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One of the best ways to promote your brand on a small budget is to get out there as yourself on social media. I’ve written before about how you just need to do things like hit record, but sometimes that’s easier said than done.
But one of the biggest barriers to creating content is the feeling that what you’re making isn’t as good as what’s already out there.
You see polished, professional-looking content from your favorite creators and think, How could I ever compete with that?
Here’s the truth: they weren’t always that good. Let’s discuss…
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Many business owners avoid social media because they don’t want to be on camera, don’t feel confident about their writing, or because they don’t think they have anything valuable to say. It’s time to overcome these fears.
Overcoming the Fear of Being Seen With This Exercise
You’re more ready than you think. Let’s break that down:
If you’re good enough to run a business, you’re good enough to share what you know.
If you’re afraid your content isn’t perfect, remember: no one’s first content is perfect.
Try this exercise:
Find your favorite creator’s account—YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, wherever.
Scroll back to their earliest posts. This could be years ago.
Notice how rough and unpolished it was compared to now. Most of them were this way. Some creators weren’t even posting about the topic they later became famous for when they started.
You can do this same exercise with a near-infinite number of successful people.
See if you can find early demo tapes of your favorite band—they probably don’t sound as good as they did once they landed a recording contract. You can do the same thing with writers, stand-up comics, and others.
These people got better because they started, and that’s exactly what you need to do. You’ll improve over time, and your audience will grow with you.
Becoming good at something takes time and consistent effort. It took MrBeast four years just to hit 1,000 followers on YouTube.
And the truth is, you don’t even have to be great at something to gain a following and create content that will help you promote your brand.
Your Audience Doesn’t Need Perfection—They Need You
People follow people. They don’t need you to be the best content creator on the internet. They just need you to be real, consistent, and willing to show up.
So, start creating if you want to promote your business without spending a fortune. Post on LinkedIn. Make short videos for Instagram or TikTok. Share your insights on X. Get on podcasts. Answer questions in communities. Whatever you do, just start.
If you keep waiting to be as good as your favorite creator before you put yourself out there, there’s a good chance you never will.
Thanks for reading. See you next week.
-Mike
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bio.link/mikeholden
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