Getting Your Audience to Care About Your Content

Shannon McKinstrie [00:00:05]:
I am your host, Shannon McKinstrie. Welcome to Good Content, the podcast where I remove the never ending content creation, guesswork and overwhelm so that you can actually enjoy being on social media again and growing your business with what has always worked. Good content. Hey, friend. It's another episode of good content, and this one's gonna be a little different. We're going to talk a little bit about my upbringing and why I mentor the way I do. I promise we're not going to get that deep. It's not like a therapy session, but it's interesting because I was actually talking to my husband about this this morning.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:00:40]:
So I was like, I don't really know what I really want to talk about the podcast today. Obviously, I'm going to talk about reels that are going viral right now so that you can take those and run with them. Right? Because that's one of my favorite things to share with you guys so that you can take these ideas. Because so many listeners are like, Shannon, I literally took that one thing from your podcast and I went viral and got all these followers and I'm like, ah, so if this is your first episode, be sure where you binge the others. I keep these short and sweet. Cause we are busy, right? Okay, so real quick, more. So talking about my dad's side, right? Cause my brother and sister, we talk about this a lot. Growing up, we didn't get like, praise for like, doing the dishes or anything like that.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:01:14]:
That was just an already expectation that we had, that our parents had for us. Now, first of all, my sister, brother and I, we have different mom. My parents divorced when I was four, and my dad remarried when I was like seven. So my stepmom has been in my life since I was like seven. And they had Sam and now my brother sister. So I'm much older. Even though I'm like the oldest. I also have, like, only child syndrome still a little bit.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:01:41]:
I'm all over the board. But my brother and sister are like, I love them so dang much. So even though we're half, you know, still very close, obviously, which is a huge blessing, but beside the point. Our dad is not... and my grandma, who is my favorite person on the planet, she passed a couple years ago. If you. If we've been friends on the gram for a while, you know that like, she is. She's my everything. Was my everything.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:02:02]:
She's still here. But, you know, my grandma and my dad and my uncles and my aunt, like, on that side of the family, it reminds me of the new Zach Bryan song that everyone's doing the TikToks about, right? I was raised by a woman who was hard to impress. Whatever. You knew that lyric. And all these people are doing the. It's a really cool trend. And it's not that our parents were hard to impress, but there was a baseline of expectations for them. They're not going to praise us for doing something they expected us to do, if that makes sense.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:02:29]:
And I was telling my husband about this this morning. We were talking about it. I forget why it even came up. But I was like, you know, and I really appreciate, basically, our family keeps us real humble, and they always have. For instance, like I said to I, one of my uncles, who is hilarious, I remember years ago just saying something like, all right, I took the trash out or something like that, like, at the beach. And he's like, oh, good for you, you know? And, like, in a total way, like, no one gives a. No one cares.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:02:56]:
And it made me laugh so hard. Cause, like, I'm one of those, like that just. I don't say what I've done. I'm like, yeah, I know. My family would literally roast me. They're like, no one's impressed, Shannon, that you took the trash out. Do you see where I'm going with this? That's how the algorithm is. Like, it's not impressed that you posted a reel and your audience isn't either.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:03:16]:
Your audience and the algorithm are like the Trumps family now, real quick. Trumps. My maiden name is Trumps with an "S". But, yeah, so you gotta think of it like that. Like, no one's gonna go, yay, you gotta reel. I mean, I will as your mentor. But again, I also think that's why I teach the way I do and why I'm also a mother the way I am. And like, a lot of things, I just.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:03:37]:
When you are my client and you're like, Shannon, it didn't.... Let's figure it out. We're not gonna complain about it, because obviously the algorithm in your audience had expectations, and they didn't meet those expectations. No one is impressed. All you did was take out the trash. Okay? So this is not me being harsh. This is me being like, this is why I think I am the way I am. And it's probably also why I work really hard to make sure my content is good, because I have high expectations, because I'm like, no one's settling for mediocre content anymore.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:04:07]:
That worked like 2017. You could look at my post back then. Mediocre. Okay. I mean, they were good, but they weren't, you know? Okay, so this is why I love this podcast. And I love that you guys love it. Because I'm constantly looking at what's working and how I can make my content better and help you make your content better so that it gets the views you want, you won't be rewarded. And have a round of applause for my dad's family for posting a reel.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:04:33]:
Right? That's how the algorithm is. They're like, cool, right? My uncle, good for you. Like, no one cares. So how do you make people care about your content? How do you make them go to the point that you don't even have to announce that you did the thing? It's up there and it's gone and it's popping and everyone's like, yeah, that's what we're doing. And it's kind of funny. I was. I think that's why we were talking about it. I was like, saying how, like, I don't really talk to my family about my business.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:04:57]:
I know they'd be like, oh, good for you, Shannon. You have a podcast. Whatever. Like, they don't care. Okay? They care and they're happy for me, period. And, like, the conversation stops there. They're not going to dive more into it, probably, especially because a lot of people don't understand it. And that's just a little side note.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:05:12]:
A lot of your family and friends aren't going to understand your business. They're not going to go on there and cheer you on. It is what it is. And that's fine, right? They're not my ideal clients. So, with that said, let's talk about what people are impressed by right now on Instagram. I just thought it'd be funny to kind of think of the algorithm as, like, my roasting family. See what, you know, just kind of remind yourself, like, what is it? Okay, so I haven't looked at all these. I'm just literally gonna start scrolling the reel.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:05:39]:
Okay. And some people have written on YouTube requesting that I put the links to the reels I share. So I absolutely will. I'm gonna do that right? I'm gonna save them in a special spot as I go. Ooh, I love this one. Okay, so this isn't even actually viral viral, but it is. It's got over 7000 likes, 1500 shares. And it's funny.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:05:59]:
I actually don't even know what this t shirt says. It's like code. I'm assuming it's something. I'm assuming it's something Taylor Swift because it's a Taylor Swift audio. Oh, I guess it's cruel. Anyway. Okay, sorry. I'm like, see, I'm hooked watching this.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:06:14]:
So on the back, it says, cruel summer. Oh, my gosh. I got it. It's, I'm drunk in the back of the car, and I'm crying like a baby. But it's just the. The first letter of. So what do you call that? Anyway? It's like, what do you call that? What do you call that thing? Please, someone tell me. So anyway, the reason this did.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:06:33]:
Well, she's standing there. She starts with a little reveal. I tell all the artists, all the makers, all the people with a product, start with it, not really showing it fully, and then turn it around and unveil it. That's a really fun way to hook them, right? Or a website, even you've created a website, things like that up. What it says is looking for the people who would see this tee in public and go feral. That is so fun, because here's what it does. It makes people go, what? What is it? And that's what I'm doing. What tee? What is the tee? What does the t shirt say? And it makes you figure out, like, would this make me go feral? It builds that curiosity.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:07:06]:
So that's a genius way to display a product. Okay. Your hook could say. Say you sell candles, looking for the basic girls who love fall and want their house to smell like a pumpkin patch. To find this candle. See, if I was a web designer, I'd be, like, looking for maybe the website resentment since Taylor Swift was not audio, will say it's like a very Reputation. Dark, moody website. I would say, looking for all the girlies who love Reputation and need a new website to find this template.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:07:35]:
See what I mean? So easy. You just take these prompts and just go for it. Uh, you're a realtor looking for the people in Orange county who are looking for a house with a blah, blah, blah and jump right in the pool on a dare. I don't know. Okay. All right, so there you go. That's an idea. All right, so I'm going to save that into.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:07:53]:
Let's see. What should I name this collection? Podcast reels? All right, there we go. So it'll be in the show notes, etcetera. All right, here we go. We got to talk about it. I know you don't want to hear it. Fall. Eight more Saturdays until fall. Fires.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:08:07]:
Colored leaves falling. Cozy sweaters, beanies. That's cute. I. So, again, especially if you're local and you have any videos from fall last year? Uh, you could say something like, you know, this is your quick reminder that your city, and so your city will look like this in 60 days, 30 days, whatever specifics. Right. Name of the town that you're showing the video from, plus numbers and things like that. All right, let me find another one that's going viral.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:08:33]:
Oh, my, gosh, more stuff about fall. So I'm telling y'all, there's so many fun ways to incorporate fall content right now. Like the number one hoodie you're going to need for crisp fall nights. Right? Like, again, don't just say hoodie for fall. This is the hoodie for all your campfire. I mean, look at that one about, what did it say for pictures and falling leaves, pumpkin patches and all things festive. I mean, obviously we're not stealing from people, but you know what I'm saying? You don't, you know, talk about it.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:09:03]:
If you sell products, if you sell candles, if you sell website templates, whatever it is, you can work fall into there somehow. Perfect fonts for fall. Okay, let's find one more. Trying to get a good one for y'all to take and run with, you know? Okay. All right. And can I say something real quick? A lot of the stuff that I'm scrolling through right now and seeing with, like, really low engagement are really small counts. Remember how Instagram said they're going to make. They're going to level the playing field? Well, here's the thing.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:09:29]:
If it's not getting engagement, just saying, guys, the expectations are higher now that, we're not impressed. And I'm saying this out of love, guys, it's literally one or two tweaks. I'm telling you. Okay. Ooh, I love this. This is great for real estate agents and local people. POV, you live in Utah, but want a neighborhood that makes you feel like you're living in a charming town on the east coast. Genius.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:09:55]:
All right, I'll do one more, but that's a great one. But again, it's not like POV found this charming neighborhood in Utah. Who cares, right? The desire, the vibes. Like, it's. It's giving an emotion that they want to feel and desire. We got so much fall content now. It's August. It's.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:10:10]:
It's fall content time. So that's probably the biggest tip for right now. Ooh, I love it. This is a great one. Here is a perfect example of heard content, but also helpful. Ready? And then I'm going to read it real quick.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:10:24]:
It is very lengthy, so you guys can see. Let me save it before I lose it. But this is a great one, especially for people. It's a good way to handle objections if someone's like, oh, well, this is just what I do, or I don't like, this is like, well, the reason that's happening is this. It's not because of this. This is why you need my help, right? It says the reason you can't get yourself to read a book, but you can binge hours of Netflix. Feel like responding to friends is a burden. Can't handle it when plans change last minute.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:10:48]:
And always think about your to do list is because your nervous system is stuck in an overwhelm state, say, and your load is too high, et cetera. It's very long. You probably also thrive in high pressure situations at work. Oh, my gosh, is she talking to me? But constantly zone out when you're at home. Give the best advice, but struggle to take it yourself because it feels hard and are the fix it woman in a crisis only to have a near panic attack over something small and unimportant. So there it is. So it's basically saying, the reason you this.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:11:15]:
So the reason you hate your home, the reason you are struggling to lose weight, the reason you can't grow on Instagram. Do you see where I'm going? This is what I mean by specifics, y'all. She didn't just say the reason you feel overwhelmed. She is speaking directly to people. This is actually very, very me. Not all of it, but some of it. And then it's also going, but there is a solution. But she's not giving the full solution.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:11:36]:
She's just painting the picture. Very, very powerful. So there you go. So that's what's working right now. Same as what's been working for the past several months. And that all these podcast episodes are about shareable, simple, specific. Because I would see this and go, oh, me and my friends have all this. And I would send it to my girlfriends and say, hey, this is a cool resource.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:11:54]:
Or, hey, can you believe falls can be soon? Or, hey, check out this candle, right? It's shareable. It's simple. It's easy to digest. That girl about the fight or flight nervous system thing didn't go, hey, here's a six month plan. We're not on Instagram scrolling to get a six month plan. Like, just make me aware. This is a very problem aware. Again, that's so smart of her.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:12:13]:
Because most people don't realize they have a problem as they're scrolling. We're not thinking, oh, I hate my kitchen. Oh, I hate that my reels only get 200 views. Oh, until you tell us. Okay. All right, there you have it. So then again, the algorithm doesn't owe us anything. We owe our audience something.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:12:29]:
They will love it. It will get sent out to the Instagram feeds once your people start engaging with it. So think of your audience. Your audience is your algorithm. They're the ones that are going to vote. Impress them. Let's not get a, oh, good for you. We want to.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:12:43]:
This is epic. I got to share with everyone I know type content. All right, I love you, friends, and I. If you haven't left a review yet, I would so appreciate it, but obviously, keep the DM's coming in, the YouTube comments coming. Let me know any ways that I could improve things. You have questions about. I've got you, you got me. I'm yours.
Shannon McKinstrie [00:13:00]:
Talk to you next week.