Teresa: Content isn't the only thing we can repurpose.

Intro: It's time for the becoming a profitable CEO podcast, and it's all about providing you with the tools to succeed on this ever evolving business selling journey. My mission is to make sure, you know, you are not alone, that it is possible and that you yes, you can do this. You matter. The world is a better place for having you in it and your voice is needed. I'm Teresa Cleveland, and I believe that we can all make a difference and that having a successful online business is one of the best ways to do that. Let's get to it.

Teresa: Hey, thanks for tuning in to the Becoming a Profitable CEO podcast, I'm your host, Teresa Cleveland, and I'm happy to be able to introduce you today to Leeann Forbes. Like so many of us, she tried on several different hats as she entered the online world until she was able to find her groove.

Being as resourceful as she is, she repurposed some of those skills and the knowledge and the research that she did in those first few years, and now she's working in her zone of genius. Looking back, she says she really doesn't have regrets, she just wishes that she would have done it sooner.

So today you get to meet Leeann. As a content manager and strategist, she knows a thing or two about creating and sharing content consistently for your business. She says she can still remember when she would feel extremely passionate and driven to create content one day. And guess what? Writer's block would hit up the next day. So what would happen? She would end up ghosting her audience for days, feeling uninspired and unsure what to share. It was a vicious cycle. Sound familiar?

She decided she'd had enough of that, and she discovered content repurposing, also known as the easiest content strategy ever.

Today, she helps coaches overcome creative blocks and build content machines that produce great quality content every single time. They're finally able to focus on serving their clients and creating new offers. And now she's here to help you do the same in your business. Let's jump in,

Teresa: Hey Leeann. It is so good to have you here today. I've been looking forward to this episode and the discussion we're about to have because we're both in this world and we see so many things that will help other female online business owners on their journey to becoming a profitable CEO.

Leeann: Yeah. Thanks so much for having me. I'm excited to be here and just talk about content and growing your business efficiently, of course.

Teresa: All the good stuff. Before we get into that, can you share, you've been in business for two years and you came from a startup prior to that. So you've really got a lot of experience that has helped you as you've stepped into this space. Can you share something on that journey from where you started to where you are now that really helped you uplevel your business.

Leeann: So, yeah, I did start at a startup, kind of where I was doing all the things and that kind of set me up well for becoming a VA because when I first entered the online space, I ended up being a general VA. So I was kind of hopping in and out of, I was working with probably about eight to 10 clients at any given time. And I was hopping in and out of each of their businesses. So I thought I was niching down by working primarily with coaches, but I was still doing all the things inside each of their businesses.

I officially launched my business in May and by November that year I was already booked out. I had all these clients. I was really excited because I thought, OK, this is profitable, this is working. But I guess I would say four or five months later I was burnt out.

Teresa: Oh, absolutely.

Leeann: So yeah, I was exhausted. And I also realized that I had neglected my own business. Although I was working with clients and I was making money, I started to feel a little bit uneasy and scared because it didn't feel like I was actually building my own business. I did not have like an email list. My website, it was kind of just there for show. My social media platforms. When I started my business, I was posting a lot on them and then as soon as I was booked out, I completely neglected them as well.

And then, not only did I realize that was a problem for me, but I realized it was a problem for the clients that I was working with. They hire a VA who comes in and they're doing all the backend stuff for you. But as they start to take on more clients and start to create more offers and serve clients, they also started neglecting the content and nurturing their audience. Because now it's kind of like if I'm running a group program with like 10, 15 women and I'm also doing one to one coaching and I'm also like selling a course, it gets hard to create quality content for every single platform that exists on the Internet.

Teresa: Absolutely. And just for anybody who's listening and may be new to the space, VA is Virtual Assistant who can just come in and help you at different places in your business and do different things in your business so that they're not falling through the cracks. And so you were a general virtual assistant who did all the things

Leeann: Like setting up sales pages, connecting those payment processors, sending out email blasts, like when you're launching an offer or just nurturing, uploading, downloading videos. So a lot of them use video as a way to market to their clients, dealing with like client requests or all of these things just come up. And they happen in your business, kind of just hopping on, getting to it and just getting it done and then you just hop. So there's a lot of task switching as well, which also leads to burnout eventually.

Teresa: Oh, my gosh. You know, even in my role as an online business manager or a director of operations, typically, depending on the level that you're working with that client, you could be working with anywhere from three to four, maybe - maybe five clients and all that's taking up space in your head. And so you really don't have time to focus on your own business. And when you do, it's just even if you have a team is just kind of like, can you just put something out there?

I don't care, you know the company or whatever, just put it out there because we've got to be seen and we'll get to it later, and later never comes. So what happened for you there when you hit burnout? What was that shift?

Leeann: It's interesting for me because when I burned out, I thought that a lot of people were talking about Pinterest online. So then I hopped on another bandwagon and I was like, let me see what's happening with Pinterest. Right? But I actually think learning more about Pinterest because I was like, well, maybe I should be a Pinterest Manager and then niche down. So a lot of my clients, I kind of slowly phased them out. And I also offered to do Pinterest for them.

It's like, OK, I'm going to do this new thing. And a lot of them came with me. So I kind of slow down there. And I was like learning Pinterest, also doing Pinterest. And then I noticed something unique about the people who use Pinterest as a platform to drive traffic. They all use Pinterest to drive traffic to their website. And when you go to their website, there's lots of content, it's nurturing. Even I have used Pinterest, for example, when I'm searching something about, well, when I was building my Virtual Assistant business, I actually went to Pinterest and searched Virtual Assistant tips and all these things to find out information which would lead me to someone's website.

And then I would buy, if they were selling something, I would buy it an offer or something like that. It actually got me thinking into all the people who weren't using Pinterest. And if they were using Instagram, generally, they were like selling in the dms, but they weren't driving traffic back to their platform. They're using Facebook. They were usually trying to get people into their Facebook group, but they weren't really trying to nurture them anywhere else, in any other space.

Thinking that the goal of Pinterest is to get you off the Pinterest platform, I started thinking, OK, well, I didn't want to be a Pinterest Manager in its entirety. What else could I offer and how could I make this easier for my clients? Right? Because there would also be days where they'd be like, well, I don't have any content to put on Pinterest. Right? So after we've gone through all their content, but they do have they would be like, oh, well, now I don't have any content to put on Pinterest, so what should I do?

And then that's when I decided I came up with well, I didn't come up with it, but then I was kind of introduced to like content repurposing and how you could focus on creating less content but quality content. And we could take that content and then kind of blast it all over the Internet. So you get your Pinterest pins, you get your Instagram graphics, or you can even use that kind of framework from that blog post, video or podcast episode.

You could put it, create a video on Instagram, create a video and Facebook. And then it also makes sure that your messaging is really consistent across all platforms. So if someone finds you on your website and you're talking about one thing, they go to your Instagram and you have kind of the same messaging and they're like, oh, wow, OK, it kind of likes a spark and reminds them, OK, this is something I need to keep in mind, right?

Teresa: Oh, my goodness. Thank you so much for sharing that. One thing that I do want to say real quick is that many people that I've talked to think that Pinterest is another social media platform and it's not. It's a search engine. So that's why I think there's so many people who don't understand it. I would I was that girl because I was just like, I don't understand how people are making money with that because I use it for recipes or decorating ideas. And it's not like I buy anything through that. I like get the recipe and then I go to my local store and get the stuff.

So it reminded me Pinterest reminded me of, way back in the day, you know, I'm sixty, so way back in the day when we had magazines and we would cut things out. And that's kind of what I thought about Pinterest for the longest time. And then two of the virtual assistants on my team had said very similar to your story. They went on Pinterest to search for becoming a VA. And it may be my age, but I said, why would you go there instead of Google? Why wouldn't you just Google it? Because in my mind, it wasn't clear that it was a search engine and not social media. So I think a lot of times the people, "try Pinterest." They're like, well, this isn't working, but it's not that easy copy and paste thing.

And then the other thing I wanted to say was that when you're talking about content repurposing, which is so smart, is that a lot of people think that that is coming up with the post that you want to do and then taking that post and reposting it to all your platforms that you're using, and that's not right. And the other thing that I see people do with that is they will then schedule them to go out or they'll post it like one right after the other.

So then it's like you kind of, the whole thing is just there. You've got to spread it out because people ar online at different times. And different platforms, they work differently. So the way that you're going to put it out there is going to be different.

So as you had that realization, what happened?

Leeann: So I kind of want to speak to both the things you just mentioned. So Pinterest being a search engine. It definitely is. I can tell you that I used to spend hours just searching. So I also use Pinterest for recipes, but I also use Pinterest for like, everything else. So when I'm searching anything business related as well, I don't know why, but I go to Pinterest, even if it's a simple thing, like, oh, I need email templates, you know, like simple emails, like what to say if somebody misses a payment or what to say. If this happens, I search those things on Pinterest. I don't know why. And actually, like, if I cannot find it on Pinterest, then I go to Google.

I also want to mention YouTube is also like it's a search engine. It's not a social media site. So before I knew what a Virtual Assistant position was, I actually had it recommended to me in a YouTube video. And because I clicked on that YouTube video, something about all these platforms being interconnected and then I search it on Pinterest, then it just kept coming up, coming up, coming up.

So if somebody's searching the same keywords all the time, it's going to start popping up everywhere, usually like across all platforms. I know Facebook and Instagram are connected, so you'll generally see similar things pop up. But the good thing about search engines during social media, first is that search engines, people are actively looking for something. For example, if they're looking for a mindset, coach, you know that they have mindset issues. Right? And they're trying to work through something. If they're searching for a business coach or whatever business they have, they're searching for that particular thing. So if they find you, you want to make sure that whatever you're offering is something that they actually need versus social media. They're probably following a ton of people and they're being shown a bunch of things all over the platform. Right? So they're being shown like personal things, business things, current events. Usually people are more into hanging out mindset, which is why I say you should touch all try and touch all platforms.

Also with Pinterest, I think a lot of people think it takes a lot of work, but actually the most work is honestly creating that one piece of content. Once you have your pins and your templates done, you're kind of good to go to be putting it onto Pinterest and having it kind of circulate, a great way to grow your email list. It's a slow burn, but it's worth it as a long term strategy.

And then the second thing you mentioned was repurposing and copying and pasting. Yes. So when I was working with my clients, when I first started a lot of that, when it came to creating content, and especially when they had a good chunk of content, they would just be like, oh, that blog post from May, why don't you just, like, grab that copy i, , paste it onto Facebook, copy and paste it onto Instagram. But what happens is, like you said, every platform has its own rules.

So if you're not following the rules of the platform, you're probably not going to get the results that you want. So that's why it's important to understand and repurpose your content based on the rules of that platform. So we know Instagram, which is highly popular but is a visual platform. Right. And what matters the most on Instagram is your first line, which is the hook. If you're just repurposing, for example, a blog post, but you forget to create a hook sentence or something that's going to want to make people read more or you're putting up a photo that no one is interested in seeing, then Instagram probably will not work for you.

Teresa: So as you saw that in your journey and at that point, how did that change your business and what was that shift like for you? Was it like a light bulb went off?

Leeann: For me, I would say I'm naturally an efficient person, so I'm always trying to find the best and most efficient way to do anything inside my life. So I was kind of thinking, how could my clients and how could I still create content? Because a lot of times we get into business because we have an idea or we have a philosophy or we have a message that we want to share and we're excited to share it.

It doesn't feel fun anymore when you're just, when you're working with a ton of different people, but you're not able to balance the two. Like share your message and serve people as well. So for me was like, how can I still consistently share my message with my audience or how can my clients consistently share their message with their audience and still serve their clients and still be generating a steady stream of leads for their business? Because you also want your content to work or you, you don't want to put out content for the sake of just having content out there. And I guess it brought me back to content repurposing and how that framework works. So you're not focused on creating more content, even though you will get way more content than if you were creating for every single platform individually. But you're focused on creating one piece of great content, whether that's weekly, whether that's even like twice a month, as long as you're creating one piece of great content.

And I refer to it as more like evergreen content. It's perfect to be repurposed onto all of these platforms. So I was like, I can still nurture Instagram. And Instagram is a place that you like to hang out. You can still go on Instagram and make Reels and make stories and things like that without neglecting the places that you own, which is your website or your podcast. So those things were really important for me when I was kind of making that transition.

And I think it's really powerful when you're able to niche down like that for both you and the people that you write with, because this is your zone of genius and this is your focus and you're not being pulled in twenty two different directions. Even if you're working with multiple people because it's still the strategy for that client. But there are some commonalities among all businesses.

So, yeah, niching down I say, yeah, is so important. And I was actually so glad that I made this decision. And like I said, it wasn't like a walk in the park for me. Right. Because niching down sometimes also feels like, especially when you come from the general VA realm, it feels like, well, now I don't get to do or offer as much as I'm used to. Righ?. I'm neglecting all these people because I'm reaching down.

But it doesn't feel like that. Like when once you're in it, it doesn't feel like that at all. I actually feel like I can serve more people. And I actually now I can look at people's businesses and I can pinpoint exactly where their content marketing needs, like a kind of like a facelift or something.

Teresa: Oh my goodness, such a good point, because we do. And there's that fear, of course, because well, this is how I've been making money. And like you said, I'm leaving a lot of people on the table. And when you get to focus on your genius and that zone of genius, you become known for that. Like, I would much prefer hiring a plumber versus a handyman that knows plumbing because you want somebody who specializes in it because the thought is, well, they're going to know much more about it because that's all they're focusing on. Such a good point.

So with what you're doing now, you're a Content Strategist. Congratulations, because it's so, so needed. Let's talk about that, because I know you and I have talked about social media versus the website and versus this platform or that platform, if you will share your take on that, because I think too many people don't get people to their website. Share your take on that.

Leeann: I do want to start off to say that I love social media. I think social media is amazing. But I do think when you are running a business and if your goal is to get people to work with you, unless you plan on being an influencer, you want to kind of have a place where people who love it, enjoy you and your content they can go to. And I don't think Instagram or Pinterest or Facebook are those places. One, simply because there's just way too much competition and two because the algorithm - we will never, ever understand the algorithm.

So I really think that the attention that a lot of people spend on making sure their Instagram, they always have content for their Instagram or they always have content on their Facebook, would probably be better spent on their website. And that's not to say that you should be neglecting those social media platforms. Because especially, I think for entrepreneurs that are just getting for example, a lot of people think, well, no one's searching, no one goes to their computer and search like Leeann.com or something like that.

They are probably going to see me on social media or they'll see a post of mine pop up on social media. And that's awesome. That's why I say don't neglect those platforms. You want to be driving people from social media back to your website, but you also want to make sure that there's actual content on your website. Right?

Teresa: Right. Because it's the exact opposite of what I've seen. We've talked about this. So many people neglect the website because they're putting all their time and attention into getting seen on social media. I know I shared with you, to me, it's like throwing a party and they come over to your place. The doors are open, but there's no refreshments, nobody's around. And they think they're in the wrong place and they'll leave. I think we talked about that, it's not an either or. It's an and so there needs to be a balance.

Leeann: I believe that content repurposing is the perfect balance. You don't have to neglect your website. You can still very much nurture your website and you can also nurture those platforms. I think it's even better because then your messaging is consistent across the board. So if I go to your website and I'm reading through your website, I know. OK, this is Leeann. She does content repurposing and she talks about content strategy. When I go to her Instagram, I know what her philosophy is and all her values and all the things she's sharing there as well. When I go to Facebook, same thing.

But I think we were also talking about that doesn't necessarily mean you should be copying and pasting your content. There are rules for every platform. So that's where, I guess, content strategists really come in, in their zone of genius. They kind of understand the rules for every platform and then how to take that website, video or audio content you're creating and how to repurpose it so that you are performing well on the other platforms you choose to go on, to use for your business.

Teresa: One of the things that we also talked about when we look at the website versus and or the social media is decision fatigue.

Leeann: Right. Decision fatigue is - social media - because you're competing with so many different people, decision fatigue is going to happen. So if I am a business and I'm following a bunch of business coaches on social media and they're all offering different programs and they're all sending a different message to me, eventually I'm going to get tired of wondering whether or not I'm making the right decision versus if you're on my website, you go to my website and you're looking through my content and you're reading through my offer, there's no other distractions or there shouldn't be any other distractions on your website.

Through having consistent content on your website, you're able to drive that message even further to your ideal client without having to compete with anybody else. I mean, that's another reason why you should be making sure all your content ends up on your website first. So any content that you're creating, you want to have it end up on your website first and then focus on other platforms, because the reality is, as business owners, we can't nurture all of them.

And I know in the beginning, sometimes we feel like we're doing it all and we could do it all. But the goal is to get clients. So eventually you're going to get clients, your business is going to grow, and you're just not going to have the time to nurture every single platform. We were talking about, like TikTok just popped up and now Clubhouse is here, right? You're not going to be able to nurture all these platforms.

So start with creating content for your website and then choose, especially I guess in the beginning, choose one or two platforms where you're going to repurpose that content. Then it's much easier to add a third and then add a fourth once you get into the groove of things.

Also, when you're hiring team members on to create content for you. So, for example, I guess I did a bit of social media management when I was kind of generally doing everything else. Social media managers, when you want them or a content strategist to come in and help you create content for your Instagram or Facebook or Pinterest, it's much easier for us to work with stuff like long form content that you have on your main website, because those can be broken into so many pieces. Whereas you see on Instagram, a lot of times it's like short form content, right? It's little bits and pieces. People don't go to Instagram to read an entire blog post. They go to Instagram to consume information really quickly.

That's another thing to kind of keep in mind. It will make your life easier in the long run. And I also see, like a lot of business owners, they start off blogging and then another platform pops up or they start off making videos and another platform pops up and they neglect their website like time and time and again, where it's like you don't have to neglect your website. All you need to do is break those pieces of content that you're creating for your website into smaller pieces of content that are snackable for those social media sites.

Teresa: Right. Because if somebody sees that, I mean, you see it in the store, you go through the store and they give you the samples and everything else and then, oh, my gosh, I like this. So what do you do? You go buy a bag of it or, you know, chips or whatever. Also jumping on every platform like that. Number one is exhausting.

Leeann: Yep, it's exhausting.

Teresa: And to your point about we'll never understand the algorithms because they change every five minutes. So they can't because they don't want anybody to game it. But it's also that these platforms, when the new one comes out, then typically you're going to see one of the other ones add a feature that will compete with that new platform. And it's just it's so much to keep track of. I don't know very many business owners, even those who are making seven figures and above, who really want to have someone on the team on a regular basis who is monitoring all of that and trying to keep up with everything. So, I mean, that's a huge expense.

When we're talking about that decision fatigue, when you're on my website, you can like, relax and you look around, it's like browsing. And you can do that, and I see this a lot, because people really don't stop to think about it, is that they have their social media icons all over the website. It's like you've spent all this time and energy getting them from social to your website. I click your Facebook icon so I can follow you on Facebook. Guess what's going to happen?

I'm on Facebook and then I'm going to get a notification and then I'm going to go follow that, which is going to lead me down another rabbit hole. And by the time I even come back to your website, even if it opened in another window, when I'm looking at the windows open on my computer, I'm like, why was I here again? And guess what I do? I close it.

So I think people don't think about that. Also, it's like once they're on your website, let them get to know you let them browse around. I recommend, depending on the client, I will put social media on the blog, like in the sidebar and on the contact page. But I don't put them in other places because I want them to stay here, on my land. But with that, too, if I'm on Facebook or another platform, I've got all this content coming at me.

And so it could be my cousin's cousin's husband's wife's sister had a baby. And I'm looking at a picture. Right. So that's where I'm going to go because we're so attracted by pictures, depending on what comes up. And that's kind of a hit or miss. And you just don't want, you spend too much time and energy getting people to your site. I can't say that strongly enough. Like, let them get to know you there.

The thing is with all of this, though, is the difference between a content strategy and a content plan versus putting content out just because we need to put out contentt.

So I know you have your roadmap. You've got the signature roadmap. Tell us about that.

Leeann: So my Content Repurposing Roadmap is basically a roadmap that kind of takes you through all the steps that you need to take in order to build a simple content strategy that will make sure that you're consistently creating content that your audience actually wants to consume. For example, if I'm a business coach, I want to read content that solves the problems I'm having in my business before I'm ready to work with you.

Basically, the roadmap shows you how to build a content strategy and content workflow that takes you from A to Z from coming up with new content ideas that actually serve your clients to getting that final product that you can share all over social media.

So a lot of times where we kind of try to create content that is on trend. Right. Or current events because we kind of just want to build awareness for our brand. But it's not actually solving any of the problems that our audience might actually be having. You definitely want to start there, right? So, like, what is the problem that my audience is having and what are some of the solutions that I want them to know are possible for them to fix this problem?

Then you want to move in to creating that long-form content, which is usually a blog, audio or podcast episode, and then going from there, then you'll move into repurposing it for all over social media. So at that point, you're always solving their problems or at least letting them know a solution is possible if you make this mindset shift or if you had this tool in your life. Right, depending on what you're selling.

Teresa: So rather than having to come up with 22 different posts or content, we think, OK, I wrote the blog post and I put it out there like the blog post is here and you know something about it. And then it's like, oh, well, hold on for over here on this other platform, I need to do something different because I think for us, we think we're going to see it all, right? And they're going to get sick of seeing my thing about this.

Leeann: And they're really not.

Teresa: And it's just like they're probably not on all the channels to begin with. And even if they are, they don't see every post that you make. I think we need to remember that because so many people that I've talked to are in that place where it's like, oh, my gosh, I just have to create new content.

One of the things that I started doing this year with the podcast is I do a solo episode, something to do with building your business. And it felt like cheating to me. I went to my blog and, you know, I wrote down like different ideas and it felt like cheating, like I don't think it's supposed to be this easy. And that's what I've been doing. And not all of them, but there's some good content there.

And guess what? Not everybody has read it. And some people, and I've heard this so many times over the years, that some people like to, back in the day when people watch television, the nightly news, they like that, which is equal to video. Or people who like to get their news on the radio, that's the same as like hearing through audio, through the podcast and video. People like to get their information differently.

So it's like, well, of course, then I thought I was brilliant for thinking about it that way.

Leeann: I love that you brought that up because the reality is, we all have different content personality types. So we all like to create content differently and we all like to consume content differently. So there's some people like you were saying they like to read the news, a newspaper to get their content. Some people like to watch videos and then some people like to listen to audio. And I'm the same way. So, for example, coaches, I have some coaches that love to get on video and chat about their offer and about their solution and share their message while I have some coaches that love to write.

So I think content repurposing works well because they don't have to feel like, oh, well, I'm not a video person, so I can't be on Instagram, you know what I mean? Or I can't be on Facebook or I can't be on some of these platforms because you still can. But you're going to have to follow different rules and probably apply a different strategy. And that's fine. Yeah, we all have different content, personality types. So that's important to remember, especially when you're creating content and you're thinking like, oh, well, I already have it on my blog.

Why would I turn it into a podcast episode? Well, because not everyone enjoys reading, listening to podcasts. You're meeting everyone where they're at and it's perfect.

Teresa: And it is. And you don't have to do it all at once. I wouldn't recommend doing it all at once. For people who are really starting to gravitate towards this and knowing that, you know what, I'm at this place in my business where I do need to get the biggest bang for my buck, the energy that I'm putting into creating this content, your roadmap is a great place for them to start. So we'll be sure and put the link to that in the show notes. You work with people one on one also?

Leeann: So yeah, I do offer content repurposing services. So basically what happens there is we all hop on a call and we'll talk about your current content strategy and we'll kind of see where are the holes. And then after if we decide we're a great fit, all you have to do is send me a link to the blog post. You fill out a really simple form. It's like, what piece of content do I want to repurpose this week and you send me a link.

So you either upload the video, you send me the link to a video piece or audio or the blog post. And we take that and we create the social media graphics. So you would choose three different platforms that you are on whether that's Instagram, we have clients on Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Facebook. So yeah, you would choose three and then we will repurpose it perfectly for each of those platforms. For example, we can get a lot of content out of one piece of long form content.

When I say long form content, I'm referring to like a podcast episode. So as long as that podcast episode is not like two minutes, it's like more like 15 minutes or longer or your video is ten minutes or longer or you have a blog post. We can generally pull probably about 15 to 20 pieces of content that you can share across the Internet. So you don't have to worry about any of that. All you have to worry about is creating that one piece of quality, great content.

Teresa: I love this so much that you're out there and I know that you serve from compassion and just really helping people in that space. Tell me, I think you had shared with me that your ideal client, the people that you work best with, are coaches in that mid-journey, not quite startup and not seven figures, but that mid-journey, which is really where people need it because they're at that place. Again, where they're like, OK, what got me here isn't going to get me there and I need help because I am doing the group coaching or I'm doing the program or the one on one and all the other things. I think that all successful female online business owners reach that point in their journey that I can't do it all, I need help.

And it's so nice to be able to have someone who can specifically do that one thing. Gosh, I love Virtual Assistants. I couldn't run my business without Virtual Assistants. So kudos to all of the virtual assistants out there.

AND as a business owner, it's so much more valuable to me at this point in my business to work with people who specialize in exactly where I'm in my journey and what I need so that you don't have to go through all of that. And I don't have to train anybody. You know, when you have an expert in a certain area, it's just so much easier.

Leeann: Yeah, it's so important to work with people who are, I guess, are specialists in their area. Because one thing you can also guarantee is not only do they already know so much about that area, but they're always doing it. So they're probably always researching better ways to do it. And that kind of trickles down to you, right? You get the benefits of that as well. So, for example, for me, I know I'm always repurposing people's content for Instagram and for other social media platforms.

So I'm always looking at, OK, well, what are the changes in the algorithms that are happening on Instagram? What's different? Like in 2021, what has Pinterest changed? Whereas most people probably aren't reading when Pinterest puts out here's what's happening, I am.

Teresa: Right, well exactly. Because I get those emails from Pinterest in my inbox and I just, that's not my thing. But where I am in my zone, working with people the way that I need to work with them, then I need someone else who's looking at those other areas. Because what I'm keeping up on with my clients and what they need, I don't have time to - could I learn? Yes.

You know, I've been in business 12 years, so I have a general understanding of them all. But I honestly don't have time in my work day, in my work week to go learn exactly every little piece of it to make it successful. So it's not only a waste of my time doing that and then creating it. Any of that is just, it's a total waste because I'm not going to do it as well as someone like you would do it. Just as if my clients and this happens where they've taken this course or that course and tried to learn. And what they're finding is it just adds more tasks to their growing to-do list. And it gets us away from our zone of genius, especially with social media platforms, because they change so quickly.

Leeann: Courses tend to become outdated just as quickly. So I don't know how many times I've taken certain courses. And I'm like, the platform does not even look like that. Or, for example, Facebook ads. I was like like, well, let me look at what's going on with Facebook ads these days. Well, Facebook recently completely changed their interface. So all those Facebook ad courses now, unless they've updated them for the 2021 version or the late 2020 version, that's not how you work on the business manager. And it does not look like that at all anymore. So for someone who's just getting into a new platform, if you're taking a course that hasn't been updated, it's going to add to the confusion for sure.

Teresa: Very much so.

Leeann: And I think that's the most important. You want to work with people who are keeping up to date with the changes that are happening, because especially in the online world, everything's changing so quickly over. Yeah, like we were just talking about ads. We're talking about social media finding out like, what are these platforms prioritizing. So for a long time, Instagram was prioritizing hashtags. Is there still a place on the platform for hashtags? Yes. But now then they moved into prioritizing like stories and then they moved into prioritizing Reels and I'm sure once another platform starts, they're going to prioritize something else. So somebody is keeping up to date, knows how to take that great content you have on your website and share it on those platforms will save you so much time and reduce so much stress because it's stressful trying to understand and figure out these algorithms.

Teresa: Such good information. Well, I love that we've had this time to talk about this. We'll be sure and put your website, your social media and your roadmap in the show notes.

Funky Organ Bridge Sound

Teresa: And that means we're moving into our mixed bag of questions. First up, let's do a would you rather question.OK, this sounds exciting.

Would you rather spend a week in the woods or one night in a real haunted house?

Leeann: Oh, my gosh. So I am going to like preface this with I do like horror movies, but I've seen enough horror movies to know that I would not want to spend one night in a haunted house. So I'm going to go with a week in the woods. I'm going to hope that I survive. I think I'd do a pretty good job, but I'm going to pass on the haunted house.

Teresa: All right. I know my knee jerk is like, no. I would like neither of those, please.

All right. In our businesses, the bottom line is obviously important for us all. But other than your bottom line, what's the most important number in your business?

Leeann: Oh, that is such a great question. How many people I connect with. So one of my big things this year was connecting with more people. So any time I hop on a call or I meet someone new or I just chat with someone and we share ideas about our business, I write their names down because it's just so important for me, because I guess also in the beginning of my business when I was all work, I missed that connection you have when you're at a workplace.

You see people all the time. You build relationships with them. Yeah, that's like the most important number for me right now.

Teresa: Such a good number too - as I've talked with different guest on the show, it comes up over and over again, community. And having those connections is just so important on so many levels.

All right. I have a question from a previous guest who wanted me to ask a future guest. When you look back at your journey and everything that you've come across as you've gotten to this point, would you travel this journey again?

Leeann: A hundred percent! No hesitation at all. The only thing I do always say is I wish I had done it earlier. I really wish I had done it earlier. There are obviously a couple of things that, probably I would have set boundaries earlier and all those other things but I would definitely have entered the VA world earlier in my life.

Teresa: And it's through that journey that we know how important those things are. Right? Because sometimes it's contrast to clarity. Right?. We don't know until we've experienced it. And you're like, OK, that wasn't great. So here's where I can change it. Is there one big thing that you would tell yourself back then? What is like the one piece of advice you would give yourself back then?

Leeann: Like when I was first, first starting? Trust yourself and like trust your capabilities. Like you are resourceful person. You will figure it out. I think I was like, really, especially in the beginning, and because it also is a great community, people would throw opportunities at me. And I would say like, no, because I was so scared and I was so worried that I was going to mess up. Now, when I look back at it, I'm like, you should have just tried it.

You should have just tried it. You know what I mean? I'm sure you would have done well. I don't regret it either, though, because me also saying no to those things meant I could say yes to other things, but I would definitely say yes more.

Teresa: OK, so before we wrap up, what is a question you would like for me to ask a future guest?

Leeann: My question is, what is the biggest surprise you've had in the last few months and why?

Teresa: All right. So anyone will add that to our list of questions. Thank you so much for being here. It's been a pleasure. I always enjoy talking with you and it's just nice to talk with somebody who gets it and understands and, you know, sometimes just even compare notes on what's going on out there.

Leeann: I know, I had so much fun. Thank you so much Teresa for having me.

Teresa: My pleasure. And we'll again put all of your information in the show notes so that everyone can check out your roadmap and learn more about having a Content Strategist on their side.

Leeann: Oh, thank you so much. I'm so happy to share this with everyone. I just feel like this is something everyone should know, or at least something that should be on everyone's mind because it will make your life easier, not harder.

Teresa: Exactly. And who doesn't need a little bit of ease in their life?

Thanks for tuning in to another episode of Becoming a Profitable CEO. I'll be back next week. But in the meantime, let's continue the conversation head on over to our Facebook group at ThePurposefulCEO.com/Facebook, and share your take on today's episode.