If you’re new to this series of posts, it might be worth checking out the intro to this new series. My frustration grows each week, but with frustration, my determination grows too. Each rejection fuels my desire to succeed that much more. Maybe I’ll reach a stubbornness, a denial of failure, or maybe my perseverance will pay off.

There have been a number of common rejections. These have included:

1. I just won’t see a return on investment.
2. I’m already busy, we don’t need more customers/ don’t have a need for social media.
3. My manager/staff run our social media and I’m happy with it.
4. I already have someone/ an agency running it.

I need to find answers to these common responses. Obviously, my service will not appeal to everybody, for not everybody will be interested. These have been the overwhelming response though, and if I don’t find a solution to some of them, I will not have a business.

I could consider going completely free for a month as mentioned in my previous post. What do I have to lose? I could spend the next month with 0 clients trying to persuade business owners to take a chance with me. Or, take a proactive approach and spend the next month working for free. Which would allow me to build experience, a portfolio, and build relationships with potential clients. Showing people first hand the value in what I offer. At the bare minimum, it would build on my own experience and credentials. 

I’m going to launch the social media for my business this Friday. I won’t prolong that any longer. I know I should be still cold calling but that’s been rather brutal. I might trial the free month idea with cold calling a few places first and see if that generates anything. I’m also going to go into central Manchester and literally go in every single restaurant, bar, pub and offer my initial free month/ full service. Well, the weekly visits and full content creation for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. It would just be minus any email or blog campaign.

The current level of content for restaurants and bars on social media isn’t very high. There are some great examples on Instagram, high-quality photography and great infographics created, just real good quality branded content.

But, I also see so much room for creativity. It’s about creating an immersive, informative and entertaining experience through content – that does generate more customers.

I want 360 visuals, branded professional photography, immersive hyperlapses. Every time you see a great picture you know it’s from that restaurant or that bar, just from its style. I want drones, GoPros, live streams and competition giveaways. I want the quickest response to every customer enquiry and review, dealt with in a friendlier, fun and professional manner. I want real authentic insights into the business, documenting their journey, the staff, the customer, their story. I want to be ahead of any next technology shift, platform shift, whether that’s a new app, gadget, platform, or the takeoff of virtual/ augmented reality.

This is what I want to offer. This is what I will offer. I just need the chance to prove I can deliver. This post has really just become an outlet for my current frustrations, rather than any attempt to document this journey. But I’m happy for it to be that. As long as it openly reflects my current feelings and emotions. That first client is going to get the best service they are likely to have ever had. Forget weekly visits, I’ll be there every single fucking day.

One of Seth Godin’s recent posts resonates well.

Living in dissatisfaction

For the creator who seeks to make something new, something better, something important, everywhere you look is something unsatisfying.

The dissatisfaction is fuel. Knowing you can improve it, realising that you can and will make things better – the side effect is that today isn’t what it could be.

You can’t ignore the dissatisfaction, can’t pretend the situation doesn’t exist, not if you want to improve things.

Living in dissatisfaction today is the price we pay for the obligation to improve things tomorrow.

I don’t think any social media agency is going to change the world. I do think there is room for someone to grow and deliver a greater service for small/medium businesses, however. I see how poorly social media is used by even some of the best restaurants and bars. The level could be so much higher.

Knowing how much better it could be and struggling to find just one client is frustrating. I was going to throw in an infographic of the rates at which start-ups fail, but there are conflicting reports. Forbes says up to 90% fail, others say it’s more like 30/40%. But let’s spend less time pondering failure and more time doing.

I want my next post to be about my first client or at least a few real pitches where my service was considered. If not, I’ll be back to tell you what went wrong.