One of my favorite sayings goes like this, “If you want to go fast, go alone. But if you want to go far, go together.” It’s an African proverb that has particularly been dominating my thoughts of late. As I’ve been crafting a LinkedIn evangelist program, I’ve been meditating on its implications for audience growth. The more I think about it, the clearer it becomes that audience growth isn’t a solo sport, but rather a team one.
The reality of audience growth is that it’s a challenging, time-consuming process that becomes all the more daunting when tackled alone. This leads us to a significant question: How can we foster a sense of community in our audience growth efforts, making the journey less lonely and more enjoyable? Here are three effective strategies.
1. Start an Interview-based Podcast
A potent way to build community is by starting an interview-based podcast. This strategy is a personal favorite of mine, as it has the dual advantage of allowing you to learn from others and broaden your reach. By interviewing people you admire, you gain invaluable insights from their experiences, and this mutual interaction creates an enriching environment of shared learning.
An example of this in practice is my own podcast, where I have the opportunity to interact and learn from individuals I aspire to emulate.
2. Establish an Internal Growth Group
The second strategy revolves around the idea of internal collaboration. Starting an internal growth group at your company or organization can be a powerful tool for collective audience growth.
This strategy proved successful for us at Sweet Fish, where we organized a LinkedIn evangelists group. The objective was to grow our LinkedIn followings collectively, leveraging the inherent advantages of teamwork. However, this method can be adapted to suit various platforms, such as Twitter or YouTube. It’s about finding a group of like-minded individuals within your organization who are invested in growing their channels and working together toward that common goal.
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3. Create an External Growth Group
The third approach to audience growth borrows a leaf from the book of YouTube sensation Mr. Beast. The idea is to establish an external growth group consisting of individuals outside your organization who share a similar passion for growth.
In an interview with Joe Rogan, Mr. Beast revealed how he built a group of enthusiastic content creators even before YouTube gained its current popularity. They met every day, sharing successes, failures, and strategies, thereby helping each other grow. You too can form such a group, though the frequency of meetings can be adjusted to suit your needs.
To illustrate, I once brought together a group of similar creators on LinkedIn. We met monthly to discuss our growth strategies and challenges, gaining insights and advice from one another. It’s about finding a group of people on the same growth path, then collaboratively navigating that path to achieve greater success. It works even better if you are all trying to grow on the same platform.
Grow Farther Together
Audience growth need not be a solitary journey. We can, and should, strive to go further together. Start an interview-based podcast, create an internal and external growth group, or perhaps even combine all three strategies. After all, as the saying goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone. But if you want to go far, go together.” I couldn’t agree more. Let’s forge ahead together.
