to my house, take a poop and then leave. It doesn't matter if it's on the internet streets, on the podcast streets, youtube or wherever, and so just keep that in mind. I, looking back, would still order from those companies again. I still love the fact that people are doing things different, and I know my students who I work with, see the bigger picture, and so that's just the hope that I hope for all of you guys.
Speaker 1:So, lesson number one be okay with being controversial in your content, whatever it may be, and also understand this. People are naturally drawn to topics that challenge their beliefs or spark debates, and it just goes like that. So by sharing controversial content, you're more likely actually going to attract comments, shares and overall interaction, which is what these posts did, which is why they went viral, and so I know it's easy. Now we're in this generation where people just want to chat GPT their content and you can really tell. You can tell with the little emojis and everything like that Chat GPT shouldn't be doing the work. Chat GPT should be an assistant in the work that we're doing, and so just keep that in mind, because when something doesn't come across in your brand voice, people, like I said, people can tell they're kind of getting used to the format and it comes across just very cookie cutterish, and so the increased engagement can lead to higher visibility and reach. Ultimately, that benefits your brand's awareness and it also benefits your brand's exposure.
Speaker 1:So, whatever it is, if you see something and other people are like, oh, yeah, I love this, but you're like, hey, I don't love this. And here's why be okay with sharing that as a small business owner, because you're going to start to attract a crowd of people who feel like you do, even when no one's saying it, and always, always, never be afraid or timid to speak about what you believe in or to stand up for whatever it is. That's your truth. Also, a thing with the controversial content is you have to understand that it positions you as a thought leader and so, addressing these type of topics, it really just allows your brand to demonstrate thought leadership through authenticity, because people get to see how real you are, that you're not just made like everyone else, that you don't just think like everyone else, and so that type of content it really builds credibility and trust with your audience, and that's why so many people, whenever they say I'm struggling to get sales off of social, that's really a trust issue. If it boils down to trust, if people don't trust the content that you're putting out, if people don't trust buying from you because they don't feel comfortable, if people don't trust talking to you because they really don't know who you are, a lot of that always goes back to trust, and so just keep those things in mind when it comes to sharing your controversial or your opinionated content on social media, whatever it may be. And so that's the first lesson.
Speaker 1:The second lesson is repetition reaps rewards, and so, out of all of my content, when I look at my posts that perform the best, I notice that most of the time, they are pieces of content that I've shared before, and that's okay. I tend to always tell you, guys, because so many of us struggle with consistency, and one of the biggest reasons that we struggle with consistency is because we're looking to always create content versus curate content. And so I get that we're creatives, that we wanna make something, bake something, but you're also a business owner and we wear lots of mini hats, and so if you ever feel like you're burnt out on one end of the stick, then understand this repetition is definitely your friend, and so, when I look at those pieces of content, I repeat content all the time, but there's benefits to doing so. Number one your brand should have a certain message that you want to share with the world, that you want to share with the world, that you want to share with your community, that you want to put out there, the more people hear your message. I know you're thinking oh my gosh, I've shared this, I've said this already, say it again.
Speaker 1:You have no idea, especially as a business coach, how many times I have to repeat myself. Number one everyone doesn't get it on the first try. Number two you can tell people things I know. There are students I tell all the time they know it, but they don't do it. And then I tell people that too, I say, ok, well, you do understand.
Speaker 1:Knowing and doing are two different things. People always say knowledge is power, knowledge is power, but execution is powerful, and most of the time it's the execution that people have a problem with. It's not necessarily the knowledge. Most of you guys are walking around like little legal pads. You know those yellow pads that the lawyers take notes on. Your brain is full of stuff, but your hands executing it not so much so.
Speaker 1:And so repetition reaps rewards when you show up. And there's an easy way to do this If you're on your phone, you're on Instagram. Go to your insights, tap insights. Go to your content. Look at content you share. Tap content you share, scroll to the top, select two years and then look at those first 12, 15 posts. Look at all the content that has ranked the best and find a way to remix it, find a way to redo it, upcycle it. But if you feel like gosh, I don't have anything to post, I've said everything already. Say it again, because repetition reaps rewards, and that's one of the biggest lessons that I've learned in putting my content out there is just in maintaining consistency. It's about showing up, because, number one, someone new is following you every single day. Number two, the person who already follows you. They probably need to hear that message again. And then, number three, the person that's warm to you. It just reminds them that hey, you are there. You're there for this particular service or this particular baked good that they want to buy. And so all that really is doing is stamping in their head who I need to go for when I want baked goods or when I want desserts.
Speaker 1:Most of you guys on social media you hide behind a logo, because you're always putting your logo, like in your profile picture. You have a logo here, you're stamping it here, stamping it here. But the real stamp to get in people's minds is just to consistently show up. When people see you, they can't ignore you, and so, with so many people, a big thing. They'll say you know, I have a traffic problem. No one comes to my website, no one goes here, and I'm like that all boils down to visibility. If more people knew about you, more people would visit your site, more people would visit your social media profile. So just take that little nugget and remember repetition reaps rewards. It's not about what you can create, but more so about what you can curate.
Speaker 1:And then the last lesson be okay with selling your products. And this is so big because so many of you guys it's like you don't want to feel iffy. Or you say, chef, when I sell or when I make a post and I'm advertised, I feel iffy. But here's the thing about it you really have to reframe how you look at selling. At the end of the day, that person is going to buy, whether it be from you or whether it be from someone else.
Speaker 1:I look at sales and the products I have as a way of serving. I have to serve people. If I take my all and I put it in a class, I put it in a course, that's because nine out of 10, someone has asked me, someone wants the steps, someone wants help. And so if I wake up every day and people ask me for help and I deny that, then I'm not really walking in my gift. And so if God is giving you a gift but you're afraid to open up your mouth, y'all know how I feel about that Closed mouths don't get fed.
Speaker 1:So what I encourage you to do right now while you're on your phone, is I actually want you to pull up your social media, particularly Instagram, because it's my jam or TikTok, and I want you to look at your last nine posts. And out of your last nine posts, how many times did you specifically tell a person book with me, order with me, call me now, drop the word Now. If you're one of my students and you're a member of the entrepreneur community, I already know you're doing this multiple times each week, because I provide my students with captions every single month and their captions are sales oriented. So every single caption is making sure that they do have a call to action. But for those who are not my students, you have to understand when you're creating your own content strategy, you have to ask for the sale.
Speaker 1:You can't expect people to buy from you if you never really tell them how, where what that buying process looks like. Do you have a mock-up on your page? Is it in your highlight? Do people know what the ordering process from you actually entails? And so think about those things, because sometimes we're afraid to open our mouths, but when you do that now people don't know. Are you a hobbyist? Are you a soccer mom? Is this really even a legitimate business? Because you never really ask a direct people to buy your products. So be okay with selling your products. Out of all my viral content, they all linked to a product or a service which increased sales for my business and for my brand, and so I'm never afraid to sell, because when I sell again, it's a level of service that I'm offering.
Speaker 1:If me selling too much bothers a person, then that person is just not for me. I do a hell of a lot of shit for free. Too much bothers a person, then that person is just not for me. I do a hell of a lot of shit for free, and chances are you do too. I'm pretty sure that you have probably contributed to a school function, you've probably done a banquet, you've probably donated, showing up and putting out content. That's a version of service, and so it would be wrong for you. You would be robbing the world of the talent that you have. You would also be robbing your family of the opportunity that you have to provide for them if you do not show up and open up your damn mouth and ask for the sale. So, be okay with making sales on social media.
Speaker 1:Be okay with sending that email. You're sending out one to two emails per week. F it Be okay. So many times I speak to bakers I'm like well, when was the last time? Well, I don't know what to say and I don't want to come across as salesy. Why have you ever subscribed to someone else's email like Nothing but Cakes or Cake Boss? Every single email. What are they doing? They're selling. If people don't want to hear the message that they have, then they remove themselves.
Speaker 1:Remember, your marketing is to put you out there so that you can attract the best and repel the rest. If a baker or someone who follows my account doesn't want to work with me or they think I'm selling that much, then that's their loss. And another thing on that thing too, because well, no, I'm going to address that on another podcast. But just be okay with selling your products and your services, because you have to provide for your family, and people need to. They need to be able to connect with you, they need to be able to order from you, but, more than anything, they need to know that you're a business and not that you're just a damn nonprofit. You're not out here doing this for fun and giggles honey. You got to get paid, and so those are three lessons that I've learned from looking over some of my most viral reels and sharing my content, and I hope that helps you as you work on your content for the rest of this month or going forward.
Speaker 1:If you enjoyed this episode, then do me a favor. Please tag me on social media at baking for business or hit that share button. That would really really help and share this podcast with someone. Before I logged on to the podcast, for the longest, the podcast has been in the top 2% worldwide, and now it's actually in the top 1.5%, and so I think that is so amazing. So I thank all of you guys who listen to the podcast.
Speaker 1:I normally share a particular scripture during the podcast, but this time I'm just going to share a short prayer, since it is my birthday and it's something that I pray over all of my students, regardless of if you believe or not. Y'all know I'm a believer. I'm not the best, I'm not perfect, but I serve the one who it is, and it's called the prayer of Jabez, and it's really really simple, but it is definitely my prayer for you today and I pray that you'd be blessed. Indeed, I pray that the Lord enlarges your territory, I pray that his hand is with you in everything that you do and I pray that he keeps you far, far away from evil so that you are protected. And I thank you for listening and for tuning in. I thank you for rocking with me. I can't wait to talk to you again. Take care and bye for now.