5 Steps to Quickly Grow and Monetize Your Following

Read time: 4 mins

Hola Amigo!

Welcome back to Grow Solo Saturday. I’m coming in live and hot from Medellín, Colombia this morning!

My apologies for missing the last couple of weeks. Things have been crazy building the agency. I have barely come up for air.

But I promise you, today’s issue will more than make up for it.

Today, I'll teach you 5 steps to quickly grow and monetize your following:

Why should you care? Simple.

Master LinkedIn, and you unlock a world of opportunities. More leads, more visibility, more revenue.

But here's the snag: Most people aren't making bank on LinkedIn.

The main reason? No strategy.

Other stumbling blocks include:

Reason #1: They don't know their audience.

Reason #2: Their offer? Not compelling.

Reason #3: They lack a solid content strategy.

Reason #4: They ignore engagement signals

The good news? You can conquer these issues.

But why the hell should you listen to me?

In less than 6 months, I have scaled my Solopreneur Ghostwriting business ‘Grow Solo’ to five figures MRR.

It wasn’t always this way. I remember struggling to get my first client.

Making $700 a month.

I used to barely get one lead a month. I almost gave up.

Below is the guide to monetizing an audience I wish I had a year ago.

If applied, this playbook will save you 1000+ hours trying to work out LinkedIn monetization for yourself.

Ready to get this bag?

Step 1: Know your audience.

Greek writer Pausanias coined the phrase “Know thyself”. But you know what’s more important than knowing yourself to unlock revenue on Linkedin…

“Know thy audience.”

Imagine your content like a magnet for attracting your ideal client. In order to attract the right clients, your content needs to magnetize them to you.

How? Write for the person you want to help per post.

Find their:

• Pains

• Objections

• Desires

• Challenges

For example, if you're after startup CEOs, know their challenges. Tailor your content to them.

Step 2 - Craft an irresistible offer.

A mentor once told me, “If you want to make money, Luke, solve a burning problem for rich people”.

Remember your offer must be aimed towards a person:

Willing + able to afford you = dream client.

But how do you craft an offer statement?

Use this structure:

"[audience] achieve [X outcome] without [X hassle]."

For the Wellness Enthusiast:

"Achieve optimal health without the struggle of meal planning with our fully customized, nutritionist-designed meal kits, delivered right to your door." (Probably lives in Bali and has some diabolical name like Floral Rain)

For Busy Professionals:

"Achieve proficiency in a new language without spending hours in a traditional classroom with our AI-powered language learning app." (Fun at parties - or not)

For the Fitness Junkie:

"Achieve your fitness goals without crowded gyms or expensive equipment through our online workout platform that offers high-intensity, equipment-free training programs." (One for my gym bros out there)

You get the picture…

Solve a problem, don't just offer a nice-to-have.

By this, I mean… your target audience problem has to be so pressing that if they don’t solve their pain, their house could burn down.

Of course, there is a level of perceived problem. With the right positioning, an expert marketer can make anything look like a ‘must-have’.

But starting out with pain killer instead of a ‘vitamin’ will make it much easier to sell your offer.

But what should your content strategy look like to attract your ideal client?

Step 3 - Use the Grow Solo method equation:

Pain/ opportunity / desire + inject your solution = attract ideal client

Now I know you're thinking, "Luke, what type of content should I create when I have my pains and opportunities mapped out?"

Step 4 - The Creator Funnel:

I follow the inbound marketing funnel process. This is a model that shows the journey of how a client will first find out about your product/services.

Before sliding into your DM’s to give you that sweet, sweet internet money.

Let’s dive in:

1. TOFU - Attraction

This is the attraction stage. The main aim here is to attract as many potential clients as possible.

At this stage, prospects may have just realized that they have a problem or a need, but they're not sure how to solve it yet.

Many of your potential clients are passively scrolling on LinkedIn and aren’t currently looking for your services.

Content examples include:

• Story posts

• LinkedIn growth

• Latest trends (AI/Tech Layoffs)

• Cadence: 3x a week.

By releasing TOFU content, you will generate viral top of funnel interest and get your personal brand in front of as many people as possible.

But Luke, clicks aren’t cash?...

(here’s the money shot…)

2. MOFU - Competency

Middle of the funnel content should aim to prove your competency within the niche you are operating in.

At this stage in the funnel, your prospect is considering their options to solve the problem or meet the need they have identified.

They know what their problem is and are looking for the best solution.

At this stage, it’s as simple as positioning yourself as the solution. (See the equation posted above).

But what does this look like?:

• Contrarian takes on the industry to build authority in your space.

• Share curated content from industry authorities, adding your insights.

• Create step-by-step playbooks to help your client achieve a desired result

• Cadence: 4x week.

At this point in the funnel, it's all about proving your competency to your ICP.

Trust is built over time as you become a useful resource and become their go-to expert to solve their problems.

But if you leave it here…they will never reach out.

I see so many hapless Founders/ CEOs and Solopreneurs leaving money on the table here.

Don’t forget to…

3. BOFU - Close:

Bottom of the funnel content is all about sealing the deal in your clients' mind. By this stage, they trust you and are considering buying.

At this point, your prospects are ready to make a purchase decision.

They've identified their:

• problem, evaluated their options, and now they're ready to choose a solution.

Your content strategy at this stage should be aimed at making that final push towards them reaching out to work with you.

Set the bait and position yourself as the solution:

• Showcase client success with case studies of clients results or your own personal results.

• Start to post mixed media in the form of concise video tips on topic area.

• Encourage my ICP to reach out with calls to action

• Pitch posts:

Two ways to do this:

Hard pitch: (I nicked this one from JK Molina)

This one's a straight up call to action to pitch your audience on your services.

It needs to show:

-What is this about? (Help CEOs build personal brands)

-Why does it matter? (Drive more business)

-How can it help your ICP? (Double your following and leads)

Other Psychological levers you can pull:

-Scarcity (1 left for Q2)

-Fear of loss (If they don’t act they won’t build a brand in 2023)

Soft pitch:

You can use a softer call to action at the end of a post, reminding your prospect of your services.

For example:

Cadence: 1x a week. (People hate being sold to, use with care)

This content demonstrates your credibility and authority in the market, building trust with your audience.

By showcasing tangible results and successes, your audience is likely to feel confident in your ability to solve their problems. And that my friends will make you a rainmaker.

A word of caution: Being overly salesy can push people away. The bottom of the funnel content should be a subtle but clear invitation to engage with your services, not a hard sell.

Step 5: Spot the signals. Move the chat to the DMs.

I scan my:

• Likes

• Comments

• Views

People don’t visit your profile for no reason. Start as many DM threads as you can each day.

This is where 99% of you will go wrong…

At this point, you probably pitch slap. Get no response. Follow up once and then give up with your tail between your legs.

The reason? People hate being sold to.

But here’s the thing… People love to buy.

The solution?

The trick is to stay focused on solving their problems and being curious about their world to build rapport.

1. Keep focused on their problem and opportunity.

2. Be patient. Ask probing questions. Here are some example questions I use in the DMs:

   1. How’s it going with X?

   2. What are your priorities for Q2?

   3. What have you tried?

   4. What are your goals for X?

   5. Interesting, what’s driving that? What’s the goal behind the goal?

3. Wait until they're eager for the 'how', the price, or the meeting. Then position yourself as the solution.

Here’s an example of a DM thread in action that led to a booked meeting:

The DM flows method is next level powerful. Most week’s I book between 5-7 sales calls.

2 weeks ago I managed to booked in 10 in one day. You can do it too!

That’s a wrap!

Apply these 5 steps.

Unlock the $100k in your following today.

Remember: Results may not come fast at first. On average it takes around 8 weeks for a lurker seeing your posts to reach out.

However if you can stick to a consistent content strategy, mine your engagement and have genuine conversations with people you will see your lead flow sky rocket.

TL;DR:

• Know your audience. (Write for this one person)

• Develop a compelling offer. (Solve a burning pain)

• Have a solid content strategy. (Inbound marketing funnel)

• Don't ignore engagement signals. (DM threads convert lurkers)

When you are ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

1. CXOs: Wanna become an industry thought leader, drive revenue and authority with LinkedIn Ghostwriting? Book a personal branding strategy call here to explore how Grow Solo can help. (Booked up to July - taking on clients for Q3 now)

2. Wanna turn content into cash? Book a 1-on-1 Consulting Call with me here.

3. Feature your business/product in my newsletter in front of 1450+ Soloer’s. Send me a DM on LinkedIn.

Peace,

Luke Shalom