When to talk about yourself and when to talk about the customer
There are two opposite and equally common mistakes: the account that is a diary and the account that reads like a factory catalogue. Both sell less than they could.
Why your story matters
In a small business, the customer does not buy only the product: they buy from you. Knowing who makes it, why, and how you decided to make it that way is what makes someone prefer you to the cheaper option.
It is also the one thing a competitor cannot copy. They copy price, photos and format. Not your story.
Where it fits well
Always tied to a decision that affects the customer.
- Why you do it one way and not another.
- What you learned by getting it wrong, and what changed after.
- What you refuse to do, and why.
- How it started, told once a year rather than every month.
Where it gets in the way
When it becomes the main subject. Venting about exhaustion, hinting at a difficult client and complaining about competitors are all understandable, and they put the reader in an uncomfortable place.
They came to see whether to buy from you, and ended up watching a problem that is not theirs. That does not create closeness: it creates awkwardness.
The balance that usually works
One post in five about you, and the other four about the problem, the work and the customer. It is not a fixed rule, it is a starting point: enough to have a face, not so much that the account becomes about you.
The honest test: after reading your post, does the reader know more about their own problem, or only more about your week?
A laid-out month shows that balance at a glance, and that is where you notice the account has tipped to one side.