Identify your ‘One Thing’ to create authentic video content that starts conversations
Photo by fotografierende on Unsplash
In conversation with marketing and social media expert, Julia Wetzel, founder of JDW marketing consultancy
@julia_d_wetzel | www.juliadwetzel.com
This conversation is part of a series on camera confidence held live on Instagram. In speaking with experts in different fields, my hope is to share with you their unique insight & resources. To embolden you to connect to your audience on camera with authenticity & empathy.
To watch our conversation in full click here.
Is not knowing what to say holding you back from showing up on camera? If so, you’ll find a simple yet powerful framework in today’s blog post.
In my interview with Julia, she shares how to identify the ‘One Thing’ you’d like your business to be known for. And in turn, how that focus informs the content you create and the expertise you share on video.
I love Julia’s approach to marketing - it’s all about quality over quantity. Her advice helps to simplify and distill but in a way that isn’t reductive - it captures the essence of your business.
HOW DO YOU IDENTIFY YOUR ‘ONE THING’?
First of all, ask yourself:
What you want to be known for?
What is the ‘One Thing’ you want people to talk about when they mention your name or your brand?
What do you feel incredibly passionate about?
This isn’t necessarily your profession / what you do (although of course it can be), e.g. I want to be known for being a successful artist, a presentation skills coach or in my case for being a marketing consultant.
An answer to the question can look more like this:
“For me, it is empowering and encouraging all the positive benefits of creative liberation through playfulness and curiosity. And the best way to do it? Lead by example.”
This is something Darren John, who is a local artist I follow and engage with on Instagram replied when I asked the question on my grid a couple of months ago.
And when you look at his Instagram account & the type of content he puts out there, it really is all about empowering and encouraging others to be creative. He does so by sharing plenty of video tutorials, showcasing different creative techniques, using random materials he finds around the house (especially during quarantine) etc. He leads by example, making art accessible to all.
This is something his audience will share and talk about (rather than talking about him being an artist as the main talking point), bringing him closer to being known for his ‘One Thing”
I also loved yours:
“To create an environment where someone can take risks and grow, in order to embody their most confident, empowered self to communicate to the world.”
Again, this statement alone gives you a brilliant framework to work within when it comes to creating content, and something to check in on before you publish it.
Ask yourself, does this piece of content bring me closer to being known for my ‘One Thing’? Does it serve a purpose?
Julia’s brilliance here is two-fold: not only does capturing your ‘One Thing’ give an incredible focus to the content you create, but as it’s a statement that often is about how you want your audience to feel, you’re already ahead of the game and will create video content that is about them. Not you. Because ultimately showing up for your business on camera isn’t about you - it’s about the connection you create with your audience. And starting a conversation.
HOW TO CONNECT YOUR ‘ONE THING’ TO CONTENT YOU CREATE:
Being clear on what you want to be known for and what you want people to talk about, can already provide you with a framework for your content.
If you want to go a step further - your ‘One Thing’ can inform your content pillars or content themes. Which is a subset of themes (between three to five usually) that form the foundation of your overall content strategy.
To continue with the example of the artist, content pillars could be
Materials and Techniques
Creative inspiration
Video Tutorials
My Story
Art
You can then brainstorm different ideas and formats to sit under each pillar.
Taking the time to think about your content pillars will help you massively with idea generation and will ensure you aren’t wasting time talking about or sharing content that has got very little to do with your business or brand.
WHY ‘ONE THING’ BRINGS CLARITY TO YOUR AUDIENCE
First of all, your product or service isn’t for everyone out there but for a specific group of people.
The clearer and concise your messaging, the more likely it is that you will reach your ideal client - the ones who want to hear and buy from you.
When you publish content without a real structure or objective in mind, there is the possibility that you’ll confuse your audience, they might not understand what it is you are trying to sell to them or what you are all about as a brand.
HOW BOUNDARIES SUPPORT YOUR ‘ONE THING’
This is something I got better with over time. Personally, I knew from the start that I wasn’t going to share anything about my children or much about our family life as this isn’t relevant to my business.
For a while I did talk a little bit about the balance of work / home life etc. but eventually came to the conclusion that this isn’t relevant to my business or messaging.
Everyone has different boundaries but to go back to content pillars - these help to check back in before you’re posting something to decide whether or not it is relevant.
HOW CAN MY ‘ONE THING’ HELP ME DECIDE WHAT TO SHARE ON VIDEO?
It helps to be more strategic and structured. It’s easy to post something random on Stories simply because you’re bored in a particular moment.
Again, knowing what you stand for, what your audience is here for and what you want to be known for ‘Your One Thing’ all help to decide what to share on video.
It also means sharing comes easier when you have given yourself this framework and defined your boundaries.
As always with this series of interviews, I finished our conversation asking two questions:
Do you have a ritual or routine before going on camera?
I make sure I am dressed in something I feel confident in. If it is a workshop I am hosting, I make sure I allow enough time to test the link, make sure the camera and audio is working and that I have my notes printed out and anything I want to share with the group set up or easily accessible on my screen.
I always have water nearby.
If I record a video for IGTV, I write myself a brief script, practise a couple of times and then record.
What is one piece of advice you’d give to someone who wants to take a step forward, and be more confident on camera?
This is something I read somewhere once and it stuck with me. Instead of worrying what you look like, how you sound, come across or what people might say about you, focus on how what you share will help / inspire / encourage other people / your audience. If one person walks away having learnt something new, feels inspired or buys your product and service, then you showing up on camera was worth it!
Many thanks to Julia for sharing her insight on camera confidence. You can watch our full conversation here.
JDW is a marketing consultancy, for designers, makers and creators. Julia, works with businesses who value quality over quantity. Those wanting to find a more considered, sustainable approach to marketing and by doing so, claiming back the time and headspace they need to be creative, grow their brand and gain recognition for their 'One Thing'.
Find out more about Julia here.
Want to feel more confident on camera? Check out Camera Confidence: Your Director’s Notes - a new way to work with me, your resident presentation skills coach, to empower you to show up on camera feeling like the best version of you.
