A few weeks ago, I shopped for a car for the first time in seven years. I wasn’t looking for a particular brand or model. I just wanted a small SUV that I could lease on the cheap with no money out of pocket. I used email and chat on a bunch of dealerships’ websites to get a few quotes. My goal was to avoid visiting multiple dealerships. I made this clear to each dealership I contacted.
Read more...As You Chase Google Algorithms, Are You Leaving Your Audience Behind? (Part 2)
In the previous article, I aired my frustration about marketing and search engine optimization (SEO) “consultants” who tell their clients that the quality of their marketing content is secondary… In this article, I want to focus on another trend that tends to abandon audiences in favor of feeding the Google beast. This one involves an editorial calendar – the schedule of topics for blogs, newsletters, videos, podcasts, etc. – that’s completely fixated on Google.
Read more...As You Chase Google Algorithms, Are You Leaving Your Audience Behind? (Part 1)
I’ve noticed two troubling trends that motivated me to write this article. The first involves “consultants” telling business owners that the quality of their content isn’t very important. They’re just trying to improve their client’s search rankings, so as long as they get the keywords in there, quality really doesn’t matter. The second involves editorial calendars that are driven completely by search engine optimization (SEO). In other words, every topic is chosen based on keyword research and search popularity.
Read more...Newsletter or Blog? Wrong Question.
Should I do a newsletter or blog? Which is better? I have this conversation all the time with clients who want to find the magic formula for getting their content in front of people, earning their trust and generating sales leads. Problem is, people tend to get so hung up on the label that they overlook what’s most important.
Read more...The Ron Swanson Guide to Marketing: 9 Quotes to Live or Die By
He loves breakfast food, meat, the outdoors and privacy. He hates government, vegetables, human interaction and his ex-wives. He buries gold. He builds chairs. He moonlights as jazz saxophonist Duke Silver. And deep down, he’s a marketing genius, although he would likely scoff at the notion. He’s Ron Swanson, Director of the Parks and Recreation Department of Pawnee, Indiana.
Read more...How the Right Marketing Content Can Speed Up the Sales Process
Everybody gets the “know, like and trust” component of good marketing content. But most companies don’t recognize how good marketing content – and bad marketing content – affect the sales process. Bad marketing content lacks clarity. It’s filled with shameless self-promotion instead of helpful information. There’s no strategy behind the subject matter, the distribution, or how to incorporate content into your sales arsenal. That ain’t helping anyone close a sale.
Read more...Tired of Dealing with the Wrong Clients? Blame Your Marketing, Not Your Clients.
How much time do you spend each day on work that you really don’t want to be doing? Do you have clients who, if you had a choice, you’d rather not be working with? When you launched your company, is this the kind of business you envisioned for yourself? This is a common conundrum for small business owners.
Read more...7 Ways a Business Blog Generates Legit Business Leads
I constantly talk about the value of a business blog, whether I’m meeting people at a networking event or discussing a project with a client. Yes, I make money by writing blog articles for companies that use their business blog as a strategic marketing tool. But I’m such a big believer in business blogging because of my own firsthand experiences. My blog is the reason I was able to take my business full-time and keep it going for the past five years or so. It’s my biggest revenue generator.
Read more...Why It Helps to Go Back to Kindergarten Before Diving into a Marketing Strategy
A few hours before I sat down to write this article, I watched my daughters board the bus for their first day of school. 8-year-old Caitlin is starting third grade, and 5-year-old Cassidy is off to conquer kindergarten. The drama leading up to the first day of school was relatively minor. Caitlin said she didn’t want to learn multiplication and division. Cassidy had more basic concerns, like knowing where to sit and how to get to the bathroom.
Read more...How Asking Questions within Your Marketing Content Keeps Your Audience Engaged
I’ve read a ton of articles about asking questions in the headline of a blog post, a page on a website or the cover of a brochure. But asking questions within marketing content can be a powerful technique that helps you build a stronger connection with your audience. We ask questions during everyday conversation all the time. We do it to show people we’re interested. To listen. To learn. To show we care about someone else’s viewpoints. To make the conversation less one-sided. To pique someone’s curiosity.
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