5 Steps to Creating an
Invincible Platform
How you can use social media to clarify your purpose, become
financially independent, and become luckier than all your friends.
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Why did
Winston win?
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He built a
platform.
10 million words
published
•11 volumes
•400 articles
•350 speeches
In 8 years…
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You can build a platform to
create the life you want,
faster.
“It is the ultimate insurance policy and the most
durable form of influence and power.”
- Ryan Holiday, Author
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Hi, I’m
Matt Woods.
Marketer + Developer
mattwoods.io
@matopher
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Where does
Social Media
fit?
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Free tickets to a
marketing
conference —
twice.
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Leveraged LinkedIn to connect with 25 growth
professionals from great companies in ~24 hours
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Opportunities to meet
founders & CEOs
from Hubspot, Drift,
Shareaholic & more
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Passively absorb
without adding to
the conversation
For most people social media is a distraction.
No clear direction or
mission
Pretend to be
experts at
everything
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What if you
did the
opposite?
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Lead a
passionate tribe
by giving first
Solve real problems &
lean into big movements
Don’t create;
Document.
What could a strong platform look like?
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State your
mission
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Understand
your tribe to
find 1,000
true fans
Document
consistently
&
generously
on 1 channel
Do things
that don’t
scale
Build
momentum
and
repurpose
what’s
working
How do you get there?
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What’s the wrong that you can help
people make right?
STATE YOUR MISSION
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Everyone wants to be part of a
larger movement that matters.
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Make your customer (or audience)
the hero.
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Pick one primary channel that makes
sense for you to go deep on.
➡ Ask: Do the people you need to know like to spend time there? Do
you like spending time there?
➡ Who do you already know? Text/Call/In-person
➡ Treat every channel like its own country. LinkedIn has powerful
network effects. It’s your business card / resume. Twitter is great for
talking to strangers with common interests and events.
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Two contrasting specialties = your superpower
MATTWOODS.US
Software
Development
Marketing
(Skill #1)
Your
Superpower
(Skill #2)
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Build a Three-
Circle Network
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MATTWOODS.US
Inner
Circle
Professional
Network
The Crowd
Start with
your Inner
Circle and
grow naturally
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Inner Circle
Prioritize Mentors, role models 1-level above
you, best-in-class peers, and mentees
“Who can I learn from for 10x growth and tough
decisions?”
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Professional Network
Professional groups, “superconnectors,”
classmates, family friends, relatives, former
coworkers
“Who can I ask a favor from with a quick
message?”
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The Crowd
Social media followers, email subscribers,
website visitors, blog post readers
“Who can I meaningfully help today?”
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Major to Networking in 2018 (Without
Being Looking Like a Try-Hard)
• Flashbulb effect. Successful people want to be seen with
other successful people. Your initial connections in a space
carry FAR more importance than your later ones.
• Only post when you have unique value to add. Then make
it count.
• When an opportunity happens - jump on it. Momentum
dies when you sit on it.
• Don’t be afraid to jump out of digital-only communication.
Send an email. Hop on a call. Schedule a coffee meeting.
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Who is the
smallest group of
people you’re
uniquely
positioned to
help?
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Hand to hand
combat > Going
Viral
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Endless follow-up = your new default.
Don’t attribute to hostility what can be
easily blamed on busyness.
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Do things that
don’t scale.
You can’t write 1 million
people a hand-written
note — but that
shouldn’t stop you from
starting the habit!
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Once I followed
up with an
investor 48
times until I got
a meeting.
-Steli Efti, CEO
@ Close.io
“ “No,” can mean
“not right now.”
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General Follow-Up Schedule
Day 1: First follow-up (+2)
Day 3: Follow-up (+4)
Day 7: Follow-up (+7)
Day 14: Follow-up (+14)
Day 28: Follow-up (+30)
Day 58: Follow-up (+30)
… (from there on once a month).
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You only need 1,000 true fans.
True Fan = Someone who will purchase anything and
everything you produce.
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$100 x 1,000
fans = $100,000
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How do you find true fans?
Focus on helping, not self-promoting.
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“When you
make your
platform about
other people,
they’ll make it
about you.”
-Jeff Goins
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Pick 1 primary channel
(and stick to it.)
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Don’t be a guru. Just share
your raw experience.
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No content
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Start small & consistent
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"When you want the absolute
best chance to succeed at
anything you want, your
approach should always be the
same. Go small.”
- Gary Keller
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No content
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1) Discover new pain points
2) Validate ideas quickly
Tap your community for on-
the-fly insights
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Social Post -> 1:1
Follow-up
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Justin Mares validated Kettle & Fire with in
2 weeks with for less than $100 using
Bing Ads.
Source
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State your
mission
Understand
your tribe to
find 1,000
true fans
Document
consistently
and
generously
on 1
medium
Do things
that don’t
scale
Build
momentum
and
repurpose
what’s
working
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5 Steps to Creating an
Invincible Platform