How to Grow and Monetize Your Social Media Channels with Zach Benson: An EOFire Classic from 2021

0:01Light that spark fire nation JLD here and welcome to entrepreneurs on fire brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals with great shows like Hustle and Flowcharts. Today, we're pulling a classic episode from the archives, and we'll be breaking down how to grow and monetize your social media channels. To drop these value bombs, I have brought Zach Benson into EO Fire Studios. Zach is the founder of Assistagram, an Instagram growth agency that's helped influencers in Fortune 500 companies accrue millions of new followers on Instagram. In today's value bombs, Fire Nation, the more time you put in, the more time you can learn.

0:37People think and move fast. They're scrolling fast. So you have to catch your interest in a couple seconds. Here's how to do it. Don't be afraid to speak out and oh so much more. And a big thank you for sponsoring today's episode goes to Zach and our sponsors. The Next Wave, your chief AI officer hosted by Matt Wolf and Nathan Lanz is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Matt and Nathan are leading AI creators in your guiding light in the AI and technology frontier. AI technology is transforming the way we do business and the media landscape is fragmented.

1:09The Next Wave strives to be the leading podcast on AI technology and how you can apply it to growing your business. Listen to The Next Wave wherever you get your podcasts. Zach, say what's up to Fire Nation and share something that you believe about becoming successful that most people disagree with. Hey, what's up, Fire Nation? This is Zach Benson here. Super excited to be here. So if I could share one piece of advice, like one thing that most people disagree with that has made me super successful, it would just be like, you know, time is money, right? Because I think a lot of people think that, you know, in order to make money, you have to spend money.

1:51But that's not always the case. I think that the more time that you put into something, the more time that you can spend reading books and learning from mentors, the more time you can shave off your learning curve to help you reach the top. And so that's one piece of advice I would share. Yeah, one thing I'll jump in here, Fire Nation, and share is that I've known Zach for a number of years now. We've spoken at multiple conferences together. We've worked together, as you heard about in the introduction. and one thing that I've always admired about Zach that a lot of people don't or won't do is make the ask.

2:25Like Zach is bold, brother. Like he will make the ask. He will come out, he will make an ask and he will keep asking until he gets a definitive no. Like if somebody puts you off and they're like, oh, well maybe not right now, don't take that as a no. Keep coming back at that person until they slam a door in your face because you never know when the right time is going to be And until you get that door slam in your face, there's always an opportunity. And just one of those opportunities can help you explode your growth. And again, I've seen Zach do that time and time again with his company and with his business and everything that he does.

2:56And it's just a great trait that I know has propelled him over the years. So Fire Nation, make the ask. And as I mentioned today, we'll be talking about how to grow and monetize your social media channels, Fire Nation. And I want to just start by talking about this word viral because we hear viral a lot. And a lot of people think that viral is out of reach for them in the social media world. Like if they can't do some cute dance on TikTok, they don't think they're ever going to get many likes, reviews or shares. How can we, Zach, the average human being, make our social media content go viral?

3:31With great content comes more growth. And, you know, I think everybody's trying to go viral, but they're just like, you know, how? Like, what do I do? And I think nowadays on social media, people show people what they want to show or show people nothing at all. And I think the more that you show, the more that you're vulnerable, the more that you're authentic, real and raw, like people will really resonate with that type of message because they're like, oh, OK, like this guy is a real person. Like he's gone through some of the same things that I'm going through right now. And, you know, he's he's super successful now.

4:03So I think it's talking about a time where maybe you lost your biggest deal or you got fired from a job or talking about your pains and gains, like lessons that you've learned from mistakes that you've made and tying them back into business is really the way to go viral on social media nowadays. So what I really want to make sure that you're understanding here, Fire Nation, is that you need to be vulnerable. You need to be real. You need to be raw. and some things that Zach was talking about actually brought something up for me and listen cover your ears fire nation if you're a little sensitive to sensitive things but I'm just gonna tell you a real story right now that's a lot of people have heard about it's not the first time it's been referenced online for sure because it actually has been used as quite a good case example a bunch of times is there was this female trainer and she was doing everything she could to break in like she just couldn't figure out why she wasn't able to break in but the reality was she was just doing what everybody else is doing just do 30 seconds of planks you know do dips do this do that and so she wasn't really having any kind of unique offering and so nothing was going viral for her nothing was clicking nothing was connecting with an audience and then one day when she was recording a video she peed her pants she literally peed her pants while she was recording the video and she almost like immediately took it off like live and like went off and erased the video.

5:25But then she's like, well, wait a second. I have this problem. And I know other women, and of course, some men do as well. But specifically, she knew a lot of women that had this problem as well. She's like, what if I'm just real, raw, and authentic and just show that, yeah, this is embarrassing, but this does happen. And now I'm going to shift and I'm going to focus on helping you make sure this doesn't happen to you in public. Because there was a ton of people who would never go to the gym because they were terrified of this happening in public. But she shifted her business to focus on that one thing by exercising certain muscles and other movements and things along these lines.

5:54And she went viral and she crushed it by doing that one thing because she was vulnerable, she was real, and she was raw. So don't be afraid to be those things, Fire Nation. That's what's going to get you to that next level. Now, let's talk about growth acts. Let's talk about strategies. This is something that you're always keeping your finger on the pulse on, Zach. What is going on right now today as far as growth acts and strategies to grow our social media. A lot has changed, right? Like a lot of these platforms, like organic growth is really hard to do now, right? You can't just simply post and grow.

6:29But what I think that is still really working really, really well, and will continue to work well for the years to come, is what I call these kind of semi organic growth hacks, which are called engagement groups. So So it's basically a network of influencers and celebrities that are in your niche, all liking and commenting on your content several times throughout the day. And that helps you get more exposure and gets your content seen, known and heard everywhere. So let me tell you this, the engagement groups algorithm has changed. right so in a few years ago like all would matter all that would matter is like getting a bunch of likes in a short window of time and people had all of these you know spots and services to do that but now instagram's algorithms are so smart that they can detect automation and software so if you're using bots or software you should stop using that or your account will get compromised and shut down instead use engagement groups do it manually and you'll get your content seen and heard everywhere.

7:36And Fire Nation, this is why you want to learn from the best and you want to study the best and you want to consume content from the best because these are the individuals like Zach for Instagram who are keeping their finger on the pulse, who are seeing as things change. I mean, we just had this huge affiliate launch not too long ago. And right before the launch started, everything changed when it came to Facebook ads because of some Apple updates. And guess what? It was the people who had the pros on their team that had the experts that were following, consuming the right content that quickly shifted and didn't even see a blip.

8:06In fact, they were benefiting more because the people that weren't able to make that shift were left way behind, way in the dust. They went from being competition to not even existing in that space. So you need to be listening and learning about these growth acts and these strategies to grow your social media. And Zach, before we take a break, let's talk about another one, another growth hack or a strategy that you've seen that's working right now when it comes to overall social media? I see a lot of people doing a live with a big influencer celebrity and that driving a ton of traffic and followers to that person's page.

8:40So it's figuring out a way to get your foot in the door to peak interest, you know, from a celebrity or influencer that has a massive following in the same industry and niches you and offering them something, the value and doing the trade, right? Say like, hey, in exchange for, you know, like I've noticed this, you always talk about this, this and that, right? And I really love your content. I really love when you talk about this. I learned X when I watched this video. And so I would say that if you can figure out a product or service that could help them excel and expand their careers or their reach and do a trade like in exchange for life on their feed, that's the best way to grow nowadays.

9:29And that's one of the best ways that I've found that I've been growing is by finding the right people to connect with, doing these trades, doing these exchanges, getting in front of the right people, which is another reason why in podcasting, Fire Nation, I spend one day per month being a guest on 20 other podcasts. Because that's like the Instagram version of exchanging posts or story takeovers, et cetera, is me being a guest on another podcast. Because guess what? I know that every single person that's hearing my voice as a guest on another podcast is listening to a podcast. And if I can impress them or add value to their world, then I could potentially, in my call to action of checking out Entrepreneurs on Fire, get them as a subscriber to my show as well.

10:08So we have a lot of awesomeness upcoming Fire Nation. And we're going to be actually offering you a pretty cool opportunity via Zach because he loves Fire Nation. So stick around until the end. And right now, we'll take a break to thank our sponsors. Being a small business owner comes with a lot of challenges, especially now. It seems like everyone is working with smaller budgets, shorter timelines, and sky-high expectations, and that can make growing a business feel pretty painful. Thankfully, HubSpot can help. HubSpot just announced dozens of major product updates that'll make impossible growth feel impossibly easy, like Breeze, a suite of new AI-powered tools that deliver personalized insights to level up your work, plus AI agents designed to automate your work for you.

10:54Sounds pretty great, right? And Breeze Intelligence, which gives you the richest, most comprehensive picture of your prospects and customers, allowing you to serve them at a whole new level. Add to all this re-imagined marketing and content hubs with new ways to create breakthrough content, updated features to generate better leads, and support to help up-level your marketing and revenue forecast. And you've got HubSpot's all-on-one customer platform. Get ready for growth without the growing pains. Visit hubspot.com slash spotlight to see all the updates. Zach, we're back. And how can we create a funnel and generate leads for our business on Instagram?

11:34Because here's a problem. A lot of people are getting a lot of likes. They're getting a lot of shares. They're getting some comments, some interactions, some engagement. But that's where it ends. It's just like it just dries up right there like a desert raindrop. but what we need is a funnel so that when we generate these leads, we're actually generating real business. What does that look like? People are thinking and moving, scrolling so fast, right? So you have to be able to pique their interest and capture their interest in a couple seconds, right? They see your content, they either like, show you some love, leave a comment, and maybe even hit the follow button.

12:11So as soon as they land on your page, you want to make sure that your profile and bio is optimized. So you have a really amazing headshot photo that's super clear that maybe shows like what you do. So if you're like your speaker, your author, like maybe it shows that you're in front of, you know, hundreds of people speaking, traveling all over the world. And you want to have a very clear description of what you do and how you can help people with. Right. And then the second most important thing is to have a call to action with the link that you can put on your bio. So on my profile, Zach Vacay, I say, hey, learn how we travel the world for free.

12:51And, you know, down arrow. So when people click on that link, it brings them to my Forbes article, which is like instant street credibility, like social proof. OK, Zach's like the real deal. He's been featured on Forbes. The whole article is, you know, about how millennials use Instagram to travel the world for free. At the bottom of the article, I was allowed to put a free guide. and basically that when people click on that free guide, it brings them to a Facebook chat bot. It's like, hey, I see that you wanted the free guide. What's the best email? Where do I send it to? Okay, type in their email.

13:27Boom, it's on its way. So I'm building my email list. I'm building my Facebook chat bot subscribers, which has like very high open rates. And then my second question to them is, hey, I see that you love the free guide. by the way, I'd love for you to join my free Facebook group. And you're going to learn, you know, this, this and that. And, you know, it's all for free. Do you want it? Yes or no. And I get about, yeah, like 40, 50 people just from this simple funnel of my wanting in my Facebook group every single day. And so it's the process of multiple exposures. And when people have like five to eight positive exposures where they're learning something getting something of value then you can go live in the facebook group or live on the instagram offer them some more free stuff and that with the call to action on your webinar inviting them you know on an exclusive amazing trip to the maldives so that's that's my funnel and that's how i get people you know signed up for my maldives masterminds retreats and experiences all through this simple funnel And Fire Nation, that's what I want you to think about is creating a funnel like Zach just talked about.

14:39You know, again, like I do, I'll use my example on podcasting just to give a different perspective is when you hear me at the end of this podcast promote free podcast course to you. And I'm saying, hey, this is a free podcasting course to teach you how to create and grow your podcast. People are going to be like, oh, I want to learn how to podcast for free. That will take them to this free course. I deliver massive value. I give them a free podcast masterclass, which is an hour long. And then at the end of that masterclass, I pitch Podcasters Paradise. and that funnel is always working in the background.

15:07So you need to have a process like this no matter what platform you are on so that when you generate leads, you have a funnel to generate business for your business. Now let's talk about leveraging our following and connecting with people because relationships is huge. You know, the quote unquote sliding into somebody's DM is like a popular phrase these days and it just frankly works. I mean, I've connected with some huge people just by sending them a DM. I mean, I'm on Peloton. I was like, there's no way if I send a DM to my Peloton instructor that they'll get back to me. Boom, within an hour.

15:41I'm like, what? This is crazy. It's just like you can literally connect with anyone if you go about it the right way. So let's talk some chatter about this, Zach. Leveraging our following and connecting with anyone. Give us some examples and maybe some fun stories. Numbers matter. So the more numbers, the more followers that you have on your social media profiles, the bigger, more influential, powerful people you'll be able to connect with. So it's really easy, right? It's like the more followers you have, like when people, when you DM people like celebrities or influencers or super successful entrepreneurs that you want to connect with and maybe partner with and do some business with, you have to send them what's called a DM, a direct message.

16:23And that goes into their inbox. Now, what happens is, you know, they have the top requests and then they have all requests. And so you want to land on the top request. So the more followers that you have on Instagram, you're going to have a better chance of landing at the top request. And they're actually going to see that message out of the hundreds or thousands of messages that people send them, you know, every week. So it's really important to grow your following. Number two, it's really important to get that blue check on Instagram because when you have that blue check, it unlocks a bunch of benefits and also puts you at the top of their inbox, which can then get them noticed by you, get them to read your message, get them to hop on a call with you.

17:08And I'd just like to share this quick story about how I connected with this guy named Jay Park and got his company to grow, to hire my company to grow some of their accounts. And, you know, this guy is, you know, he's signed by Jay-Z, Roc Nation, only Asian American hip hopper to be signed by his label, which is really cool. And, you know, at the time he had like 3 million followers. I think he's almost 6 million now. But I wanted to connect with him because I was born in Korea. I was adopted by my parents in Iowa. I went back to South Korea, found my birth mom 10 years ago. And so I wanted to, you know, learn about the culture, learn the language, and also work with some awesome Korean clients.

17:52And so this was like my dream client. And so how I went about it was I messaged him. I messaged everybody that that was in his crew. No one replied. No one answered. And then I finally found his DJ. And, you know, he only had 80 ,000 followers. And I was like, hey, you know, I love your work. I love what you guys are doing. how about if I grow your Instagram for free to over 100 ,000 followers, no charge, no cost. And I did that for a year and they loved the results. And then he started paying me for stuff, more projects, and one thing led to another. And it's cool how you can build relationships with celebrities just through a DM, just through Instagram.

18:43And that really changed my life. I mean, Fire Nation, this is one thing that I really want you to be understanding from what Zach is sharing here is that one of these opportunities, one of these stories, one of these things turning into a reality can change your life. It can change the trajectory. It can change the direction. It can change the momentum. It can open up all new kinds of opportunities. I mean, there's like three or four inflection points that I can point back to with the Entrepreneurs on Fire that could have had me go left or right. And left would have been me pod fading and never continuing the podcast.

19:15And right was the path that I chose, fortunately, just because of a few inflection points that led me to what I am today, this Entrepreneurs on Fire podcast, over 100 million listens, over a million listens per month, over$20 million in total revenue. This is these inflection points all because of a few decisions that I made to take action. Just like I shared earlier, what I admire about Zach, he makes the ask. He takes action. So Zach, Fire Nation, they're ready. I mean, these are action takers. You have some really cool things for Fire Nation. You have some services, some products, some knowledge, some more content where they can really take everything that you're talking about here today to the next level.

19:58Take some time here. Talk about what you can offer my audience, Fire Nation. I'm excited about this because social media has changed my life. And social media is just the way to grow and monetize your products and services and get your name and services out there to the world. And so I founded this company. It's called Assistagram. So think of Assistagram as your own personal team that's doing everything for you, creating your content, content management, posting for you five days a week, doing these engagement groups, doing these guerrilla texts to get you seen, known, and heard everywhere on Instagram, online.

20:38And it's a done-for-you service, A to Z, where my team handles everything for you. The content, the social media ghostwriting, the captions, basically pulling all of these stories from you and creating content for you, doing everything. And that's what we do at Assistagram. So we just get people known, heard everywhere, online, all over the place. and yeah, it's really fun. It's really cool. And so what do you specifically have for Fire Nation here? I mean, we're going to have a URL, assistagram.com slash fire, going to a page that's going to list out a bunch of opportunities. Talk a little bit about that.

21:15We'll have a few different services available and basically we'll have a growth and content package, we'll have a growth engagement package and you just basically have to decide how fast you want to grow. So the more followers you have, the more people you can connect with, the more features that you can unlock. On Instagram, if you have over 10 ,000 followers, you can also put links in your Instagram stories. And Instagram stories has over 600 million active users using it every single day. So it's another feature that you can unlock when you have 10 ,000 followers. And it's just another way that you can monetize your Instagram account and sell your products and services.

21:59So we'll be offering a few different packages that you can choose from and everything is hands-off. You really don't have to do much at all. My team handles it all. Fire Nation, check out all of this awesomeness over at assistagram.com slash fire. that's assist a s s i s t a gram assist a gram.com slash fire zach what's the one takeaway you want to make sure fire nation really gets from everything that we chatted about here today and then anything else you want to share and then we'll say goodbye on social media you can show people what you want to show or not show them anything at all just don't be afraid to put yourself out there.

22:41Don't be afraid to just speak up to post to say something online because you never know who's gonna who's listening. And, you know, just that one story that you post or that one post that you post on Instagram could really change somebody's life. So I'd encourage everyone to just put out content, be real vulnerable, raw with your content and start changing lives on social media. Start changing lives, Fire Nation, because why else are you listening to this? Why else are you on this earth? Why else are you going to be doing what you're doing, putting in all this hard work? Assistagram.com slash fire.

23:19Check it out. See what's there. See if Zach and his team can help you do all of the above. Fire Nation, you're the average of the five people you spend the most time with. You've been hanging out with ZB and JLD today, so keep up the heat and head over to eofire.com. If you type Zach, Z-A-C-H in the search bar, his show notes page will pop up with everything that we've been talking about here today, Fire Nation. Zach, thank you for sharing your truth, knowledge, value bombs with Fire Nation. For that, we salute you and we'll catch you on the flip side. Hey, Fire Nation. Today's value bomb content was brought to you by Zach and Fire Nation.

23:55Over the last decade, I've interviewed more than 3 ,000 of the world's most successful entrepreneurs and I've created a revolutionary 17-step roadmap to your financial freedom and fulfillment. I put it all into my first traditionally published book, The Common Path to Uncommon Success, personally endorsed by Seth Godin and Mr. Gary Vaynerchuk. The Common Path to Uncommon Success is the step-by-step guidance that you need for your nation to achieve the lifestyle of your dreams. So visit UncommonSuccessBook.com today. I'll catch you on the flip side. The Next Wave, your chief AI officer, hosted by Matt Wolf and Nathan Lands, is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals.

24:41Matt and Nathan are leading AI creators in your guiding light in the AI and technology frontier. AI technology is transforming the way we do business and the media landscape is fragmented. The Next Wave strives to be the leading podcast on AI technology and how you can apply it to growing your business. Listen to The Next Wave wherever you get your podcasts.