Episode 6: The Riches are in the Niches: Optimizing Your IG Bio for Growth & Sales

Working with anyone and everyone with a pulse and a credit card? Hear why that’s detrimental to your reputation, business, and mental health in this episode. Wondering how to identify your target market and niche? Or what to put in your IG bio to draw the right people to you like a magnet? Learn all of that and more in today’s episode of The Ashly Locklin Show.

Here’s a preview of what you’ll learn in this episode:

• Why you want to be clear on who you want to work with and who you don’t want to work with.
• What having non-ideal clients really does to your business.
• How to identify your target market, niche, and ideal client.
• How to craft an “I help” statement that attracts the right people and converts them into clients.
• What to include in your Instagram bio to optimize it for growth and sales.

Find me on social:

Instagram: @ashly_locklin instagram.com/ashly_locklin
Facebook: facebook.com/ashlylocklinwellness
Pinterest: pinterest.com/ashlylocklin

Key Links:

Check out the Business Breakthrough Accelerator here: ashlylocklin.com/business-breakthrough-accelerator

Show Transcript:

Hey there, friend! And welcome to Episode 6, I’m so happy you are tuning in! Today we’re getting specific on who we serve and what we do...because the riches are in the niches. I actually prefer to pronounce it “neesh” because it sounds so fancy, but for the sake of my rhyme, I had to go with niche.

I know this is a hot topic and some people are for “neesh” and some are for “niche” but I like both and use them interchangeably.

Anyway, this is one of the most common mistakes I see entrepreneurs make...and I’ll be honest, I was guilty of it at one time too. Not niching down.

When you first start your business, you’re like “I gotta make money, I’ll work with anyone with a pulse and credit card!” But that can only get you so far. The key to really standing out amongst the crowd and above the noise is to be known for something specific, to work with a certain type of individual, to niche down.

Today’s show is going to walk you through identifying your target audience, your niche, your ideal client, and then optimizing your Instagram bio so you attract the right people and repel the wrong ones.

First, let’s talk about why you shouldn’t just work with anyone.

Your customers are a reflection of your business and they’re an extension of your business. They represent the results that can be achieved, the transformations that can happen, and they are walking billboards for your business. If you take on the wrong clients, they probably won’t get the intended results or transformation because either they aren’t committed enough, they aren’t at a high enough or low enough level to really gain anything from what you offer (it’s either way over their head or too basic), or they just don’t jive with you...and so they have a negative experience. And then they go out into the world and tell people about your business, your program, whatever it was...and that it didn’t really work for them.

So that’s hurting your reputation. Or maybe these are people you don’t want advertising your business because they are sooo not the people you wanted to work in the first place, but you took them on for a quick buck. And even if they didn’t get great results because it wasn’t a good fit for them, they might still really like and respect you. So they’re out there telling people how amazing you and how amazing your offer is...and essentially bringing more of the wrong people to you. Think about who is in their circle and who they’re networking with.

The long-term effects on your business can be worse than the short-term reward of a quick payment.

In contrast, when you work with your ideal clients, people who are at the right level, are all-in and committed, and aligned with your energy & vibes, that’s when the results happen. And then those people go out into the world, and they are your ideal marketers, and they’re telling everyone how amazing your program or product or business is, they’re in the right circles, networking with the right people. And that obviously helps your business and reputation.

See why it’s smart to be clear on who you want to work with and who your business can really serve?

Another reason why you want to work with ideal clients is because they are invigorating. It’s enjoyable to show up and work with them. You like them, you’re excited to connect with them, you know you’re helping them. Whereas when you work with non-ideal clients, it’s incredibly draining. Youl dread interacting with them, you get frustrated, you question your own abilities because they aren’t seeing results. So to better serve the people who are not a good fit, refer them to someone else.. And then you have the energy and excitement to show up and be the best for your ideal clients.

So take some time to sit down and list out all of the traits of your ideal client and create a list of the traits of the people you don’t want to work with! Having that on paper and in front of you will help you craft content that conveys who is the best fit for your offer and who should keep looking.

Moving on...let’s talk about identifying your target market and your niche.

Your target market is the specific group of people you serve. Such as: new moms, or women with acne, or network marketers, or empty nesters.

Your ideal clients are a small subset of your target market.

Not all of the people in your target market are ideal clients, but you want to start by first identifying the target market.

Next, identify your niche. Some people use the terms target market and niche interchangeably, but I view them as two different things.

Your target market is the demographics of the people you want to serve.

Your niche is the service you specialize in offering to your target market.

You and I might both have the same target market- for example new moms. But my niche might be sleep training babies and your niche might be shedding the baby weight.

See the difference? Same target market, different services or niches.

And P.S. I am not an expert in sleep training - my 4 year old still doesn’t sleep through the night. That was just an hypothetical example.

So back to the target market, you want to narrow this down as much as possible because you can’t be everything to everyone. When you only serve those who most need you, those who want you, and those who can benefit from what you offer, you’ll have much more success.

To put it into perspective, would you rather be a small fish in a big pond or a big fish in a small pond?

When you try to market to everyone and anyone, thinking the more people you market to, the more clients you’ll get, you actually turn yourself into a small fish in a very big pond.

Another example is: say you need reconstructive surgery on your face. You aren’t going to go to a general practitioner who advertises that they can do it all. You’re going to find a highly qualified, reputable plastic surgeon who specializes in reconstructive surgery and has incredible reviews.

So resist the urge to be the generalist and instead, be the specialist.

To identify your niche, ask yourself what you want to be known for within your target market? What service do you offer and are an expert in?

Here’s where the magic activity comes into play: Crafting your “I help” statement

***Before moving on, I wanted to share that this episode is brought to you by the Business Breakthrough Accelerator, my signature program helping female entrepreneurs find their breakthrough and stop trading hours for dollars. If you are tired of working nose to the grindstone and want to scale your business while also being in alignment with your desires, this program is for you. It brings the masculine fire to ignite your business but also the feminine energy of intuition and ease to find that balance. It’s not the typical business course because it focuses on mastering your mindset and energy in addition to making that cash money and creating systems that allow your business to run on autopilot so you can have more freedom. If you are interested in checking it out, click the link in the show notes to get all the deets! ***

Now back to the “I help statement”...

This will help you narrow it down and be concise. It’s a little 2 step process, so grab some paper or open the notes app on your phone and write:

I help {who} do {what}

This is the first step: taking your target market and combining it with your niche.

I’ll repeat it: I help {who} do {what}

Now fill in the {who} and {what} blanks

For example:

I help new moms lose the baby weight
I help women with adult acne heal their skin
I help network marketers scale their businesses
I help empty nesters downsize

So our whos in those examples were:

New moms
Women with adult acne
Network marketers
Empty nesters

And the whats were:

Lose the baby weight
Heal their skin
Scale their businesses
Downsize

But I like to take it a step further and add the HOW to the end of it.

So this is step 2 and it’s: I help {who} do {what} {how}

For example:

I help new moms lose the baby weight with quick at-home workouts
I help women with adult acne heal their skin from the inside out with a holistic approach
I help network marketers scale their businesses with high-converting marketing strategies
I help empty nesters downsize without stress

Adding the HOW illuminates your specialty and highlights what sets you apart from all the other fish in that pond.

So take a moment to write yours now.

I help {who} do {what} {how}

Another important thing to consider is what your ideal client’s pain points and desire are. What would be most appealing to her or him?

Going back to the first example:

I help new moms lose the baby weight with quick at-home workouts - you know your ideal client is a new mom who wants to lose the weight but doesn’t have the time, energy, or desire to leave the house. So your service would be appealing to her.

This is where it’s important to really know your ideal client’s pain points and desires and be super specific.

For example, there’s a difference between being a fitness coach and saying: I help 20 something women lose the last 5 lbs and get poppin’ abs through carb cycling and I help moms lose weight without sacrificing wine and pizza through intuitive eating

Both target women who want to lose weight (the same target market) but they have very different services and outcomes (the niches).

This is also why you don’t want to just say: I help women lose weight.

Because it’s too general. How do you do it? Who do you work with?

Along these same lines, you don’t want to be too generic overall. You don’t want your statement to read:

I help people live their best lives.
I help women feel good.

What does that even mean?

Remember: avoid being the generalist or the small fish in the big pond. Instead, be the specialist and the big fish in the little pond.

And I know this is scary and you might be caught up in the mindset of: if I have a wider audience and appeal to more people, I’ll make more sales. But the reality is that you won’t...literally as the title says: the riches are in the niches.

And last point I want to cover here is you need to identify where your customer is right now. She’s probably not where you are currently...she’s maybe where you were 5, 10, however many years ago. So you need to keep that in mind and make sure you’re hitting her pain points and desires - where she is now.

For example, you may have healed your adult acne but you’re trying to help women who haven’t done it yet and don’t know how.

Or you may have struggled with yo-yo dieting years ago but now you have it under control thanks to intuitive eating, but your ideal customer is still struggling with yo-yo dieting.

So make sure you are hitting her current pain points in your I help statement.

For example, say you have: Intuitive Eating Expert in your Instagram bio (the problem is that many people might not even know what that even means).

However, when you use the formula of I help {who} do {what} {how} - you’re so much clearer.

I help women break the yo-yo dieting cycle and find food freedom through intuitive eating - is much easier to understand.

If you struggled with yo-yo dieting, which statement would be more appealing to you?

Seeing Intuiting Eating Expert listed in the bio or I help women break the yo-yo dieting cycle and find food freedom through intuitive eating

The second one because you’re like, “yes, that is my problem and I want food freedom! I’m not sure what intuitive eating is, but it looks like this chick can help me.”

So that leads us into optimizing your Instagram (or Facebook) bio. You’re going to take this I help {who} do {what} {how} statement and put it in your Instagram or Facebook bio.

When people come to your page, they immediately know if you are the girl for them. If not, great. You don’t need them hanging around if they’re never going to engage with your buy from you.

You have a split second to capture someone's attention and give them a reason to stay on your page and follow you. So when you have this clear “I help” statement in your bio, you’re making it very easy for that person to decide if you are their cup of tea in that split second.

And you can modify it a little by saying “Helping” or “Teaching” or whatever you want instead of the phrase “I help” - as long as it still gets the point across.

A few other simple tips:

Have a great profile picture of just you- not your kids, or your dog, or you and a bunch of people, or a flower. A clear picture of you, smiling, preferably from the shoulders up.

The first line, right under your profile picture on Instagram is searchable. So you want to give yourself a title or use a keyword in that line. For example, if you are a Sleep Consultant, put that in the first line because anytime someone starts to search for “sleep” in Instagram, your account will pop up at the top of the search! Figure out what title best represents you and is searchable and put it in there.

Lastly, you should have a link in your bio (depending on your business), it could be a freebie, or an application, or a link to your blog or store, there are so many options. Whatever it is, make sure there is a call to action above it. No one will click on your link unless you tell why they should. So think: what can you put there to make someone want to click on that link? And obviously make it clear and to the point.

You could have:

Get your free intuitive eating starter guide (then have the down pointing finger to the link)

Or

Get all the details on my next mentorship (again down pointy finger)

Or

Shop my store (down arrow)

Alrighty, to recap:

First, identify your target market - the group of people you want to serve.

Next, identify your niche - which is the service you specialize in offering to your target market.

Then identify your ideal client’s traits- You want to be clear on who you want to work with and who you don’t want to work with because this impacts your energy, joy, reputation, and customer success.

Once you have that down, craft your I help [who} do {what} {how} statement and put it in your bio.

Also make sure your profile pic is on fleek, you have a searchable title, and a call to action above your link.

And that is a wrap!

Thank you so much for tuning in! Please take a screenshot of this episode and tag me on Instagram at @ashly_locklin and show me your I help statement.

I’ll catch ya next time, bye friends!

Show Notes:

Today’s episode is brought to you by the Business Breakthrough Accelerator here: ashlylocklin.com/business-breakthrough-accelerator

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