The Social Strategist

Latest Episodes:

Ep 288, Pt 2: Creating Real Connections with IG Followers with Mandi Gubler from Happy Happy Houseplant Feb 20, 2024

Show notes

Welcome to the first week of my Instagram success story series, where I am interviewing people who are finding success on Instagram. The whole goal of this series is to show you the different ways you can create growth on the Gram. These are interviews from real people, real businesses, and they don't hold anything back.

In this second half of the episode, Mandi from Happy Happy Houseplant is diving deep into the specific Instagram strategies she uses to grow her product based business at Happy Happy Houseplant. It's all about real connection with your followers! She shares the real and she shares the raw and a couple of swear words. So get ready!

This episode is so good, it went extra long, so I split it up into two episodes. Make sure to download part one as well, where we explore Mandi's business transformation.

Enter Mandi's jungle on Instagram @HappyHappyHouseplant ! Check out her viral Instagram Reel and peruse the rest to learn a thing or twelve!

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts, just like Mandi did!

Join Insta Social Society this February to get your first month for $1! Experience how easy IG content creation can be with monthly trending audio, content planning outlines, Canva templates, master classes with me, and more!

Check out my Instagram @iammichellegifford and join February's REEL Love Challenge that will get you posting to IG the easy way, DAILY!

Join Grow the Gram: the 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

I would love a rating and review below so others can find me and get help with Instagram, too!

Ep 288, Pt 1: 256k to 609k in 1 Year with Mandi Gubler from Happy Happy Houseplant Feb 20, 2024

Show notes

This episode is so good, it went extra long, so I split it up into two episodes. Make sure to download part two as well, where we dive into the specific Instagram strategies she employs for growth.

In this first episode, Mandi from Happy Happy Houseplant is diving deep into the transformation she has endured to go from a personal brand over at her old DIY, influencer business, Vintage Revivals, to creating a different, product based business at Happy Happy Houseplant. In this first episode, she shares the real and she shares the raw and a couple of swear words. So get ready!

Enter Mandi's jungle on Instagram @HappyHappyHouseplant !

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts, just like Mandi did!

Check out my Instagram @iammichellegifford and join February's REEL Love Challenge that will get you posting to IG the easy way, DAILY!

Join Grow the Gram: the 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

I would love a rating and review below so others can find me and get help with Instagram, too!

Ep 287 5 Minute Instagram Growth Strategies and A Big Announcement Feb 15, 2024

Show notes

What if there were some things that you could do right now, that only took a few minutes that could completely boost and change your Instagram? We will dive into several concrete, actionable steps that you can take right now to improve your bio, name, handle, text usage on covers, profile photo, content, reel covers, and content bank creation.

I also have a pretty big announcement that is going to affect how this podcast goes in the near future! I will be interviewing different guests in different genres, with a variety of offerings to learn about the logistics and strategies that they are using for Instagram specific growth. We'll also discuss the behind the scenes elements that create their success including mindset and emotional things they've had to alter to get the growth that they're seeing right now.

Join Insta Social Society this February to get your first month for $1! Experience how easy IG content creation can be with monthly trending audio, content planning outlines, Canva templates, master classes with me, and more!

Check out my Instagram @iammichellegifford for February's REEL Love Challenge that will get you posting to IG without a fuss, DAILY!

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts.

Join Grow the Gram: our 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

Read the blog post HERE.

We would love a rating and review below so others can get help with Instagram, too!

Ep 286 How To Achieve "Atomic Growth" In Your Business with Chris Richards Feb 13, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, Chris Richards of Atomic Growth teaches about five business archetypes and how knowing what you are can help you overcome obstacles in your personal life and business growth. Chris and Michelle discuss examples of each of the types and identify both the advantageous and more detrimental and qualities of each. Take Chris's free business archetype quiz to see what you are so you can start breaking through barriers today! Are you a trailblazer, experimentalist, sage, strategist, or caretaker/hero or a bit of a few of them?!

Visit Chris at https://atomicgrowth.co.uk and get started on challenging and improving your mindset. You can also find him on LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Check out my Instagram @iammichellegifford for February's REEL Love Challenge that will get you posting to IG without a fuss, DAILY!

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts.

Join Grow the Gram: our 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

Read the Blog post HERE.

Leave a review below!

Ep 285 Are Courses Out? Get Industry Secrets from Wes Wages Feb 08, 2024

Show notes

Is course creation dead? Expert Wes Wages of Armosa Studios assures us that it is not! He tells us that, "the world is ready to learn from you"! There are a few simple steps Wes shares to creating a course. At the first stages, just get it out of your head: just start writing and block it out (or use Chat GPT!), then video a simple first draft on your phone. Send out your course to friends for feedback and move on from there! Creating a course can be easy to do, and Wes gives all the tips and tricks in this episode.

To find a solution today for creating your own course on your budget with some help, visit Wes at FilmYourCourse.com

Find Film Your Course on Instagram @film.your.course or at it's parent site @armosastudios

Check out my Instagram @iammichellegifford for February's REEL Love Challenge that will get you posting to IG without a fuss, DAILY!

Read the blog post HERE

Ep 284 Easy Template to Host Your Own Mastermind Feb 06, 2024

Show notes

In this episode I share some secrets of how to host your own mastermind–no need to wait to be invited to one! There are several elements that are awesome to include, such as: business vision declaration, hot seat questions, business audits, expert hours for teaching your expertise to others, content planning time, and dedicated content creation time. Inviting people you trust from industries other than your own and that have expertise in their area is a recipe for a successful meeting for everyone! Give this episode a listen for more details and a run down of my weekend with Janssen Bradshaw of Everyday Reading, Lisa Funk of Hand Lettered Design, and Rachel Nielson from the 3 in 30 Takeaways for Moms podcast.

Check out my Instagram @iammichellegifford for February's REEL Love Challenge that will get you posting to IG without a fuss, DAILY!

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts.

Join Grow the Gram: our 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

Read the blog post HERE

Ep 283 $75M to $750M, Steal Stanley Cup's Strategy Feb 01, 2024

Show notes

In this follow-up episode, we break down specific and actionable strategies to up your sales and therefore your income. Use these strategies from Stanley Cup and the Buy Guide to meet the needs of your clients and keep them coming back to you for more!

Solve your customer's pain points and problems
Create influencer marketing campaigns
Increase lifetime customer value so you can continue solving their problems by:
1. Adding complimentary products
2. Bundling products
3. Guiding customers to renew products
4. Listening and creating new products

Follow The Buy Guide HERE on Instagram or visit their website TheBuyGuide.com to buy a Stanley cup, and leave a rating and review below for a chance to WIN one!

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts.

Join Grow the Gram: our 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

Join Insta Social Society today for monthly trending audio, content planning outlines, Canva templates, master classes with me, and more!

Also be sure to follow along on Instagram @iammichellegifford.

I'd love it if you would leave a rating and review below for your chance to win a Stanley Cup!

Read the blog post HERE

Ep 282 Stanley Cup: Secret Viral Strategy with The Buy Guide Jan 30, 2024

Show notes

Instagram genius, Taylor Cannon, shares the story of how she and her two business partners, Ashlee and Linley, fought to partner with 100-year-old company Stanley-PMI to resurrect and reimagine their discontinued 40 ounce Quencher. They took a product that was traditionally marketed to an outdoorsy, mostly male customer base and said, "let's make your durable, high quality, hardworking cup in a pink." The Buy Guide girls loved the cup for its functionality and quality, and because they love sharing the best with their followers, they took a leap and went all in to get it into our hands... in pink, and blue, and teal, and...

Taylor tells how their marketing techniques created record breaking sales for Stanley. With the Stanley partnership, they implemented some techniques you can use as well:

Sell a product that is genuinely great
Expand your customer base: women 25-55 are the buyers
Create win-win scenarios, so influencers are incentivized to share your product
Create a "hero product" that brings people in to buy and expands your bottom line across the board

Taylor stresses the importance of keeping social media as your job and not your life or your identity. Creating boundaries with the use of IG and staying in their chosen lane with the way they share, rather than following the trends, and remembering their goals, has created happiness and balance with the way The Buy Guide operates.

Follow @TheBuyGuide on Instagram and visit their website TheBuyGuide.com to buy a Stanley cup. Also, leave a rating and review on our podcast below for a chance to WIN one!

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts.

Join Grow the Gram: our 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

Join Insta Social Society today for monthly trending audio, content planning outlines, Canva templates, master classes with me, and more!

Also be sure to follow along on Instagram @iammichellegifford.

I'd love it if you would leave a 5 star rating and review below for your chance to win a Stanley Cup!

Read the blog post HERE

Ep 281 How I Got on Stage at Traffic and Conversion Summit Jan 25, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, I share my secrets for what it took to land a spot teaching Instagram onstage alongside Richard Branson, Daymond John, and Ryan Deiss at the number one event in the US for the AI driven marketer: the Traffic and Conversion Summit in Las Vegas.

The steps to get there are simple, but consistency and a little discomfort are key to making it work.

Say "yes" to the hard stuff
Invest in beneficial relationships
Invest in yourself
Success breeds success

These steps will help you "get on the stage" with your business, whether it be launching your product, building a community, or whatever your dream.

Check out these podcast interview I did with some of the people I surround myself with:

-My previous episode with Dustin Riechmann, who is the master of teaching how to guest podcast.

-Listen here for the podcast I did with Brooke Casanovas where she shares 3 secrets to getting more sales.

I just wanna help you succeed at your dream business, so check these helpful links:

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts.

Join Grow the Gram: our 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

Join Insta Social Society today for monthly trending audio, content planning outlines, Canva templates, master classes with me, and more!

Also be sure to follow along on Instagram @iammichellegifford.

Don't forget to leave a rating and review below so others can find me and get the business help they need, too!

Read the blog post HERE

Ep 280 Guest Podcasting Secrets from My Podcast Coach, Dustin Riechmann Jan 23, 2024

Show notes

In this exciting episode, Dustin Riechmann of 7 Figure Leap shares example after example about how your network is your net worth. Developing relationships with others is a key strategy to business growth. Dustin teaches how guest podcasting will create win-win-win scenarios for everyone involved. As you speak on a podcast, you will gain exposure to your target market with little effort; the audience will receive insights from your interview; and the host wins because her/his audience is being enriched and so her/his influence will grow and downloads increase. Dustin then guides us on how to make these win-win-win scenarios happen through his "5 P Framework": purpose, plan, pitch, perform, profit. He shares about his 7 Figure Leap Mastermind podcast accelerator that he conducts with a group of 15-20 other entrepreneurs.

Follow Dustin on LinkedIn HERE.

Visit his website to learn more about how to grow your business through his Mastermind and download his free Playbook with tools, templates and case studies to make it as easy as possible to grow your business through interviews.

We would love to help you grow your business! Click HERE to apply to work with our experts.

Join Grow the Gram: our 8 week Michelle-guided course designed to grow your Instagram following and your profits in less time!

Join Insta Social Society today for monthly trending audio, content planning outlines, Canva templates, master classes with me, and more!

Also be sure to follow along on Instagram @iammichellegifford.

I'd love it if you would leave a rating and review!

Read the blog post HERE