TOC #185: The first pancake's always a flop
(July 9, 2024) THE BTL ORIGIN STORY & Why starting with a website is better than starting on social media
My favorite thing divorced people say to make themselves feel better?
“Ah, well, the first pancake's always a flop!”
I'm obsessed with it, I love it, 10/10, no notes, it's accurate, it's perfect, it's my go-to line.
Thankfully, the pancake theory only applies to marriage, in my experience.
My first business has yet to flop.
And, if I'm being honest with ya, I could not be happier that my business survived, and that marriage did not.
(Wouldn't you take a million dollars in revenue over a crybaby you never saw eye to eye with?)
Unfortunately for me, though, these two things will be forever connected.
It's why I fucking hate the Origin Story.
For some godforsaken reason, everyone wants to know the Origin Story.
Every time I send a survey asking what people want to learn from me, every time I ask for content ideas, every time someone's picking my brain, every time I'm interviewed on a podcast… doesn't matter the scenario, it's ALWAYS the first question.
And, like, yeah, sure, I get it — you wanna know ✨ how they did it ✨ so you can do it, too.
But is it really relevant?
In most cases, I don't think so.
Or maybe I'm just being annoying and pessimistic about it because I don't want to have to say “so, I was moving to a different country, and I needed a remote job…” anymore.
Because then people ask where I was moving from, and to, and why.
And then I have to admit to getting divorced at the same age I got kicked off my parents' health insurance.
Here's what happened:
Girl meets Boy.
Girl has Boy's baby.
Boy becomes Husband.
Boy moves to America for Girl.
Boy wants to move back to Canada, with Girl, and Baby.
Girl says “ok, sure.”
Now Girl needs a remote job.
Girl has Bachelor's degrees in Political Science, Criminal Justice, and Sociology, and minors in Philosophy and Paralegal Studies.
(Ironically, Girl was 1 French class away from a 4th Bachelor's degree. That would have helped Girl in Quebec. Too bad for Girl.)
None of Girl's degrees go well with remote jobs.
Girl thinks about what she's good at.
Girl remembers she's always liked writing.
Girl searches “writer” on LinkedIn Jobs.
LinkedIn Jobs only gives her “copywriter” listings.
Girl Googles “what is a copywriter?”
Girl thinks 💡 "oh!" 💡
Girl is the most convincing person on the planet. Copywriting is just writing words that convince people to buy things? Girl can do that. Easy.
Girl gets started.
Girl watches 6 thousand YouTube videos, reads 5 thousand blogs, downloads 4 thousand freebies, stalks 3 thousand websites, spends 2 thousand hours getting good-enough at this shit, and does not spend 1 thousand dollars on a TONIC template.
Girl decides she's ready to Be A Copywriter. 🫡✏️
(Girl knows she has to look legit if anyone is ever going to hire her to do anything, and Girl — correctly! — assumes the best way to “look legit” is to have a website.)
Girl knows she needs reviews from clients on this website, or the whole “looking legit” thing is moot.
But Girl has no clients.
So, Girl thinks about the people in her network. Girl thinks about the people on the outskirts of her network. Girl thinks about people she wishes were in her network.
Girl makes a list of people who may need copy.
Girl decides to focus on offering blogging to start, because a) it's easy to do, b) it's easy for people to implement, c) it's easy to sell bc it's low stakes, and d) because it would be a simple intro investment for a client if anyone ever decided to pay her to do it.
When Girl worked at Chatham Bars Inn, Jason was the Forbes Travel Guide Five Star Trainer. He taught hotel employees how to earn their properties the Forbes Five Star designation.
Jason had recently gone out on his own, to train hospitality businesses independently as a consultant.
Jason agrees that he would benefit from some blog posts.
Girl writes blogs in exchange for testimonial. Jason loves. Jason pays.
Girl emails Lindsey.
Lindsey is a wedding planner that Girl used to work for prior to moving to Canada.
Lindsey agrees that she would benefit from some blog posts.
Girl writes blogs in exchange for testimonial. Lindsey loves. Lindsey pays.
(Lindsey eventually comes back for website.)
Girl is happy. Girl has clients!
Girl joins marketing-related Facebook group.
Facebook loves Girl, just like Jason and Lindsey loved Girl. Girl's getting good at this shit!
Girl's a real copywriter, it seems.
Husband — remember Husband? — quits job. Girl makes enough money now.
Claire finds Girl on Facebook.
Claire asks Girl to write sales page. It slays. Girl gets confident.
Nazira finds Girl on Facebook.
Girl writes first website ever. It kinda sucks.
Lois finds girl on Facebook.
Girl writes second website ever. It doesn't really suck this time.
Girl decides she loves websites.
Girl becomes Website Girl.
(Website Girl now ranks #1 on Google for “website copywriting services” and #3 for “website copywriter”!)
Website Girl writes a zillion websites for a zillion different brands — designers, virtual assistants, chefs, photographers, wedding planners, fitness professionals, dietitians, real estate agents, book editors, Olympians, Broadway producers, recipe developers, sustainable jewelry brands, clean beauty pioneers, automations gurus, CPAs, cannabis club owners, indoor cyclic studios, organic marketing experts, stop motion animators…
The list goes on and on (and is still going on, thank the good Lord above).
Website Girl gets good feedback. Website Girl keeps writing websites.
People like Website Girl.
Website Girl starts a newsletter.
People want Website Girl to teach them how to Newsletter.
People want Website Girl to teach them how to Website.
Website Girl gets good at being Business Girl.
People want Website Girl to become Business Girl and teach them how to become Business Girls.
Before she knows it, Girl has publicly become Newsletter Girl and Marketing Mentor Girl and Squirrel Girl in addition to Website Girl.
Somewhere in there, Husband becomes Ex-Husband. Girl moves back to Boston. Girl dates weird people. Girl gets a lot of tattoos. Girl gets diagnosed with ADHD. Girl raises Baby alone. Girl gets better at the Newsletter Girl thing. Girl grows her business. Girl meets New Boy.
Girl lives Happily Ever After.
And now Girl teaches other girls (and gays, and theys, and sometimes, unfortunately, boys) how to do what she did.
Minus the first pancake flopping.
Girl doesn't think that part's necessary for you — just for her, apparently.
(Girl is happy New Boy doesn't like pancakes.)
Why Starting With A Website Is Better Than Starting With Social Media
There are 8 steps I'd take if I were starting BTL from scratch, all over again, as Website Girl / Marketing Mentor Girl.
Step #3 is the most important: start with a website, instead of social media.
I did this the first time around, and I’d DEFINITELY do it again.
When you first start your business, I strongly advise beginning with a WEBSITE instead of beginning with SOCIAL MEDIA.
& the reason is simple:
You want to focus on growing your business, not growing your following.
Sure, social media can offer some awesome growth, and really help you to attract some ideal clients.
But, in the beginning, fostering those relationships, staying consistent, and creating content takes a LOT of time. Too much time.
And it’s very easy to get discouraged when all of those efforts don’t immediately pay off.
This is why I recommend beginning with a website.
Unlike social media, your website doesn’t show how new you are to every single person who looks at it.
Unlike social media, your website is OWNED by YOU – and isn’t subject to change or diminished reach based on arbitrary algorithmic changes.
Unlike social media, your website gives you the space to explain who you are, what you do, and who you do it for in an engaging, in-depth way.
Website first, social second.
If we haven’t had the chance to *virtually* meet yet, hi! I’m Sara Noel—website copywriter and marketing mentor for creatives, copywriters, and all-around cool people. If you like my content and you want even more BTL in your life, here are a few ways you can connect with me:
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