I can talk about this topic for daysssss but I’ll restrain myself from writing a 'State of the Union' on why me loves me some content!
Ever heard of the phrase, “content is king”? Of course you have, because it really is! When you take a look at most successful “influencers” on any social media platform, there’s one thing they always do - produce an endless supply of quality content, daily (Athlean X, Gary Vee, Sadhguru, to name a few!)
I’m going to give you some tips and tricks so that you can create your very own content monster!
If you’ve read my other blogs, you know that I love my stories!
There’s a prominent “celebrity trainer” I know (who shall remain unnamed) and he has a videographer that follows him virtually everywhere. In doing so, everything this “trainer” does (motivational speeches, training celebrities, his own workouts, interviews etc) is professionally recorded and posted on social media. Now, I can’t say definitively that he only trains celebrities but his content certainly makes it seem that way. He’ll even post “happy birthday” messages on his Instagram to celebrities that include a picture of him with the birthday boy/gal.
It’s a brilliant marketing strategy because he’s honed into this “celebrity trainer life”, and inevitably celebrities know other celebrities so his word-of-mouth circle is strong. I personally have witnessed him start with D-list celebs and advance to A* list celebs, and one of the reasons for his success is undoubtedly due the content monster he’s created.
P.S. I’m not suggesting you hire your own videographer but I am insisting that you prioritize creating quality content in line with your target audience.
When I say, “Packaging”, I ain’t referring to cardboard boxes but rather the optics of your brand for your consumers.
Let me explain….
P.S. You may wonder what the scenario below has to do with content, but stay with me and you'll find out!
Inevitably, there will be some "old schoolers" who will pick Jamal due to his shiny Ivy League school badge
But me - I’m picking Alexis allll day because, again, “it’s all in the packaging” (and just to be clear, I have an MBA so I’ve got nothing against grads).
Alexis 'packaging' tells me that she’s spent time and effort applying what she reads to create a continuous stream of content - therefore I can validate her knowledge. I already know that she’s going to be a valuable asset to my team without even hiring her.
Similarly, the customers you attract will depend on how you package your content and to whom you gear it towards.
PRO-TIP: If you're a new business owner and not sure where to begin, focus on where you want to go (aka your "dream" clients) and shape your content accordingly.
My mind is always in “content creation” mode and I achieve this by doing 3 easy things:
I listen to clients and prospective clients intently - not only their situation and goals, but also questions they ask during the intake, discovery and/or during the engagement. You’d be surprised with how much content potential is literally being served to you on a golden platter if you just perk up those ears.
Every time someone asks: “How do you…..”or “Why do you….” - BAM, CONTENT CREATION OPP!
Why do you do - what you do - the way you do it? (say that three times as fast as possible)
Everyone has a reason for doing something “this” way vs “that” way. You may want to think about how you've setup your business operations for success or perhaps heard a recent horror story of what NOT to do - BAM, CONTENT CREATION OPP!
For instance, this entire blog post literally outlines my own process for creating content.
Some may not want to share their own process because, you know, “it’s proprietary and I don’t want my competitors stealing it”. Foolishness.
If your reason for not sharing content is because people will imitate what you’re doing, close up shop now because your destiny is written and it’s not hopeful. Let me be the first to tell you, what you think is “proprietary”, likely is not. Instead, it’s probably a common process which you’ve refined for your own benefit so why not educate others so they can benefit too.
While we’d all like to think that we’re Masters of our craft, we all started somewhere. And even if we are truly a "Master", knowledge development should never cease to exist. If it does, that’s not mastery but rather arrogance.
Some items to think about:
For me, I’ve been copywriting for decades but I have never had to do the static wireframe since that was normally outsourced to a web designer. When I Co-Founded this agency, I decided to learn how to wireframe as someone with ZERO coding experience. In doing so, I created my own process and put my own “twang” on it after reading and watching others (In all honesty, I still don’t know if it’s the 'right' way but it works for me!)
This is a perfect example of a learning process which I encountered that I can create content out of (which I will, very soon so be on the lookout!)
Ahh I saved the best for last!
Once you’re through with this blog, skim over it one more time and specifically take note of the “hyperlinks” sprinkled generously throughout. This, my pedigree chums, is how you create content out of existing content.
When you’re writing about a topic, there will undoubtedly be underlying themes of other topics that you may touch upon but not elaborate. Take advantage and create new pieces of content stemming from these “themes”.
PRO-TIP: Once you've created enough blogs on the same topic, you can then combine them all, enhance and then repurpose into an e-book for your audience! (Work smarter, not harder!)
Boom. It's that effortless.
Rinse and Repeat.
When you’re doing a bazillion things at once (like most business owners), creating content can shoot your anxiety through the roof especially if you’re not a writer. Couple that with your burning hate for social media, and you’ll find yourself finding every reason under the sun NOT to write content!
However, you can make life easy on yourself by creating a content calendar which not only adds structure, but also adds accountability.
PRO-TIP: Here’s a bonus ‘trick’ which I do, and also encourage all of my clients to do:
Open up your “Notes” app on your phone and have a note titled, “Content Ideas”. Every time you think of a good topic, punch it into your app and keep a rolling record of various content ideas. This relates to the point earlier in this blog when I said, “my mind is always in content creation mode”.
Once you pay attention to your surroundings, it’s inevitable that by the end of the month, you’ll have at least a dozen content options to pick from.
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