Please note, this is a collaborative post with LiveMentor.
I was asked to review the LiveMentor training programme over the past few weeks and I’m so happy to share what I’ve learnt. I always thought I knew it all when it came to social media from being a blogger, but turns out things have changed so much over the years. Facebook is no longer for stalking all the people you went to school with or over sharing your holiday photos, it’s a powerful tool that can drive sales, traffic and awareness to your service, product or platform e.g a blog.
Essentially the LiveMentor training programme is:
4 courses over two 2 weeks with an unlimited number of students covering Facebook initiation with a general overview of tools and techniques
Although an ‘overview’ may sound like just that, I can confirm the LiveMentor training programme gave me much more insight, tips and secrets to all things Facebook. No longer is it just sharing memes on my profile, it’s now time I take my blogging a little more seriously and give it a little more thought. Here is how I got on with the programme…
Introduction
‘Not every company wants to become AirB&B or Uber.’
That goes for blogging too, not every blogger does it for the fame and fortune, even though it would be nice, some of us do it to share a message, tell a story and for the love of writing. The same goes for a product or service, for example a local locksmith would not want to be on the same level as AirB&B or Uber because the service they are offering is indeed that local. Not all of us have the desire to go global, some of us want to serve and inspire the very close community around us. This was a great way to introduce the course it got me thinking about the way brands and services use Facebook.
Helpfully, there were plenty of recognisable brands used as examples such as Tinder, Ipsy and Zaful. Who knew Tinder spend $1million per month on Facebook ads? That amount sounds absolutely insane but it must work for them. You have to have Facebook to use Tinder so the platforms go hand in hand with one another.
Ipsy have cultivated great relationships with influencers who have a great content strategy on Facebook. This is refreshing to hear because as a blogger I never really knew how I could work with brands on Facebook as for some reason I always thought it was the deadest of my social media. However Ipsy recognised the importance of being in a community and honing in on this. Actually come to think of it, that’s one of the main reasons I do use Facebook, for the community feeling. In comparison to Twitter and Instagram, you definitely have the overruling community aspect from Facebook. Whether its your aunt liking all your product photos or a friend leaving you a ‘like’, you never know whose timeline you could be shared to.
Course 1
Everything we can do on Facebook
Audience tool
The audience tool on Facebook is outstanding, I never knew something could be so in-depth. Essentially demographics e.g creating an audience for your service, brand or blog are the key to success these days. You need to know your audience, their age group, interests etc. There is a big difference between intention and discovery so it is important to know exactly who your clients are. For example, I know my content isn’t going to be relevant to teenagers, but will be relevant to 21 to 35 year olds. That way, I can hone in and target a specific niche of people. That’s what separates marketing and business. Business seemingly seems to be about making money and trying to appeal to everywhere whereas marketing is speaking to your exact, relevant audience.
Things I didn’t know you could do was really target an audience, for example, by age, interest, relationship status and how long they’d even been engaged. Who knew? Not me. I guess I could apply this to blogging and my audience, which I’m still figuring out, but I want the right audience who will share my content, tag friends, engage and build a community.
One of the great things I learnt was to work hard on the checklist, and taking roughly an hour in total is the best way to ensure you reach your best clients/audience. It reminds me of that age-old phase, if you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail.
Course 2
Facebook Ads
Facebook is about discovery whereas Google is about intention
Having a presence on Facebook is important too regardless of your activity, e.g a wedding photographer would use Facebook ads to reach those newly engaged couples. I guess I would use Facebook ads as a blogger for people to discover my content, share it and drive traffic to my blog. What’s great is that you don’t need to spend a lot of cash you can test and see how it goes with the money you spend over a certain time. If it doesn’t work, stop right away and try something new. The key to getting your ads right is knowing your:
- Type
- Campaign – What is the objective?
- Approach – Who, where, when and how much…
- Creativity – What are you doing, what makes it different, has it been done before?
YOU NEED TO BUILD AN AUDIENCE FIRST.
There are so many things to consider when using Facebook ads, but it shouldn’t be a complicated process as long as you plan beforehand. Innovation is not expensive, so it ‘pays’ to invest in video. This made me think about the way I use Facebook personally. I LOVE tagging friends in videos, no matter what page it may be on. There is a reason why I clicked on it in the first instance and if it may drive traffic to a website or product.
There is a lot to think about and different types of ads to try (within the newsfeed or on the right hand side) but think about what your audience would do and the habits they have. Overall, great images are a winner and they need to be consistent with your audience e.g the style, mood, tone of voice – you want them to share or like your content after all.
Course 3
Creating a profitable advertising campaign
Course 3 was all about how to create your first profitable advertising campaign which would be great for products and services but I wasn’t sure how this would work for me as a blogger. Perhaps if I implemented some videos into my content it’d work? Which leads me nicely on to viral videos; audiences love animals and audiences like being captivated and entertained. Whatever content you are producing doesn’t have to be high budget, it can be simple yet effective. Just think about what makes people share, tag their friends and comment? I know for me personally it’s something that makes me laugh, something with shock value or something with useful information. What makes you share content?
Not only that when thinking about creating a profitable advertising campaign, you don’t want to reach everyone. It’s about selecting the right audience for your brand (referring to the checklist).
If you’ve already implemented ads and something isn’t going right, maybe it’s time to reassess. There are reasons why your ads aren’t working is due to the way you’ve programmed it. It could be down to the copywriting, the imagery or the call to action. What do you want your audience to do or purchase? It’s really important to take time and figure these things out before embarking on your advertising campaign. On this point I’d also point out that it’s worth keeping things topical and seasonal too. Your ad must be relevant.
Course 4
Everything we can dream on Facebook
Course 4 was all about using your skills as the Facebook tools to really make the best of your product, service of speciality. For example, Messenger is a fantastic tool and means you can respond to your customers in real-time giving them advice tips or tricks. Imagine not having to spend hours on the phone? Instead speaking to your customer directly and understanding the problem or requirement.
All in all it’s all about MAKING AN EFFORT TO UNDERSTAND THE WAY YOU WRITE AND USE IT CAUTIOUSLY. Before creating an ad or using your social media, think about what you want to get out of a post, essentially a call to action. Is it intention or awareness? Not only that you can become the teacher, are you good at writing, create the copy? Are you good at good at graphics or photograph, create the images. If you understand the ads you want to create as well as understanding your audience and keeping in line with your brand, you’ll be on the path to success. Just don’t forget to invite all fans to like your page.
Once you’ve ideally completed the basic course, you may want to check our the advanced course which has 14,000 students signing up every month and reviews of 4.9* stars. You know you’ll be in good hands. Not only that Mathilde has such a warm and friendly personality; she felt personal but professional without feeling like I was back in school! She has lots of energy, cares about you as an audience and responds to questions during the session which is an added bonus.
Overall, I never really thought about having a page for my blog, I always change my mind, but now this has given me the boost I need. Its a great way to drive traffic to my blog and thus more people reading my content, interacting and hopefully learning something from me too. Not only that, the tips I’ve learnt don’t just have to be applied to Facebook, they can be used across all my social media in some way shape or form. I need to improve my photos so I’ve invested in a camera, much like Mathilde recommended when choosing an eye-capturing image for an advertisement. It’s all about captivating your audience, telling a story but making Facebook ads and content feel relatable and personable.
Scheduling a call
One feature I missed out on because work has been crazy and I’ve been in the midst of a family wedding is scheduling a call with either Alex or Mathilde. Things you can discuss are:
What do you think of my business idea? Why has nobody subscribed to my newsletter?
How do I write content that stands out and gets noticed? What’s the best way to make advertising investments that are profitable? How do I create or update my website?
This is brilliant because it gives you answers to any questions that may not have been covered in the course
Why you should consider the LiveMentor training programme:
- Live courses with a professional (They certainly know their stuff!)
- Interactive courses: Q&A sessions are planned (I loved the live element, it really felt like you were part of a class even though I was in bed)
- Full support is provided by the mentor and the teaching team throughout your training (The opportunity to call the mentor is fantastic because you can understand where you’re going wrong or what tools you need to implement)
- Get into the students community: you won’t learn alone! (We’re all in this together and we all have to start somewhere)
- Learn at your own pace: stream the replay 24/7 (I found that I couldn’t always attend the class in ‘real time’, so knowing that I could go at my own peace was reassuring. I also found being able to pause it and take notes was really useful)
- Certificate of Completion (After this you might just be qualified enough to give your own course…)
LiveMentor is giving you the tools to understand how to use Facebook as a platform rather than force feeding you tips. It’s all about baby steps, knowing your brand, knowing your audience and understanding what you want to get out of Facebook. Whether you’re a blogger, freelancer, have a product or service, LiveMentor is an absolute must course if you want to take your Facebook page to the next level.
Char xo
Please note, this is a collaborative post with LiveMentor. Logo belongs to LiveMentor of course.
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