It becomes 10 times harder when you have to repeat that ideation regularly, like clockwork.

But that’s what a consistent content strategy, one that produces results, requires.

Quality AND quantity both matter in content. That’s why brands that blog more see more results:

• Websites with 400+ blogs get double the traffic of those with fewer blogs.
• Publishing 2-4 posts per week nets you the highest traffic and conversion rate.

That’s a lot of content…

Which requires a lot of brainpower behind it.

You need to be a veritable content idea generator machine. And you need to continue coming up with great content ideas, topics, and posts on repeat.

It’s a daunting task.

But it’s doable!

You just need a little help, a few shortcuts, a good strategy, and some handy tools.

It’s how I generate content ideas on the regular, without running out.

Here are my secret ingredients.

7 Content Idea Generators, Tools, and Strategies for Endless Inspiration

1. Use My Content Idea-Generating Topic Wheel
2. Find Content Topics Based on Questions People Ask Google: Answer the Public
3. Generate Ideas Based on Nouns and Keywords: HubSpot’s Blog Ideas Generator
4. Come Up with Creative Titles and Topics: Portent Idea Generator
5. Ideate Effective, Engaging Headlines: AMI’s Headline Analyzer
6. Do Deep Topic Research: Semrush’s Topic Research Tool
7. Find New Topic Ideas from Keywords: Impact Blog Title Generator

Watch Me Explain My Topic Idea Generation Wheel in This Video

1. Use My Content Idea-Generating Topic Wheel

Topic generation is needlessly difficult when you don’t have a strategy.

The strategy is what keeps you from staring at a blank doc on your computer endlessly, wondering what to write.

The strategy FUELS ideation, so you never run dry.

And that’s exactly what my topic wheel is for. Here’s how it works.

Think of your website as a wheel divided into four sections. Each quadrant represents a question you should be answering in the content across your site.

1. Who? – Who are you speaking to?
2. What? – What is it that you do?
3. How? – How are you different from everyone else out there?
4. Why? – Why do you do what you do?

New Websites & Brands: Baseline Content Idea Generation

Say you’re starting your brand and you don’t have a website yet. What pages and content should you create?

The topic wheel answers that.

Each of these questions – who, what, how, why – informs the baseline content that should appear across your site.

• Landing pages; product and service pages – These answer “What?” What do you do, what do you sell, what are you offering? Each service you offer should get its own page, for example.
  • These content types also answer “How?” – how are you different from other brands?
• About page, mission statement, blogs – Answers “Why?” Why are you in this business? What’s your story?
• Blog content – Answers “Who?” Know your audience and speak directly to them in blogs, addressing their questions and pains.
  • Not just blog content answers “Who?” by the way – this question should be answered in ALL of your content. Your target audience should recognize that you’re talking TO them instantly, no matter what page they’re on.

Established Brands: Blog Content Idea Generation

If you’re an established brand with a website, you might be focused on blog content idea generation.

You’ve probably asked yourself, “What the heck are we going to publish on the blog every week?”

No sweat. Just look at the topic wheel for ideas. Particularly, stay rooted in “Who?” and “Why?”

1. Who?

Let’s return to the “Who?” section of the topic wheel.

Specifically, who are these people you’re writing to? Getting to know them intimately will produce reams of blog content ideas.

And, of course, you can get to know them through persona research, social listening, surveys, etc., but ultimately…

Rolling up your sleeves and getting chatty/friendly with them will produce the most valuable insights. Exchange emails, do discovery Zooms where you pick an ideal customer’s brain, engage with them on social media, and just generally practice listening and learning.

Find out:

• Their pain points (each pain point can become a blog!)
• Their questions (depending on the question, each can be answered in a blog)

2. Why?

This is my favorite part of the wheel to return to for ideas, because “Why?” is all about your story. It’s how you paint yourself as a relatable human versus a business drone or salesperson. (That kind of content is immensely important in this age of trust, by the way.)

Everyone has a story – what’s yours? How did you get into your field? What sparked you to start your business? What are you most passionate about in your industry?

All of these things could be blog content!

Think beyond blogs, here, too. Do a series of videos that lay out the foundation of your business and your “why.” Do a podcast episode on how you got started. You could even tell your story in a book.

Don’t Forget About Keywords

Finally, don’t forget to link your blog topics to keywords for SEO. Keywords are what will bring in that relevant traffic to your website – the people who are looking for the information you offer, who need what you sell.

For every blog topic you come up with, try to find a matching keyword that’s winnable for your brand. That means two things:

• The keyword difficulty is low (40 and below is my rule of thumb for new websites; established brands can go for 60 and below).
• The keyword is long-tail (contains three words or more). These are easier to rank for and bring in more targeted traffic because of their specificity.

Once you’ve considered your topic wheel, your audience, and keywords, you might be left with some broad topic ideas for posts. Let’s get into the tools and content idea generators that can help you further narrow down your topics for great content.

By the way, if you want a content ecosystem that succeeds, you need the right strategy for every facet of creation – not just topic ideation. Luckily, I show you that strategy in my free training (choose the level for solopreneurs).

2. Find Content Topics Based on Questions People Ask Google: Answer the Public

If you have a basic topic in hand you’d like to write about, Answer the Public is a good tool to use to find questions people have actually asked Google about that subject.

For example, perhaps you know you want to write a blog about content writing – but what, specifically, could you write about?

Enter that topic in this tool and you’ll get a ton of data in return, all of it fodder for ideas for your next content piece.

­­You’ll see how people framed your topic in questions (“who can be a content writer”, “will content writing be automated”), with prepositions (“content writing for beginners”, “content writing with keywords”), and comparisons (“content writing and SEO”, “content writing vs digital marketing”).

3. Generate Ideas Based on Nouns and Keywords: HubSpot’s Blog Ideas Generator

HubSpot’s Blog Ideas Generator is a super-simple tool that will take whatever nouns (or keywords) you throw at it and turn them into usable blog topics/titles for posts.

Let’s continue with the example niche of content writing. Through some interactions on social media, you found out your audience is curious about content writing rules. Let’s plug those nouns into HubSpot’s tool.

The tool will allow you to plug in up to five nouns, by the way.

Once that’s done, hit “Give me blog ideas” and the tool will give you five topic ideas.

Be forewarned, however, that this tool tends to use the same topic framing no matter what nouns you input (e.g. it will give you the “expectations vs. reality” idea every time). For that reason, use this one once, and don’t expect to get more ideas the longer you play with it.

4. Come Up with Creative Titles and Topics: Portent Idea Generator

Coming up with a headline/title is an easy way to generate content ideas. The way you frame your headline can inform the topic you focus on and the way you write the post.

With that in mind, the Portent Idea Generator will give you some unique ideas for titles, framed in creative or interesting ways, to get your brain gears turning. With an interesting title, an interesting blog topic could spring forth.

However, be careful with this tool: Some of the content ideas generated don’t make any sense or could get you in trouble.

If that’s the case, just click “See Another Title” to cycle to another idea.

You can also start over (“Change My Subject”) or save your idea.

5. Ideate Effective, Engaging Headlines: AMI’s Headline Analyzer

This next recommendation isn’t a content idea generator, per se – it’s more of a content idea tweaker.

The AMI Headline Analyzer will analyze your headline/blog topic idea and score it based on its emotional marketing value (EMV): the number of intellectual, empathetic, or spiritual words your headline contains.

This is a fantastic tool to use to further refine your blog title/topic ideas. Just enter your title in the text box, hit “Submit”, and the tool will offer you a percentage score based on the EMV – the emotional impact – of your title.

The higher the percentage, the more impactful your title will be. However, keep in mind getting a score near 100% is extremely rare. Your most common scores will probably fall between 15-30%. Getting a 40% or above is amazing, and if you get there, use it!

If you do get a low score, don’t worry. Just play around with the wording in your title and resubmit for a new score. This process of revision might just help you come up with an even better topic with a headline that packs a heftier punch.

I even used this tool to help me refine the headline of this blog – the one you’re reading right now! (My initial idea scored a 28.9%, by the way. I played with the wording until I got the below score.)

6. Do Deep Topic Research: Semrush’s Topic Research Tool

Semrush’s Topic Research Tool is super useful if you want to dive deeper into the possibilities for topics surrounding a specific keyword or broad topic.

Note: Free users get two searches before you’re prompted to subscribe, so use them wisely unless you already pay for Semrush.

All you need to do is enter your broad topic idea and click “Get content ideas.” The tool will generate a huge list of ideas related to your term, sorted by subtopic. Each subtopic includes the top headlines, questions, and related searches.

To see the hottest trending subtopics from the last 60 days first, hit the toggle at the top of the page.

You can also click a card to get more information, like the top 10 headlines on the subtopic; questions people ask; related searches; and the volume, difficulty, and efficiency of the subtopic.

To see the data displayed in different ways, play around with the views, too.

For deeper explanations of each facet of this tool, check out Semrush’s user guide.

7. Find New Topic Ideas from Keywords: Impact Blog Title Generator

Impact’s BlogAbout tool is perfect for the times when you’ve found a great, winnable keyword that will pull in your target audience, but you’re not sure how to spin it into a blog post.

You start by simply entering your keyword and keyword type, then hit “Generate titles”.

The tool will come up with several titles based on various blog post categories (cost, problems, comparisons, reviews, best-in-class).

As you can see, some of the generated blog titles/topics don’t make any sense. Take these with a grain of salt, but also check to see if you can tweak them logically. For example, the generated title “X Stand-Out Features of Content Writing Rules You Should Know” could be tweaked to simply “X Stand-Out Content Writing Rules You Should Know” to make sense.

If need be, click “Refresh titles” to get a fresh batch of options. You can also tweak your keyword or keyword type and try again.

Once you’ve found some ideas you like, you can save them to a list (which, by the way, will save even if you start over, modify your search, or refresh your results). Once your list is full to your satisfaction, you can download it to a spreadsheet after submitting your name and email.

Go Beyond Content Idea Generators for Winning Content Marketing

Content idea generators will help you out in a pinch, no question.

They’re smart tools for sparking some inspiration when you’ve run out.

But to truly create content your audience will salivate to read, content that converts them into leads and sales…

You need a strategy – and not just a blog topic strategy (although my topic wheel is a great solution to this particular problem)…

You need an all-encompassing, overarching strategy that powers your content from the seed of an idea to a fully-fledged piece that is actually profitable.

That’s the true north way to grow your business.

Ready to learn how? In my free training, I’ll show you the way, whether you’re a solopreneur ready to scale your digital business, or a founder ready to invest in consistent content creation.

Choose your level and grab your seat inside.

The post 7 Content Idea Generators to Help You Ideate Creative Content Consistently appeared first on Content Hacker.

Everyone.

Digital skills include, for example:

• Digital communication (social media, email, chat)
• Online writing and content creation
• Digital marketing and strategy
• Programming and web development
• Graphic design and data visualization
• Data entry and digital recordkeeping
• Online research
• Computer literacy

If you work or run a business online, you probably need more than one digital skill in your wheelhouse.

But here’s the thing:

Do you know how to go out and get skills like these?

Do you know what it takes?

And…

Do you know the consequences of NOT building digital skills – especially if you’re a business owner?

Consider this:

Only 7% of business owners make it to $150k/year in revenue.

That means 93% make LESS than $150k.

Even further, 50% of businesses fail by year five. (Only about 30% will make it to year 10.)

A HUGE differentiator between the successful/unsuccessful? Digital skills.

Not just having them, but also understanding when you’re lacking in an area and acting to fill in that knowledge gap.

That’s exactly what we’ll talk about in today’s video and blog.

How to Build Digital Skills: The Ingredients You Need to Succeed

Knowing how to build digital skills is a skill in itself.

But, once you know, you’ll have the tools you need to level up in your work or your business.

Let’s start with the biggest problem I see All. The. Time.

1. Know What Digital Skills You’re Missing

This may seem like an obvious thing to understand about yourself, but it’s the #1 problem plaguing the digital skill world today.

It’s surprising how many people in the marketplace claim to have digital skills, but when it comes to demonstrating them, they fail.

That means they don’t actually have those skills – yet they believe they do!

This giant disconnect lies at the heart of the issue. Workers with below-par digital skills are flooding the marketplace and adding to the noise – and making failure and bad content the standard.

Watch me discuss this problem in this video:

What Does Missing a Digital Skill Look Like?

Here’s an example:

Sally is really good at writing college essays that earn her steady A’s. Once she graduates, she thinks she’ll immediately get a job as an in-demand copywriter. She creates a portfolio, applies to some gigs on a few sites, and patiently waits to get hired.

And then…

….Crickets.

Wait a minute? What happened here? Sally is a great writer – why doesn’t anyone want to hire her?

Answer: The skill of writing essays is nothing like the digital skill of writing for the web.

Sally has no idea how to write SEO blogs that rank in Google. She doesn’t know how to write a web page that converts. She’s never written an email with the intention of earning clicks. She doesn’t have the first clue that the clunky walls of text she usually writes are the exact opposite of good online writing.

Left: Essay-style writing. Right: Online writing.

Sally has a gaping skill gap she needs to fill before she can become successful as a digital skill worker.

By the way, she’ll probably figure out something is off when she struggles to find gigs, or when she gets hired but the client never contacts her again after the project is done.

How will Sally react to these failures? Will she blame the marketplace and quit?

Or will she realize she’s missing necessary digital skills that will help her get consistent, well-paying work and repeat clients – and thus go out and get those skills?

SEO writing is a mammoth digital skill to have these days, by the way. Luckily, I teach you how to do it in my Expert SEO Content Writer course. Get a preview of the course when you download my FREE cheat sheet:

How to Identify Your Missing Digital Skills

To identify your missing digital skills, look at where you’re hitting brick walls with your job/career/business.

These are the puzzle pieces you’re missing. For instance:

• Are you a digital skill worker struggling to get steady clients?
• Are you a business owner failing to figure out how to do content marketing?
• Are you a whiz at a specific digital service, but have no clue how to set up your website so it welcomes leads and converts them?
• Are you starting a remote business, but don’t know how to manage a team remotely/digitally?

These are just a few examples. What’s important is to take a hard look at what you’re doing, especially what’s not working. It may feel like swallowing bitter medicine, but you have to face it if you want to turn things around and succeed.

2. Don’t Expect Free Content to Teach You Everything You’re Missing

I love free content. Absorbing it is a great way to get essential, valuable seeds of knowledge.

However –

Free content can only ever scratch the surface.

It’s just the start – the seed. If you want to get the whole tree, you need to go deeper. In fact, you need to hike into the depths of the forest.

Think back to times when you were being taught a skill like solving tough math problems or driving a car.

Would reading a single blog post or article have taught you what you needed to know?

No – the idea is laughable!

To learn those skills, you needed guided instruction from an expert teacher. And you didn’t learn in just one session or one sitting, but rather over many sessions, many classes, and many demonstrations.

Why would you treat digital skills any differently?

Sure, you’re an adult now, but that doesn’t mean your adult learning requires less devotion and time than the learning you received as a child.

If anything, the stakes are higher now than ever before. Your livelihood – your business, your work, your career – depends on you learning those digital skills successfully.

To put it bluntly, reading a couple of free blogs isn’t going to cut it.

That’s why the next point is so important.

3. Invest in Building Digital Skills

Invest time. Invest money. Invest effort.

It’s impossible to become proficient at anything without all three.

What do I mean by “proficient?”

• You’re confident in your digital skill
• You’re successful in using your skill
• You don’t need hand-holding or cheat sheets or reference books to help you do it
• You could teach that skill to someone else

Reading one blog on a topic or watching one video isn’t enough to get you to this level. That’s why investing is so important for building digital skills.

How can you invest in learning? A few ways:

1. Enroll in a course
2. Read books on your desired skill
3. Invest in a mentorship program

In fact, #3 – finding a teacher or mentor – is one of the best ways to learn any new skill. The hard part is finding the right one.

4. Find the Right Teachers/Mentors

A good teacher is worth every penny you invest in their mentorship.

Why?

Because a good teacher will not just teach you a skill; they’ll also teach you the right theory and approach to that skill.

Take content marketing: You can’t teach someone to do content marketing well without also teaching them why it works better than traditional marketing and the strategy you need behind it to succeed.

So, when considering teachers or mentors for learning your desired digital skill, find out whether they’ll give you the WHY and the HOW behind that skill (alongside the WHAT).

You also need to find an actual practitioner – someone who’s using that digital skill day in, day out with success. If your potential mentor is all talk and no walk, they’re most likely not a practical expert (in fact, they’re one of those people we mentioned who are merely adding to the noise).

You need to see actual proof they’ve mastered the digital skill, and that proof lies in their actions and body of work.

Look at what they’ve done and what they’re doing. Are they out there proving their expertise on the regular? Or do they just have a lot of fancy, persuasive copy with no substance underneath?

5. Understand You’re Never Done Learning

Technology changes so fast, that by the time you learn a new digital skill well enough to implement it, it might have morphed into something different – on a new platform, with different tools, with new techniques.

That’s why you have to commit to constant and continuous learning. It never stops, because technology never stops evolving.

There will never be a point where you know everything. Staying open to learning is thus essential for continued success as you build your digital skill.

By the way, this is where a lot of people go wrong.

They think knowing just enough about a skill is good enough. They don’t want to do the work involved to actually learn and grow. They want shortcuts.

Newsflash: These are the people who will never reach six figures in their businesses. (Remember that stat that only 7% of business owners will reach $150k/year? People with the mindset of “I know everything I need to know already” WILL tumble into the 93% who never get there.)

6. Remember: Digital Skills ≠ Business Skills

Finally, remember that learning a digital skill doesn’t make you ready to start a business around that skill.

Digital skills and digital business skills are two separate things.

You need both to start your own brand.

• You need expertise in the digital skill you’re selling as a service (SEO writing, content marketing, web development, social media management, digital design, etc.)
• You need business skills to run and manage that online business, including hiring, delegating, marketing, strategizing, and scaling.

Having one or the other, but not both, is a recipe for failure.

Listen to this podcast episode, Your Skill Is Not a Business, for more on this topic.

Build Digital Skills for a Better Future

No one is born with digital skills.

They must be learned, and you need to keep learning as technology evolves, as tools and platforms change.

It’s a big commitment, but…

You NEED digital skills to successfully run a business online, whether you’re looking for gigs as a freelance copywriter, designer, programmer, content creator, etc., or you’re an entrepreneur starting a company and scaling to sell your skill at a higher level.

Want to learn ALL the digital + business skills you need to successfully build a brand that lasts?

That opportunity exists inside my Content Transformation System.

This 12-month, 5-phase mentorship program includes one entire phase devoted specifically to skill-building. You’ll learn over 20 skills including:

• How to choose a brand name
• How to find your ICA (ideal client avatar)
• How to put together a content strategy
• How to build a targeted email list
• How to write for social media
• How to create YouTube content
• How to price your services
• And more

I built my own businesses to six and seven figures using all the principles I teach inside this mentorship. And it’s all waiting for you when you choose me as your mentor.

Ready to work with me and my team of expert coaches? Watch my free class to get started today!

The post What It Takes to Build Digital Skills: The #1 Missing Ingredient Today Among Skill-Based Workers appeared first on Content Hacker.

I.e., how to write content that gets RESULTS in the form of:

• Engagement
• Rankings
• Leads
• Trust built
• Sales

You’re in the right place. Because not just any content will do.

Without strong writing that includes a can’t-look-away hook, credibility, and empathy…

Your content will go nowhere and do nothing.

In fact, that’s the fate of most content.

90.63% of all blogs get zero traffic. 66.31% get zero backlinks.

No one reads them. Ever.

To avoid this fate, it’s time to learn what does work, and how to infuse those techniques into your content.

Because the skills I’m about to share will help you write any type of website content to get read and get seen so your message can deliver.

In today’s video and blog, I’ll be showing you a content example that needs help, and how to rewrite it for 10x better engagement. In the process, you’ll see exactly what makes content work – and NOT work.

And it’s all based on my years of experience in successful content – over a decade spent writing and reviewing thousands of pieces of content, seeing what works, putting it into action, and then watching magic happen.

If you write content as part of your day-to-day, or if you manage a writer, pay attention. This is for you.

How to Write Content That Works: You Need a Framework

Prefer a video? Watch now to see me tear down and rebuild an existing content piece that could be better, using the techniques described in this blog:

A framework gives you a structure to work inside. Ultimately, this opens up your creativity because there are millions of ways to play within that structure. It also makes composing your piece easier, because your skeleton is right in front of you. All you have to do is fill it in.

The writing framework we’re talking about today, one that will help you write content that works consistently, is the PAS framework: Problem, Agitate, Solve.

This framework is a proven way to hook your readers, grab their attention and keep it. Successful writers like Jon Morrow, Ramit Sethi, and Joanna Wiebe regularly use it to great effect.

It’s also one of my favorite writing frameworks, and we use it over and over across our Content Hacker content.

Let’s break it down, and then I’ll show you how to put it to use.

1. Problem

The first part of the formula is where you state the problem.

No matter the topic you’re writing about, there should be one main issue at the center of it for your audience. That part is important, because it’s not YOUR problem you’re talking about. It’s THEIR problem.

State it clearly – acknowledging it outright lets the reader know you totally get it.

Example: From a Content Hacker blog on Google EAT and YMYL, we state the problem for readers within the first three sentences.

2. Agitate

Next up in the PAS framework: agitate.

This is where you get to stir the pot and press on that pain point a little bit.

Tell them:

• Why they should care
• What’s at stake
• Why it matters
• How it feels (bad!)

Example: In another Content Hacker blog on content marketing consulting, the “agitate” piece includes stat after stat that proves not only how essential content marketing is to a full marketing strategy, but also how important it is to do it right, and do it with knowledge and skill:

3. Solve

Once you’ve successfully stirred the pot, your reader should be dying to know what to do next.

Finally, tell the reader the solution to the problem.

• Summarize the solution. You’ll spend the rest of the words in your content piece explaining it. For now, just provide the gist.
• Tell it to them straight. Don’t hedge or try to sound mysterious. Give the people what they want.
• Once they know what the solution is, they’ll want to understand how it works/how to do it.

Example: In our blog on money-making motivation, the solution is presented simply and plainly.

Think you’ve got the hang of it? Then let’s get into the nitty-gritty of putting it into practice. Let me show you, step by step, how to rewrite a mediocre introduction and turn it into a compelling hook using the PAS framework.

Want deeper guidance on how to write online content that works, including templates and a student workbook? Get in my 1-hour workshop, Learn to Write Online Content.

Learn How to Write Content That Works, Step by Step

Learning how to write content that works is made easier, in my opinion, if I can actually show you how it’s done.

In that spirit, I’m taking a ho-hum, real-life example of content from the top (but not the very top) of Google, ranking for “how to write good content”, and transforming the intro into a killer hook using the PAS framework.

(By the way, no shade to whoever wrote this. We’ve all been there, myself included.)

Here’s what we’re starting with:

Away we go!

Step 1: Start with the “P” in the PAS Framework

And so we return to the PAS framework.

Remember, this is the formula that works to hook the reader.

It has a set structure to follow that’s proven to work. (And it’s not just me who uses this over and over with great success – reams of other content writers rely on it too. Once you know it, you’ll start seeing it everywhere.)

Let’s ask ourselves: Is the problem (or the pain point) clearly stated in this content example?

Yes…

But I see an issue here right away.

“Nothing is worse than bad content”?

The way the problem is stated lacks empathy. For starters, the entire world just went through a pandemic where people dying in the hospital couldn’t have their loved ones surrounding them.

There are plenty of things worse than bad content. Saying the opposite is downright tone-deaf.

To state the problem with empathy – knowing our readers and what will grab them without turning them off – is mega-important when writing a hook.

Here’s how I would rewrite it:

Step 2: Prove It

Look at my rewritten hook above. How do I know good content is rare on the internet?

In the next sentence, I swoop in with a statistic that proves my point: 90% of all blogs don’t earn backlinks. That’s powerful, and if I link that stat to the original study, that’s proof I know what I’m talking about.

So, don’t just make sweeping statements with no context. Add statistics from well-known sources to your hook that prove your point. In one move, you’ll grab the reader’s attention while ALSO demonstrating your credibility.

Step 3: Cut That Gunky Fluff

The old hook is so fluff-filled and error-filled, that it’s hard to see past the gunk.

It’s long-winded. It meanders. This spells disaster.

Why? Your readers aren’t going to stick around to figure out what the heck the point is. They don’t want to play Where’s Waldo? to find your meaning.

Don’t make your readers hunt through your sentences to find your point, like a weird literary version of Where’s Waldo.

If you can say something in one sentence, don’t write a paragraph.

Here’s just one example of a fluffy sentence rewritten:

And, as you’ll soon see, much of the content from our example can be cut and reworded more succinctly and clearly.

Do you struggle with fluff in your writing? Want to learn how to write engaging content that converts – NOT long-winded essays? My course, Unlearn Essay Writing, is for you. Learn in one week – enroll now.

Step 4: Agitate

We’ve come to the “A” in PAS. It’s time to emphasize your hook and tell the reader why they should care.

Since my rewrite of the old content is super succinct, I effectively agitate the problem (that good content is rare) with two sentences:

“In fact, 90% of all blogs do not earn a single backlink. That means most content on the web isn’t worthy of a single mention.”

Most. Content. Isn’t. Worthy. Of. A. Single. Mention.

Do you see how I presented an incredibly powerful statistic but blew it up by agitating the problem? Explaining how raw data translates to real consequences, in your own words, makes it 10x more effective.

Relate the problem to your reader in language that will turn their head. Get down and dirty and spell out exactly why the problem is horrible. How does it feel? Why should they care?

Now you not only have their attention – you’ve grabbed their hand and you’re not letting go.

Step 5: Add Internal Links

As you write your hook, don’t forget to add internal links to your own site when relevant.

This is big for SEO.

For instance, in my rewrite, I could add links to other blogs I’ve written about good content, or a blog explaining ROI and what it means.

Step 6: Solve

Next: Present the solution.

BUT –

Don’t forget to keep the hook alive.

Don’t peter out now. Keep the urgency going from the first line and continue to draw the reader into your content.

The original content example stumbled in that instance. It’s full of fluff, with little urgency.

Here’s how I would rewrite it:

Look at how much I cut, and how I could summarize what was originally said with a line or two.

I present the solution simply, and tell my reader that the rest of the blog will answer all their questions.

Step 7: Include Your Keywords

Don’t forget to optimize your content. Include your focus keyword in key places – the H1, the subheaders, and inside the body text – to ensure your piece will get crawled by Google and ranked!

Put It All Together to Write Content That Works

Let’s combine everything to see exactly how my rewrite looks in comparison with the original piece.

I think you’ll notice a few major differences:

1. My rewrite is clearer and more succinct.
2. It follows a proven framework.
3. It’s punchier, with more urgency.
4. It engages better.
5. There’s NO fluff.
6. It includes statistics for credibility.

Done and done.

Do You Know How to Write Content That Works?

…And if you don’t, you should learn.

Writing content that works is about more than inserting some keywords here and there or writing what you think your reader wants to know.

To truly grab them, drive your point home, demonstrate your credibility, and keep them reading, you need more.

A hook.

Empathy.

Credibility.

Optimization.

Don’t sell your content short. Learn to write content that works, and the results WILL come pouring in.

And, by the way, I have a one-week course for that.

If you’re ready to learn writing techniques that grab today’s online reader, you need the Unlearn Essay Writing course.

This course will teach you EXACTLY how to unlearn fluffy essay writing and replace it with honed, sharp writing for the web.

Enroll today, and start writing results-getting content.

The post How to Write Content That Works appeared first on Content Hacker.

Content is an entirely different beast.

Content doesn’t grow your business long-term if it’s just treated as a mechanism, a commodity to get you somewhere.

Content creation only works to exponentially grow your business when it’s treated like an ecosystem, and grown accordingly.

In today’s blog and video, I’m explaining and de-mystifying this.

Why You Need a Content Creation Ecosystem… and Why One-Shot Content Doesn’t Work

Is this you?

You publish…

• Two or three blogs
• A handful of emails
• One landing page
• A social media post or YouTube video

…and expect to see results from that amount of effort.

You think each of these pieces could potentially be your “one shot.” Your “viral hit.”

But in reality, you’re probably hearing crickets.

Sorry to tell you this, but you’re living in the OLD way of thinking about/doing content marketing.

You’re thinking about content as a mechanism, when really…

You should think of it as an ecosystem.

Don’t get me wrong – the one-shot approach can result in traffic or sales or clicks for a short amount of time.

But, eventually, you’ll flatline. Your shots in the dark will fade into nothing.

Then what?

If you want to build real momentum behind your business, if you want traffic and leads coming in on auto-pilot for the long-term, you need an ecosystem.

What Is a Content Creation Ecosystem?

A content creation ecosystem is a world of content you build on the foundation of your website. (Here at Content Hacker, I like to call this your content house.)

It’s not just a few pieces of content, either. It’s consistent content, published regularly. One piece on its own will advance your goals for the short term, but a whole interconnected web of content pieces will keep working together to advance your authority, grow your traffic, and convert leads over the long term.

Your website is the hub, the center where all roads lead. All of your content is either housed there or connects to it. That includes:

• Your blog posts
• Your social media posts
• Your podcasts
• Your emails
• Your sales pages

…And more. If it’s content, it needs to lead back to your website.

Why?

Why Your Website Should Be the Center of Your Content Creation Ecosystem

Because your website is real estate you own – no one else. You can build your platform there with the knowledge that no outside entity or boardroom of executives can one day pull the plug.

On the other hand, if you focus on building your platform on rented land, like Instagram or Facebook or YouTube or Medium, your growth and longevity remain at the whim of tech bigwigs and their fickle algorithms.

You can lose 10,000 followers in a day for no apparent reason. You can get shadowbanned. Your account can get hacked. You can get removed from these platforms altogether with little warning.

Your website, however?

You own it. Completely. It’s your home on the internet. Much like how an in-person business stakes out a brick-and-mortar location for their operations, you can stake out your own spot on the internet with your website.

It’s your virtual brick-and-mortar. It’s your content house.

How to Build a Content Creation Ecosystem (Your Content House)

How do you build a content creation ecosystem?

It’s not as difficult as it sounds.

Your ecosystem needs to be built on three main elements:

1. Your website
2. Your content
3. Your skilled writer

With these in place, your brand can take off. Here’s how:

1. A Website (Your Platform)

Every single person who owns a business or runs a business needs an online platform. It’s just the way marketing works these days – it’s mostly done online.

As we’ve mentioned, the ideal online platform for ANY brand is a website.

If you don’t have one, you need to get one built – ASAP.

And it can’t just be any old website with your logo slapped at the top.

To get your pages ranking, to pull in traffic and convert them to leads, your website needs speed. Responsiveness. Good, UX-focused design. Keyword-optimized content and landing pages.

Since your website is your content ecosystem foundation, it MUST work well and look good.

Panicking about your messy site design and slow loading times right about now? We can help you get your site built with good UX, great design, and optimization for conversions and rankings. Talk to us today to get started with your custom website design.

2. Multiple Types of Content, Posted Regularly

Next up, to build your content creation ecosystem, you need to populate it with multiple content types regularly.

A good ecosystem doesn’t have just one or two pieces of each content type. It has a whole interconnected, sprawling web of content.

I’m talking about ALL the formats. You know the biggies: blogs, emails, sales pages, podcasts, etc.

Your ecosystem should be always growing and expanding. (The data on blogging frequency backs this up. For instance, consistently posting at least three times per week correlates with a huge traffic increase.) As this happens, your reach and authority expand, too.

Of course, you can’t expect to continually expand your content ecosystem on your own. Nobody can do it all. It’s a LOT of work.

You need help.

You need a writer.

3. A Skilled Writer Who Loves What They Do + Your Brand

Outsourcing your content creation is one of the best ways to free yourself from the content grind and build your ecosystem.

I’ll be the first to admit: It’s hard. It’s daunting. Especially if you’re starting from zero.

But it’s totally doable, as long as you have skilled help.

And yes, you DO need help.

For instance, you wouldn’t build your own house with your two hands – you would hire a builder. Because you know your house could COLLAPSE if a non-builder or novice builds it.

Writing is the same. If YOU write, it could actually set you back (read: your content falls flat), because of the nuanced audiences, delivery methods, platforms, etc. you need to understand for success.

Enter your writer.

BUT – much like your website, not just any writer will do. Your writer needs some key traits/skills to be right for your brand. They should:

1. LOVE to write
2. Love to write for the BRAND they’re hired for (expertise fit, passion fit)

Once you find this writer, they can be trained on every single content format you need to produce.

Think of them like your Swiss army knife for content.

I have personally tested this in my business, and the results speak for themselves.

Yep – I don’t write my content. I have dedicated writers who do that. They also write my emails, sales pages, and any other copy I need. I train them to write across formats – skillfully – and they do it all.

By the way, if you or your writer needs that kind of training, this course teaches you how to write for the top 11 content formats. And, my guide to the Art of Online Writing offers a free preview:

Your Incredible Content Creation Ecosystem Is Waiting

It’s true:

One piece of content does not make a content ecosystem.

One piece of content (or a couple of emails, or a single sales page or social media post) is not enough to grow your authority and skyrocket your traffic and leads for the long term.

These are shots in the dark. Pinpricks of light.

Instead, you need a revolving wheel of content that consistently spins and moves you forward. With each new piece published, your light grows brighter and steadier. The wheel keeps turning.

It grows over time. It’s all connected to your website, your content ecosystem.

And it’s all within reach…

Because I teach you exactly how to create a content ecosystem in my Content Transformation System.

This 12-month mentorship is ALL about learning to grow your business through a honed, well-oiled content strategy. You’ll learn not just how to create content, but how to build and oversee a content team to success.

If you’re ready to grow your brand through content, if you want 1:1 training and guidance on the path, this is your program.

Apply today for your spot in the Content Transformation System.

The post Is Content Dead? Here’s the Ecosystem of Lasting Content Creation appeared first on Content Hacker.

I’ve done over $5M in sales through my WordPress.com websites in the last ten years, WITHOUT ads. I create and sell services I love selling, and put together a team to grow and scale. And I started with nothing.

The truth is, gone are the days of connecting with leads and customers through the yellow pages. You have the opportunity to get found by billions of people searching Google for answers every second (8 billion per day… just two years ago, it was under 3.5 billion per day). SEO blogging on your website brings in 1,000% more traffic than social media.

When starting an online business, skip pouring energy into “rented” real estate on third-party platforms (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc.) and launch your own website — this is digital real estate you’ll own forever. So, how?

You need to have your own website. And WordPress.com is the best way to get started. Nowadays, you can tap into the power of owning digital real estate with WordPress.com PLUS the easy setup, designs, security, support, and management of using WordPress.com to build and run your site.

Today, I’m showing you exactly how it’s done. In this blog, I’ll share how to build a WordPress.com website from scratch, a full beginner’s tutorial. There’s a hands-on video and written tutorial coming up (you’re welcome).

How to Build a WordPress.com Website from Scratch: What Is WordPress, Exactly?

WordPress is open-source software (meaning anyone can build on it) you can use to create stunning websites and build your brand on.

And one of the biggest reasons for entrepreneurs to use WordPress when building their website is that you own your data.This is the truest form of something I talk about often, building your content house online.

Creating a following you can monetize for years to come happens when you own your own real estate on the internet (and there is no replacement for that outside your website).

Some people are shocked to learn after they’ve launched a home on the web from a site builder like Squarespace, Wix, Weebly, etc. that they do NOT actually own their site’s data. This can be messy when you’re creating content for your business — you can’t ever move your site’s content to another platform.

With WordPress, you own your data, forever, and are free to grow your site and audience, or take your data with you wherever you please.

Wondering how to build a business website from scratch? Using WordPress, creating a website for your business for free is totally possible, you just need to pay for a domain name, hosting, and a designer (unless you know your HTML and CSS code).

But instead of complicating things and:

1. Trying to figure out the super technical side of DNS servers, hosting, html code, CSS styling, and domain setup
2. Researching, installing, and paying for the right security + essential plugins that make your site run smoothly
3. Paying big $$$ to a web developer to build, launch, and update your site

Build your WordPress website using WordPress.com (use this link to get started for free!). Scroll down for our tutorial on how to build a WordPress.com website from scratch.

WordPress.com is a fast and easy way to use WordPress that I’m giving you a tutorial on in today’s blog. It’s the secure, scalable, hosted WordPress service operated by Automattic. Their founder and CEO, Matt Mullenweg, first co-founded the WordPress project in 2003 before later starting Automattic. Just the tip of the iceberg as to why you should build with WordPress.com.

Image Source: WordPress.com

Why Should You Use WordPress.com to Build Your Website?

I’ve watched too many would-be entrepreneurs get lost in the weeds of the technical backend of a website and give up on their business idea forever. This is why new founders/business creators should use the features I’m talking about today offered by WordPress.com to efficiently (and without burnout) set up their customizable website.

If you’re in the beginning stages, or you don’t have a ton of funds, you’re going to LOVE the features I’m about to show you that stem from WordPress.com.

I don’t want you to give up on a potential seven-figure business idea just because building your website got too complicated. That’s why I’m so excited about WordPress.com being an all-in-one solution (you won’t even have to worry about picking hosting, that’s included!).

Look, I believe that your very smart brain COULD train to be a web developer in time, but do you want to? You’ve got a business to grow!

This is why I’m shouting from the rooftops to fellow entrepreneurs about the power of building a website with WordPress.com, and how easy it is to learn how to build a WordPress.com website from scratch.

Their new Pro plan has killer offerings for business owners to swoon over — making it a fantastic choice for building and launching your site quickly. It doesn’t need to be complicated — you can be off to the races in just HOURS with just five pages and a first blog.

Built-in hosting and support. $15/month. It’s everything you need and nothing you don’t. Use this link to get started.

No more crying into your coffee over crashing your own website.

What’s the big difference?

Websites made with WordPress.com are extremely flexible, lightning-fast, and supported by WordPress experts. For the non-tech-savvy (and even if you’re digitally inclined) I can’t even truly explain how many website setup and management headaches could be eliminated simply by using WordPress.com.

And I want you to succeed at this whole ‘building a sustainable online business’ thing, not get stuck on getting your brand online.

Seriously — WordPress.com offers options for users with many different goals that give you everything you need to publish your SEO content, sell your products or services, and truly learn how to build a following using your website so you can grow your audience online.

No matter what kind of brand you want to build, WordPress.com gives business owners and freelancers a complete and flexible website that can grow with you in so many different ways, whether you need to add tools for:

1. Marketing your business
2. eCommerce or selling online
3. Running a community
4. Offering subscriptions and memberships
5. Expressing yourself and your brand voice

…and a mind-blowing amount more.

WordPress.com’s awesomely customizable — it has all the storage, security, speed, backups, and design essentials you need to do virtually anything online — including block editing in a modern interface.

And not to mention, you also get incredible one-on-one support via email or chat (if you’ve ever spent hours chatting with your hosting company trying to investigate a backend issue with your site, I see you, and you’ll LOVE dealing with this support team).

WordPress.com is the full power of modern WordPress hosting made easy, and you’ll be supported every step of the way.

Okay, on to that tutorial I promised you. Here’s how to build a following you can monetize using your website on WordPress.com, step by step.

How to Build a WordPress.com Website from Scratch (Beginner’s Video Tutorial)

7 Steps to Building Your First WordPress.com Website from Scratch

Question: But Julia, shouldn’t I get clients first before I have a website?

When it comes to building a following you can monetize using your website, launching your site always comes first.

Over the last 10 years that I’ve made $5M with my websites, it always started with me building the brand (and website) first.

But make sure you have the following before you start building your site:

1. A crystal-clear brand name
2. Your dialed-in offers and messaging
3. Your target audience
4. A logo design that you love

Not only will getting all these in order before starting give you the assets you’ll need, you’ll also get the energy and the inspiration needed to build your website with a strong vision in mind. (This is a heavy focus of Phase 2, Skillset, inside The Content Transformation System.)

Ready? Let’s get your site built. Here’s how to create a simple five-page website using WordPress.com.

Step #1: Create a WordPress.com Account

Hold up — notice a missing step?

Yep, most guides on how to build a following using your website start with picking the right hosting plan.

But with WordPress.com, you don’t need to worry about choosing the right hosting platform. They’ve got you covered — it’s truly all in one (a busy business owner’s dream).

To get started, head to the WordPress.com sign-up page and enter your details. Then, click on create account.

Step #2: Pick a Winning Domain Name

Next up, you get to pick your domain name.

The great thing about WordPress Pro is that it includes this for FREE.  The domain you pick should align with your brand and be easy to remember and type. (Since Content Hacker is already established, I’ll use a fictitious brand in this example.)

When you’re ready, click on the Select button.

(Already have a domain? Click on Use a domain I own.)

Step #3: Pick Your Hosting Plan

After that, you’ll be taken to the Choose your hosting plan page. An amazing feature to using WordPress.com is there’s a free plan option available – it’s awesome because it’s available for anyone, including creative entrepreneurs wanting to just get started (but aren’t 100% sure of all of their details yet).

That way, you can explore exactly how WordPress.com works, and when you’re ready, make the switch to Pro. (And I’ve seen too many business creators overthink this part before (if ever) launching a site, so if you’re in your head about it, go ahead and launch with the free plan to keep that momentum going.)

In this tutorial, I’ve highlighted the benefits of using the Pro plan, because I found the benefits well worth it, and I was clear on what I wanted to do with my business idea:

1. 1-year free custom domain name
2. Premium themes
3. Use of plugins
4. Premium support
5. WooCommerce
6. 50GB storage
7. No ads
8. Unlimited website administrators
9. Automated site backups

…and more.

If you know you’ll want to use those benefits now, you can try WordPress Pro risk-free for 14 days, too! They offer a money-back guarantee within that two-week window.

So, to follow the process I took during setup, you’ll want to click on Start with Pro so that you can take advantage of all the WordPress Pro plan offerings like I did.

Step #4: Checkout

You’ll then be taken to the checkout page, where you can enter all your details and click continue.

Below this section, enter your payment information to complete your checkout.

Once your purchase is complete, you’ll have the option to easily set up an email address that uses your domain name ( bless you and your genius ease of use, WordPress.com!)

Step #5: Design Your Site

The next screen will ask you where you want to start, and I suggest building first.

It’s so important to have a visually appealing layout on your website. It helps your conversions and sales when pages are easy to find, and it’s also a great way to build trust with customers and clients.

I can’t wait for you to see the flexible and modern interface on this puppy, so let’s venture inside by clicking on Start building.

The next page will lead you to a list of gorgeous themes to choose from. And because you have a WordPress.com Pro plan, you can use any theme on this list for free (even premium ones).

After checking out the preview, I went ahead and chose the sleek and simple Byrne theme.

Now, let’s jump into the backend and use a little block editing to get a streamlined website launched and live.

The block editing is incredible — check out how quickly I was able to whip up a great homepage.

Step #6: Add Additional Pages

At this point, you can head to My Home on the WordPress dashboard and click on Name your site.

As a creator of multiple six- and seven-brand builder, what’s astounding to me about WordPress.com’s Pro plan is that everything you need to run your business — I mean everything — is located in a single dashboard.

You can:

1. Set up a store
2. See and manage your analytics
3. Create a Link in Bio/Linktree replacement page using 1-click templates
4. And even get initial email subscribers BEFORE connecting to your email marketing software (you’ll need to do that before you email them).

I’m blown away by how streamlined the entire setup is for creators who want to building a following and monetize it with their website.

Ok, back on that amazing dashboard you can go ahead and update your Site title and Site tagline and click Save settings.

Next, head to that left toolbar in WordPress and click on Pages >> Add New. You’ll be directed to an AMAZING page of pre-defined layouts, including About, Blog, Services, Contact, and more. Go ahead and click on the page you want to create, and it’ll load so you can edit it. ✎

Edit the page you choose to your heart’s content, and when you’re ready, click on Publish.

Then, simply repeat these steps for your other pages. (Don’t forget to go back into your homepage buttons and add links to your corresponding pages. Just click on the link icon and search.)

Ready for the grand finale? Head back to the WordPress dashboard and click on Launch site.

That’s it! You’ve successfully set up your WordPress.com site and you’re well on your way to building a following using your website.

The only left to do is to head to your blog page and get your first article written and published.

BONUS Step #7: Promote Your Website

You’ve done it! But, still asking yourself “how can I increase my website followers?”

Well, now that you know the foundational pieces of how to build a following using your website, let’s keep this momentum up — it’s time to promote your website so you can find, keep, and nurture your audience.

If you want to learn how to build a social media following from scratch, you should have a solid website setup first anyway — so you’re nearly there! But since your WordPress.com site is now ready to go, you’ll have a place you own to send your followers from Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. (and the lifespan of content on blogging dominates!)

For example, my friend Sarah told me over coffee “Julia, I want a website for my business.” But she was wondering how to build a website from scratch, AND how to build a following on Instagram.

I told her if she focused on strategy, they’d both come, but that I wanted her to start with her WordPress.com site and THEN look into how to build a social media following for your business (and we still need to cover how to promote your website, so don’t skip this step so you can see the full picture of how to build a social media following from scratch once your website is up and running.)

Here’s how to promote your website:

1. Start Your Email List

Sign up for an email marketing service (I use and love ConvertKit) and make sure you’ve got list building at the top of your mind.

2. Build Your First Lead Magnet

Attract people to your list by offering something like a high-value minicourse, challenge, checklist, roadmap, or whitepaper. See an example.

3. Host It on an Email Marketing Software

Connect your lead magnet to your email marketing service, so you can track which email address came from which lead magnet (if you do more than one — a great way to segment your audience). There are tons of content marketing tools to help you connect these all together beautifully, you just need to get them set up.

4. Connect Your List to WordPress

WordPress.com comes with a simple forms block that’s very quick and easy to set up and use.

And if you’re looking for something more advanced, the Formidable Forms plugin, is a solid choice and has a no-code form styler.

How Do You Stand Out as a Website and Brand in 2022?

Look at you go. You now know how to build a following using your website with a small business blog.

So the next time you hear a fellow business creator wondering out loud something like ‘how do you grow Instagram on your website?’ help them out and fill them in with what you’ve learned today, starting with:

Instead of asking yourself how to grow a social media following, business creators need to make a mental shift to wondering ‘how do I build a brand following?’. That’s the BIG secret of six- and seven-figure content-based brand leaders today.

If you’re ready to build a following using your website, don’t wait. Get started with the WordPress.com Pro plan today and within minutes you could have the website of your dreams — so you can start creating the successful sustainable business you know you deserve. You’ve got this, friend.

The post How to Build a WordPress.com Website from Scratch & Earn a Following (Beginner’s Tutorial) appeared first on Content Hacker.

Life has both ups AND downs aplenty.

But, when your path starts curving downward, how do you stay encouraged during those difficult times?

If you struggle to cope when the universe deals you some not-so-great hands, it’s okay.

You’re human.

Just know…

You’ll get through this.

And, to help you along the way, I have some tips for how to stay encouraged during difficult times – the very same rules that have helped steady me during my own valleys through life.

5 Steadfast Rules for How to Stay Encouraged During Difficult Times (Video)

These are the thought patterns, beliefs, and habits that have pulled me through when the going gets… well, hard.

When difficult times arise (and, by the way, they always will!), I lean into these practices deeply, especially an unshakeable trust in God’s plan.

If you’re going through your own difficult time, I have so much encouragement to share with you. Check out this video to hear it straight from me:

And here’s a deeper explanation of the 5 rules I lean on for how to stay encouraged during difficult times:

1. Have Faith and Trust God Even When Things Aren’t Good

Staying encouraged during difficult times is perhaps the ultimate test of faith.

It’s easy to praise God when times are good. It’s easy to be grateful when things are going your way.

It’s much, much harder to keep a grateful and faithful heart in the middle of a storm.

But that is exactly when you should look to Him. The exact time to put your trust entirely in His hands is in the middle of your personal hurricane. Because that’s when He’s at work!

Remember, His terms and timing are better than ours.

Storytime.

Back in 2018, I thought I was ready to sell my agency. It didn’t happen until late 2021, which made me question a lot.

But! When I look back, in 2018 we weren’t ready. It wasn’t the right time. It wasn’t until 2021 that we had assets in place to help us start over with our new brands post-agency exit.

Starting over again from scratch was much harder than I anticipated. There’s no way we could have done this in 2018 when we lacked specific assets that helped support us through the transition of moving from one business to another. There’s no way we could have achieved a few of the massive feats we did if we had sold earlier – from moving into our dream home to investing in our own land.

Storms can absolutely throw your life off course. We can’t know where the wind is taking us until we have some hindsight. But rest assured that trusting in God to plot your course means you’ll end up somewhere good – and you’ll probably grow braver and stronger than you were before.

That’s how to stay encouraged during difficult times.

Source: ibelieve.com

2. Immerse Yourself in Positive Beliefs; Repeat

It can be tempting to wallow in doubt and self-pity when difficult times arise.

Don’t fall into this trap.

Instead, make a conscious effort to surround yourself with positivity. Repeat the beliefs that are unchangeable to you. Immerse yourself in them and uplift yourself with them.

It works because what they say is true: You are who (and what!) you associate with. You are what you do.

Surround yourself with positive beliefs, and you’ll reinforce them. You’ll strengthen your resolve and your faith.

I do this in many ways, but an easy one is to listen to specific music that uplifts me. Worship music in particular is powerful. Here are some playlist/song suggestions to listen to when you’re facing difficult times:

• Hillsong Worship playlist on Pandora
• Do It Again by Mack Brock, Travis Cottrell
• Greater Things by Mack Brock

Soaking in lyrics like this can make a huge difference to your mood, and make you feel encouraged and seen (these words are from “Do It Again”):

“Waiting for change to come
Knowing the battle’s won
For You have never failed me yet

Your promise still stands
Great is Your faithfulness, faithfulness
I’m still in Your hands
This is my confidence
You’ve never failed me yet

I know the night won’t last
Your word will come to pass
My heart will sing Your praise again”

3. Know That, in Difficult Times, Fear Is Mostly False Evidence Appearing Real

During difficult times, what’s your number one fear?

That you might fail?

That you will lose something valuable (relationships, job, money, status, health)?

That you’ll be alone?

Or maybe you simply fear the unknown.

Chances are, it’s never as bad or as dire as your fears would lead you to believe.

That’s because FEAR is mostly False Evidence Appearing Real.

Fear has the power to make you lose all perspective in your tough situation. Fear can convince you that the worst will happen.

Don’t let it!

Usually, our situation isn’t as bad as we make it out to be in our minds.

Or, if we’re really in deep, there might be a silver lining or a glimmer of hope that our fear is overshadowing.

Step back from your fear, and re-examine it. Is it really true? Or are you catastrophizing? Can you find the ray of light among the clouds?

4. Use Your Fear to Stay Motivated, Encouraged, and Committed to Your Dreams

While fear is often a liar…

Fear can also be a tool.

A healthy level of fear can be the very thing that pushes you to act to achieve your dreams.

You fear you won’t succeed? Work that much harder to pursue success.

You fear the unknown? Take the opportunity to learn as much as you can about your situation or problem. Get a wise counselor to help you. Invest in yourself.

Use your fear as a motivator. What can you do to overcome it? What preparations can you take? What can you learn? Who could help you navigate your problem and find solutions?

Do this without hesitation and you will see results and find the right path.

A mentor can be a great resource to help you succeed when you face difficult times in your life or business. In my Content Transformation System, we focus on mentorship to help our students build long-lasting, sustainable businesses from their passions. With coaching, a full curriculum, templates, a student community, and more, we’ll help you get over your business hurdles to reach the impact you crave. Learn more and apply to the program.

5. Remember: You Entered This World with Nothing, and You’ll Leave with Nothing

This isn’t meant to be morbid, but rather bracing.

It’s meant to shift your perspective:

You came into this world with nothing; you will leave with nothing.

This means, simply, stop carrying the whole world on your head. Stop focusing so hard on earthly, material things.

Ultimately, none of that matters. You’re taking none of it with you in the end.

What does matter? The impact you leave behind. How you showed up for both yourself and others.

Once you realize this truth, the ups and downs matter less. You’ll take yourself less seriously. Your problems will come into perspective.

It’s a stark thing to think about, but it just might help you gain clarity on your difficult time.

Bonus Tip: Breath in Nature and Fresh Air to Reset

Nothing is more grounding than feeling the sun on your face and the wind in your hair. So when you’re feeling anxious about the times we live in, the state of your business, or just life in general, take this as your reminder:

Step outside. Breathe. Use your senses to take in nature’s beauty. Calm your heart and find a moment of peace. Things WILL get better.

How to Stay Encouraged During Difficult Times: Mindset & Faith

What’s the common thread running through this list of tips?

The one-two punch of mindset + faith is how to stay encouraged during difficult times.

Your beliefs and thoughts will have a bigger impact than maybe you ever realized.

To keep from becoming discouraged, we must stand firm in faith that we’re on the right path, and that things will get better. We can use our fear of failure or the unknown to work harder, learn smarter, and use the wise people at our disposal.

We can train our brains to think positively, and we can immerse ourselves in positive beliefs.

It’s definitely not always easy, but it’s absolutely worth it.

And if you’re currently struggling on the business front, this is your sign to stay encouraged…

Because help is here.

Mentorship, coaching, teaching, and community are all a click away inside my Content Transformation System.

I designed this program specifically for the struggling creative entrepreneur hitting walls when building their business.

If you’re ready to get more out of your life by building a powerful digital business through content marketing — a business and marketing plan that DOESN’T suck you dry – The Content Transformation System teaches you EXACTLY how to do just that.

Join us today to get the clarity and support you need to succeed. Check out my free class to get started.

The post How to Stay Encouraged During Difficult Times: 5 Unchangeable Rules appeared first on Content Hacker.

Let me answer that question right out of the gate:

YES.

…With a few caveats, of course.

Starting your own business is not all sunshine and rainbows.

It’s an insane amount of work, and it requires a dedication to your endeavor like none other. (50% of businesses fail by year five. Starting a brand that lasts is not for the faint of heart.)

BUT – once you’re invested, and if you’re doing something you love, it can be an incredible way to earn a living and make a unique impact on the world.

You just need to keep some Very Important Facts top of mind before you dive in.

Is It Worth It to Start an Online Business? (Video)

Starting an online business is worth it.

But only if you’re starting with the right frame of mind, expectations, investment, and work ethic.

I started a business when I was 19. I loved to write and wanted to make a full-time living doing it. With the last $75 I had to my name, I invested in a pro to code a website for me, then learned how to upload the files myself.

I can’t lie – it was hard those first few years. Most of our income was a grind. I often worked 90-hour weeks only to see $30k/month from all that effort.

Then, in 2016, I pivoted and got strategic. I built the right mindset, and soon after, our growth shot skyward.

I grew that business mainly through content marketing, and have used content marketing to grow all my other brands.

From that small, hopeful $75, I made a 13,000x return on investment.

But ONLY because I put in the strategy and hard work. ONLY because I adopted the mindset of high achievers and cultivated the patience and persistence needed to see my efforts pay off.

Similarly, if you want to start your own business, don’t go into it blindly. You need to be prepared for what the reality looks like – NOT what you think it will be like.

If you’re fully aware of the “don’ts” involved in starting a brand, it will be worth it to move forward.

Watch this video to get a full picture:

Is Starting a Business Worth It? 6 “Don’ts” to Keep in Mind

Before you can fully answer whether it’s worth it to start an online business, there are six “don’ts” you must understand.

1. Don’t Be in It Just for the Money

When the going gets tough in your business, what will keep you invested in sticking out the hard times? What will make you less likely to give up?

The money?

Nope.

(In hard times, you probably won’t be pulling in much revenue. And if you only care about the money, when it dries up, you won’t have much motivation to keep going.)

Money alone is not a good enough reason to start a business. Instead, the key to starting a brand that lasts is to build it on two pillars:

1. What you know
2. What you love

In other words, prioritize purpose over profits. Start a brand doing something you love, something on which you’re an expert.

For example, if you were a marketer at your 9-5 and really enjoyed the actual work (not so much being an employee), it would make the most sense for you to start your online business in marketing.

2. Don’t Buy into the Most Common Entrepreneurship Lie

Most successful small business owners and entrepreneurs are not sipping Mai Tais on a beach somewhere. They’re not working two hours/week from the decks of their private yachts.

And yet, this is the promise so many flashy coaches and gurus are trying to sell you.

“All this can be yours! ….IF you buy my course.”

Don’t fall for this. You’re too smart to be distracted by shiny claims that don’t hold up and are just thrown at you to get you to buy a product.

There are definitely ways to save time and cut to growth faster – but they don’t work overnight, and you won’t make millions of dollars without a solid strategy guiding your footsteps, not to mention some consistency and hard work.

If you only want to work two hours a week, you should NOT be starting a business.

3. Don’t Be Afraid of Investing in Knowledge to Help You Reach Your Goals

The knowledge gaps you might encounter when starting a business can be huge.

Often, the difference between successful vs. unsuccessful businesses is a willingness to invest in closing those gaps.

Take a look at the top reasons startups fail via a CBInsights survey:

• 38% just plain ran out of money
• 35% said they failed because they later discovered there was no market for their product/service
• 20% said they got outcompeted in the marketplace
• 19% had a flawed business model

How many of these failures could have been avoided with the right knowledge and strategy?

All of them.

If you don’t have the knowledge to reach your goals, you need to be willing to go out and get it. You need to invest in your goals!

Specifically, you should absolutely invest in a program that will help you achieve a specific goal. Struggle with marketing? Have problems scaling and hiring the right people? Not sure how to validate your market offer? Invest in getting that knowledge from a true expert (not a flashy guru promising you the moon).

Proverbs 13.20 says, “Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.”

Don’t be afraid to go after your big goals and invest in those more readily, either.

For my own businesses, the biggest growth came with bigger investments, not just in knowledge or skills, but in strategy and a roadmap to reach my goals.

• The majority of my $5-100 purchases in courses and digital guides resulted in a 10% improvement.
• In contrast, my $2k, $5k, and $10k investments in a coach or program resulted in 10x growth.

My willingness to invest (both time and money) directly correlated to the growth I experienced.

• Reading a quick, low-investment guide = some good tips gleaned, but no true foundational wisdom for building my business.
• Working strategically with a coach or spending dedicated time learning in a program designed to help me reach my goals = priceless wisdom gained to achieve a transformation in my business.

The latter is exactly what you get in my coaching program, The Content Transformation System. I teach you every single part of a content approach to growing your business – and not just content creation, but also how to hire people to support that process and grow for years to come. This + live mentorship along the way = a true road to growth! Apply today to get started.

4. Don’t Expect Starting a Business to be Easy

There is no “easy button” for this journey you’re on.

There are shortcuts…

But the shortcuts aren’t easy, either.

Following the wise can get you where you want to go way faster, but earning wisdom is no walk in the park.

There will be trials, setbacks, failures… and you’ll have to go through it.

…But just because it won’t be easy doesn’t mean it won’t be worth it.

5. Don’t Ignore the Power of Content Marketing for Biz Growth

If no one knows, no one will buy.

It’s that simple.

You can’t sell to an empty room. And chirping crickets certainly can’t purchase your product/service.

How do you become known?

Let’s put it this way: The power of content marketing is unmatched for not only becoming known in your space but also building trust that leads to conversions and sales.

In fact, content marketing is the only marketing left.

It brings in 3x as many leads as traditional marketing (paid ads, etc.) but costs 60% less.

SEO blogging brings in 1,000% more traffic than social media.

And 1 in 10 blog posts are compounding – meaning they build traffic and domain authority over time.

It definitely takes time and consistency to build an audience that likes and trusts you, but the results are so worth the effort. (At CH, our primary avenue for traffic and leads is our blog! )

6. Don’t Forget to Listen to Your Customer

Your customer should be the most important person in your business life.

Your customer is paramount.

That said, I’m not just talking about the great ones (the ones who leave you glowing reviews, organically share your brand on social media, sing your praises, engage with you regularly, etc. )

…The bad ones need your ear, too. Even the ones who are rude, wrong, or hard to deal with.

These literal tough customers can guide you to make great strides and improvements within your systems, services, products, etc.

The key is to shelve your ego and glean any valuable tidbits you can from those bad reviews, mean comments, complaint-ridden phone calls, etc. (And even if you generally see very few of these, the ones that do come through can still help you achieve even better levels of synergy with customers if you just listen for the true criticism underneath all the emotion.)

Serve your customer well, aim for some kind of positive outcome from each interaction, and you’ll continue to have more customers.

Is Starting a Business Worth It? YES – But It Won’t Be Easy

Is starting a business worth it?

The short answer is YES, but, it won’t be easy, and you can set yourself back if you go at it wrong.

Don’t buy into some rosy, “get rich quick” idea of starting a business and making bank.

For a long-lasting business you can build sustainably (so it doesn’t run your entire life!), that’s just not how it works.

If you want staying power, true freedom, and business systems that run like clockwork…

You need the right mindset, roadmap, skills, and support.

In the Content Transformation System, I’m offering you all four.

If you’re ready to get out of the grunt work of building a sustainable business and into the magical delight zone, this coaching and mentorship program is the answer.

The journey you’ll take through this program will change everything. Apply today to get started building a business that won’t suck you dry.

The post Is Starting an Online Business Worth It? (The Truth) appeared first on Content Hacker.

This is the process of narrowing your target market – your audience – and matching it up with your marketing. This way, you’ll only speak to people who LOVE what you do, what you sell, and the pain points you solve for them.

(Read: Success will follow. )

But here’s the antithesis I’m here to share today: You can go too far and trap yourself in a box if you’re not careful.

Don’t get me wrong. Niching down is an important strategy to use to help you target the right people.

I’ve said it before… and I’ll go ahead and repeat myself : You can’t market to everyone. You can’t sell to everyone.

So it’s important to niche down to find the people who would LOVE to see your marketing and buy your product/service.

It prevents you from wasting a ton of time talking to those who will ultimately never buy, and who have no vested interest in the pain point you solve.

BUT –

Niching down becomes a problem when you go too far.

“How far is TOO far?” you may be wondering.

That’s exactly what I’m discussing today:

• Why niching down is important
• How to niche down without losing out on potential customers
• How far and how specific you should get when targeting prospects

In a nutshell, I recommend niching down while NOT putting all your eggs in one basket – literally. Here’s why.

How to Niche Down, Explained: Video

First, if you’re resistant to niching down, let’s talk about why it matters and why attempting to speak to everyone is a recipe for failure.

Why Should You Niche Down?

Niching down can be scary.

You’re essentially ruling out a vast chunk of people from your audience and getting them out of your viewfinder. You’re tossing them over your shoulder and forgetting they exist.

It can feel dramatic. So much so, your brain might revert to planning how you can keep your nets cast far and wide: “What if I could convince these people, eventually, that they need what I’m selling? Isn’t the tiniest chance they’ll buy still a chance?”

Sure. Maybe you could convince them… Someday. After you spend tens of thousands of dollars on ads. After years of persistent marketing. After pouring in time and resources to find ways to wear them down.

Yikes. No. This is a formula for disaster! If you have to work THAT hard to convince someone to buy, they probably aren’t your greatest prospect. At best, you’ll bleed your business dry trying to persuade these people to your side.

At worst, your brand will go under because you failed to find customers.

Instead, if you find the people who are easy to convert, you’ll save time and money. You’ll build a brand that lasts versus one that falls apart at the slightest speed bump.

Why Niching Down Too Far Is Dangerous

When you find the right targets to hit with your brand presence, messaging, and marketing, magic can happen.

Your message will be music to their ears.

Your solutions will be balms to their pain.

They’ll want to buy with little friction in-between the moments when they find your brand and when they hit “purchase.”

But focusing on one ideal market isn’t sustainable. Why?

Markets are unpredictable. They can change, sometimes without warning.

If you find a great, niche target market and pour all your efforts into connecting with and selling to that one…

What happens when a cheap competitor comes on the scene, vying for that exact market?

What happens when budgets slash in that niche due to bigger, overarching economic problems (pandemic, anyone?)?

Niche down too far, and your prospects will all come from the same tiny pool. One shift in the wind, and that pool can dry up.

That’s why you should niche down to a couple of different target markets, not just one. A more diverse pool of targets means more stability for your biz when one of those markets inevitably shifts. (And I’m all about not just stability, but sustainability in business!)

In this video, I go deeper into this topic, including how to niche down to three target markets and position your brand to speak to all of them. Check it out:

Niching Down Case Study: Andia of Content Takeoff

One of my Content Transformation students, Andia of Content Takeoff, is a great example of why niching down is so important.

Andia used to target everyone with her marketing and positioning – but she couldn’t grow her brand that way. By trying to talk to everyone, she ended up speaking to no one.

She joined the Content Transformation System hoping she would get clarity on growing and scaling her business. With my help in our live student community, after going through the Skillset Phase and the 4 Business Core Drivers in the curriculum, she completely revamped her presence.

Specifically, she narrowed down her target markets to no more than three. Here’s what they have in common:

• They match up with her expertise (she has a Master’s degree in Banking & Finance, + more than 10 years in the financial industry).
• She can speak to their pain point exactly and solve it for them.

After completely rebranding her site to reflect her narrowed audience, her targets are now directly addressed on her homepage:

“We’re a content marketing agency that helps financial and fintech companies transform their website content into powerful marketing machines.”

Here’s what Andia had to say about her brand’s transformation:

That’s the power of not just niching down correctly, but getting crystal clear on every single one of your business’ moving parts.

Ready to learn how to niche down the sustainable way, so your business is market-proof? Here’s how.

How to Niche Down to 3 Markets Successfully

Contrary to what many gurus will tell you, niching down, down, down isn’t a great strategy for the future health of your biz.

Sure, niche down, but do it within reason. I recommend serving no more than 2-3 groups.

1. Start with Finding ONE Ideal Client

Who do you serve the best with your business?

If you already have an established brand, you can probably name this ideal client right now.

For instance, maybe you know your ideal client is a stay-at-home mom. Maybe it’s a freelancer in their 20s. Or perhaps it’s an educator or a self-published author.

Whoever they are, make sure you’ve determined they’re THE person you serve best.

Conversely, if you haven’t started your business yet, you’ll need to do some market research to find this person. (Not sure how to go about market research? Check out this guide on researching your audience and creating a persona.)

And, yes, at this point, stick to identifying and describing ONE ideal client in detail. We’ll expand on that in the next step.

2. Consider More People Like Your Ideal Client in Multiple Markets

Next, think about people similar to your ideal client who would also benefit from your services.

Maybe they’re people in parallel roles in the same industry. For example:

• Course teacher
• Author
• Expert consultant

When you think about it, all of these people are concerned with sharing knowledge. They each do it in a unique way, but they ALL have a similar goal in how they help others.

Another example from the content marketing industry:

• Executives
• Marketers
• Agency leaders

All of these people are interested in reaching customers, ultimately. Their roles are different, but their goals are the same.

As you expand outward with target markets, make sure your business can serve each of them amazingly well. Pinpoint why this is, and justify your reasoning.

By the way, if your business is based on your passion, this will be pretty easy for you to figure out.

3. Find What They Have in Common to Niche Down Correctly

The final step in niching down: Find out what all three of your target markets have in common.

This will give you great clarity in terms of positioning your brand, because you’ll speak to this ONE commonality in all three of your target groups – in other words, you’ll hit three birds with one stone.

At the same time, you’ll maintain a diverse group of targets, and if one falls by the wayside, your biz won’t go under.

For instance, say you’ve discovered you can serve busy entrepreneurs, marketing executives, and tech CEOs equally well.

What’s the common thread? You can sum up these three groups with one phrase: “busy executives.”

Here’s an even simpler example. You find you can serve course teachers, authors, and expert consultants well. What’s the through-line? They’re all “insert topic here” educators.

TIP: Once you find the commonality between your markets, use it to name your market in just a few words.

This phrase is one you can use all throughout your brand messaging, including your website copy, ad copy, email copy, and more.

Examples:

• Busy executives
• Content marketing educators
• Female entrepreneurs
• Course creators and consultants

Check out how we do this at Content Hacker – our call-out to our target markets appears right on the homepage. We speak to the common thread underlying all of the groups we target.

At the business I sold, we did the same thing. We targeted three main markets, which was key to protecting us during the economic slump at the onset of COVID-19.

It’s that simple. Go slightly broader with who you target, protect your business.

You Know How to Niche Down. Now It’s Time to Transform Your Brand

Knowing how to niche down is important for a successful business.

You can’t sell to everyone. It’s impossible.

Even if you tried, you would more than likely doom your brand quickly. You’d run out of money, time, resources – all of it – if you wasted effort on people who were never going to buy anyway.

At the same time, niching down too far has its dangers.

You need to diversify your target market slightly so your biz is not just market-proof, but future-proof.

It’s the sustainable way to build your enterprise.

And sustainability is at the core of everything I teach in the Content Transformation System.

A sustainable business is a strong business with impact and legacy.

You won’t become one of the 70% that fail if you have sustainability deep inside your systems and strategies.

It’s how I built my own successful brands, and I’m sharing the entire playbook with you inside CTS, my 1:1 coaching program.

The car is here.

The keys are one decision away:

Ready to run a SUCCESSFUL digital business? Watch my free class to learn more.

The post A Complete Guide on How to Niche Down Without Losing Out appeared first on Content Hacker.

Can you start a brand without knowing for sure whether it will work?

…Just kidding. Those were trick questions.

Because…

There IS a roadmap to starting a brand, no matter your niche or industry. You don’t have to start from zero.

You NEVER have to guess what you should do, first.

If you have the seed of a brand idea, there are steps to take to validate what you’ll do, who you’ll serve, and how/when you’ll make money.

(After that, you can go all-in on building your brand image, solidifying it and making it real.)

So, if that’s you – you have a business idea, but no clear notion of whether it will work – it’s time to go from clueLESS to clued IN.

This is the strategy you need.

Table of Contents:

Video: How to Start a Brand When You’re Not Sure It Will Work

How to Start a Brand: Ask These 3 Questions, First

1. Does Your Business Come from a Core Passion AND Talent?
2. Is There a Way to Directly Make Profits and Scale the Income?
3. Will the Potential for Income Be POSITIVE in Six Months to One Year?

Next Steps: Get Practical When Starting Your Brand from Scratch

1. Write Down Your Brand Mission and Vision
2. Pinpoint Your Target Audience & Persona
3. Hone Your Brand Voice & Messaging
4. Consider Branding
5. Record Your Brand Strategy, Refer to It Often

How to Start a Brand When You’re Unsure Whether It Will Work (Video)

Most guides that explain how to start a brand begin with whether your biz idea is targeted for the right audience/market.

Stop. Back up.

Don’t make this mistake.

Before you go an inch closer to market research or audience discovery, you need to pinpoint a few other details, first. These ensure your brand has staying power, not just market interest.

Why do you need to make sure the staying power is there? Because 70% of all businesses fail before their 10th year. 50% will fail by year five.

I started a brand at age 19 with no idea if it would pan out. Guess what? I led that brand through 10 years, 40,000+ projects, and over $5 million in sales before I sold it successfully.

To get similar achievements in business, you need the right combination of ingredients to not only start your brand on the right footing, but ensure it has longevity baked into its DNA.

Check out this video where I explain the keys to starting a brand when you have NO idea where to begin (hint: right here!).

How to Start a Brand: Ask (& Answer!) These 3 Questions, First

To figure out whether your brand will work, you need to vet it before you start building it.

Ask these questions, first, and then move forward with other brand-building aspects that will help you grow (such as persona creation, branding, and messaging – more on those later).

1. Does Your Business Come from a Core Passion AND Talent?

Do you love doing the thing you’re trying to turn into a business?

Are you good at it? Can you become good at it through skill-building?

If you can’t answer “yes” to both of those questions, stop and reconsider your business idea.

Now, passion and talent won’t make or break your brand in terms of sales or customer interest. You don’t need passion OR talent at the core of your business to sell something to people, whether it’s products or a service.

Plenty of people start their brands with zero passion for what they’re doing/selling, and zero talent for it within themselves, relying on outside talent instead. (The one thing they do have? A passion for making money. )

Surprisingly, this simple factor (having vs. not having passion + talent) is often what differentiates the lasting brands from the brands that fizzle out in a few years.

You DO need both if you want your brand to survive longer than a blip.

Why? The passion + talent equation is what will give you the burning drive to keep going when the going gets tough – sans burnout!

And it will be tough – make no mistake.

In those instances when your income nosedives for any number of reasons, when your brand is stagnating, when your success dips for a bit, when the economy stalls thanks to a pandemic…

Your passion + talent will see you through.

Think of it as the engine at the heart of your brand. Your business won’t survive the long haul without your personal love and skill guiding its trajectory and keeping it alive.

If you have the passion and the talent for your business idea (or if you have the passion and you’re currently working on building expertise), don’t stop there. Keep moving and answer the next vital question.

2. Is There a Way to Directly Make Profits and Scale the Income?

You love what you do. You’re good at it.

So what?

That’s fantastic, but you’re still not ready to start your brand with these two things alone. You need them, absolutely, but you can’t depend on them, because…

It’s not a business unless you can make profits from it and scale.

Storytime.

My husband and I wanted to start a small business selling fresh, homegrown produce from our hydroponic garden. (Gardening is a hobby my husband truly enjoys, and he’s good at it!)

The passion and skill were there. Check.

But then we crunched the numbers to figure out what kind of income we could see from building this brand.

We discovered we could expect, at most, to make $700/month from selling produce at farmers markets. That’s not even enough to cover an average mortgage.

The profits simply wouldn’t be there, so we abandoned the idea.

Back to your business idea. If you find you CAN be profitable with this brand you want to build, next figure out if you can successfully scale. Is the potential for growth present? Can you build your income month after month?

If growth is possible, the next question to ask yourself is where you’ll end up in six months to one year.

3. Will the Potential for Income Be POSITIVE in Six Months to One Year?

Time for some serious number crunching.

If your brand can turn a profit within a year, you’re set to continue building that brand. With passion, skill, profitability, and growth potential, you’ve got the green light, my friend.

But how do you figure out whether your brand will be profitable in the future?

Look at your profit margins, current and projected (this is also essential to do when you’re building out your business team).

1. Expenses: Look at how much it will cost to run your business. Look at your business expenses month-to-month as well as anticipated expenses. These might include:
   • Mortgage or rent payments for your workspace or office
   • Office equipment and supplies
   • Your marketing budget
   • Insurance
   • Payroll, if you hire employees/contractors
   • Travel expenses
   • Education expenses (if you take courses, webinars, conferences, workshops, etc.)
   • Utilities
   • Internet and phone service
   • Bank fees
   • Taxes
2. Revenue & projected revenue: Look at how much income you can expect to take in monthly if you start your biz tomorrow AND if it runs for a full year.
   • For projected revenue, don’t forget to figure in your growth potential. For instance, as time goes on, will you add customers? Slowly increase prices as you become known? Add new services/products?
3. Revenue – Expenses = Net Profit. Take your revenue and subtract your expenses to find your net profit. This is a true picture of your business income. If the number is negative, that means you’re losing money. If it’s 0, you’re breaking even. If the number is above zero, you’re turning a profit!
   • Complete the equation for both present and projected revenue. Will you make money in at least six months to one year? GO – you’re ready to dig into brand building.

Whether you’re sure your brand idea will work or not, whether you’re scaling a ship that has set sail or launching a new one, my FREE video training will give you the knowledge you need to make it successful. Watch now: How to Build Your Self-Sustaining Business in 90 Days.

Next Steps: Get Practical When Starting Your Brand from Scratch

How do you build a brand online once you’ve vetted your idea against the three questions we discussed above?

I recommend staying brand-focused before going out to get customers. That means clarifying your mission and vision, nailing down your logo and colors, building the first draft of your website, figuring out your brand voice and messaging, and creating/documenting your content strategy.

In other words, get practical and erect your brand from the ground up. Invest in your online presence so you’ll have something concrete to market to customers, something you’re proud to show off and spread the word about.

Start with these basic steps:

1. Write Down Your Brand Mission and Vision

What does your brand stand for?

Why do you exist?

What values do you hold dear as an entity?

What differentiates you from your competition?

The answers you give to these basic questions should be the driving force behind everything you do. Before you can start building out your image, you need to know WHY you’re doing it all in the first place.

Here are some definitions and examples to help you formulate your own mission and vision statements.

• Brand vision statement –
  • Encompasses the impact you hope to have on the world.
  • It’s not about money or what you can achieve; it’s about the potentially life-changing value you can provide to others through what you do.
  • Example: Content Hacker’s vision is to “place REAL wealth-building business strategy into the hands of 1M entrepreneurs.”
• Brand mission statement –
  • Tells the world how you’ll reach your vision and why it matters.
  • It’s a clear directive on what you plan to do to create your intended impact.
  • Example: LinkedIn’s mission statement is to “connect the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful.”

2. Pinpoint Your Target Audience & Persona

After you iterate the deeper purpose behind your brand, it’s time to discover WHO that purpose will be impacting.

You can’t be all things to all people, and you shouldn’t want to be, either. By targeting a specific niche, you’ll reach exactly who needs your brand, letting the people who will never engage fall by the wayside.

How do you find these unicorns? Do some digging.

Target Audience Research

Research is a huge part of target audience discovery – especially if you have no established audience and no clear idea of who needs your brand.

To get your wheels spinning on who your ideal audience is, first ask some general questions:

• Who needs the solution(s) I’m providing through my brand?
• Who specifically will benefit the most from my product(s)/service(s)?
• Who has a pain point I can solve immediately and dramatically?

Finding your target audience means finding the people who need your brand this much.

Next, write down all of your assumptions about these people – age, gender, demographics, occupation, income, family size, etc.

But don’t stop there. What you have so far are guesses. Now you need to go out and prove your assumptions are right. Dig around in these areas:

1. Your competitors’ websites/social media. Google your niche and check out the top results. (For example, search for “content writing” if you want to build a content writing business.) Look at their content and comment sections. See who they’re targeting and who’s engaging with them. You can also check out their “about” page and sales pages to see who they’re talking to.
2. Community forums and niche gathering spots. Look for places where your potential audience gathers to discuss your industry/niche. This could include hashtags on Instagram, Reddit pages and Subreddits, Facebook groups, and comment sections on blogs and YouTube videos.
   • In a lot of cases, people will include links to their social handles in their posts, which gives you an additional avenue to research who they are and what they care about.
3. Live interviews. I cannot emphasize this enough – to truly understand who you should be targeting, you need to actually talk to real humans. Pick their brains, find out what makes them tick and exactly what their pain points look like.
   • Starting from square one? To find people to talk to, put out feelers on your existing social media accounts. Explain your brand/business idea, talk about your offer and the pain points you’ll solve, and then ask if interested people will DM you to set up a phone call!

Building a Brand Persona

A persona is a tool you will use in your marketing, as you build your website, and as you figure out your brand voice and how you want to be perceived as a living, breathing brand.

In short, the persona is a profile of your average ideal buyer. This fictional person represents a wide swathe of your audience, the people who will love your brand and need what you’re selling. (In my coaching program, The Content Transformation System, I call this persona tool your “Ideal Client Avatar,” or ICA.)

Your persona should include all the details and facts you dug up during your audience research sessions:

• Age (or age range)
• Gender
• Location
• Occupation
• Education
• Income

Along with these facts, you should have also uncovered some less tangible details about your ideal client, such as:

• Dreams
• Goals
• Motivations
• Fears
• Likes & dislikes
• Habits
• Hobbies

All of these various facts and details should inform your persona and what that fictional ideal client avatar will look like.

Source: CleverTap

In a recent blog, I extensively cover how to build an accurate, powerful persona, as well as more details and tips on researching your audience. Check it out: How to Create an Accurate Business Persona.

3. Hone Your Brand Voice & Messaging

Next up in our brand-building journey: brand voice and messaging.

Brand Voice, Tone, and Style

Your brand voice is the overarching communication style and personality you adopt as a brand. Keep in mind – you won’t choose a brand voice randomly. Instead, you’ll rely on what you know about your audience and what will appeal to them most to hone your voice.

Building your brand voice includes consideration of two factors: tone and style.

• Brand tone: Also known as tone of voice, this is how you sound/appear to your audience. It includes your word choices, the general vocabulary you use, the stories you tell, and how you relate to them across your messaging and communications (think emails, ads, blog content, your tagline, social media posts, and all other content).
  • Tone of voice is often defined by adjectives that describe your brand’s personality and emotion. For example, is your brand:
    • Formal and scientific?
    • Casual and funny?
    • Honest and quirky?
    • Sweet and happy?
  • In each of these instances, your brand tone will drastically change to get across the desired voice.
• Brand style: Your style defines how you get across your tone of voice. It includes:
  • Punctuation and grammar rules you follow (or don’t follow) – for instance, do you use Oxford commas? Semicolons? Trailing periods? Sentence fragments? Slang?
  • Formatting (including bulleted and numbered lists, header formatting, how you use bold and italic text, etc.)
  • Perspective (whether you directly address your audience using “you,” or speak to them indirectly using “they” and “them”)

Brand Messaging

Once your brand voice is nailed down, you’ll rely on it to build your brand messaging.

Consistency is key. This means you need to sound the same across all your communication platforms, giving customers a similar experience no matter where they encounter your brand presence.

Why is consistency so important? Because it’s a major trust builder. Specifically, brand consistency has been shown to increase revenue by as much as 20%.

And, since most consumers read 3-5 blogs before even thinking about talking to a salesperson, consistency in tone across those content pieces is vital.

Think about it. If your brand sounds slightly different from one day to the next, one content piece to the next – if your tone swings from formal and professorial to casual and snarky – what message does that send to customers?

• They’ll think you’re unreliable and confusing.
• They won’t be able to determine who you are or what you stand for.
• You won’t have a defined personality, so you’ll ultimately be forgettable.

Instead, make sure you commit to a brand voice that speaks to your audience intimately and pulls them in. Create a style guide going over the do’s, don’ts, and rules for writing/creating content, communications, and messaging for your brand. Give it to every person who will have a hand in this pot.

Example: Intuit has an online style guide for every copywriter, designer, developer, etc., who works with one of their brands. An entire section is devoted to voice and tone!

Note their particular attention to adjectives that describe their brand’s personality:

Your style guide doesn’t have to be this involved or complicated. Intuit is a giant company with multiple brands operating within it, so look at this mainly as inspiration.

In stark contrast, many of you are tiny companies of one looking for your first hire, so your style guide can be much simpler. (E.g., a shareable Google Doc with sections for voice & tone, grammar/punctuation rules, formatting rules, and even rules for using your colors and logo.)

4. Consider Branding: Colors, Logo, Style, Overarching Image

Branding – colors, design style, logo, etc. – is much easier to figure out once you know your audience and have built your brand personality, voice, and tone around appealing to them.

That’s why it’s one of the last steps I mention in this guide on how to start a brand.

Last, but certainly not least. Good branding can do a lot for your business, even if you’re small. A seemingly simple detail like cohesive colors can increase how well people recognize your brand by up to 80%!

However, if you’re not a graphic artist or designer, I recommend outsourcing logo design and branding to an expert. They’ll help you nail down your brand’s look and feel, color palette, logo, and more so you’ll achieve a cohesive, professional look across channels.

Thankfully, at this point, you should have a ton of resources to give your designer to help them create the perfect branding package for you. Your style guide is a great one to hand over as a reference, along with your ideal client persona.

Another perk of hiring an expert is they can create a detailed branding book, or brand style guide, for you to use as you design your website, lead magnets, or any other assets for marketing your brand.

Usually, a brand style guide will include rules and guidelines for:

• Logo size, placement, and variations
• Approved colors and your overarching brand color palette
• Approved fonts and typography rules
• Your desired image style (helpful for when sourcing stock images)

Take a look at this small business branding example from a coffee shop – it includes detailed rules for how the branding should look and feel for this company. This brand can turn around and hand this guide to any other web developer or designer they hire and achieve consistency.

Finally, who should you turn to for branding help? A short and sweet list:

• A creative agency that specializes in branding and brand image creation
• A talented freelancer with experience designing logos

5. How to Start a Brand and Stay Consistent: Record Your Brand Strategy, Refer to It Often

The above steps are vital for brand-building, but they also serve another purpose.

They’re essential parts of your all-encompassing brand strategy.

For this reason, as you move through the steps, record everything.

Create a living document you can refer to and share as needed.

Don’t endlessly tweak and adjust – do your research, make firm decisions, document them, and stick to them.

Granted, if one piece isn’t working, go ahead and tinker with it.

But make sure along the way you’re also creating a solid foundation for your brand to rest upon. It should be strong and steady, consistent and stable.

Ultimately, it should become an entity your customers can trust and believe in.

This will take time, so don’t shoot yourself in the foot by flip-flopping every few weeks about what your brand should sound like, look like, and feel like.

As you continue to build your new brand, keep your documentation close. Refer to it when you start hiring, when you start planning your content marketing, when you dive into your social presence, and as you interact with customers and grow your offerings.

That’s the surefire route to success.

The Best Way to Start a Brand? Vet Your Idea First, Then Build and Document

You made it to the end.

By now, you know you don’t have to go into starting a brand blindly.

There are concrete steps to follow to ensure your idea is not just doable, but will lead to a profitable business.

And, after that, you have the roadmap to building your brand up, brick by brick.

From there, you could go anywhere. As far and wide as you can dream.

It’s possible. So it’s time to go out and start building.

But if you need a bit more guidance on the road to starting a rock-solid, sustainable brand, I have THE solution.

It’s called the Content Transformation System, my 1:1 coaching program created especially for entrepreneurs like you.

If you’re struggling with ANY of the steps associated with brand-building, if you need clear directions on how to start, grow, or scale your biz, my team of expert coaches and I are HERE for you.

We teach the realistic business skills, systems, and strategy you need to shift to 6 and 7-figures long-term in your online business.

Ready to get in the door? Apply today if you’re raring to start or scale your brand and create your own success.

The post How to Start & Grow a Brand When You Have NO Idea If It’ll Work or Not appeared first on Content Hacker.

You are probably acutely aware of where you were in March of 2020. You know… that month where the entire world changed?   The month where unprecedented events took hold of our entire global society, changing the course of everything?

The month that marked the beginning of when Google search traffic exploded from 3.6 billion searches per day to over 7 billion?

As marketing evolves, we’re getting an abundantly clear message: Content marketing is the future of marketing. No other type of marketing is nearly as powerful as content and yields a 4x ROI.

This is why the content trends you should watch are strategies that aren’t actually fads, they’re ideas that are truly sustainable.

Because if you’re jumping from bandwagon to bandwagon – chasing the newest content trend thinking that’ll be what finally brings your business success and gives you freedom, you’re wasting your time.

And that won’t get you anywhere. So, let’s not waste any more of it.

My focus is teaching sustainable business practices. They’re what helped me earn a 13,000x ROI on the 80+ person writing agency I built from the ground up. So, what we’ll cover in this post aren’t strategies that are here today, gone tomorrow. They’re practical, actionable, and they work.

The long-term of your business is just as important as the short-term. So today, we’re only going to focus on tried-and-true, realistic content trends for 2022.

Ready to take an in-depth look at the very best current marketing trends in content?

Strap in!

Content Trends for 2022 (VIDEO)

Content marketing is a soon-to-be $600B industry.

Because it’s growing like wildfire, there are a lot of marketing trends to talk about.

So, before we jump in, I want to extend a warning.

I encourage you not to get caught up in making sure your business is pumping out every content type out there – there’s too much, and you and your business will be spread too thin. You’ll need to focus on the top trends in content marketing that are the most powerful AND give you the best ROI.

Check out the video below to watch me explain the four content trends for 2022 that will matter the most.

Content Trends for 2022: Strategies That Work NOW

There are so many content trends constantly popping up. Lots of advice. Lots of distractions. If you’ve got your hand in every single pot, you’ll be cooking up a recipe for burnout in no time.

So, let’s get your focus recalibrated on what really matters and makes an impact, so we can shift your effort onto what’s effective to sustainable business growth! Keep your eye on your long-term goals and use these content strategies to get you there.

1. User Intent

I’ve overseen 40,000 content projects for clients. I know how and why SEO blogging for small business works.

But here’s the thing in 2022:

User intent is key.

Read that twice. Because it always has been.

But in 2021, only 28% of marketers had a measurable strategy around user intent in place.

With how important user intent is to content marketing, that number is absurdly low.

There’s still a ton of room for you to get in on user intent and experience the impactful benefits of focusing your content around it.

So, if you’re putting out content without understanding user intent, that needs to stop.

What is user intent?

Search/user intent is the goal or intention an internet user has when searching a term on a search engine.

It goes deeper than just the keyword they’re using.

It’s the goal behind it.

Here are three straightforward user intent examples to help you understand the main types.

1. Ryan typed the keyword “how to secure dresser to wall” in Google search. In this case, Ryan’s intent is informational. He wants to learn something.
2. Lorene searched the keyword “buy dog beg” on Google. Here, Lorene’s intent is most likely transactional. She wants to buy something.
3. Nicole searched the keyword “whole foods Boise contact” in Google. Nicole’s intent is probably navigational. She’s seeking a specific page, site, or resource.

At first, user intent can seem a bit confusing to grasp. But once you understand it, it’s a simple and super effective content marketing tool. So impactful, in fact, that it’s at the very top of this list of content trends for 2022.

Google is prioritizing user and search intent more than ever before, so to get on board, you’ll need to understand what searchers actually want behind the keyword they’re using. You’ll also need to understand what the platforms are showing them after they do a search.

Pro Tip: Already have a keyword but not sure what the user intent is? It’s all in the data. Type it into Google and study the top results. If most of them are informational, it’s safe to assume the intent of most users searching that query is informational.

Here are some other data to dig into when you’re studying what Google is showing as top results for pain points and questions your users have:

1. Content type – What is the overall type of content? Is it a blog post, product page, or video? For example, what you’re reading right now is a blog article.
2. Content format – What’s the format of the content? Some common formats include comprehensive how-to guides, scannable list posts, reviews, comparisons, and more. My article on the best content marketing tools is a solid example of a list post.
3. Content angle – What’s the point of view? This is the unique selling point of the content piece. For instance, “best,” “cheapest,” and “freshness.” Can you guess what the angle of this article is?

All of this data is available to you at any time (for free!) with a quick Google search. Learning and applying this should be part of your rock-solid website content marketing strategy,

Make this easily accessible data your best friend. Because once you’ve got this down you can blast forward with creating and optimizing your content with search intent in mind.

2. Omnichannel & Holistic Content Marketing Ecosystems

I’ve been studying the trends, and it’s super obvious that omnichannel and holistic marketing ecosystems, housed on your own platforms, will be critical in 2022 and beyond.

First up, let’s chat about omnichannel marketing.

What is omnichannel marketing?

Omnichannel marketing (content on multiple channels) means you have content in a variety of formats.

Here’s how that’s done:

When you’re creating content on your own website, make sure it’s not only high quality but use different formats! You should be doubling down on the content types that grow your business.

Don’t just post written blogs. Use images. Make video.

And learn about YouTube.

Check this out — YouTube is used by at least 67% of every single age group of US internet users! That includes 77%+ of all people in the US aged 15-35.

Image Source: Statista

Did you know Google owns YouTube?

Google loves YouTube.

And more and more, the search engine results page is prioritizing blogs that contain video.

One of the easiest ways to come up with video content ideas is to turn your “greatest hits” blogs into videos. If you’ve got some fantastic posts that convert well, get a lot of traffic, bring in leads, etc., that blog can likely make a killer video topic. Simply sit down and talk about what you already wrote.

So don’t sleep on making videos. Sure, recording yourself on video feels a little intimidating and awkward for nearly everyone at first (especially if you’ve struggled with building your own self-worth). But I know you’ll hit your stride with practice. Just keep reminding yourself you’re building your omnichannel content kingdom.

This all ties into the second part of this content trend for 2022 – holistic content marketing ecosystems.

Your ROI isn’t found in one blog. One video. One infographic.

You need an ecosystem working for you.

Every page and every blog on your website matters. I don’t want you to have an outdated post that has broken links, refers to services you no longer offer, or looks completely different than the posts you’re currently publishing.

As you scale your business, things will shift. That’s natural.

But this big, beautiful ecosystem of yours needs someone tending to all the parts. Think of it as a thriving rainforest that you’re carefully and consistently growing by watering each and every inch.

So, get back into all of your articles and update your old content! Make sure everything is still relevant not only factually, but also in connection to where your brand stands.

This shouldn’t be done by you – you’re needed elsewhere. You need to be managing your content, not in the weeds creating and updating it. So, delegate this task to an expert content writer/editor.

My delegation process is something I teach all the entrepreneurs I coach. Taking repetitive tasks off your plate is an incredibly important piece to building your overall content strategy (and avoiding content burnout).

You cannot expect your business to be sustainably profitable without treating it as an ecosystem.

And remember, building on your OWN platform is absolutely crucial.

This is so important because it ensures no one can take away your presence online. For example, imagine building all your content (and followers) on Instagram, and then signing on one day to discover you’ve been banned from the platform due to an unpredictable censorship change.  

Or, waking up to find out all your content on Blab or Vine has disappeared because the platforms shut down.

It happens.

I do not want this to happen to you.

So, build your content on a platform you own and control, which is your website. And when you add a link to your social media bio, appear as a guest on a podcast, or do ANYTHING else, make sure to direct everything back to your website. This is why we call that ecosystem your big, beautiful content house.

Your content house is going to be key in protecting your brand’s online presence.

When you put your focus on creating and caring for your own content ecosystem, you’re going to see some seriously monumental results, especially through organic traffic and SEO.

This brings me to the next content trend for 2022.

3. Blogging

Sure, there are some social media platforms better for business than others.

But blogging is the content trend that’s not stopping.

Even in the noisy, oversaturated world of blogs, when it comes to the lifespan of your content, blogging is still the clear winner. A single blog can get visibility and bring you traffic for an average of 2+ years.

It’s true. Out of all content formats, a strategic blog lasts the longest. This makes blogging one of the strongest ways to grow your brand through content marketing.

It seems simple — when your business is consistently publishing high-quality blogs that help people, you’ll build brand trust. And once consumers trust you, you’ll be getting an onslaught of targeted leads that turn into raving customers.

A groundbreaking HubSpot study found that, generally, the more content a blog has, the higher the traffic. So, if you aren’t already, make 2022 the year you blog.

But remember, you need a strategy for your blog. Don’t publish just to publish. Each blog you write should have a heavily researched topic that will bring you traffic and turn that highly qualified traffic into customers or clients. This is all done with strategy.

Are you struggling to stay afloat in your online business and content marketing? Ready to make big moves and experience enormous change with guidance from a mentor who has been there, done that?

Then you need The Content Transformation System. Once you secure your seat in my training program, you’ll get the training and 1:1 mentorship you need to build a sustainable 7-figure business from content.

During my decade-plus experience in this industry, I’ve learned exactly how to set up a business, systems, and a team that frees business owners from overwhelm. I’ll teach you how to do the same in this transformative program, open by application only. Learn more and apply for free today.

4. Build a Remote Team

It is not humanly possible for one person to do everything your business needs to succeed. And it’s definitely not sustainable.

But get this…

According to the FlexJobs Annual Survey conducted between July and August 2021, an astounding 97% of workers now desire some form of remote work — be it fully remote or hybrid.

What does this mean for you as an online entrepreneur and business owner?

It’s time to assemble your own amazing remote team.

Remote teams are the future of work task management. If you’re not building your remote team, or at least learning how to put together a process for a team, you’re completely missing out. Because this is a huge part of starting a brand that lasts through 2022 and beyond.

Now, get this. From January to October of 2021, a record 38+ million workers quit or changed jobs in the US alone.

This doesn’t even include November or December, which both shattered October’s record. December saw the highest numbers of monthly quits the US has ever seen at 4.5 million.

There’s never been a better time to find remote team members.

We will see more and more talent enter the market. Especially when we note that 92% of people who quit 2+ jobs since March 2020 reported that “the pandemic made them feel life is too short to stay in a job they weren’t passionate about.”

Many people are passionate about writing, design, and digital media – and they’re diving into learning things like how to become a freelance content marketing writer.

These workers are headed home and flooding the creative freelancing community.

So, stop hesitating on hiring that social media manager, video producer, designer, and content writer, etc. And start falling in love with running and managing your business, all through strategy.

I teach you how to do this, step-by-step, in Phase 3, Growth, of The Content Transformation System.

Your Focus as a “Content Hacker”: Facing the Content Trends in 2022

Here’s what we’re so adamant about, at The Content Hacker.

(By the way, content hacker = growth-focused content marketer.)

A content hacker cuts straight to the heart of what their audience wants from them.

NO fluff. No B.S. Whatever kind of content you are producing — from a tweet to a website page that loads in under five seconds and has beautiful copy, to a YouTube video, to a new blog post — it will be content your audience wants, will eat up, and love.

Delivering that is YOUR job.

And it just got more important in 2022.

Content hackers are growth-focused content marketers.

In short, a content hacker is a creator that builds and implements online content in a way that achieves radical growth.

Content that…

Doesn’t add to the noise.

Doesn’t bore their audience to sleep.

Doesn’t fall to the ground, below all benchmarks and goals.

Since 2011, this is the kind of content I’ve been striving to produce.

It’s taken a ton of trial and error, but I built a website from ZERO to 100,000 organic monthly visitors before exiting last fall. 14–16% of which converted, all through the organic content we’ve been able to create and implement that works.

Today, one of my goals in life is to share more resources and education on this topic — truly profitable content marketing methodologies.

And that’s why Content Hacker is here – the first-ever platform, publication, resource center, and personal brand devoted to the growth-focused content marketer.

If you’re in search of practical, REAL content marketing measures that work, down to making your life and habits better (it doesn’t begin without that)…

I invite you to come join me.

I’m on a mission to see radical success happen for marketers implementing content for their audiences.

Are you a content hacker? Find out now in our free Starter Kit.

Which Content Trends Will You Focus on in 2022?

All the top trends on this list on this list are related to organic search.

This totally makes sense —  53.3% of ALL web traffic comes from organic search.

So now that you’re armed with the facts, what are you going to do for your business this year?

Do you have a plan to apply these 2022 content trends to your business repeatedly and consistently? If not, you need to develop a crystal-clear marketing strategy that outlines exactly how you’ll get it done.

No more hoping. No more guessing.

Ready to get more out of your life by building a powerful digital business through content, and learning how to manage your entire brand without burnout? My coaching system for creative entrepreneurs, The Content Transformation System, will get you OUT of the grunt work and INTO the delight zone.

The post Content Trends for 2022: Strategies That Work NOW appeared first on Content Hacker.

Let’s be honest.

If you’re still making elementary, common online writing mistakes…

You’re holding yourself (and your potentially successful content business) back.

Even small errors will slowly but surely chip away at your good reputation, whether they show up in your website content, posts for your blog, or writing content for clients.

One or two here and there? No big deal.

At least one or two in every single content piece you publish? Yikes.

These add up. Fast.

Worst of all, you might be making mistakes without even realizing it.

If that’s you, you’re not alone. So many of us struggle with the writing process — even established writers who are already making money!

One study found that 38% of professional writers struggle with understanding what their audience wants to read. Another 32% have trouble writing consistently. 30% have a hard time with deadlines, and 27% wrestle with maintaining writing quality over time.

But — never fear! You can learn what you’re doing wrong and how to avoid it. And once you know, you’ll never make the same mistake twice.

That means you’ll grow into an even better writer, which will free you up to do great things with your freelance biz.

That said, here are the most common online writing mistakes I personally see from ten years of interviewing tens of thousands of writers. Avoid these completely and your bottom-line success will soar.

The first one will surprise you – guaranteed!

Common Online Writing Mistakes to AVOID: Video

I built my first business on solid online writing. I’ve written five books, I’ve created courses solely around online writing, and I’ve used my content writing prowess as almost the sole means of bringing in traffic, leads, and sales to my brands.

In my decade-long experience with thousands of pieces of content, I know what mistakes will kill your writing (and your reputation). Check out the video below to see five of the top common online writing mistakes:

7 Common Online Writing Mistakes You Might Still Be Making

Writing mistakes are a big deal.

They can hurt your brand.

Bad or error-riddled writing will make readers question your position as an expert. They’ll side-eye you, and if you keep making errors, they’ll look to another source for the information they crave.

The most common mistakes writers make may surprise you, and may even force you to take a good, long look at not just the words you put on a page, but your writing process.

Common Online Writing Mistake #1: Your Mindset Isn’t Big Enough

Mindset?

What does mindset have to do with online writing?

A lot. Let me explain.

Whether we’re talking about you or the writer you just hired, a mindset of “I feel like an imposter” or “I’m not good enough” or “I’m not making enough money” will bleed into everything you do…

…including your writing!

A total lack of confidence in your skill or your expertise will show itself in what you produce, even if you never intended it. The result?

Copy that fails to convince prospects to buy. Writing that fails to speak to your audience.

To produce the opposite — great copy and content that pull their weight — the writer behind them must have confidence in themselves and their expertise. They need to believe in themselves AND what they’re writing.

Mindset. Is. Everything.

How to Avoid It:

Start telling yourself you’re a leader, you’re capable, you’re an expert. Push through those “imposter” feelings and keep your thoughts positive. Eventually, you’ll start believing in yourself, and that will show in your writing.

Unsure or hesitant about the topic you’re writing about? Research! Read all you can about it and build up that foundation of knowledge. Then go back to the drawing board.

Common Online Writing Mistake #2: Your Headlines Are Boring

A boring headline might as well be the epitaph on your content’s tombstone.

That’s because a headline that utterly fails to attract interest also kills the rest of your writing.

Why?

Because nobody will bother to read it. They’ll see your yawn-inducing headline and move right along to the next blog or article.

How to Avoid It:

Improve your headlines by thinking about how your content hits a unique pain point. Why is it better than the millions of other articles out there on the same topic? Mention that in your headline!

For example, check out these headlines in Google on “how to write a blog”:

Note that ALL of them find ways to make their angle — the reason you’ll read their post and not someone else’s — unique.

• WordStream’s post promises a quick, five-step process.
• SmartBlogger’s post is an ultimate guide.
• Grammarly’s post is a “pro” guide with eight steps.

Depending on what you’re looking for, one of these posts may appeal to you more than the others. That’s how a brand grabs your click!

Last tip: Ensure you avoid clickbait-y techniques when writing your headlines. Ask yourself, “Does the promise in the headline get fulfilled in the content?” Always double-check that the answer is “Yes!”

Pssst… Get the full list of 15 common writing mistakes that trip up your success in my free guide right here.

Common Online Writing Mistake #3: You’re Still Writing Essays

This is perhaps the most common online writing mistake I see:

Essay writing instead of writing for the unique needs and wants of online audiences.

Let’s explore the differences.

• Essay writing:
  • Formal, stuffy writing style you learned in school
  • Walls of paragraphs, rigidly structured
  • Wordy sentences
  • Hard to read
  • Long-winded
  • BORING
• Online writing:
  • Structured for readability, taking into account readers’ tendency to skim and scan web pages
  • Crafted to grab the reader’s attention and keep them engaged and interested
  • Directly addresses the reader using second-person perspective (the reader is “you” versus “they”)
  • Makes the reader want to take action after reading or builds trust with them
  • Clear, accurate, correct facts provided with links to sources

The bottom line is, what people are willing to read on the internet, on electronic screens, is vastly different from what they’re willing to read in books or on paper.

Audiences do not want to be faced with walls of text while they’re browsing online. They don’t have the patience to wade through dry, stuffy lists of facts and pontification.

They want to be engaged, and often, they want the quickest answer to their question or problem.

Essay writing is the antithesis to ALL of these things.

How to Avoid It:

Break up your content! Some of the top blogs in the world use one-line paragraphs. (Backlinko, one of the top SEO blogs out there, is a great example of this. See also: Smart Blogger, which is one of the most-read blogs in the world.)

Source: Smart Blogger

Another tip: Speak directly to your reader. Talk to them one-on-one in your content. (You’d never do that in an academic essay. In fact, whatever you’re used to doing in essay writing… do the opposite in your online writing. )

Common Online Writing Mistake #4: You Aren’t Using Proven Templates

As a writer, when you’re tasked with creating a sales page, an email sequence, or any other content type, you don’t have to start from scratch.

In fact, you shouldn’t.

There are proven formats and templates to use when you’re crafting various types of online writing.

And, here’s a little industry secret: Most if not all good online writers use them.

Unless you’re a genius writer who can craft an amazing sales page from thin air using new techniques, you need a template, my friend!

How to Avoid It:

There are some great copywriting templates and formulas out there for you to learn and use. One of my favorites is PAS — Problem, Agitate, Solution.

Ramit Sethi uses this formula a lot in his copy:

Source: Ramit Sethi

Another great way to get awesome templates is by taking an online writing course or hiring a coach.

One more thing. Once you work with a client long enough, you’ll figure out exactly how they want their content structured and set up. Create templates for yourself for each client and save yourself a ton of work.

Common Online Writing Mistake #5: You’re the One Writing and Doing Everything (If You Run Your Own Business)

Entrepreneurs are all-too-often guilty of this common online writing mistake.

If you want to grow your online writing business, you need to hire help!

Especially if your biz stops working once you stop working.

That’s just not sustainable.

If you want to scale, if you want to grow to six or even seven figures in revenue, you have to delegate.

How to Avoid It:

Start by hiring one person on your team who will take some of the work off your hands. This might be a writer, an editor, a salesperson, a social media manager, or even an accountant.

Before you hire, you should know your service/industry/expertise inside-out. That way, you can properly delegate and direct your new teammate to success. (Don’t jump the gun and start hiring before your own skills are solidly in place.)

But, if your business is growing fast, if you’re so busy you have to turn away clients, it might be time to build your team.

Unsure how to start hiring and delegating? Struggling to get clear on what you need to build a sustainable digital business? I share all the keys to success in my free webinar. Watch it right here.

Common Online Writing Mistake #6: You’re Not Writing for SEO

A study from Mantis Research and Typeset found that half of all business writers/communicators think SEO (search engine optimization) is difficult.

Only 2 out of 10 said they always do keyword research before publishing content.

That means a whopping 8 out of 10 (80%!!) are skipping a vital SEO step — maybe THE vital step.

Why is it vital? Because SEO helps your content get major traction and results. More traffic, more leads, more reads, more conversions.

The top three results on a Google search page get 75% of all clicks.

And you can’t guess which keywords provide opportunities for sliding into the top. That’s a quick way to swing and miss. The only way to find out for sure is through keyword research.

If you’re not using SEO writing techniques backed by research, you’ll be missing out on free exposure to your ideal audience.

How to Avoid It:

Learn SEO. Build your skills. Learn how to write content that ranks, especially if you’re shaky on techniques or find SEO difficult. It doesn’t have to be that way! Learn, grow, get better, implement.

Common Online Writing Mistake#7: You’re Writing Too Slowly

When you sit down to write, is it a seamless experience?

Or do you start and stop in fits, unable to move into a rhythm where the words flow out like water?

Are you constantly distracted?

You’ll never get anywhere with your writing OR your business if you can’t rein in your productivity.

Low productivity and procrastination = slow writing = less gets done in a day = less earning potential.

How to Avoid It:

Pay attention to your mindset (remember mistake #1?), but also tend to your environment.

You need surroundings that support focus, especially if you work from home. A beautiful workspace, even if that just means organizing and decorating your desk for inspiration and focus, can go a long, long way.

Never Fear: The Most Common Online Writing Mistakes Are Fixable

Maybe you’re guilty of making one of these common mistakes.

Heck, maybe you’ve made ALL of them at one point or another.

Whatever your story, just know this…

They’re all fixable.

You can learn. You can grow. And then you’ll know exactly what to do to improve your writing career and/or business. Forever.

That said… Ready to get growing right now?

Tired of the ups and downs of trying to be successful?

Ready to build a sustainable online business the long-term, strategic way?

Consider applying to my transformative coaching program, The Content Transformation System, where I’ll teach you how to set up your business, systems, and marketing in 90 days or less — and reach the income and impact you crave.

Missing critical skills in your quest to be a runaway success as a creative entrepreneur/business-builder? I teach you everything you need in my Content Transformation System. This powerful coaching program includes 1:1 mentorship, templates, and a step-by-step path to build a sustainable business. Apply today. 

The post 5 Common Online Writing Mistakes to AVOID at All Costs: For Content Writers & Copywriters (Video) appeared first on Content Hacker.

COVID-19 and the ensuing lockdowns changed how and where we work. 1 in 4 Americans now work remotely in 2021 (and another estimated 36.2 million Americans will go remote by 2025!)…

Plus, an overall forecast from Gartner predicts that 51% of global employees will work remotely by end of 2021… (Up from 27% in 2019.)

Building strong morning routines working from home is now critical to millions of people.

What’s interesting is that study participants told researchers they were already more productive and engaged working from home. Not to mention, commuting time has been reduced by 62.4 million hours per day with a total time savings of over 9 billion hours (!!), calculated from March 2020 to September 2020.

And you’re not alone if you’ve struggled here.

Cultivating rituals and habits that help you start your day with a bang, versus winging it — which is your style?

Most importantly…

Did you know one of those options could drive you to greater success than the other?

I’ll give you two guesses for which one it is. (Hint: The answer to anything, my friends, is seldom “winging it.”)

A healthy morning routine can change your life. But what does a great morning routine working from home look like?

You DON’T have to:

• Get out of bed at 5 a.m. every day
• Make your bed every morning
• Do an insanely intense, athlete-caliber workout
• Zoom with a Gandhi-like coach to go over your goals

Your ultimate morning work-from-home routine can be SO much simpler.

Put your passion, your joy, and your health first, then work hard, and good things will come. (Healthy habits ARE millionaire habits.)

Here’s how. Let’s talk how to build your own morning routine working from home.

Today, I’m inviting you into my morning space with a personal, vlog-style video on how I’ve built a morning routine that I love (and have committed to for two years now!).

My Morning Routine Working from Home (Video)

I’ve been following a morning routine for two years, and the results have helped me to start my day happier, healthier, and more motivated than ever to achieve my goals.

Check out this vlog-style video documenting my morning rituals and habits, from the moment I wake up to the minute I sit down to work:

9 Tips to Master Your Morning Routine Working from Home

Don’t just wake up and plunge straight into your workday. That’s a recipe for a bad day.

Instead, carve out time to ease into your day gently.

When you practice the ritual of a morning routine, you prime your mind to do its best work, to be proactive instead of reactive. The difference:

• Proactive – You’re ready for any challenge that arises. You’re centered and grounded.
• Reactive – You’re stressed and on edge. When issues come up, you throw up your hands and give up.

A morning routine can give you a giant edge toward approaching your workday with a proactive mindset. Here are my best tips for cultivating your own work-from-home morning routine.

1. Wake Up at the Same Time Every Day

This tip in itself can be life-changing.

When you work from home, the freedom and flexibility to work whenever you want may… well.. backfire.

You may find yourself getting up whenever, starting work whenever, and, as a result, your productivity plummeting.

The truth is, your body is a clock.

Your body wants to adhere to a schedule.

Leaning into its rhythms will actually make you healthier — think stronger immunity and better digestion — not to mention improved concentration and productivity.

So, start setting your alarm for a specific time. It doesn’t have to be super early. It should just make sense for you. Get up at that time, every day, without fail.

You may find, as you progress in this routine, your sleep quality and even your mood might change for the better. It’s like magic!

By the way, cultivating a morning routine is one of the hallmarks of a serious business owner. Learn the other traits and get a map to make the switch to serious when you download my FREE Serious Business Owner Map.

2. Get Out of Bed When the Alarm Goes Off

Sounds simple, right?

I get it. Some days, this can require a Herculean effort. The first few days you wake up at your predetermined rise-and-shine time, you may feel downright horrible and exhausted.

I urge you to push through it.

Just get out of bed. Don’t roll over. Don’t hit “snooze.” Don’t reach for your phone for a quick scroll of your email or social media.

Just get out of bed. That’s all.

It does get easier, and your mornings (and days!) will improve because of this one small step.

If it’s really tough, and your rise time is after sunrise, try getting out of bed, going straight to a window, opening up your curtains/blinds, and getting a faceful of sunlight. The light signals your brain’s “master clock” that it’s time to be alert. (#science )

3. Get Ready for Your Morning Routine Working from Home

Another great hack to optimize your alertness in your morning routine:

Take a few steps to get ready after you wake up.

For me, it’s washing my face, brushing my hair, and getting dressed.

Some people like to step straight into the shower after they rise for a nice pick-me-up. Others will go the whole nine yards (shower, hair, makeup, outfit, etc.) so they feel fresh and ready to go.

However you approach this tip, it helps to get your productivity moving in the right direction.

Let’s face it: Staying in your pajamas all day sounds great in theory, but is kind of terrible in practice for your mental state.

(Needing to get on a quick, impromptu Zoom call when you haven’t showered or changed yet is, in a word, stressful.)

If, on the other hand, you get a ton done and feel great without changing out of your pajamas, more power to you! Most of us feel better if we take steps away from sleep mode, including our clothing — even if we just change from pajamas to a comfy sweatshirt or sweatpants.

4. Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate

Drink your water, people!

I cannot stress this enough.

Adequate hydration can stave off so many problems that can plague your mornings, particularly fatigue, poor concentration, and headaches.

For me, the goal is to drink 64 ounces of water in the first three hours after I wake up. My trusty water bottle is always in my hand or next to me as I carry on with my morning.

5. Get Some Fresh Air

Nothing wakes you up and brings a feeling of peace more than spending time in nature in the morning.

If you can, try to head outside for a few minutes to enjoy the day or catch part of the sunrise.

No yard? Try going for a quick walk around your neighborhood block, or opening a window and breathing in some fresh breezes.

Even if it’s freezing in the dead of winter, a quick step outside will get your heart pumping and your blood moving, which is awesome for waking up and feeling alert.

6. Take Some Quiet Time

One of the best parts of my morning routine, the one that leaves me feeling the most grounded, is the quiet time I take to read the Word, pray, and meditate.

Just a few minutes of this refreshes my mind and leaves me feeling thankful and peaceful.

Maybe a similar approach would work the same for you during a slice of your morning.

Or, you could just sit down with a good book (or an audiobook, a podcast, or music) and read for a few minutes to quiet your mind.

Even more simply, try closing your eyes and emptying your thoughts for a minute or two. Breathe and listen.

Quieting your brain gives you space to relax and be — an essential part of any gentle morning routine.

7. Have Breakfast and Coffee (or Your Beverage of Choice)

Breakfast is so important for a healthy morning routine. You need to give your body the energy it depends on to dive into your workday…

And food is energy! A good breakfast will fuel you through your morning and help you avoid low mood, fatigue, and poor concentration. You’ll also be giving your body what it craves — nourishment and nutrients.

Along with breakfast, I like to include coffee as part of my morning ritual. Preparing my morning cup is almost meditative, and that first sip is so satisfyingly delicious, I look forward to it.

8. Move Your Body

Exercise — any kind of exercise — is a great addition to your working from home morning routine.

For me, that means stretching and yoga. For you, that could mean a brisk walk or run outside, a ride on your bike, an online class, lifting some weights, or whatever you love to do that gets your body moving.

Exercise is a natural anti-depressant, too. Studies have shown it helps you sleep better at night, guards against all kinds of diseases, and even helps improve the function of your brain.

Get moving for at least a few minutes, and you’ll reap the rewards of a healthier morning.

9. Spend Time with Loved Ones

During my morning routine, I make a point to connect with my loved ones and enjoy a few minutes together.

My daughter and I chat as I help her get ready and off to school. My husband and I eat breakfast together and enjoy some quality time. These moments of connection center me before my workday.

Even if you just chat for a few minutes with your roommate or partner over breakfast or text with someone you love to say “good morning”, these tiny moments add up to make your day’s beginning that much better.

Bonus: While you’re thinking about rituals and routines, also consider environment. Is your office, workspace, or home equipped with what you need to make your mornings (and your workdays) the best they can be? Check out my ergonomic home office guide for tips and recs.

4 Ways to Further Optimize Your Work-from-Home Morning Routine

What if you’ve started a morning routine, but it’s a little shaky as you get into the groove? You might need to make a few tweaks before you hit that zone of zen.

Here are my best tips:

1. Stay Away from Your Phone

Phones are little time-sucking devices that can steal a good morning away from you, right from under your nose.

You know the drill. You pick up your phone just to “check something.” Suddenly, 15 minutes have gone by, and you can’t remember how you got from Google to Instagram and how long you’ve been scrolling.

Time is precious in the morning. Don’t waste it behind a screen.

Leave your phone in a drawer for the morning, and see what happens.

Afraid you’ll miss something? Feeling the ultimate FOMO?

Relax. I promise — it can wait, and the quality of your morning is worth it.

2. Prioritize Good Sleep

How can you get out of bed at the same time every morning if you’re running on empty?

You can’t. That’s why sleeping well and enough is MEGA important to having great mornings.

Even if you want to stay up one more hour for another episode of your current show, or you just need one more hour of kid-free time, forget it. Sleep is more important!

Plus, you’ll make up for that time the next morning, in your amazing morning routine.

Sleep well, sleep enough, and your mornings will become next-level.

Young adults to older adults generally need 7-9 hours of rest per night. Source: Sleep Foundation

3. Prepare the Night Before

If you’re not a morning person, prepare the night before for your best morning ever.

• Lay out the clothes you’ll wear.
• Pre-make your breakfast (overnight oats are easy and delicious… and healthy).
• Set out what you’ll need for your workout or exercise.
• Fill up a bottle of water and put it on your nightstand.
• Program your coffee maker to automatically make a pot or a cup the next morning at a specific time.

These tasks are simple, but getting them done before you wake up can help you progress through your morning with less friction.

What other points of friction are you encountering on your road to becoming a go-get-’em business owner or creative entrepreneur? Learn how to make the transformative shifts to glide through those obstacles so you can stop the hamster wheel cycle and grow your business, sustainably, in my free training. Watch now.

4. Pad Your Morning Routine with Extra Time (Get Up Earlier)

Not enough time in the morning to do all the rituals you’d love to do? Get up a little earlier.

Even 15-20 minutes can make a world of difference, especially if it lets you relax a little instead of rushing around trying to complete everything.

For example, an extra 15 minutes could give you time for a quick walk around the block after breakfast, or time to read a chapter of your book.

Last But Not Least: Don’t Put Pressure on Your Morning Work from Home Routine!

There’s no such thing as a “perfect morning routine.” Perfection doesn’t exist!

Even if you have a bad morning and your routine doesn’t go as planned, it’s no big deal.

Tomorrow is a new day to try again.

And that’s all that matters — you tried. You’ll try again.

Your day is what you make it, so make it great.

And, if you’re having a hard time putting the success pieces together, help is here.

In my growth-focused coaching program, The Content Transformation System, I mentor you on exactly how to get from point A to point B — from struggling with the steps to putting every piece you need in place.

I built a sustainable 7-figure business out of content marketing, strategy, skills and systems; and I’m teaching you how to do the very same thing in this program, open by application only. We work 1:1 with all of our applicants, and my team of coaches and I make sure no one gets stuck. It’s a powerful program. Watch my free class to learn more.

The post Build Your Own Morning Routine Working from Home That You Love: Here’s Mine + 13 Tips appeared first on Content Hacker.