You don't have a sales problem. You have a visibility problem.
Here's how to fix it and unleash your growth 💪
Every small business owner faces challenges when it comes to growing their business, but let’s talk about the most common one that holds SO many back: visibility.
Building a business is not just about launching a beautiful website or even having the perfect product—it’s about making sure the right people actually know you exist.
Because more often than not, if you're a small business, you’re starting from zero (or darn close to it), right?
You have zero brand recognition. Nobody knows who you are, what you offer, or how you can help them.
And if they don't know those things, they will not buy. So visibility is kinda sorta crazy important.
The good news? This post is going to show you exactly why visibility is such a game-changer and how you can get loads more of it for your business in a way that works for you. Even if you're working solo, have a budget the width of a shoestring, and spend hours engaging on social media every day.
Stick with me, friend. I got you.😘
More visibility = more sales
Critical business truth: You will never sell more than the number of people who know you exist. 🫳🎤
I remember the first time I heard that. It seems like such a simple concept, but it legitimately blew my mind and made me completely rethink where and how I was showing up.
People can’t be expected to purchase from you if they’ve never heard of you before.
Give that a moment to really sink in. Think about all the time you’ve spent crafting your offer, tweaking your website, or perfecting your customer service. None of it matters if no one knows you exist. It’s like throwing a party but forgetting to send out invitations.
Awareness IS the invitation. That’s why it's the most important part of growing your business.
It's also the part so many people skip over because they want to see the sales, so they put all their focus on what they need to do to make sales. Of course, we all want sales—duh.
But in reality, sales only come after visibility. So you need to start by focusing on what you need to do to get more of the right people to see you.
I’ll say it again for the business owners in the back:
📢 People can’t be expected to purchase from you if they’ve never heard of you before.
Is your visibility math mathing?
Marketing, my friend, is really just a glorified numbers game.
(Okay, so there’s a *leetle* more that goes into it than that, but if your math isn’t mathing, none of the rest of it matters.)
The more people you make aware of your business, the more people you’ll have who are interested. The more people who are interested? The more who will buy.
Consider this:
The average ecommerce website converts at 1-2%. That means that for every 100 people who visit, on average 1 to 2 of them will purchase.
If you want to make a sale a day and your website is converting at 1%, you need to get 100 people to your site every single day.
But say you're posting to Instagram and on average, your click-through rate on a post is 3%. That means that you need *scribbles furiously on whiteboard Einstein style* over 3,000 people to SEE that post to get 100 people to your site in a single day.
(If you're thinking that sounds damn near impossible with your small but mighty following of 600 people, you'd be correct. Hence why it's so dang important to have a strategy that goes beyond social media.)
It’s math, plain and simple. You need the numbers to make the math work.
Why visibility is such a problem for those of us who are small
But let's just come right out and address the giant elephant in the Zoom room. 🐘 Visibility is especially challenging for us small business owners.
It’s hard to get yourself seen these days. The internet is noisy, algorithms are unpredictable, and the competition is fierce. We’re operating with limited resources, and minimal budget. And marketing takes precious time that we're not exactly swimming in.
Truthfully, visibility can feel like a treadmill that never stops. You’re already busy running your business, so where do you even find the hours to learn that new platform, or design that new asset, or engage endlessly on IG? (But srsly—where?)
But you’ve got to keep getting in front of new people and filling the top of your funnel. Otherwise, it’s like sand through an hourglass. It eventually runs its way through.
And when that happens? Your funnel starts drying up. No new eyeballs = no new leads = no new customers.
Consistent sales require consistent visibility
Consistent visibility is a non-negotiable for business growth. Period.
If you want more customers, you need more people interested in your offer. And if you want more people interested in your offer, you need—say it with me now—visibility.
When you’re trying to juggle all the hats—running your business, creating your product or service, keeping your customers happy—showing up consistently can feel next to impossible.
But here's the good news:
There are a million and one ways to get visibility for your business.
And no, they don’t all require you to show up dancing, pointing, or gesticulating wildly on social media (unless that’s your jam—in which case, go for it, friend).
Some of them don't even require you to show up every day, buns in chair, fingers typing feverishly to manage them.
Only have 20 minutes a day to devote to marketing? That's cool. There are visibility methods for you.
Don't like showing your face on video? No prob. There are visibility methods for you, too.
The key to effective visibility is to have a strategy for when, where, and how you're going to show up. A strategy helps you operate from a place of intention and confidence, instead of wild speculation and unfocused effort.
You're designing your path to success, not blindly stumbling your way through it. Which means you'll get where you want to go a hell of a lot faster.
Find the Visibility Strategy That Works for YOU
You are unique. Your business is unique. Your audience is unique.
What works for someone else won’t necessarily work for you—and not only is that okay, that’s actually a good thing. It means you get to build a strategy that aligns with your strengths, your schedule, and your goals.
Instead of trying to squeeze yourself into a box that doesn’t fit, you’re free to carve out a path that’s uniquely yours—one that feels sustainable and enjoyable.
Maybe you’re short on time and can’t devote hours to social media. No problem. You can:
Run paid ads on social media.
Lean into SEO to help people find you through search.
Start a Substack to grow your audience through email.
Network on Alignable or LinkedIn.
Go all in on wholesale partnerships or affiliate programs.
Or do something completely different!
The point is you have *options.*
It’s a living document I keep updated as I try new things for my clients, so bookmark it and refer to it as you need inspiration!
When you know you have choices, you can build your visibility and larger marketing strategy around an approach that fits your life—whether that means low-maintenance, low-cost, or something in between.
The key? Stop wasting your time, energy, and resources on channels where you don’t actually want to be.
Like everything in business, visibility is what you make it.
Final word of advice: visibility alone isn’t enough
Here’s the kicker: what you do with the visibility you get is key.
Eyeballs are worthless if you don’t do anything with them.
Once you get the eyeballs, you’ve got to figure out who’s interested.
You might get in front of a ton of people, but only a handful will truly be into what you’re offering. And those are the people you want to capture… like a butterfly in a net.
Once you’ve identified those people, the goal is to keep showing up for them until they make a decision—either to move forward with your business or not.
(Which will be a different post for a different day. So if want to keep learning, make sure you subscribe!)
This isn’t just about getting people in the door. It’s about inviting them into your world and taking them on a journey until they’re ready to take action.
And that’s the entire point of marketing, isn’t it?
All good advice, and looking forward on more of how to use Substack specifically.
And a question—are you the Morgan of Atlas and Anchor as well? If so, loved your newsletter!
Nice mic drop moment! It sounds simple but so true: the more people that know you, the more chances you have of converting them into customers. The real trick is finding the right people!