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Restaurateur and digital media entrepreneur Shawn Walchef is acquainted pinch being ignored. He couldn't beryllium much grateful for what it's taught him.
When his early efforts to turn San Diego's Cali BBQ done section news outlets and property releases were met pinch "crickets," he turned to societal media — not arsenic an expert, but arsenic a funny business owner consenting to clasp his unpolished self. By posting authentically and consistently, Walchef discovered the existent drivers of integer connection: raw storytelling, persistence and a willingness to beryllium susceptible online earlier uncovering an audience.
Coming up connected celebrating 17 years successful business, Walchef's refined accuracy centers connected "digital hospitality," the thought that each entrepreneur is successful the business of hospitality. Accordingly, they should leverage exertion to foster connection. His communicative inspires like-minded mini businesses to elevate their branding by embracing online authenticity.
When Walchef first started creating contented for Cali BBQ, he didn't person the resources for an knowledgeable media squad aliases instrumentality setup. To him, it didn't matter. One of his biggest revelations was that unscripted moments tin beryllium immoderate of the astir impactful, and audiences will admit the honesty.
"You request to declare your voice, declare your story, and commencement sharing it," Walchef says. "Some of our best-performing contented is virtually erstwhile I'm conscionable unrecorded streaming astatine my restaurant."
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During the pandemic, for example, Walchef decided to do a TikTok unrecorded watercourse for 4 hours straight: "I told my family, 'I'm going to unrecorded watercourse either until my telephone dies aliases my limb falls off.'" Though he didn't get galore viewers, Walchef didn't mind — he turned his attraction to the users who did tune in. On this stream, Walchef connected pinch a family watching from North Carolina, who ended up visiting his edifice successful San Diego the pursuing day. Moments for illustration these item the value of putting yourself retired there, sloppy of first assemblage size.
As for popularity, "People don't attraction [about followers and views]," Walchef says. "The group who do tune in, they're the ones who matter because they're the ones who are going to urge you. When they deliberation astir storytelling, erstwhile they deliberation astir business, erstwhile they deliberation astir podcasts, erstwhile they deliberation astir barbecue, erstwhile they deliberation astir catering, they'll deliberation of you."
Another communal obstruction for business owners is the fearfulness of not producing "quality" content. Walchef warns that this mindset is counterproductive. By focusing connected producing much contented alternatively than perfecting a azygous video aliases post, he precocious his storytelling skills and organically grew his audience. Repetition and velocity are contented values that helped him flooded self-doubt.
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"It's not astir making 1 video. It's like, how do I make 1,000? If you get your mind into a spot wherever I request to do 1,000 videos, 1 video a time for 1,000 days, you will beryllium shocked astatine really overmuch amended you'll get — really overmuch little judgmental you'll beryllium of your marque standards and the value that will build from that," Walchef says.
His mantra for integer engagement is simple: "Be the show, not the commercial." Audiences don't want to consciousness for illustration they're being sold to; they want to consciousness connected to the story. Rather than creating posts that scream, "Buy my product," Walchef recommends showing the group and passion down your business.
"What the net wants is to show maine the process. Show maine the work!" Walchef says. For instance, Cali BBQ's astir compelling contented highlights its pitmasters preparing barbeque aliases gives behind-the-scenes penetration into running a restaurant, showcasing the brand's humanity.
Walchef's societal media accounts thrive connected the knowing that the existent worth of integer media lies successful building meaningful relationships, not conscionable broadcasting messages. He cautions against what he calls "posting and ghosting" aliases failing to prosecute pinch your assemblage aft publishing content.
"If personification writes a review connected Yelp aliases engages pinch your post, they're a quality being," Walchef says. Responding personally to comments and reviews proves to customers that they're valued.
"That's what integer hospitality is," Walchef says. "Hospitality happens successful existent life, but hospitality besides happens online. And it happens erstwhile you perceive and erstwhile you respond pinch empathy, caring and knowing that this is simply a relationship that you tin make and that personification could beryllium supporting your business for generations to come."
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Being an entrepreneur intends you person to learn to admit failure, and Walchef is nary alien to mistakes. "We've closed restaurants," he says. "We've closed shade kitchens. I've started podcasts that didn't make immoderate money that nary 1 listened to. I made bad videos. I had bad news appearances." The key, he says, is persistence. When you support showing up, you support improving — and it each starts pinch the first connection.
"Have the courageousness to look stupid, sound stupid," Walchef says. That's wherever the magic happens.
Since 2008, Cali BBQ has evolved alongside these proof-of-concept principles:
- Share your story, moreover if it feels awkward. Vulnerability successful storytelling tin create deeper trust and relatability pinch your audience contempt initially emotion risky.
- Be the show, not the commercial. Storytelling tin people lead to gross maturation without overt promotion. Value authenticity complete nonstop advertizing to make your assemblage consciousness a portion of your brand.
- Engage pinch your assemblage — don't station and ghost. Engaging successful real-time and promptly responding to comments tin foster a consciousness of immediacy and fortify customer loyalty.
- Respond to affirmative and captious feedback. Every relationship is an opportunity to show customers you attraction and are willing to instrumentality their feedback.
- Assume each assemblage is new. Repeating marque introductions helps guarantee that your connection resonates pinch caller group astatine the correct time.
Listen to the section beneath to perceive straight from Walchef, and subscribe to Behind the Review for much from caller business owners and reviewers each Thursday. Available connected Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Pandora.
Editorial contributions by Alex Miranda and Kristi Lindahl
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