Stop Building Your Business on Borrowed Land: The Marketing Strategy You Own
You know that sinking feeling when you post on Instagram and hear crickets? Or when you spend an hour crafting the perfect TikTok and it gets 47 views? Social media promised us everything: free marketing, direct access to customers, a business we could run from our phones.
But here's what they didn't tell you: you don't actually own any of it. Your followers aren't yours. Your content isn't yours. And the platform can change the rules—or disappear entirely—at any moment.
I learned this lesson watching businesses get blindsided by the 2014 Facebook algorithm change. Overnight, brands that had spent years building audiences saw their organic reach cut by 80%. "But they're MY fans!" they protested. Except they weren't. They were Facebook users who happened to follow a page.
This episode breaks down why social media alone can't build your business and what you need instead: a three-piece marketing strategy built on platforms you actually own.
In this episode, you'll learn:
Why relying solely on social media is building your business on borrowed land
The real story behind the 2014 Facebook algorithm change that destroyed business pages overnight (00:04:15)
How to create a sales funnel that seamlessly moves people from Instagram to your website (00:08:45)
Why email marketing is your secret weapon when algorithms fail (00:13:52)
What your website should actually do (not just sit there looking pretty) (00:18:20)
The three-course marketing meal framework: appetizer, main course, dessert (00:21:45)
Resources mentioned:
FloDesk (email marketing platform) *affiliate link
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Full Episode Transcript
# (40) Stop Building Your Business on Borrowed Land: The Marketing Strategy You Own
[00:00:00] You're spending hours on Instagram and TikTok, scrolling, creating, imitating, but your business isn't really growing. What if I told you that social media can't actually build your business alone?
[00:00:13] Welcome to Ditch The Chaos. I'm Cara Chace, and this is your space to figure out how to run your life and business without running yourself into the ground. Today I'm breaking down my social media alone won't cut it to build your business. And the three piece marketing strategy that actually works if you're an entrepreneur or small business owner.
[00:00:31] Let's get to it.
[00:00:34] Okay? I get it. Social media feels like the easy button answer to everything. It's free. It's where everyone hangs out. It's possible to build an audience, share your work, and make sales without paying for a website or dealing with tech. And in the early days of social media for business like 2012 era, a lot of people bought into this idea completely.
[00:00:55] I got started in digital marketing and social media, in the music industry, [00:01:00] and I knew firsthand of a record company that told a band, you don't need a website, just use your Facebook page. Um, no. Because relying on social media as your sole digital presence is a super risky move. You don't own your audience there.
[00:01:16] You don't control the platform, and these platforms can change their rules overnight or just disappear entirely 14 years later. Most business owners know this, but they aren't sure what to do about it, and they put it in the deal with it later bucket. But without a solid website and email marketing strategy, you're building your business on borrowed land.
[00:01:37] And borrowed land can be taken away at any moment. So today we're talking about why social media can't stand alone and how to create a sustainable marketing strategy that combines the best of all your digital tools. Let's start with the biggest misconception about social media that your followers, likes, and comments belong to you.
[00:01:58] And maybe you [00:02:00] actually know that they don't technically belong to you, but you act like it and you're just kind of pretending that they do, but they don't. Again, this is pretty common knowledge at this point, but it bears repeating. Just ask any influencer whose account has been shut down. Every single one of those metrics, the followers, the likes, the engagement, it's tied to the platform itself, and the platform can revoke your access, change your visibility, or even shut down your account sometimes without warning.
[00:02:28] Social media networks have become a huge part of our daily lives, for better or for worse, they're one of the only ways besides actual word of mouth and in-person networking that people use to make decisions about how to spend their money and what to buy and who to give their a attention to. But here's the mistake that most brands make.
[00:02:48] They think that they have any right to or own anything about their social profiles. And you just don't. So let me give you an example. In 2014, Facebook famously [00:03:00] reduced the organic reach of business pages.
[00:03:03] That huge algorithm change sent shockwaves through the marketing world. For years, Facebook had provided a free platform where brands were acquiring, interacting with, and selling to their customers. And then overnight they decided, yeah, and now it's time to collect businesses were outraged, but they're my fans.
[00:03:23] Well, no they're not. They're Facebook users who entered into an agreement with Facebook, not you. If Facebook decided tomorrow that none of your fans can see your page at all without you paying for it, that's their right, because you're playing by their rules the technology that they built. Instagram and TikTok and every other social platform operates the same way.
[00:03:47] Their algorithms decide who sees your content and when, and you can spend hours creating the perfect reel or carousel. But if the algorithm doesn't favor it, your audience won't see it. Social platforms are [00:04:00] businesses with their own interests and their terms of service. Often grant them rights over your content and impose restrictions you might not even realize until it's too late.
[00:04:09] They can change those rules anytime they want and they can decide if your content violates community guidelines, even if it didn't yesterday. They can shadow ban you, limit your reach, delete your account, and you have zero recourse because you don't own the platform. And here's another scary truth.
[00:04:27] Platforms rise and fall. Do you remember MySpace? I do, or Vine? Both were massive at their peak and then they weren't. If your entire business depends on one social network, what happens if it goes out of style or maybe it gets replaced by the next big thing, or what if it just shuts down? You lose everything.
[00:04:48] Your audience, your content, your sales pipeline, all of it. So the question I want you to ask yourself is, if Instagram went offline tomorrow, or Facebook decided none of your fans could see your [00:05:00] page, how would you let people know what you're up to or what you're selling or how you can help them? If the answer is, I don't know, then you've probably got a problem that will come due sooner or later.
[00:05:11] Okay. I think you get the point I'm making about social media in your audience. Clearly, it's a soapbox issue for me, and I'm not saying that social media doesn't have a place in your marketing strategy. It does. It just can't be the only place. Your social media strategy should focus on one primary goal.
[00:05:28] Funneling your audience towards platforms you actually own, which are two things, your website and your email list. Let me give you an example of how this works, and I'm going to use what I know best, which is how a band should be using social media. You can apply this same principle to any business, but it's useful to illustrate using this example.
[00:05:50] So here's how this would work. An Instagram reel is posted of one of the band members getting ready to go out on the road. The caption is [00:06:00] authentic and heartfelt. Talking about what going on the road is like, what the fans mean to them, what they're looking forward to. It's not buy tickets here or download the latest album now, none of that.
[00:06:11] Instead, the link in the profile is a trackable link that goes directly to their tour dates on their website. The fan clicks the link and is redirected to the band's mobile friendly website, which lists all the upcoming dates with show and ticket info. Hopefully the fan decides to buy a ticket.
[00:06:29] Awesome. Now, here's the important part. The band should be able to capture these emails from the ticket vendor. If you're not getting this info from your vendor, you need to put that in your contract, discuss this with your management teams, all of those things. You should do your best to fix that as soon as possible.
[00:06:47] After purchasing the ticket, the fan should receive a thank you email from you, not the vendor, with a merch coupon and a form to leave their social handles. Then a band member posts a [00:07:00] short video clip thanking that fan personally. If they left their social handles and saying, see you at the show, that fan, oh my goodness, their whole life is made.
[00:07:11] They feel seen. They feel connected. They become a lifelong customer. Did you imagine, could you feel that whole interaction? Could you imagine what that would feel like for you if you were a fan of a band? Do you feel how it all flows seamlessly and authentically? Now, not every single site visitor is gonna buy a ticket, but that should be the goal.
[00:07:32] So your socials should, should serve, say that three times fast, to send people to where you can best serve them and build that relationship. This is what I did when I was the social media manager for the band Megadeth and Dave Mustaine from around 2011, 2012 to 2015, is I built that fan engagement and those relationships authentically.
[00:07:56] On what was very new social media profiles at the time. [00:08:00] So now let's talk about the tool that so many entrepreneurs and small business owners are sleeping on, or at least not doing super well. Email marketing. In the era of overflowing social feeds and content over consumption, email marketing has reemerged in the last few years as a vital strategy and here's why.
[00:08:18] Unlike social posts, emails land directly in inboxes, there's a much better chance that your audience will see your message. No algorithm gatekeeping your content. No shadow bans, no. Only 3% of your followers will see this post nonsense. When you send an email, it shows up and if your subject line is compelling, they'll probably open it.
[00:08:41] So let me break down why email is so powerful. It gives you direct access. Like I just said, there's no algorithms deciding who sees your content. You hit send, it lands in their inbox, and you're done. You also get automation power. You can set up welcome sequences, product launches, sale reminders [00:09:00] that run on autopilot, and once you build them, they work for you 24 7.
[00:09:05] And there's personalization. This is also called segmenting your audience, so you can tailor specific messages to specific needs or where they're at in the customer journey. Someone who bought your course gets different emails than someone who's still on the fence. You can't do that on Instagram. And people check their email, even if they don't open every message, they see your name in their inbox, and that repeated visibility builds trust and keeps you top of mind.
[00:09:33] So how do you actually get people on your email list? The typical email funnel is to offer something valuable in exchange for an email address, a freebie, a guide, a quiz, a discount code, whatever makes sense for your business. Just make sure it's actually valuable and not AI slop that will break that trust before you even have it.
[00:09:53] Where I actually see a lot of entrepreneurs doing it wrong is they create a freebie and then nothing. They [00:10:00] don't follow up or the opposite problem, they send their brand new relationship, 22 emails in one week. That's not nurturing a relationship.
[00:10:10] When someone signs up for your email list, they're raising their hand and saying, I'm interested in what you do.
[00:10:15] Your job is to continue that conversation. Send them a welcome sequence, share helpful content, invite them to buy when it makes sense, but don't just send them a one-off email or send them way too many emails and then go silent. It's not a strategy, it's a missed connection.
[00:10:31] If you are looking for an email provider, I now recommend FloDesk. It's designed for creators and entrepreneurs, and it's easy to use, even if you're not super tech savvy. I'll put my affiliate link in the show notes and I recommend it because I genuinely believe it's a great tool that I use and I love, not just because I get a commission.
[00:10:49] Now let's talk about your website, because this is the piece that ties social media and the email marketing together. No one can change the rules. It's yours. And having a clear, [00:11:00] updated, and easy to navigate website is crucial for converting visitors into loyal customers.
[00:11:05] Your website should, number one, speak to your audience. Use language and visuals that resonate with them. If you're speaking to exhausted entrepreneurs, your site should feel like a breath of fresh air, not another overwhelming jargon filled sales page.
[00:11:21] Then you wanna guide your visitors. Seamlessly lead them through your sales funnels, your options to work with you or your products that are available. Make it easy for them to find what they're looking for and take the next step. And you wanna encourage signups. Make it ridiculously easy for people to subscribe to your newsletter or your freebie or discounts.
[00:11:41] Don't hide that signup form. Put it front and center. And showcase your offerings, highlight your products, services, your portfolio. If someone lands on your site, they should immediately understand what you do and how you can help them. A polished website should also integrate tools for tracking performance, [00:12:00] capturing leads, and supporting your brand story.
[00:12:03] And your website does not have to be fancy. You don't have to hire a designer. It doesn't have to have a million bells and whistles. It just needs to be functional, clear, and aligned with your brand, with all the website tools out there, it's now easier than ever to get this done.
[00:12:19] The biggest mistake I see entrepreneurs make with their websites is they treat it like kind of a brochure instead of a sales tool or a relationship building tool, they put up a pretty homepage. They write some vague about me content, and then there's not much else there. There's no clear call to action.
[00:12:36] There's no place to sign up for emails. There's no pathway for visitors to actually engage with their work. Your website should be working for you. It should be converting visitors to subscribers, subscribers to customers and customers into fans. If your website isn't doing that, it's time to take a look at how to update it.
[00:12:55] So let's bring this all together as a time management coach. This is one [00:13:00] of the first things I dive into with a client. How much time are they spending on social media marketing versus updating their website, creating content that lives on their website or email marketing? Is all that social media time creating actual leads?
[00:13:15] And what's their true return on investment if they're spending tons of time posting on social media with little to no returns? We need to completely reevaluate those priorities and time spent. The truth is, it's probably because it feels like low hanging fruit that's free and easy to do, but who knows? It might just be the permission that you, or they need to let go of so much time on social media so they can take care of their business and their customers in a more meaningful way.
[00:13:47] Okay, we're gonna think of your marketing strategy as a three course meal. Social media is the happy hour appetizer. It's the mozzarella sticks. It grabs attention, it's easy, it satisfies, it [00:14:00] gets people interested. Your website is the main course. It satisfies your audience on a different level with real substance and value.
[00:14:08] And then you have your email marketing, which is the dessert. It nurtures long-term relationships. It keeps people coming back for more. It's unexpected and a delight. Each piece serves a specific purpose. When you combine them, you create a sustainable, scalable strategy that protects your business from the unpredictability of social platforms,
[00:14:29] because social media is important, but it's not enough. Platforms come and go. Policies change, algorithms control visibility, and the only way to safeguard your business is by creating and owning your digital real estate, A website and an email list that anchor your brand for the long haul. So build your marketing strategy on a solid foundation.
[00:14:51] Social media can be the icing, but your website and email list are the cake. Okay, enough with the food analogies, here's your reset and reclaim action [00:15:00] step for the week. Pick one platform you currently own your website or your email list and commit to improving it this week.
[00:15:07] If you don't have a website yet, set up a simple landing page with your name, what you do, and an email sign up form. That's it. Keep it simple. If you already have a website, but no email list, sign up for an email service provider, which you're legally required to do as a business. Again, I recommend FloDesk and create a freebie or some sort of signup form on your homepage.
[00:15:28] If you have both, but you haven't sent an email in months, sit down and write one. Tell your list what you've been up to and how you can help them. This week, the goal is to stop relying on social media alone and start building relationships on platforms you actually own.
[00:15:43] If you're tired of holding your business together with duct tape and coffee, I'd love to have you join the Productivity Rebellion.
[00:15:49] It's my free monthly guide for women who refuse to choose between success and sanity. You'll get monthly strategies for navigating your chaotic life behind the scenes. Stories from my business, [00:16:00] not Instagram perfect reels and reel. Talk about what actually works when your week falls apart by Tuesday.
[00:16:05] Plus, you can submit your questions and I'll answer them right here on the show. No weekly emails because I know you're already exhausted just once a month with the good stuff. Sign up for free at carachace.com/productivity-rebellion. Thanks for listening. If this helped, leave a review and share it with a friend who's building their business entirely on Instagram.
[00:16:27] I'm Cara Chace reminding you to keep questioning the rules and making your own.
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