A Note from Patsi: This week’s guest post is about social media and it’s really important. Why? Because if you want to engage your business blog readers and grow your reader base, you need to use social media. We’ve been writing about the CAST system for effective blog content:
Content (compelling)
Assets (free)
Social Media
Track
This post, by guest author Paul Wilberforce, looks at the common mistakes you should always avoid. Here are Paul’s 7 Social Media Mistakes Bloggers Should Avoid.
If you want to grow your reader base, that is, if you want to get found and get known online, small businesses and entrepreneurs will offer prospects and clients online information for free, such as a white paper, a report or a compelling article. This is part of the CAST acronym for ways to grow readership.
CAST Your Net: A is for Assets
I’ve been blogging about ways to grow your reader base using this memory device:
Content
Assets
Social Media
Track
I’m referring to digital assets, or content that is offered as a service to your readers. Your assets should range from free to fee: Read More→
Is your blog content compelling? Are you attracting new readers, engaging with them, and growing your reader base?
In my last post, I shared an acronym that you should be using when writing blog content:
Content (compelling)
Assets (free)
Social Media
Track
Hemingway did not have the technological advantages that we have, nor a blog, but he knew how to engage his readers. As Larry W. Phillips describes in Ernest Hemingway on Writing:
Oh no! If I Googled your business name, what would I find? Are you easy to get found online?
It is a sinking feeling when you’ve created quality content for your site that’s been optimized for content and keywords, and it’s still not showing up on the first page (or pages!) in a search return. So what can you do?
Downshift. While search engine sites should discover and index your site automatically, if you’re not showing up, or you want to improve your search engine ranking, try manually submitting your URL. You can do this quickly through Google, here, or Bing, here. Read More→
How easy is it for you to get found online? Are you attracting the kinds of readers who could be your ideal clients? Here’s a quick 5 question quiz to reveal how well you’re doing:
5 Question Quiz
If you are struggling in any of these areas, here are some steps you can take to get found. Read More→
How to get found online. That was one of the most common answers we heard to the question, “What is your biggest struggle?” during our recent client interviews.
In my last post, I shared why SEO and content marketing fit together. While your blog needs good Search Engine Optimization, it has to start with quality content. But what exactly is the definition of quality content? Isn’t it subjective?
Epic Content Marketing, by Joe Pulizzi of Content Marketing Institute, offers a framework of criteria that I have adapted for coaches and consultant. (It is based on six principles that anyone can and should apply to their writing, whether it be for their business blog, e-newsletters, or e-books and websites. It’s great advice for any consultant and small business owner responsible for getting found.) Read More→
Content marketing is challenging, but it’s also the most rewarding work I’ve ever done. What more satisfying way to market professional services than by writing from the heart? When you address the problems your readers experience with your own knowledge, experience and wisdom, you help others AND build credibility authentically.
If you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time, you probably know that I do not believe in new year resolutions. And, I am not really convinced that goal setting, even marketing goals, is always the best thing, either. (Research has proven this.)
But, I do believe in strategy, clarity, planning and focus. Each year I pick a word, One Word to focus on. No matter what I am doing, I think about implementing that word, in every way I can.
For example, a few years ago my “one word” was “Care.” When I think about expressing care for my clients and readers, it shows up in the quality of my work:
If I really do care, I want to get my marketing message heard by more people. It’s not about selling, it’s about being of service.
Last month Kris and I spent some time interviewing clients. We really wanted to know how we can best be of service. (Sometimes it’s hard to keep up with all the social media and content marketing channels available, especially in the always shifting future.)
What we learned is that while business continues to improve for our clients, their 6 big content marketing struggles are:
What about you? Are these the biggest challenges you face with your content marketing?
If we weren’t able to connect with you, and you have other questions about content marketing, writing on the web, or creating an ebook, please let us know. Send us an email: patsi@writingontheweb.com or kris@writingontheweb.com
For the next few months, we’ll spend time focusing on these areas, and make sure that we can offer you good, useful information that can help you get found, get known, and get clients.
Oh, and happy new year, or as they say here in sunny Mexico, Feliz año nuevo!
Do you know how to blog for your business using personality yet remaining professional? No, seriously – there’s an ongoing trend to be personal with blogs. I see it everywhere – blogs, email, newsletters. If you’re writing for business, you want to connect with your readers by using personal stories. But how much is too much?
Rohit Bhargava’s written a whole book about this, filled with examples of how companies are successfully using personalities to market their business products and services: Personality Not Included.
This is an important skill to master when it comes to writing a business blog that attracts readers yet keeps a professional brand. Where do you draw the line when it comes to sharing personal stories? Read More→
How do you create an emotional connection with your blog readers? More importantly, how do you get them so inspired they want to take action, like join your list, opt-in, comment, or buy something? Here are some psychological secrets to keep in mind.
When writing on the web – either in a blog post, a newsletter or other forms of content marketing, readers are more likely to respond to your offers of service or products if there is a resonance between you. An emotional connection is forged when your reader experiences being on the same ‘wave length’ as you. This can be done several ways.
I have to warn you: this is not always easy to do in an email, ezine or blog. Why? Because people are so different, and what is appealing on an emotional level to one is averse to another. Read More→
As I talked about in my last post, there are two different methods you can earn money blogging:
How to Make Money Indirectly from a Business Blog
