the bossbabe podcast - 4. How to Go From Low Confidence and Introverted to Fully Booked and Featured in Global PR With Selena Soo

Episode Date: March 13, 2019

In this episode Danielle interviews Marketing & Publicity Strategist, Selena Soo! Selena opens up about her past struggle with depression, low self-esteem and how joining a women’s life group changed her life and ultimately planted the seed for her business. They candidly discuss how Selena, being shy and introverted, found passion and purpose in bringing people together. She dives deep in finding confidence, getting outside of her comfort zone and working toward her bigger vision. Selena shares why publicity is important, how to implement it into your own business, and specific, actionable steps you can take to get featured and grow your business! Head over to http://impactingmillions.com/bossbabe to gain exclusive access to Selena’s videos series on how to transition from best kept secret to industry leader. This episode is sponsored by Après. On-the-go post workout? Looking for a quick snack to get you to your next meal? Après is designed from the ground up to give back to your body with clean, plant-based ingredients. Head to drinkapres.com and use the code BOSSBABE15 for 15% off.

One of the things that has really helped me is this mindset of like start before you're ready and do the thing that scares you. But when you take a small step and then you realize, okay, I survived, I'm okay, then you start to gain confidence. We need someone else to see what is already there within us. Sometimes we take our gifts for granted. We don't actually realize that they're anything special. Welcome to the Boss Babe podcast, a place where we share with you the real behind the scenes of building successful businesses, achieving peak performance, and learning how to balance it all. I'm Danielle Canty, your host of this week's episode.

Now, as you know, we love to start each episode with one of our famous boss paper quotes. And this week, the quote is this, we all have something within us that the world needs. And this week's guest is going to be sharing with us how to let the world know you have what it needs. Because I'm sitting down with Selina Su, marketing and publicity strategist. We discussed everything from how she first got started in the industry to how she gets her clients featured in places like Forbes, Inc and the Oprah magazine. And Selena shares her tips on how you can make this a reality for you too. Make sure you grab a notepad and pen because I'm not joking, Selena is so generous with her time and knowledge and so this episode is one definitely not to be

missed. And speaking of not being missed, I don't want to miss out on the chance to say a huge thank you for your support with the launch of this podcast. Natalie and I read every single comment and review and they genuinely mean the world to us so thank you so so much and if you haven't left a review yet please do we'd love to know what you think and what you would love to hear more of and as I'm in the flow with the thank yous I'd also like to thank our sponsors of this episode APRE. APRE was co-founded by one of our good friends Darby Jackson who along with her team is essentially redefining on the go protein shakes. With her background as a health coach and personal trainer and being the true boss babe that she is, she spotted a gap in the market and over the course of a year and a half created Atprey.

It's the first on the go drink of its kind with organic plant proteins, metabolic fats from organic virgin coconut oil and electrolytes from organic coconut water. It's perfect for after a workout, on-the-go snack. So if you want to try it, head to drinkaparade.com and use the code BOSSBABE15 for 15% off. Now, without further ado, get yourself comfy and enjoy this episode. A boss babe is unapologetically ambitious and paves the way for herself and other women to rise, keep going and fighting on. She is on a mission to be her best self in all areas. It's just believing in yourself, confidently stepping outside her comfort zone to create her own

vision of success. Welcome Selena to our boss babe podcast. So I know that you are super successful now and extremely well-connected, but I know it's not always been that way. So I'd love for you to share a bit of your story about how you are now in this incredible position, have this incredible business, but how you've got here. Okay, sure. Gosh. So back in my mid twenties, I had a quarter life crisis. I was living in New York city. I was working at a nonprofit making $42,000 a year. And I was really depressed. You know, I had very low self-esteem. I had a lot of social anxiety. I was also in a bad relationship. So just the combination of all of that led me into this dark spiral of depression. And things got so bad at one point that my mom flew all the way from Vancouver, Canada

to New York just to be with me because it just took so much work to get out of bed in the mornings to actually eat food. And she would literally like walk me to work. And so I hit that low point and I started opening up to just a small handful of people, letting them know, I just, I feel like shit and I don't know what to do, where to go. Do you have a resource for me? And one of my friends recommended this life coach and she hosted these women's life coaching groups at her home. And so I went to one of the group meetings and it changed my life. Just being a

part of a community of like-minded women was really powerful for me. And also all the things I was learning. I realized that I had negative thoughts on replay basically every single day, and that I was really seeing myself as a victim of my circumstances. And so I got a great personal development 101 education, And I got exposed to all these thought leaders like Deepak Chopra and Marianne Williamson and Louise Hay. And I just realized that for people like me, and really for all of us who struggle at different points in our life, we don't just need information, we are also looking for inspiration. And that's why I'm just so drawn to these thought leaders, role models, experts who embody that message of possibility, who provide the information and inspiration to help people get out of dark situations.

And I started telling my friends, like, have you heard of this person? Have you heard of that person? A lot of them had no idea who these people were. And I was like, I just want the world to know about these amazing experts because I feel like that's the way that I can make my biggest contribution is shining a light on these kinds of amazing people. So that planted the seed for eventually starting a business because I was just naturally, organically reaching out to people I admired. I discovered this bigger world of experts, kind of like the new generation of thought leaders. And I would join their email list. I would reach out to them over email. I would start just connecting them to the media and other influencers and people that might be able to help them. It was just very natural for me to be that helpful person. And so even though

I identify as being someone who is very shy and very introverted, I just felt so inspired by these people that have brought out this other side of me. And so I started building relationships. And when I eventually decided that I wanted to build a business, you know, I have people like Danielle Laporte and others who are like supporting me, offering me testimonials, you know, letting people know about me. And so I was able to start my business with a bang. And so, yeah, I've had my business for several years now. And it's interesting to say that because I remember when I was like saying, oh, I'm, you know, one year into business, two years, three years. And now that we're getting close to seven years, it's like, okay, you know, we have that longevity,

we stuck around. So yeah, I just really love the work I do. And I really love helping people improve their lives. So Selena, I know that, like you said, your mom was coming out to look after you. She was coming all the way from Canada. She was walking you to work. And then you discovered this new realm of people and that you started meeting more. But how did you uncover that you had this ability to connect people? And how did that become then a business idea? It was something that just happened really organically.

The people that I was reaching out to were people that I admired. And it was one of those things where I didn't need anything from them. Just to be able to contribute to their lives in some way felt meaningful to me. So reaching out to the top experts. And like I was sharing, saying like, oh, let me introduce you to this person. Or I think this would be a really great media opportunity for you. Or I really loved the video you shared and giving people feedback and just kind of being an active part of their world, showing up at events. So that is how I started building relationships and started doing publicity just very naturally.

And when I was thinking about starting a business, I realized at this point, I had all these people who really believed in me in my corner who were telling me like, Selena, you're so good at what you do. And it was kind of like a pinch me moment because I was that girl, you know, in my bed late at night on my laptop, like watching all these videos, the people I admire. And now these people were actually my friends and mentors who were like, you're really good at this. So that gave me the confidence. And sometimes, you know, we need someone else to see what is already there within us. Sometimes we take our gifts for granted. We don't actually realize that they're anything special. And so really that connection, the community, and just kind of showing up and being of service even before I had a business is what

made me realize I do have something valuable to share and I can turn it into a business. So it was just so wonderful when I did launch my business and a lot of the people that I had helped wanted to support me. They wanted to offer endorsements to me. They would recommend people to me. So that is really how I got my business off the ground. Do you know what I really love is from the outside, you wouldn't know, or you wouldn't anticipate you aligning with being an introvert because I see you online and I see, like you said, there's this connector of these incredible people. And yet you identify as being an introvert, which could be deemed as being quite an unnatural business to go into.

Totally. Yeah. It kind of seems like it doesn't make sense. Like the shy introvert who was like the master publicity strategist and super connector. But yeah, I mean, I'm really inspired by these big ideas and the people I can help and the lives I can change. So that's what really gives me the energy to do this work. And you're so right as well with being like this kind of shining a light, because I remember when I started on my journey and when I first discovered this world of personal development, it's like you just walk through a door and you discover all these new people like brendan bachard for me has been truly inspirational and i'm just

like what did i do before i like read his book or even just learning about the law of attraction and so i really see that with your business you're so right you shine a light on personal development particularly so what are you working on right now? Let's say you started your business. Yeah. How many years ago now? It's almost seven years. I was going to say six and a half, but it's almost seven. Amazing. And have you like seen a big transition as you've gone through that time? Has it been easy growth? Has it been hard? Has there been ups and downs? What's that journey look like? You know what? It's so fun. And when you love what you're doing, like there's parts of it that do feel easy, where you feel really aligned, but business,

it's hard, right? It's always hard. And things may be easy at some point. And then, you know, things change. I think one of the things that has really helped me is just this mindset of like, start before you're ready and do the thing that scares you. So as someone who is shy and introverted and has like, you know, is overly self-conscious at times, there's a lot of things that scare me. So I have to constantly be facing my fears. I remember early on in my business, I had a vision of bringing women together and helping groups because I had been a part of that woman's life coaching group and I saw how transformational it is. So I really had that vision of bringing people together in my home, we sitting in a circle. And before I started my

business, I was in business school. And you know, there were times where we'd have to get into small groups and like introduce ourselves to the group, say our name, what we do, or looking to do all of that. And even for me to like share a 20 second introduction with a group of five people was scary to me. And I would just like be thinking in my head or what am I going to say and that kind of thing. And yeah, I had this vision of doing a two day workshop at my home. And I think a lot of entrepreneurs are like this where they have, you know, a powerful future vision that drives them forward. And so I started putting it out there saying I'm going to be doing a two day workshop called

Elevate Your Brand at my home, seven spots only. I posted that on Facebook and to my email list of about 150 people at the time. And we filled up the spots. But then it hit me like, I have to do this. And Selena, what are you thinking? You're afraid to talk for 20 seconds. How are you going to do a two-day workshop? So I just remember leading up to the event, there were just moments sitting in my chair where my body just kind of felt frozen and

paralyzed. And I felt like throwing up and all of that. And I had a friend come over to help me just break down my curriculum and how I was going to lead this workshop. But that's just, you know, one of so many examples. And I find that every month, you know, there's a new way that I have to stretch myself and my business or have a difficult conversation or try something different. So I definitely think for the entrepreneurs who have that longevity, there has to be that openness to doing things differently and also doing things that don't feel natural and comfortable immediately. And one of my favorite sayings that, you know, I heard one of my friends say before, is that confidence has to be earned. And so a lot of people think like, well, I'll do that when I feel ready, when I feel confident, but you're not born

that right. That way, you know, you have to be courageous to get to that point where then you feel good about it. So yeah, it's definitely been an interesting journey. You know, there's so many things I'm proud of definitely overcoming and moving forward in the face of my fears is one of the things that definitely is the most meaningful to me. I know exactly what you're saying. Sometimes we have to do things that we don't necessarily feel comfortable doing. And it's about pushing through our comfort zone. What strategies do you employ to help you do that? Yeah, so I would say there's a couple. One of them is small steps.

So in our mind, we tell ourselves, oh my gosh, I'm going to die speaking in front of that group, right? We just like dramatize things. But when you take a small step and then you realize, okay, I survived, I'm okay, then you start to gain confidence. So just one small step at a time. The other thing is talking to a friend or a team member. So if I'm about to do something scary, something that's going to stretch me,

I confide in someone else. I talk it through with them and I figure out a plan so that it's more manageable. And the other thing is preparation. So for the things that really scare us, it's very common to avoid them. And then maybe at the last minute, then just kind of show up. But the thing is, the more scared you are, the more that you need to prepare, the more you need to just be in conversation with people about it. I mean, I actually have a story that I would really love to share about how I overcame my own fear of publicity, which is interesting because I help other people with publicity. But I've traditionally been more comfortable being that more behind the scenes person and putting myself out there has been uncomfortable. Now I love it actually,

but I would love to share that story. That sounds good. Let's take a quick pause to talk about my new favorite all-in-one platform, Kajabi. You know, I've been singing their praises lately because they have helped our business run so much smoother and with way less complexity, which I love. Not to mention

our team couldn't be happier because now everything is in one place so it makes collecting data, creating pages, collecting payment, all the things so much simpler. One of our mottos at Boss Babe is simplify to amplify and Kajabi has really helped us do that this year. So of course I needed to share it here with you. It's the perfect time of year to do a bit of spring cleaning in your business, you know, get rid of the complexity and instead really focus on getting organized and making things as smooth as possible. I definitely recommend Kajabi to all of my clients and students. So if you're listening and haven't checked out Kajabi yet, now is the perfect time to do so because they are offering Boss Babe

listeners a 30-day free trial. Go to kajabi.com slash boss babe to claim your 30-day free trial. That's kajabi.com slash boss babe. I would love to hear that and I'm sure our listeners will too. Okay, so I'm recalling back to when I first started my business and I had this client who just was really supportive of my work. And she was like, Selena, I want to just share you and your ideas, your message with my audience. Will you do a Skype interview with me? And I remember thinking like, oh my God, I don't want to be on camera. But then there was this other voice inside of me that's like, what's the worst that could happen? And you should give us a try. It's also a safe space. This person wants to support you and see you succeed. So I said yes to the

Skype video interview. And I remember leading up to the interview, just being super nervous about it. And when we did the interview, it felt very unnatural because I'd never done it before. And afterwards, she gave me the recording and I was watching it with my interns. At the time, I was also going to Toastmasters because I knew that public speaking was really a weak point for me. And so they were listening to my interview with me and counting my filler words, ums, you knows, sos. And it was a 40-minute interview.

And at one point, not even through the whole interview, we had like 137 filler words. And I just remember watching this interview and I was like covering my face with my hands. And I just felt like I'm watching like a horror movie. This was like a total train wreck disaster because I was not maintaining proper eye contact. My eyes were darting. I was in my head. I was talking fast. I was looking down. I didn't appear confident. And I was just like saying to my interns, like, there's no way I can share this. And I thought about what they said. Honestly, Selena, I think it's better than you think. I actually really enjoyed the interview. And I think that people are going to get a lot out of it. I thought, okay, well, let's see, you know,

maybe I'll just send it to my list and just see what happens. And who knows, I might never do an interview again. And so I emailed it to my list. And I came back to my computer a couple hours later. And there were emails in my inbox from people being like, thank you for sending this. I love this. This is so cool. And so it made me realize three things that I think all entrepreneurs need to hear when they're thinking about visibility.

So number one is we are always our own worst critic. So rather than me even congratulating myself for doing the thing that was scary, for taking that step forward, rather I was watching my interview and basically having my intern count all the times I screwed up. I was so self-critical. And we're all like that. We're all watching for the mistakes. But the people that are looking to learn for us are not looking for the mistakes. They're looking for the wisdom. They're looking for the mistakes. But the people that are looking to learn for us are not looking for the mistakes. They're looking for the wisdom. They're looking for the story.

And so just know it's usually never as bad as you think. And then the second thing I realized is that we have really high expectations on ourselves because we look at other people we admire, thought leaders, and they're like gracing the TED stage, looking so confident. They're doing video. They just seem so eloquent, and they've got their message together. But the truth is, those people that we admire, they have been doing this work for five years, 10 years, 15 years, right. And so we are comparing

ourselves on day one to them. And they have hired mentors and coaches and gotten support and, you know, put the practice in. So it's unfair, you's unfair to compare ourselves to them on day one. So we're kind of like in an interesting place when we start putting ourselves out there because we know we're not as good as we can be, but literally the only way to get better is to do it and not be perfect and just keep doing it and doing it and doing it.

So that was a big lesson. And then the third was that, you know, I realized that I was being self-centered because when I was thinking about my interview, I was like, how do I look? How do I sound? Versus really focusing on the people that I was here to help, you know, and how is this message going to support them? And so now when I do an interview, I still like trip up. I still use filler words. I still stumble sometimes. I just ask myself, did I show up to this interview with my full presence, my heart?. I still stumble sometimes. I just ask myself, did I show up to this interview with my full presence, my heart? Did I open up? Did I share stories? Did I share

valuable advice? Was I really there for the listeners? And if the answer is yes, then none of the other stuff matters. I don't have to overanalyze it. I know I did a good job and then I can just move on. So that was a really powerful experience doing the thing that's scary. And since then, I've done well over 100 podcasts and video interviews and done tons of media. Back here, I've got like a magazine that I was on the cover of, Inspired Coach Magazine. And one of the things that's most fulfilling to me is being a role model. I mean, I definitely don't claim to be perfect, because I'm definitely not. But I know when I was starting my business, I saw all these like super charismatic,

like super extrovert, loud personalities. I'm like, Oh my gosh, that's like, not me. Is there anyone out there who like has a successful business who has built six figure seven figure business that is introverted, that is self conscious, who is highly sensitive. And so I'm grateful to be an example of that for other people. And I also just really love having the opportunity to help elevate other leaders from all sorts of diverse backgrounds. You have just spoken to my heart and soul because I have been going through this so much recently, this kind of expectation and pressure. I've been putting it on myself that I need to be perfect at everything. And I actually wrote a post the other day. I put it in our Facebook group for members of our community. And it was literally just saying, can we all just acknowledge that we all start out as beginners? We're not all instantly experts.

Because doing this podcast, it's new for me right I'm not used to interviewing people and I was beating myself up like oh I should have asked this question I shouldn't have laughed here I'm why didn't I do it this way I know right and I'm like expecting myself to be like Guy Raz or Oprah Winfrey instantly and you forget that we all have to start somewhere and I think what's really nice about where we are now is that we do want people to be authentic and yes it's amazing if you're super polished and you're an incredible speaker and you do um and you don't say like awesome good for you well I hope there is space for those of us that aren't necessarily as polished and are just

basically trying to share our message with the world and it comes from the heart and you know I think that you know I said it though there is room for that and I think it's nice to hear as well that other people have felt the same and we can all just openly talk about that and just say yeah do you know what we're not. And we don't ever claim to be, and we probably never are going to be. So that's it. 100%. So I want to kind of understand how utilizing publicity in a business can really help grow it. So obviously, if you're an entrepreneur, I mean, maybe you're like starting out, you're starting to gain a bit of traction. What are the next steps? Where do you go for that publicity?

How do you decide who to do publicity with? What should as a female entrepreneur we should be thinking at this stage? Yeah, absolutely. Well, first, I just want to touch on why publicity is so important, because there's so many ways to market your business, right? There's Facebook ads, there's blogging on your own website, there's networking, all that. And I think all of it has its place. It's all important. But I think what makes publicity different is that rather than you just telling people, hey, I'm the best at what I do, you have other people talking about you, that third party endorsement, you have other influencers, you have other media outlets with big platforms that are basically elevating you and sharing your work with a much larger audience. So it's absolutely critical to have that social proof, that platform, and that reach.

And so when it comes to publicity, the first thing to do is get really clear on what your goals are. And so that's going to depend on also what your business model is, right? So there's some people that want publicity because they're like, I'm going to write a book one day. And I know that in order to get a book deal, I need to show that I have the ability to get publicity. For other people, you know, I've got a high end coaching program, and I want to enroll one on one clients into that. And for others, maybe they have a bigger group program, right? So depending on your goals of publicity that you need is going to be different. But one of the things I recommend is really taking a step-by-step approach.

So I've developed this framework called the publicity pyramid. And so I want you to imagine a pyramid, like a triangle. And so the very bottom of the pyramid, this is the base. So this is what I call the home base. So the home base is your online presence. Because if you ever pitch yourself to the media or to an influencer, the first thing they're going to do is Google you. And if there's nothing that comes up about you, they're going to have a lot of questions. They're going to wonder, is this person the real deal? Are they established? So it is ideal to have some kind of website, if possible, you know, having a blog there where you're sharing your ideas, you know, sharing your story and all of that, if possible, you know, having a blog there where you're sharing your ideas,

you know, sharing your story and all of that, like doing that writing, establishing that presence. And for others, their home base is going to be more about their Instagram account. So it really depends. Now, once you have that home base, then the level two above that is guest posting. So, you know, it's kind of an extension from writing on your blog or emailing your list. Now it's like you're getting the same ideas, but on a different platform. And so there's lots of websites out there like Forbes, Huffington Post, MindBodyGreen, Thrive Global, Business Insider, that are really based on that contributor model. They're looking for more voices or looking to put more content on their website.

So that would be the next best place. And the cool thing about that is there's many opportunities. Also, oftentimes you can include a link back to their website. So that will be the next best place. And the cool thing about that is there's many opportunities. Also, oftentimes you can include a link back to your website. So that helps with SEO. Also, you know, when you can include an opt-in to your free gift, it builds your list, right? So that's kind of like the first level of publicity after you establish the home base. And then level three is podcasts and video. So now that you've been writing about your ideas, now it's about talking them right through a back and forth interview or some kind of video opportunity. Now with podcasts, some of these podcasts can be a

lot more niche, like we've all heard of Forbes and Huffington Post. When you think about your favorite podcast, you may know about it, but maybe your mom or your dad or the general public doesn't know that if you're selling a high-end coaching program and you're on a podcast where the host is endorsing your work, saying good things about you, you are talking for an hour in depth about your ideas, your clients, how you help people, your methodology, the people that are listening to that podcast interview are going to be so much more likely to want to take that next step. You know, people that listen to podcasts, clearly they're investing their time, their resources into developing themselves. So that's a really great place for me in my own business. I find that podcast is the highest ROI publicity. And then a level above that is

magazines. So now this is where going more mainstream. And the cool thing with magazines is people would take them to the beach and they're in the hair salon and they read them in bed. So this is really about reaching a much bigger audience. One thing to keep in mind is in magazines, that is usually better if you have lower ticket products, if you have a membership site, if you have a book, an iPhone app, but this isn't the place for necessarily getting people in your super, super high-end programs. It is also great if you're looking to write a book one day and that kind of thing to get that kind of publicity. And then the next level above that would be TV. So that's the highest level on the publicity pyramid that you have to work up towards. So like podcasts, you're going to be talking, you're going to be interviewed, that sort of thing. But the average TV segment is three minutes,

which is so different than having a 30 minute or one hour interview. So you really need to have your talking points down. They care about how you look on video and all of that. And so it's interesting when people will say to me, you know, Selena, I just know that if Oprah knew about my work, she would be all over it. Or, you know, I need to be on the Today Show. And that's kind of like their first stop. But the thing is, if you were recommended to Oprah's producers, and they Googled you, and there was nothing about you, not a strong web presence, no articles, no podcasts, no nothing on the website, no media logos, they're going to feel like, wait, is this person the real deal? So the thing is, you know, sometimes the patient way is the fastest way, right? So you

actually do have to build that body of work to get ready and to get selected for those biggest opportunities that will really help you reach, you know, and impact millions. I love this. And I'm so excited to talk about this more. So what I see a lot is people or entrepreneurs are very obsessed with like, oh, Facebook ads, I've got to do this. And they've become like, oh, how many followers have I got on Instagram? And a lot of entrepreneurs are becoming very narrow minded about publicity. Yeah. And so having this pyramid is so awesome.

So if I can just take you back to level two, where you're talking about getting cited on a blog, et cetera, I'd love to know and work through the pyramid, how they do each level, what are the actions? So, okay, level two, at level two, how do I get featured? How do I get featured on entrepreneur or how do we become a contributor? What are the steps that people can do to make that happen? Okay. So the first step is getting really clear on what your expert topics are going to be, and how they relate to the media outlets you're reaching out to. So for example, if you want to be an entrepreneur, yes, on the one hand, it's a niche publication, it's targeting entrepreneurs,

but it's also kind of mainstream business, right? It's different than being on like a really niche marketing podcast, right? It's a broad audience. So I've had business experts who want to write about funnels or really advanced things or like a Facebook pixel or whatever, like little tactic. And that's not going to be as relevant. So for entrepreneur, for business insider, for Forbes, kind of like those evergreen popular topics or things like how to get more clients, how to raise your rates, how you overcame a hard time in your business. There's also topics like confidence, sleep, productivity, time management that are evergreen and that are just really, really popular.

So for me, when I'm looking to do mainstream media, I talk about things that are more general. Publicity would work for entrepreneur, but I would not write about webinar strategies for entrepreneur personally. And let's say if I wanted to be a Marie Claire magazine, right? The expert topic I would lead with is networking because that's a topic that applies to everyone or a topic like being an introvert woman, right? And having a successful career, like half the population are introverts. So the first thing is getting clear on like, well, what are the topics

that are even gonna be interesting to them? And then once you know the topic, then figuring out the story idea. And so when you're presenting a story idea to them, and people like don't know like, oh, do I write like three paragraphs on my story idea? Like, how do I describe it? What you wanna do is you wanna present it in a headline format. So for example,

three sleep hacks to help you sleep like a baby every night, or the number one thing you need to know about XYZ, right? There's certain headline formulas that do really well. Any kind of like how to would also do really well well or like a list of things or the number one thing. But you want to present it in a way so they're imagining how that would look as an article on their site or as the name of the podcast interview. You want to present the idea on a silver platter. And then you want to have just like a sentence to three-sentence description of the idea. So if you're saying you got a story on the three sleep hacks, what you wanna do is also share what the sleep hacks are

or even share the first two because people are gonna wonder, oh, is it the same thing that I've heard a million times or is there something special or unique or counterintuitive? So you wanna get clear on your topic, you wanna get clear on your story ideas and then you have to put together the full email pitch

where you introduce yourself, share some credibility markers because they're're going to be wondering like, who is this expert and why do we want to feature them over other people? So having that ready, putting the story ideas and letting them also know that you're open to sending over other ideas. So those are kind of like the key pieces. And then also just be prepared to follow up. I'm in touch with editors at top business publications all the time. And even though they know me, they just get so busy that I really, I do have to follow up just because I didn't hear back. It really doesn't actually mean anything. I still feel like it's fair game.

I would follow up on an email one time to two times max. So it was a total of two to three emails. And if you don't hear back after that, then leave it. And you can always circle back later with a new and fresh idea. It doesn't mean after one email, okay, they don't hear back after that, then leave it. And you can always circle back later with a new and fresh idea. It doesn't mean after one email, okay, they don't like me. I'm wasting their time. Let me leave them alone. I would say following up really sets you apart as an entrepreneur because there are so many people who just don't follow up. And actually, if you take that extra time, as long as it's in a a really polite way I would encourage every listener to do

that because sometimes you don't know when that email has first landed and it's got forgotten about not intentionally and actually people are interested and I just think having that perseverance to follow up it just opens so many more doors so I love that and what about with regards to podcasts like how do you decide what podcast you just speak on or what topic you want to talk about and how to reach out to people and appear on podcasts? Oh yeah, I've got some really great strategies for that. I'm going to just share my number one favorite strategy for right now, but there are others. So my favorite one is the follow the leader technique. So think about the work that you're doing and who are the others in leaders in your industry who are talking about similar topics. I mean, you could even go on

Amazon and like type in the name of like an expert. And then you'll see like, oh, people that follow this person also, you know, read their books and so forth. So make that list. I would say have a list of at least five experts that are somewhat similar to you or complimentary. And then go to the podcast section on iTunes and just search their name and all the podcasts that they've been on will come up. And you do that with five people and you'll have a list of like several dozen podcasts that people have appeared on who are top leaders in your industry. So oftentimes a podcast is good enough for them. It may be one that is really worth

considering for you. And then the next step would be to check out the podcast and just make sure it's still active. You know, so in the past, like have they published episodes? And if they have, then it's fair game to reach out to them. So that would be the first step is just like figuring out which podcast should I appear on? Are they still active? You can also look at the reviews if they've got strong five-star reviews you know that's also like a good sign versus like a podcast that has like no reviews but for the ones that top experts have appeared on most of those will be naturally quite popular I think podcasts are a really good way to network as well and I wanted to talk to you about networking because obviously it's come up a few times in these conversations yeah I personally feel that networking and publicity can be quite intertwined

and it's a little bit what came first the chicken or the egg did you get the publicity because you started growing the network or did you get the network and then start growing the publicity is that right or wrong to think about it that way do you agree that they're intertwined or do you feel that they are completely separate entities? Yeah, that's just such a great topic that we're bringing up because it is so intertwined. And when I think back to the most meaningful media that has been through some kind of relationship that I've nurtured, the thing is with podcasts, like, so one of the reasons why they are such a big opportunity for your business is because a lot of podcast hosts are business owners. They are influencers. Even before they started their podcast, they already had an audience of people who follow them, who love them,

that are buying from them, right? So this is like a really hot audience. But also for the podcast hosts, they did so much work to build that audience. In some cases, when you think about the years in business and everything, I mean, millions of dollars to build that audience. So this is like their most valuable asset in their business. So if they're going to put an expert in front of their audience, they're going to want to know a lot of things. One, they're going to want to know, is this person really going to provide value to my audience? Are they the real deal? They're also going to know in a podcast interview where it's back and forth, am I going to have rapport with this person? Are we going to have that connection? So, you know, there's all these things, which

makes it like a more high stakes opportunity versus with guest posts, which are easier to get the editor. They don't have to talk to you. They get your article, they make some edits, that's it. Right. And they publish tons and tons of articles every day. Whereas with podcast interviews, maybe they release one interview per week, or whatever the number is, right? But it's a smaller quantity. And so it's a big deal. It's a great gift to be on someone's podcast, be introduced to their audience. But the bigger the deal something is, like the harder it is to get. And so I find that having those relationships are really important. because when you're just having a normal conversation with a podcast host or even kind of seeing like, oh, how's

this conversation going? Would this be a conversation that our audience would want to hear? I think the relationship pieces everything. And also if you have friends who have been on other podcasts who can endorse you to the podcast host, like saying, hey, my friend and colleague, I think would be really perfect. That would be great because a lot of podcast hosts do ask people like, who else should I bring on the podcast host, like saying, hey, my friend and colleague, I think would be really perfect. That would be great. Because a lot of podcast hosts do ask people like, who else should I bring on the podcast? So yeah, relationships are key. Yeah, I agree with that. And just going into relationships without necessarily expecting anything back. We've spoken a lot about this

at our events. And we also talk about it within the society. And do this you embody this so much you go into relationships saying how can I help them not how can they help me and I really think that's something that's so so important for all of us to embody you know I think we can just be a little bit selfish sometimes like what can someone do for me but if actually we flip it and go in with look I'm going to help this person I don't expect anything in return it kind of ends up you do get something in return just because of the natural process of it all but there's such a big difference in leading and your intent in those first few moments and then like you say nourishing that relationship what are you bringing to it on a regular basis and I don't

think that means necessarily having the contact day to day because we're also busy, but being there for that person, if they contact you or likewise, just reaching out to them and saying, Hey, how are you? How are things going? I think that's some of the key things I've learned to really nourish relationships. Have you got anything to add to those? Yeah, totally. This is a topic that's really exciting to me because I'm so passionate about nourishing relationships. But even with me, there were times where I've had mindset blocks, because sometimes the way that I'm catching up with people is I'm jumping on the phone and we're talking for an hour. And obviously I love that stuff. But then as you start to build your network,

it's like, wait, I can't just like, you know, if I've got say 30 relationships, I don't have all these hours to just be on the phone because we're also running a business. Well, I also learned from other networking experts and things like that, but sometimes it's literally like just touching base. So it could even be if I was to reach out to a friend and be like, Hey, I was just talking to Danielle the other day and your name came up and we were just talking about how much we liked you, you know, how, how amazing we think you are. Hope things are doing really well that your 2019 is off to a great start. Right. So it could just be like a four sentence email. It doesn't have to be like a one hour phone conversation that needs to be coordinated. Or other times,

like I would just send a little voice message through Facebook Messenger or through my iPhone, just like, oh, hey, I was just thinking of you. I saw that you're launching right now. I'm just like holding a vision of this being your most successful launch ever. If I can support you, I'm around that kind of thing. One thing that I really love that I just discovered is this thing called BombBomb. And it's a way to do video messages. And so in the new year, I made a whole bunch of video messages for people, for some of my top clients, just saying like, hey, it's Selena. I was just thinking of you and I want to wish you a happy new year. And I love working with you. I'm here to support you this year. I look forward to all the exciting things to come literally 30 seconds. And I was able to get so many of those messages out there. And it

really made people feel seen and appreciated. It just went a very long way. And as a receiver of one of those messages, I loved it. So I definitely think we should put the link in the show notes for that because it was awesome. It's just so different. Like you say, like popped in my email, your smiling face popped up on my screen. I was like, Oh, were you on holiday? You were Hawaii when you sent it? Yeah, I was in Puerto Rico. It's like you can just do it wherever. Maybe like super jealous of the weather. I think I was in Whistler when I got it. It's like you can just do it wherever. Maybe like super jealous of the weather. I think I was in Whistler when I got it. It was like snow and cold. Thank you so much for these tips. There have been so many. I've been frantically taking notes as well. I want you to tell our listeners

about impacting millions though, because what you are doing and how you are helping entrepreneurs reach more people is truly incredible. And I want our listeners to know about it. Oh, thank you so much. I'm so passionate about this work. And I'm really passionate about elevating the next generation of experts and thought leaders and coaches and just helping entrepreneurs get their work out to more people who really need it. So a lot of the people that I help feel like on some level, they're a best kept secret

that really there is like a much bigger world that should be knowing about their work. And I want to ultimately take them from best kept secret to admired industry leader and household name in their niche. And so I do that by helping them with publicity. yourself to the media. What's your story? What's your credibility markers, your expert topics, all of that stuff, and help you figure out like how you're going to get into various types of media, depending on what your goals are, but magazines, TV, podcasts, and top websites. And then we also have added a new module, becoming a guest expert in other people's paid programs, whether you're the guest expert of the month in their membership program, or you are a speaker or teacher in their mastermind group. So really like the range of different visibility and publicity opportunities to get in front of more ideal people for your programs, your products, and your services. So we go super deep and the program is seven modules, but we have year long support. And so every single month we have calls with a media professional who is there to review your story ideas and pitches and messaging and give

you feedback. And we share opportunities in the group and everyone in the group is someone who is growing and building their platform. So it's also a really great place to build relationships. So I open doors for impacting millions just once a year. And I'm super grateful to Danielle and Natalie for giving me an opportunity to share it with their audience. So there's a link to my video series, which will get you on the list to learn about impacting millions. And basically, this video series is going to show you step by step how to get publicity. And it includes amazing resources like a list of 200 top media outlets for you to consider. It includes a media calendar with 52 weeks of story ideas, a seven-step action plan.

So there's just like so much when you sign up for the video series. And the other cool thing that we're doing is one lucky person who signs up and answers a few short questions. So I know you actually watch the videos and you'll get a chance to win an all expenses paid trip to New York City for us to hang out and for me to introduce you to some of the media and influencers in my network. So we have a special link at impactingmillions.com slash bossbait. Thank you so much. And I can personally vouch for your work because Selena's actually just done the, what we call a success kit for our membership the society and it has been epic so many people have loved it and get this even before I met you I actually downloaded your media calendar before it's good it's amazing so good so helpful and just I think

sometimes it can be a little bit daunting, particularly for those people who maybe don't have a huge team right now. There's a few of them. They don't necessarily have experts in certain areas. So I think it just, for me, the media calendar was just like, oh, this is so simple and just awesome. So definitely guys make sure you sign up to watch those videos because it was really cool. I just want to bring this interview to an end. I genuinely feel so grateful to have met you and to have you in our lives and what you've done with Boss Babe and the support you've given us within society has been phenomenal. So thank you so much for that. And thank you for sharing your wisdom with our listeners. I know they're going to have so many takeaways from this episode.

Awesome. Thanks again for having me. And I look forward to connecting with your people and supporting them. You can go to impactingmillions.com slash boss babe. And I look forward to connecting with your people further and supporting them in whatever way I can. If you enjoyed this episode, we would love it if you subscribed and left us a review. Let us know what you enjoyed, what your main takeaways were, and who you'd like to see appear on the show.

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