How to Turn Social Media Content into Sales (Without Feeling Salesy)

Read Time: 2 Minutes 41 Seconds

Hey — Ryan here.

In today’s edition:

• Why traditional marketing doesn't work anymore

• How to sell without being salesy

• Building authentic demand for your product

Let's be real.

Traditional marketing feels fake.

And your audience can smell it from a mile away.

Today, we're breaking down how to market your product without feeling like a sleazy salesperson.

Ready?

Let's dive in.

1. The Problem with Traditional Marketing

Have you noticed?

No one trusts traditional ads anymore.

They all just sound the same:

• "Buy now!”

• "Limited time offer!"

• "Don't miss out!"

Your audience is bombarded with endless ads every single day.

They're numb to it.

It all boils down to this one principle:

The more you try to sell, the less people want to buy.

Zack Honarvar, entrepreneur and manager of social media’s leading brand Yes Theory, has a great analogy for this:

Imagine your brand’s trust is a bank account.

Every time you push a sale to your audience, you're spending a little bit of their trust.

And just like any bank account, that trust can hit zero.

Keep spending, and here's what happens:

Your promotional posts feel desperate.

Your audience starts rolling their eyes.

And suddenly, you're that one brand that's always trying to sell something.

What if you could convert followers while also growing that trust?

2. The New Way to Sell

Here's what works instead:

Document, don't create.

Instead of making ads, show people what's actually happening within your company.

Introduce them to the behind-the-scenes, the problems, the ideas, your employees, your mock-ups.

nudeproject

View more on Instagram

Notice how @nudeproject humanizes itself by showing it’s run by real humans who crack jokes, push and shove each other, and truly look like they enjoy their work.

Here are some other videos that show the BTS of running that business:

• Their marketers can’t think of new reel ideas (451k views)

• Failing to film a black friday deal (366k views)

So do what no one else is doing:

• share the messy moments

• film the failed experiments

• show the real human interactions that most brands hide

You're not just being transparent.

You're building the kind of loyalty that keeps your brand alive for the long run.

3. Content That Doesn't Feel Like Ads

Make content that provides value first.

Here's how:

1. Identify your audience's problems

2. Create content that solves them

3. Mention your product naturally

This is the exact solution that @dupe_com took to disrupt the furniture industry…

This video received 19M views.

And this one got 16M views.

And this one 14M.

Absolutely crazy.

Through these videos, they converted millions of passive viewers into customers.

Better yet, they positioned themselves as the hidden secret solution that the big furniture companies didn’t want you to know about.

There’s a sense of exclusivity being a part of this rebellious group.

So if you want to grow trust with your audience while growing your brand into a long-lasting movement:

Start thinking less about “selling” in the traditional sense, and think more about serving.

The future of marketing isn't about selling harder.

It's about being more human.

We'll see you next week :)

Sincerely,

Ryan