I hear “the money is in your list” as a statement used constantly in this industry and in marketing. Yet, for those of us in service-based businesses… it’s just not true. The money isn’t in your list, it’s not in your FB group, and it’s definitely not in your social media following.

The money is in your ENGAGEMENT with that list, that group, that social media following.

As a coach who created over 100K in 10 months of business, and saw quick results right out of the gate… I know that is why.

I made my audience my priority… I created amazing content for them, and then focused on engaging on that content.

Do numbers matter? Certainly. But what matters more than numbers, and what matters BEFORE numbers is engagement!

At the end of the day you can have 5,000 people on your list but if none of them want to connect with you… they certainly won’t be buying from you!

I often see people saying that they’re worried about engaging too much. They think it will burn them out, that it will make them resentful, or that their audience will be less likely to buy if they have too much access to them.

I call bullshit.

YOU get to decide how much you let it burn you out. YOU get to see the energy exchange with your audience as positive, beneficial, and even. YOU get to build relationships that make them WANT to hire you.

Don’t get me wrong… we all need boundaries. I have to have boundaries because I have to prioritize myself and my paying clients. However, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t a middle ground where you can build SERIOUSLY engaged relationships and community without hurting yourself or your clients.

For me, being open to answering questions, providing support, engaging with my community, and giving amazing content has been the most important piece of building my business and keeping my coaching practice full for the past 6 months.

Here are my top 5 tips for creating engagement (or re-invigorating a less than engaged group/list!)

1. Ask them what they want to hear from you. This might sound obvious, but it’s something we miss all too often. We can’t figure out why they won’t engage with us and we feel like we need to pull out all these tricks, but sometimes it’s just because we’re not talking about what they want to hear! Before you do anything else… make sure you ask your peeps what they want from YOU!

2. ASK for the engagement you want. I see this so often. People creating posts and content that don’t ASK for anything at the end. Do you want them to comment blow? Ask them a question! Do you want them to download your new opt-in? Tell them! Seems obvious, but it matters.

3. When you’re asking for engagement ask questions that people want to answer. Many people in these groups are looking for helpful advice, but they’re also looking for their next client. So when you’re asking questions like “who still hasn’t gotten their first client and is ready to give up and quit?” that doesn’t exactly make them want to participate ya know? Let them share where they need support, but also let them show up as experts with value to give as well. This is how you create that first level of engagement. You don’t have to dive right in to their deepest, darkest secrets… you want to build a relationship over time.

4. Don’t just post and run. Seriously, this is the WORST. How many times have you commented on someone’s post only to get ZERO response? It’s just not cool, and it’s not how you build a relationship. You don’t want the person you’re dating to not respond to your text/call so don’t do it to your peeps. They’re engaging with you (and giving you a gift I might add), so engage back.

5. Give value. If you know me you know I love value like a fat kid loves cake. Why? Because it matters. When you just throw out random questions at your community, or only offer sales calls they’re going to get bored with you FAST. When you give value they’re going to see what you offer, view you as an expert, and see you as a legitimate place to spend their money. Imagine being able to give someone results from your free stuff. Imagine how easy it is to create a relationship (and a future client) from there. It’s cake (I’m  getting hungry.. are you noticing a theme?)

The bottom line is: GIVE THE ENGAGEMENT YOU WANT TO RECEIVE

In my own Facebook group I don’t just put my posts out and expect all of the members to swarm to them. I try to engage in some way on almost every other post within my community.

Sometimes it’s just a like, often it’s a comment, and sometimes I’m sure I miss some. However, I never take for granted the gift of people engaging with me in my community, and because of that I have a deep desire to engage back.

This goes for other groups too. If you’re posting in other places are you also engaging in those places or are you dropping your post and running?

It doesn’t have to take hours per day, but just giving some supportive engagement to people in the communities you’re in can make all the difference in receiving it back.

I’d love to challenge you to give the engagement that you want to get. Participate with people in your community and others, and do it from a place of gratitude and appreciation for the opportunity to be in relationship with so many amazing people. Give your mentors your engagement, give your clients your engagement, and watch how quickly your ability to receive it transforms.