Archive for How to…Tips – Page 11

Serial Writing Formula: 1=5+2=7+1

I’m no math genius, nor do I even think remotely like that in analytical terms. But once in a while I stumble upon something that makes sense, saves time, and produces exponential results.

I’m talking about serial writing. You take one main concept, break it down into a list of 5 key elements, write an introductory overview, write a concluding summary, and here’s what you get:

  • 1 longer article you can include on your website, ezine, and format into a PDF special report to sell or give away as a bonus.

1 idea = 5 points + intro + summary = 7 articles + 1 PDF report

Here’s why I like to do this:

I know that each week I need to come up with fresh content from my blogs and 2 ezines. That could be a struggle to keep fresh, yet stay focused and on topic. Or, it can get my creative juices flowing if I sit down and look at a concept from the stand point of this formula.

Here’s what I’m talking about. I learned this while I was doing it last week. I decided to try to encapsulate the main ingredients of successful online marketing systems – that was the main concept.

I made a list and came up with 6 key elements (actually only 5; the 6th one was recycling the first 5 steps).

I wrote an overview listing all 6 steps, then posted one point each day on our blogs. After the 7th posting, I wrote an 8th one summarizing the points, and including some additional information about the tools necessary for each step.

Then I edited each blog post to become a stand-alone article for submission to article directories. The goal here is to get these keywords out onto the Web in as many different ways as possible. I also am writing a press release with the 6 steps included.

Then I gathered all 8 articles together and edited them into one stand-alone special report and formatted it into a nice PDF file. This can be used as a free give-away for signing up or registering for something, or can be sold as an ebook.

We can also take the 8 articles and turn them into a series of autoresponder messages and call it a mini-course. This would be used to drive traffic to a landing page for selling a course or ebook or other program.

This week, as I wondered what to write about for my blogs, I remembered how easy it has been the last couple of weeks while completing the online success series.

So this is the start of another series: How to Write a Series of Articles for Marketing. Maybe I can find a catchier title, like Confessions of a Serial Writer…? Stay tuned as I walk my talk and show you how to make your writing life easier by multi-purposing.

How to Start a Blog Serial Writing Project

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If you’ve been reading my blogs for any length of time, you know about my problem with writing:  I love to write, and I can write too much.  Anyone with a doctorate suffers from the same disease. Dissertation-itis. Nobody has time to read all those words anymore, especially not online.

Then, at some point in my writing career I got lazy. Or maybe I got smart. I started skipping the long research on a topic and reading up on its history. I just started making a list of main points and then writing out a couple of sentences on each item.

I think I got the idea from Jeff Herring, The Article Guy, who said if you can write a 7 item grocery list, you can write a good article. Now Jeff teaches article writing for people who struggle with writing and have a hard time coming up with stuff.

I fell in love with the “Make a List” writing school. Their theory is anything worth reading can be written in a list of bulleted points.

And now for my real confession:  I’ve taken the list building approach to an extreme. I’ve become a serial writer.

I wish I could say that it’s the cure for writer’s block, or that it’ll turn your work into Internet gold. I will proclaim it to be a rousing success for saving you time and energy whenever you’re faced with writing for your ezine, blog, web pages, press releases, and even white papers.

Here’s how to start a serial writing project (in list form, of course):

  1. Find an idea your readers want to know more about that will benefit them
  2. Make a list of 5 main points
  3. Write an overview of the idea with the 5 points listed and post it on your blog
  4. Each day for the next 5 days write a blog post about each of the 5 points
  5. Write a summary of the 5 points, reviewing them and reminding readers why this is important
  6. Edit each blog post into a stand alone article
  7. Compile the 7 articles into one full article. Read More→

Engaging Content: 7 Tips to Get Readers to Think

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When it comes to content marketing, there are ways to write content so it actively markets you and your business without being “in-your-face” sales copy or boring product reviews or press releases.

I’m reminded of an excellent book on creating effective website design called Don’t Make Me Think.
The premise is that a customer searching for products and services online shouldn’t have to figure out how to find what they’re looking for on your website.

When it comes to reading your blog, however, please, please DO make me think!  As I said last week, your readers may scan your post, without getting their thought processes going, and move on.

Your blog posts should have meaty content that stimulates your audience to ask questions, to comment, to agree wholeheartedly, or disagree vociferously.

How can you do that?

Here’s my list of ways to engage the brain, for example, in a blog post:

  1. Ask a question that can’t be answered (without thinking for a few minutes, at least)
  2. Describe an ethical conundrum and ask readers to contribute solutions
  3. Ask your audience for their top 3 tips for …. (insert a common problem your customers have)
  4. Write about a problem you experienced or a mistake you made, and ask, “What would you have done?”
  5. Describe a most pivotal moment in your business, and ask others to share their story
  6. Write about a situation facing a customer and ask readers to contribute ideas and projected outcomes
  7. Suggest some ideas and ask for more ideas…(hint, hint)

Okay, now it’s your turn. What methods do you use?  How can you write blog posts that stimulate readers to think and even actively participate?

Bonus question: How does doing this actually work to market your business?

Your readers may scan your post, without getting their thought processes going, and move on.

7 Ways to Format Blogs to Engage Readers’ Brains

What are the two most important parts (a.k.a. opportunities to engage readers) of your business blog post? Most experts will tell you this:

  1. The headline
  2. The call to action

The headline is what gets read and spread. It’s your “shout-out” on social media sites, in feed readers, and email updates. It’s the bait on your fishing hook which draws people over to your blog site to read your stuff.

Writing magnetic headlines is crucial. And you know yourself that a well-crafted headline gets more traffic than a bland one.

The call to action is what gets you business results and turns readers into clients. Even when it’s not a direct “go-buy-click-here” request, it’s part of your funnel process. It starts the participation process.

But hold on there, wait a minute.  There are 7 ways to format your blog posts that will help prime your readers for action. It happens before you ask readers to do something. It must happen, otherwise your readers won’t even read your complete post, they won’t get to the call to action part.

You must engage their brains. You must get inside their heads by triggering unconscious desires and thoughts.

Okay, that sounds a bit oowy-woowy and sneaky, maybe even dangerous. I’m not talking hypnotic suggestions or even tapping into Freudian drives of sex or fear…(although, heck, that sure works, too!)

But if your blog content doesn’t appeal to one of several persuasion triggers (reciprocity, social proof, etc.) then you’re not doing enough with your posts. Your readers may scan your post, without getting their thought processes going, and move on.

It’s not complicated. You’re probably already doing it (unconsciously)! How? Read More→

How Readers Find Your Blog: A Diagram

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again:  a business blog is the best way to get found online, the best way to connect with potential clients, and the pathway to turning readers into clients.

So, what’s your favorite excuse for not blogging for your business?

I keep hearing the same reasons, over and over.  As a matter of fact, it made me think of a blog post I did last year.  I reviewed it, and guess what – it’s still relevant, so I’m posting it below.

Top 3 Excuses for Not Blogging:

  • “I don’t have time to blog.”
  • “My clients aren’t surfing the Web reading blogs.”
  • “Oh, that means I’ve got to write about my business every week?”

There are over a billion people connected to the Internet. I’m willing to bet my lunch money that quite a few of them fall into the category of “your ideal clients.”

It’s not likely they go online looking for you, your business or your blog. I’m not saying that. But they do go to search engines and they type in questions with keywords.

And they do  go to Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Here’s what this looks like, how readers find your blog, in this Smart Draw diagram I did:

Read More→

Content Marketing with Videos: Free Webinar

You probably already know you should be using video to attract readers to your website, but you might not know how easy and quick it is. Publishing video on your site is like a client magnet.

Trust me on this, you don’t need to buy expensive tools and hire a producer. It’s the best way to get new viewers to your website and blog. (And it’s really easy when you use a monthly production service like I do: iMotionVideo, who does it all for me!)

But what if you want to do it yourself? What are the basics you need to know? How can you learn to use video quickly?

This week, when two of Tom Antion‘s people called me up with an offer of a free webinar on video marketing, I immediately saw the value in sharing these video tips with you.

I asked them to deliver this webinar exclusively for professionals who don’t have a lot of time for marketing tactics.

Join me, along with Colin Martin and Marc Bullard, in a free webinar next Thursday, May 19, 2011 at 5:00pm ET to learn the secret tactics successful marketers are using on free hosting sites such as YouTube that are bringing an avalanche of traffic to their websites.

Register to attend and get the recorded webinar here:

http://bit.ly/jfLTBt

Online video is THE most powerful tool on the Internet for driving traffic to your websites and services. Search engines are focusing on online video to deliver the content their customers are looking for and have even changed their search parameters to push video to the top of the search results. Read More→

Content Marketing Tip: Use Ready-to-Publish Articles

Content marketing is easier when you can outsource some of the writing and researching to qualified writers. A great way to short-cut the time needed to research, write and publish quality online content is to find a good writer to supply articles.

For example, as a former executive coach and psychologist, I write for other coaches and consultants who are too busy with clients to write their own newsletters and blogs. You can find good writers in just about any field.

While this has created a good business for me, doing what I love, I don’t see many people using other people’s content for optimal results. Furthermore, when they do use writers, they don’t personalize it to make it their own.

Content marketing can’t work well without unique and personalized copy. I get frustrated because people use canned articles ‘as is’. They don’t take the time to add their own stories, to explain how it is for them in the work they do.

You need to connect the dots for readers.

  • Tell them why this article and these ideas are important to them.
  • Tell them about the work you do with your clients.
  • Tell them how they can learn more about what you’re publishing.

In my ebook Content Marketing with Blogs, I talk about the 4 Es: educate, entertain, engage and enrich the lives of people each time you write and publish on your blog. When you write, think about elements of each goal: Read More→

11.5 Steps to Video Blogging in 30 Minutes

What’s the quickest way to use videos for content marketing? How can you shoot a video clip in your hotel room while at a conference? I’ll demonstrate here. I plugged in my Logitech Webcam, pulled up a previous post on my blog, and spoke into the camera.

It’s not perfect, but it’s good enough, and it was done start to finish in 30 minutes. Using video blogging, you can easily get found by clients who have problems you can fix.

  1. Set up webcam, test for lighting
  2. Used some content marketing text previously published about how to write a video script
  3. Spoke spontaneously into the camera, trying to be as sincere and relaxed as possible
  4. Reviewed the video clip, reshot it a 2nd time.
  5. Uploaded to YouTube, named it, described it, tagged it.
  6. Copied the embed code from YouTube and posted it into the html side of blog platform.
  7. Wrote 300 words to accompany the post
  8. Created a title, wrote a description into All-in-One SEO pack
  9. Hyperlinked keywords
  10. Ran Scribe Content Optimizer for an SEO analysis and tweaked it to 100%
  11. Published blog
  12. …Went to breakfast

Click here to watch the 1 minute video…. Read More→

Free Phone Consulting? 4 Reasons It’s a Good Idea

Why should a professional or small business give away free consulting? I’ll tell you why. Here’s what’s happening…

I recently launched a new version of articles to my executive coaching clients and as a bonus, offered a free 20-minute phone session.

I’ve been spending more than 20 minutes with each person, and I’m loving it. Since I charge $200/hour for consulting sessions, why would I do this?

  1. It gives me a chance to connect with clients: In an online business, I usually don’t have much contact with the clients who use my services and products. Some of my clients have been with me over 10 years, and we’ve never spoken by phone. To them, I’m faceless, and vice-verso. I want to feel some sort of connection on a personal level. Email can’t do that.
  2. When people invest hundreds of dollars with you, they usually have questions, and even though these same questions may have been answered on your sales page, people need reassurance that answers apply to them. A personal conversation solidifies trust in you.
  3. Sometimes products can be confusing to people. You see your products from your perspective, not from the perspective of the customer. A phone conversation ensures they get the best use out of their purchase. Read More→

Content Marketing Videos: Speak to Problems First

What’s the best way to write a script for a video? Content marketing with videos is a key marketing tool, and it’s getting easier to do.

Here’s a new video the folks over at iMotionVideo Studios produced for me. I just love this service. Left to my own devices, I’d probably make one video every few months. But with a low-fee monthly subscription for a year, I know I’ve got a one-minute video commercial coming every 30 days. This is key for content marketing.

Why would I want that many? I don’t really, but for content marketing to work you need as much content as you can, in all forms. I use them to submit to video directories, post to YouTube, and it all counts to get found in Google searches. Some content marketing things have to combine quality AND frequency.

Most of the time I focus on how important it is to write quality online content for your readers, and teach my clients to achieve maximum results, they have to be writing things that are relevant and important to their readers: how do you solve their problems. Read More→