First of all – an update from me:

• Have a couple of new big clients on board – both in the health and wellness space
• Decided to close the Digital VIPS – and place more focus on building a health and wellness marketing agency. So building more collaborations and working with bigger clients.
• Stepped up as Team Leader of Bx Sydney Hills – which I’m loving.
• Also stepped up as an Education Partner with the Sydney Hills Business Chamber.

Networking is part of my overall marketing strategy. It’s helping to build my brand and that know, like, and trust factor. And then my face-to-face networking is complemented by my content marketing – which I’ll go into shortly.

What is Content Marketing?

Content marketing is a strategic marketing and business process focused on creating and distributing: 

• Valuable
• relevant, and 
• consistent content 

And the aim is to attract and retain a clearly defined audience – ultimately turning them into paying customers.

If you do a good job, you can build stronger relationships with your audience, which leads to trust. 

Which leads to sales. 

Which leads to business growth. 

Which leads to self-satisfaction and a healthier bank account!

Content marketing includes social media posts, Facebook Lives, blogs, e-newsletters, ebooks, YouTube videos, and podcasts. Plus more.

I’ll share my content strategy with you as an example.

• Weekly podcast episodes (which I then share as a social media post across multiple platforms – LinkedIn, Facebook page, and various Facebook groups). I’m about to get a part time VA onboard who will help me share them across Twitter and Instagram). 

In the near future, I also aim to upload the podcast video files to YouTube. As the second biggest search engine, this will help me to build my exposure even more.

My podcast features show notes – if it’s with a guest, I include a bio about the person and a brief description about the episode. If it’s a solo episode, I include the whole transcript (because I like to type out my script so I stay on track!)

The show notes are uploaded to my blog – and act as blog posts. I ensure to include links to my guest’s websites so there are backlinks to help the SEO. (I’ll talk more about this later).

So as you can see, my podcast is a key piece of content in my strategy.

• I also write social media posts with thought-provoking opinions, around mindset and marketing. I’m aiming to do regular 3 min videos with tips and tricks (which I share across IG Stories, LinkedIn, and Facebook). Other posts promote my upcoming webinars, service offerings, my meet up group, and other networking.

Having a variety of social media posts is key. I’ll talk about this a bit later.

I also have the free Digital Visibility Zone Facebook group. https://www.facebook.com/groups/digitalvisibilityzone

Which I’m starting to build momentum with.

• Email marketing is also a part of my strategy. I aim to send regular updates regarding my trainings and podcasts – so interested parties don’t miss out. You might personally be here as the result of one of my emails. 

I also send out e-newsletters that feature an update from me, plus a brief summary of my freebies and offerings that month.

• From time to time, I also write guest blogs. I haven’t done this for a little while – and they are usually unpaid opportunities. But it’s all about building authority in front of a different audience – and building backlinks to prove to Google that you’re trustworthy.

• While I haven’t written an ebook yet – that’s one of the next things on my list!

• And, of course, this live webinar is another part of my content marketing strategy. I’m building relationships with you all right now. You’re getting to know me and my expertise – which will hopefully help you trust me more. And *hopefully* want to work with me again in the near future or down the track. OR you might recommend me to someone who needs help with their marketing or copywriting.

So yes – I do a lot. But I have a lot of fun with it. And yes, I’m about to seek support so I can do even more.

But it is working. I’ve had multiple say to me ‘It’s like you’re everywhere’. I’ve had people join my membership and ask for me to work with them after listening to my podcast.

I’m trying my best to constantly be visible – and as I refine my audience and message, I can feel it’s making more and more impact.

I’m sharing all this to give you an idea of what’s possible. You might choose to focus on only one or two of these areas. And work on some yourself and outsource the rest. It’s up to you.

Enough from me – let’s start putting together a content strategy for you. 

The first step? 

Set a goal. Set a target. Know what you’re actually working towards.

You need to get focused.

From speaking with my marketing strategy clients, it appears that many business owners take a spray and pray approach.

In other words – many of you are unfocused around what you’re actually working towards. Which makes it harder to know where to put your focus when it comes to marketing.

I now have an activity for you.

I want you to think about where you want your business to be in 12 months and write it down.

I want you to write down a sentence along the lines of:

It is 12 months from now, and I am –

• Serving clients who (insert problems)
• Offering x products and services
• Making $ per month
• Working x hours IN my business per week

Okay, now that you’re focused – we can work backwards to look at what you need to do for your content strategy in the year ahead.

Let’s flesh this out further. I’m going to give you some time after each question to write it down.

Who is your ideal client/s? 

What are their 5 main pain points?

How do your products and/or services address these pain points?

What makes you unique? Why should people buy from you vs your competitor.

Where do your clients hang out? LinkedIn? Instagram? Tik Tok? YouTube? This will help you choose the best content marketing platforms to focus on.

How did you go? 

Knowing who your audience is, what they’re struggling with, and how you solve the problem will help you pinpoint your messaging. 

And you need to go back to this key message when it comes to creating your content. When you’re writing those social media posts. When you’re creating those webinars.

What do they need to know? And why are you the right person to help?

Sourcing the best SEO keywords – for your website + blogs

Okay, so take a look at that list of 5 major client pain points you’ve written down.

These are the issues your ideal customer is searching for in Google. 

So these issues need to be visible throughout your website and in your blog posts. 

Think of it this way – your online presence isn’t about you. It’s about them!

So you need to have some idea of what they’re typing or saying when they’re doing searches. And this is where SEO keywords come in.

There are 2 free tools I recommend using.

1. Answer the public – https://answerthepublic.com/

AnswerThePublic listens into autocomplete data from search engines like Google then quickly cranks out every useful phrase and question people are asking around your keyword.

It’s a goldmine of consumer insight you can use to create fresh, ultra-useful content, products and services. The kind your customers really want.

FYI – you’re limited to only 1 or 2 free searches in this tool.

Search example ‘lose weight’

• Keywords Everywhere – https://keywordseverywhere.com/

The Keywords Everywhere browser add-on can be easily installed on either Chrome or Firefox – and shows you monthly search volume, CPC and competition data of keywords on multiple websites.

Search example ‘lose weight’.

Just click around and see what people are typing. This is great for finding the inspiration for blog topics!

Then incorporate these words into your webpages, blogs, video transcripts, and infographics. And photos.

You insert them into the headings and mention a couple of times in the body of the content. You also use synonyms.

If you need further help with this, you can line up a strategy call with me.

Website

Tune into Episode 50 – Creating an engaging and effective website

To map out your website content, I recommend using a website called Slickplan. It’s free to use and you can get an idea of all the content you want featured – based on the SEO keywords.

https://writetimemarketing.slickplan.com/dashboard

I’m currently in the process of re-doing my website, so stay tuned!

Blogs

Tune into Episode 1 – How to build a blog-friendly business.

Blogs give you the opportunity to present yourself as the expert in your field. They also provide you with a key piece of content that can be repurposed via social media posts, videos, webinars, podcast episodes or interviews, ebooks and more.

Social Media

So how do you spread your message across social media without being salesy?

Sharing the occasional promotional post is completely fine. But it needs to be balanced among other, more fun and educational posts.

Here are 5 different types of posts:

• Long form storytelling – These are the posts where you share something about you or a client you’ve helped. They’re longer and usually have a question at the end to encourage interaction.

• Video – Some of you will hate me saying this, but video is so powerful for connecting with others online. And the algorithm prefers video as well! With or without captions, I challenge you to give it a go!

Use video to offer advice and quick tips. Or use it to give updates about you and your business.

• Advice – Are you pondering about something? Or seeking input regarding a new product or service you’re considering. Ask away and see what people say!

• Social proof – Don’t be afraid to share testimonials and Google reviews etc – via a print screen or a pretty Canva graphic. Then add your thoughts around the project or how the feedback made you feel. 
• Call to action – Yes, it’s okay to sometimes sell your products or services on LinkedIn. Just make sure it’s a fifth of the posts you do!

Email Marketing

If you’re not sending out emails, it’s time to get started.

And if you’re not actively trying to build an email list, it’s time to get started!

While we get a lot of them, personalised emails from the right people get noticed. And if they are kept informative and light-hearted – with plenty of your personality!

I recommend a monthly e-newsletter at a minimum and 1-2 promotional emails throughout the month. It’s great for staying top of mind. Your potential or past clients mightn’t be ready to work with you again right now, but you never know when an email will land in their inbox at the exact moment they need it!

Now how do you build a list? This is where lead magnets come in. Like free checklists on your website, online challenges, and webinars like this one. Everyone who registered for this session will receive the recording and slides – plus future updates from me.

Of course, you can unsubscribe at any time. But I know everyone who registered has interest in what I have to say – and are therefore likely to be interested in my upcoming offerings.

How are you all building a list right now?

Podcasts, eBooks, and more

Of course, there’s plenty of other forms of content marketing out there – like podcasts. 

Tune into episode 17 – How to start a podcast and Episode 60 with Darren Saul – Podcasting for brand building.

Podcasting provides a powerful way to share your message, and educate and inspire your audience. It can also help build a large following. 

There are also eBooks and real life hard copy books to consider.

Amazing for building authority! 

Tune into Episode 7 with Julie Warner: How to self-publish with ease for tips!

Theming

Now I wanted to touch upon theming. 

When you have a lot to talk about, this can help you stay focused with all your messaging each month.

We’re looking at that list of client pain points again plus your solutions. These are a perfect starting point when it comes to creating themes.

As an example – say you’re a nutritionist. 

Your theme for November could be ‘Finding more energy through healthy eating’. It meets the pain point of tiredness or feeling sluggish.

Then you could write a blog on ‘5 tasty energy-boosting foods.’

Then all your social media posts, videos, and emails would be about that topic – including how your services can help.

Etc. 

I’ll now give you time to think about some themes you could focus on over the next 6 months.

Okay, so how is everyone going?

How are you feeling about your content strategy?

Now that I’ve provided lots of examples – I want you to have a think about your content strategy a bit more.

Based on what you know about the client and which platforms you’re eager to try, what type of content offerings would you like to include in your content marketing strategy? 

Social media posts – and where? Videos? Blogs? Infographics? eBooks? Podcast? Webinars?

How will you manage content creation and publication? Looked after by yourself? Or a VA or a copywriter? Or another member of your team?

Whether you’re looking after it yourself or preparing notes to outsource, how much time are you prepared to allocate to your content marketing each week?

Any questions?

Let me just say here. In the words of Seth Godin, “It’s better to be sought, than to be found.”

Your ultimate goal is for people to search for your name and not stumble across you in Google.

Being visible online in multiple ways will help you achieve that. But if you can throw in some networking as well – that’s even better.

It’s all about helping people get to know you. So give them the opportunity!