Episode 332: How to Grow a Business Online-Taking Early & Imperfect Action Pays Off! With Guest Holly Homer

Struggling to grow a business online and feeling overwhelmed by the pressure to be perfect? You’re not alone. Many entrepreneurs face the same challenge, but the secret to success lies in taking early and imperfect action. Today, I’m excited to share insights from my conversation with Holly Homer, creator of Kids Activities Blog and co-founder of Pagewheel. Holly’s journey from hobby blogger to successful entrepreneur is packed with actionable advice on how to build a thriving online business.

Holly’s story is truly inspiring. About 20 years ago, she started what would become one of the first mom blogs, initially as a hobby to replace her expensive scrapbooking habit. This blog eventually grew into a full-time business that supports her family. Throughout her journey, Holly mastered various aspects of online growth, from search engine optimization to leveraging social media platforms like Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram.

Embracing Authenticity

One thing Holly emphasizes is the value of being authentic online. She believes that engagement comes from being human and relatable. In her experience, people come to social media to interact and connect with others, not to see a glossy, salesy performance. Holly encourages us to be ourselves because authenticity fosters genuine connections with our audience.

When you show up as your true self, you attract like-minded individuals who share your values and interests. This makes it easier to build a loyal community around your brand.

Building an Audience: The Early Days

Holly’s success didn’t happen overnight. She started with zero followers and gradually built her audience. One of her early breakthroughs was when she received her first comment from someone who wasn’t a family member or friend. This small but significant milestone highlighted the importance of engagement and the value of each individual follower.

She advises us to focus on building relationships rather than just chasing numbers. By creating content that resonates with our audience and encourages interaction, we can foster a loyal community that grows organically over time.

Monetize and Grow a Business Online

Turning her blog into a business involved identifying monetization opportunities. Holly shared how she learned to monetize her blog through various means, including selling products, running ads, and creating digital products. A crucial part of her strategy was building an email list to maintain direct communication with her audience, independent of social media algorithms.

Holly’s advice for monetization is to start with what you have and iterate. Don’t wait for everything to be perfect. Launch your product or service, learn from the feedback, and improve as you go. This approach not only helps you move faster but also allows you to respond to your audience’s needs in real-time.

Introducing Pagewheel

One of Holly’s recent ventures is Pagewheel, a tool she co-founded with Rachel Miller. Pagewheel simplifies the process of creating digital products, sales pages, and social media content using AI. This tool is designed to help entrepreneurs quickly and easily create and launch products, addressing the common pain point of the complexity and time required to set up effective sales funnels.

Holly shared how Pagewheel uses AI to automate the creation of digital products and the associated marketing materials. This innovation allows us to focus on what we do best – creating and connecting with our audience – while the tool handles the technical details.

Embracing AI in Business

Holly’s philosophy on AI is practical and empowering. She sees AI as a tool that can handle the mundane and repetitive tasks, freeing up human creativity and authenticity. AI can provide a solid starting point, but it’s up to us to add the personal touch that makes our content truly engaging.

She reassures us that AI is not about replacing humans but about enhancing our capabilities. By using AI to streamline processes and generate content ideas, we can focus on building meaningful relationships with our audience.

Start Growing Your Email List Today

One of Holly’s parting pieces of advice is to start growing your email list. With social media algorithms constantly changing, having a direct line of communication with your audience is crucial. She encourages us to create valuable content that solves problems for our audience and to use tools like Pagewheel to streamline the process.

Check Out Pagewheel

If you’re looking for a tool to help you create and launch digital products quickly and efficiently, check out Pagewheel at pagewheel.com. It’s designed to simplify the process and help you get your products to market faster.

Thank you, Holly, for sharing your journey and insights with us. For everyone reading, remember to take action, stay authentic, and keep moving forward. Happy business building!