marketing - Express Writers

#ContentWritingChat Recap: Leadership & the Future of Marketing with Gene Petrov

June 19, 2024February 8, 2019 by Rachel Moffett

For this round of #ContentWritingChat, it’s all about leadership and marketing! It doesn’t matter if you’re building (or working for) a large or small company… Leadership is still crucial for keeping a team together and ensuring you’re able to experience big results. And of course, you have to get smart with your marketing strategies if you want to be seen online! So, how exactly do these two things overlap? And what does it mean for you? That’s what you’re going to learn in this recap. #ContentWritingChat Recap: Leadership & the Future of Marketing with Gene Petrov Welcome to a brand new #ContentWritingChat, friends! ??@GenePetrovLMC is in the guest hosting seat for a second time. We’re thrilled to have him back to talk about leadership and the future of marketing! ? Make sure you give him a warm welcome! pic.twitter.com/B3uFcN6ib8 — Express Writers (@ExpWriters) February 5, 2019 Our guest host for this month’s chat was Gene Petrov. Gene is an active member of the #ContentWritingChat community and this was his second time stepping in as our guest host. As a leadership coach for marketers, he had tons of valuable advice to share with us, so let’s dive into all the tips! Q1: What role do you think leadership plays in marketing? To kick off the chat, we wanted to get everyone to share their thoughts on leadership and its role in marketing overall. How important is it? What does it actually mean for all of us? Well, here’s what you need to know: A1a. Leadership plays a critical role in marketing. In bigger companies, you will see a specific CMO position. They ensure alignment among marketing, sales, and operations. This alignment helps the company achieve its vision, strategy, and goals. #ContentWritingChat — Gene Petrov – Leadership & Soft Skills #SMMW19 (@GenePetrovLMC) February 5, 2019 A1b. The CMO sets the standard for marketing. What kind of marketing do they encourage? Do they abide sleaziness & in your face marketing tactics? Do they aim for community building & serving others? They also ensure the team has opportunities to grow. #ContentWritingChat — Gene Petrov – Leadership & Soft Skills #SMMW19 (@GenePetrovLMC) February 5, 2019 Gene knows leadership is critical when it comes to marketing. As he pointed out, many bigger companies will have a position specifically dedicated to this to keep things in line when it comes to marketing, sales, and operations. A1c. In smaller companies, there isn’t a CMO. Leadership still needs a fundamental understanding of marketing. They need to know how it affects the rest of the organization. Marketing is part of the engine of growth. It is an investment and not a cost center. #ContentWritingChat — Gene Petrov – Leadership & Soft Skills #SMMW19 (@GenePetrovLMC) February 5, 2019 But even if you’re running or working at a smaller company, leadership is still fundamental. It’s an investment that’s going to impact your organization overall and really keep things running smoothly. A1d. This is all internal leadership. There is also external leadership. How is marketing creating a connection, developing relationships and nurturing a community? #ContentWritingChat — Gene Petrov – Leadership & Soft Skills #SMMW19 (@GenePetrovLMC) February 5, 2019 You also have to think outside of leadership within your team, and think about your audience as well. As Gene said, you need to consider how your marketing efforts are working. Are they helping you to create a connection with your audience, develop relationships with them, and nurture your community? A1: If you don’t consider marketing itself leadership, then you need to take a step back. Marketers share the info, communicate constantly, and represent brands and people. Being able to lead a team or just yourself is essential. #ContentWritingChat — Click Ctrl Marketing (@ClkContrl) February 5, 2019 Whether you’re managing a team or it’s just you, being able to lead is still an essential skill. Marketers need to be able to share information, communicate constantly, and effectively represent brands and people. A1: As with any aspect of being in business, leadership is oh-so-important. Good leaders not only educate, help, and encourage others; they lead by example: i.e., marketing leaders don’t just talk the talk, they walk the walk.#contentwritingchat https://t.co/Gr4yWDMpn9 — ThinkSEM (@ThinkSEM) February 5, 2019 Sarah was spot-on with her answer. As she said, good leaders educate, help, and encourage others, while also leading by example. A1: Leadership plays a large role in marketing. Because marketing isn’t so cut-and-dry (there isn’t one answer in most scenarios), proper leadership can ensure that everyone is being heard and opinions/ideas are well organized and executed #ContentWritingChat — Tamara (@itstamaragt) February 5, 2019 With proper leadership, Tamara said it will ensure everyone on the team is being heard and that everything is going to be organized and executed correctly. Q2: What are the basics of leadership? If you want to be a great leader yourself, you have to know the basics! These tips are going to help you out with that: A2b. Communication (and especially listening) is huge as a leader. This site has a great list of soft skills: https://t.co/R3LYxFLgUf Some of my favorites are coaching, mentoring, and team building. The leader is actively engaged in these areas every day. #ContentWritingChat — Gene Petrov – Leadership & Soft Skills #SMMW19 (@GenePetrovLMC) February 5, 2019 A2c. The leader creates an atmosphere where the team feels safe. They learn and grow without worrying about their job security. A good leader is a kind teacher and looks for those teachable moments. #ContentWritingChat — Gene Petrov – Leadership & Soft Skills #SMMW19 (@GenePetrovLMC) February 5, 2019 Gene feels communication is one of the basics of leadership. He also mentioned some other skills he feels are important, such as coaching, mentoring, and team building. Not only that, but he thinks a leader should create an atmosphere in which a team feels safe. A2: Listening, providing guidance, providing ethics for an organisation. #contentWritingChat — Tim Lewis @ Stoneham Press (@StonehamPress) February 5, 2019 A great leader will listen, provide guidance, and be ethical. … Read more

#ContentWritingChat Recap: B2B Marketing Techniques for the Content Marketer with Anh Nguyen

December 31, 2020October 6, 2017 by Rachel Moffett

In this week’s #ContentWritingChat, we talked all about B2B marketing techniques. If you’re running a B2B business or working for one, you’ll certainly find value in the tips that were shared during Tuesday’s chat. In this post, we’re recapping some of the great advice for you to sink your teeth into! #ContentWritingChat Recap: B2B Marketing Techniques for the Content Marketer with Anh Nguyen Join us for #ContentWritingChat on Tuesday, October 3rd to chat with @AnhTNguyen about B2B #marketing techniques! pic.twitter.com/UWCQI6t4sv — Express Writers (@ExpWriters) September 26, 2017 Our guest host this week was Anh Nguyen. She’s a B2B marketer and a social media influencer. She also runs a Twitter chat of her own (#MobileChat), so it was great having her in the guest hosting seat. She had some amazing tips to share with all of us, so let’s check it out! Q1: What’s the difference between B2B and B2C marketing? To kick off the chat, we asked everyone to share the difference between B2B marketing and B2C marketing. If you aren’t sure what either of these mean, you’ll want to pay close attention to the answers that were shared. Here’s what you need to know: A1a. B2B is business-to-business. A business markets and sells to other businesses. #ContentWritingChat. — Anh Nguyen (@AnhTNguyen) October 3, 2017 A1b. B2C is business to consumer. A business markets/sells to consumers/individuals, e.g. retail stores, restaurants. #ContentWritingChat — Anh Nguyen (@AnhTNguyen) October 3, 2017 As Anh said, B2B is business to business. In this case, a business would market and sell their products and services to other businesses. A B2C is business to consumer, which directs their offerings towards consumers/individuals. A1: Well, B2B = business to business; B2C = business to consumer. So, big difference 🙂#ContentWritingChat https://t.co/zH5DrOwtFI — ThinkSEM (@ThinkSEM) October 3, 2017 Sarah put it simply for everyone to understand! B2B = business to business. B2C = business to consumer. A1 B2B/B2C: You’re talking to different markets. Personas should look different (start there!), copy & CTAs different. #ContentWritingChat — Julia McCoy ? (@JuliaEMcCoy) October 3, 2017 As Julia pointed out, B2B and B2C brands are talking to different markets. Their personas, copy, and CTAs will all look different. A1. Your audiences are other businesses. It’s different from B2C where you develop consumer-facing content strategies. #ContentWritingChat — SourceMedia (@SourceMediaCo) October 3, 2017 When you are a B2B brand, your audience is other businesses. A1 B2B you sell to businesses and B2C you sell to consumers. You need a separate plan for each #ContentWritingChat https://t.co/ujnm13FuzW — Jade Alberts Consult (@Jade_A_Consult) October 3, 2017 As Jade pointed out, you’re going to need a different plan whether you’re in the B2B space or the B2C space. Q2: What are some starting points for a B2B marketing plan? If you’re getting started with B2B marketing, where should you begin when it comes to creating a plan? If you’re not sure, check out these tips to lead you down the right path: A2a. Determine the goals for your B2B marketing plan. Determine what is measurable and which metrics you’ll use. #ContentWritingChat — Anh Nguyen (@AnhTNguyen) October 3, 2017 A2b. Determine who you want to reach, who the audience is, and which channels they can be reached on. #ContentWritingChat — Anh Nguyen (@AnhTNguyen) October 3, 2017 To get started, Anh says you’ll need to determine the goals for your B2B marketing plan. You’ll want to set goals that are able to be tracked and measured so you can see how you’re progressing. From there, you’ll also need to determine who you want to reach and which channels you’ll be utilizing. A2c. There isn’t a one size fits all plan. Each business is different and the audience is unique to that business. #ContentWritingChat — Anh Nguyen (@AnhTNguyen) October 3, 2017 A2d. What content, stories, and/or will your audience appreciate, want to see/hear, and will resonate with them? #ContentWritingChat — Anh Nguyen (@AnhTNguyen) October 3, 2017 Anh says that there isn’t one-size-fits-all plan. Each business is different and their audience will be unique. In order to effectively reach that audience, you need to know and understand them. This will help yo provide the content that resonates. A2: Determine what potential businesses need. Be able to speak in a way that businesses can understand your business. #contentwritingchat — Netvantage Marketing (@netvantage) October 3, 2017 Lexie’s advice is to determine what potential businesses need to get started with creating your plan. A2. Just as in B2C, know your audience. What are their needs? What are they looking for? Find that angle. #ContentWritingChat — Ken Hart (@KenHartWriter) October 3, 2017 Ken knows that it’s important to know your audience, whether you’re in the B2B or B2C space. You need to determine their needs and figure out what they’re looking for. A2: Know the ideal audience, the buying cycle, how they’re searching for services; in other words, do your homework.#ContentWritingChat https://t.co/ThO2xA6EYD — ThinkSEM (@ThinkSEM) October 3, 2017 Sarah suggests knowing the ideal audience, the buying cycle, and how they’re searching for services. A2) Know your audience is #1. What pain points/problems can you solve? How do you do it better than the competition? #ContentWritingChat pic.twitter.com/jH37u97CX0 — Jason Schemmel (@JasonSchemmel) October 3, 2017 Jason’s top tip is to know your audience. Determine what pain points and problems of theirs you can solve. A2: A great #B2B marketing plan starts with in-depth buyer personas. Who are you selling to? What are their challenges? #ContentWritingChat https://t.co/cNF5MKYTHY — Erika Heald (@SFerika) October 3, 2017 Erika said in-depth buyer personas are a must. She recommends figuring out who you’re selling to and what their challenges are. A2. Define goal. Create a strategy in order to pull customers towards your business. #ContentWritingChat https://t.co/9EZ9oayr3t — 《 Sabjan 》 (@sabjanseo) October 3, 2017 Sabjan said etc start by defining your goals. Know what you want to achieve and move forward from there. A2. Get to know the business, their goals and challenges. Then focus on their ideal clients, and build a strategy. #contentwritingchat — YourWebContentWriter … Read more

New Services in the Content Shop: Kindle Ebook Formatting for Self-Published Authors, Marketing Copy Formats, & New Expert Category

January 3, 2024April 11, 2017 by Adam Oakley

Over the weekend, we were busy beavers – we added several new products to our Content Shop! Kindle ebook formatting (with an option for a custom, made-from-scratch cover design) Marketing copy services in various formats, from flyers to brochure copy and more, under the new expert category Marketing New expert writing category: Content Marketing All of these services have been introduced because of a popular demand from our clients, and priced fairly to include expert team members for each stage of the project. An expert content marketing writer who sometimes ghostwrites for me is behind the new category just for CM, and we have a sales and marketing copywriter guru ready to deliver on the new marketing copy category and array of formats there with expertise. I’m excited to introduce these new services to our Content Shop and answer more needs for our incoming leads. Keep reading to learn more about each one of these updated new content products! New Services in our Content Shop: Kindle Ebook Formatting for Self-Published Authors, & 2 New Expert Category Products (Marketing & Content Marketing) Here’s the lowdown on our new products in the Content Shop! First, we’ll start with the two new expert categories, and then discuss our Kindle ebook formatting solutions. 2 New Expert Categories: Marketing & Content Marketing Our two new expert copywriting categories are live at the top of the expert copy category: New Expert Category: Content Marketing When it comes to content marketing, we’re the perfect team to write on the subject. So it was about time to launch a dedicated expert copywriting category to the Shop, just for the subject of content marketing. The beauty of this product is that it comes from what we do every day. Before we write and deliver our copy services for clients, we create content for ourselves – and that content fuels 90% of our entire marketing. (Check out our case study on our own success in that area.) You can trust our team to deliver the best copy on the topic of content marketing. Crafted by experts in the field, we’ll deliver successful content, ready to gain and rank online. We have a content marketing expert copywriter lined up to take these orders (he sometimes ghostwrites for me, and I trained him on our Authority Content copy format launched last year). New Expert Category: Marketing One of our very common requests lately has been for a wide variety of marketing copy formats. So, we’ve added a Marketing expert copywriting product that encompasses the common requests we get, including PPT copy, flyer copy, and brochure copy. See it here. Kindle Formatting & Cover Design for Self-Published Authors We’ve already had ebook writing as a service in the Content Shop ever since we launched our site, but it was time to add Kindle formatting services for the aspiring self-publishing leads that have been visiting our site and services. For a few months now, we’ve received an odd number of random requests for Kindle formatting. We talked to our team, and discovered that Kindle formatting was among the skillsets of one of our our full-time writers, Ashley. So, we’ve created a workflow, priced the service at a fair cost, and added the service to our Content Shop this weekend for Kindle ebook formatting! Our designer has crafted incredibly good covers for our clients’ custom design orders already, so we added on a variation to get an ebook cover along with a fully-formatted, ready-to-go Amazon .mobi and .epub file. We’re also getting ahead of a serious, permanent trend, by catering to the self-publishing crowd. Per a Bowker report, the amount of self-published books have increased by 375% since 2010. And that was a stat from last year. Here’s some more stats about the self-publishing industry (via PublishersWeekly): 31% of all ebook sales on Amazon go to self-published authors. Self-published authors are outdoing traditionally published authors, in the sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, thriller, and romance genres. What’s more, they are taking a large market share in all genres! Self-Publishing Testament to Success In April last year, I self-published my own book, So You Think You Can Write? using Amazon KDP and Amazon’s paperback publishing service, CreateSpace. So, I’ve been through the entire process! The reason I didn’t choose a publisher? Self-publishing on Amazon nets you a large 80% return on all your author royalties: a typical publisher will net you around 8%. That’s a tremendous difference. Of course, you have to market your book yourself when you’re self-published, and that can be difficult if you have no audience. Fortunately, I built up an audience through owning a business and starting several communities years before my book came out: and my book has sold over 500 copies across the last year just through word of mouth and publishing the link in my communities. (I’ve learned, though, that you can’t live off the income a single published book brings, not by a long shot—I net a low $150/month income from the sales. Still, it’s nice to have!) One of the most difficult parts of publishing my book was finding a trustworthy formatter. In the process of formatting my book for CreateSpace, which was 1000x harder than formatting for the simpler KDP process, I was scammed out of quite a bit of money. Apparently, after the book was out, I learned I’d been overcharged about 50x what I should have paid. So, this product in our Content Shop is something I’m very proud of offering. I know what it’s like to be a self-published author, both the struggles of the journey and the great reward afterwards from putting in the effort! Conclusion: New Services in the Content Shop for April That’s it for the roundup of the new services launched over last weekend in our Content Shop. Questions, comments, or thoughts? Drop us a comment below – or, if you have questions in particular about how we can help you with your needs, talk to us today! We’d love to become your go-to writing solution.

A Tale of Crazy Good Marketing Storytelling: Poo~Pourri

December 31, 2020January 11, 2016 by Adam Oakley

We’ve got a pitch for you. Imagine this: a tiny bottle of magical mist you can spray into the toilet to cover up unpleasant bathroom odors. People will love it, right? If you’re like most people, you’re probably thinking, “That’s a crazy idea.” You’re probably also thinking, “Aren’t there already 10,000 products identical to that on the market?” You may even be thinking, “There’s no way that would ever sell.” You’d be right on the first two and dead wrong on the last one. Here’s why it would sell. Let your mind be BLOWN… Be introduced to Poo~Pourri, a wacky “spray before you go” bathroom mist that’s gone viral and sold millions of products. “How,” you ask? Because of its incredibly creative use of brand storytelling. I’m going to dissect just how this crap “made it” (so well, in fact); and five essential lessons you can learn from the way they’re winning. Let’s proceed! Who (or What) is Poo Pourri? Head to the Poo~Pourri website and you’ll find a page that immediately resembles something from Alice in Wonderland, complete with an embedded video of a pretty princess who is, presumably, squatting on her porcelain throne. The entire page, from the font to the color scheme is decidedly elegant and playful. And, at first glance, the only thing that really clues you into what the product is all about (besides the name, of course) is the slogan beneath the brand’s logo: “Spritz the bowl before you go and no one else will ever know.” Before we hop down the rabbit hole of what makes Poo Pourri such a genius brand, it’s important to understand where the brand came from in the first place. At the top of the page, beneath a header titled “The Magic of Poo,” there’s an “About us” section (it’s called “The Story of Poo”). We must warn you, though, this “About us” is likely different than any you’ve ever seen. It starts out innocent enough: the founder’s name is Suzy and she started the brand as the “first natural, truly effective solution to a universal problem.” In her words, “Poop happens, and it stinks!” She goes on to encourage you to “Take a shift!” and allow Poo Pourri to liberate you from “toxic thoughts and ingredients” because, hey, you’ve “got more important crap to worry about!” Does this introduction have the six-year old inside of you giggling and blushing? Good, because we get the distinct feeling that that’s exactly what Suzy is going for. We’re willing to bet, however, that you’re also silently acknowledging that Suzy is indeed right. This is a universal problem. And therein lies the first stroke of genius. Since its inception, Poo-Pourri has sold more than 4 million products and that number only continues to climb. These products are neat little 2 – 4 oz spritz sprays, all natural with essential oils and no parabens or chemicals (which I personally love!), and start around $9.95 without shipping per bottle. The products even have cute little names, and the product descriptions themselves maintain the storytelling vibe. Even if you agree that nicely-packaged bathroom spray is a sensible idea, it still seems almost unbelievable that such a company should experience such runaway success. It’s happening though, and the brand owes it all to storytelling. Something we talk a lot about (here, and here, for instance.) How Poo Pourri Rocks Storytelling Remember that embedded video on the main page of Poo~Pourri’s website? Well, they made a few original stories with the same lovely British redhead – 12, to be exact. Delight yourself in the crappiness of their entire channel, here. Hilarious, right? Hilarious and slightly cringe-worthy, as well. The latter part owes largely to the fact that that video may be the single most daring and honest marketing video you’ve ever seen. Honesty is a theme that runs throughout the website. From the unique section titled “Let’s Talk Crap” at the bottom of the home page (where you’ll also find the below “Hey Girl” gem) to the attractive product photos throughout the site, the brand’s home page manages to be hilarious, bawdy, and just sophisticated enough to pull it all off. How does Poo~Pourri pull it off, though? And how do they take all of that storytelling and transform it into something that genuinely helps the brand make sales? The answer is that they use a series of tried and true marketing tactics that they infuse with their own individual flavor. 5 Marketing Lessons to Learn from the Storytelling Genius of Poo~Pourri Here are the top 5 things we could all learn from Poo Pourri. 1. Know your audience You’ve heard this before and you’ll hear it again but, come on, is there a brand out there that knows its audience better than Poo-Pourri? Doubtful. It’s clear from the get-go that Poo-Pourri is aimed at young, eco-conscious females everywhere that are having a hard time bucking the social norms associated with bathroom business. If you need extra evidence of this, consider the video titled “Girls Don’t Poop.” The video underlines the product’s quality by boasting that Poo-Pourri has more 5-star ratings on Amazon than the iPhone 5. It also offers a good-natured nudge at self-consciousness that generally surrounds bathroom visits. As Entrepreneur points out in their article on the company, “Everyone has a use for a spray that makes bathrooms smell fresh, but Poopourri did not target every Tom, Dick, and Harry.” Because of this, the brand is dominating while other bathroom spray brands are…stinking. 2. Be bold If there’s one thing Poo-Pourri doesn’t do, it’s tread lightly. Phrases like “dirty little secret,” “tiny astronauts,” “chocolate éclair,” “intestinal cigar,” and “heaping dump” are prevalent throughout the brand’s advertisements. And, yes, while we know that the majority of those phrases are enough to make you blush, they’re also bold. One of the best things this brand does is remove the timid language that often surrounds the topic of bathroom use. In doing so, they make the topic relatable and create an … Read more

25 Tips To Get You Started In Successful Content Marketing

December 31, 2020September 25, 2015 by Adam Oakley

Are you a business marketer new to content marketing? If so, you probably already know that your best audience is found online, and now you’re trying to find out the best ways to attract them. Content marketing is where it’s at today. Gone are the days of traditional advertising and outbound marketing. Paying for click ads is no longer a good idea either, the market is too thin and lean in PPC nowadays: you’ll likely overpay for a click and drive a great deal of traffic that ultimately doesn’t matter for your site. So what’s the solution? The answer is simple: content marketing. In order to stand out in the field of content marketing, however, it’s important to develop an “expert voice.” What is an expert voice, you ask? It’s the tone and style of writing that comes from having a deep knowledge of the field and being very aware of what’s going on in your niche. It means staying on top of niche-related current events, technological shifts and important trends in your market. Because today’s content marketing environment is so filled with great writers, being an expert voice is the only way to stand out. Not to worry, though, it’s easier than you think. Let’s Define Good Content Marketing According to Joe Pulizzi at Content Marketing Institute, content marketing is the “strategic marketing approach of creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and acquire a clearly defined audience.” Content marketing is called by many the “marketing tactic of the future” due to the fact that it’s significantly less obtrusive and more efficient than outbound marketing, which relies on tactics like cold calling, email blasting and traditional advertising to gain customers. Content marketing, on the other hand, relies on creating useful, educational, helpful content that assists would-be customers in learning new things and solving problems. The theory behind content marketing is that customers appreciate great content and, if a company can establish itself as an authority in the field by creating helpful, useful, high-quality content, that company will be rewarded by more business and loyal customers. What’s more, it seems to be working: 57% of businesses have acquired customers through their company blog and 42% have gained readers through Twitter. This just goes to show that, in addition to being a more evolved way to market, content marketing is also a very effective way to market. What’s so Great About Content Marketing? Traditional forms of marketing, like advertising and direct mail, are becoming less and less effective. It’s been obvious for a long time that people don’t like aggressive advertising and, when you take into account that 84% of 25-34 year olds have left a website because of an “irrelevant or intrusive ad”, it becomes clear just how ineffective outbound marketing is. The reason for that is simple: outbound marketing seeks to push things on customers while content marketing seeks only to provide value. That said, outbound marketing casts a broad net while content marketing simply means creating great content and attracting already-interested customers through web searches, search engine optimization (SEO) and word-of-mouth. How Can I Start? Although content marketing may seem involved and difficult, it’s relatively easy to break into the field and begin creating your own killer content. I’m saying this because I was able to get into it, leave a med school career, and teach myself content writing—then start a writing agency where 95% of our marketing is through content! So, here are my top 25 tips to help you get started in content marketing: 1) Define Your Goals If you’re new to content marketing, the first thing you need to do is clearly define your content marketing goals. Are you seeking to build brand awareness? Gain email subscribers? Increase conversions? Increase purchases across the board? Regardless of what you’re setting out to do, you need to know where you’re going in order to ultimately get there. As you get started in content marketing, ask yourself if the content you’re creating will help support your defined goals. If it won’t, focus your energies on content that will. 2) Start a Blog—Now (And Stay On It) If you’ve already got a website, link it to a blog that will feature a great deal of your company’s content. Blogs provide 126% more leads for small businesses than pages without one so it’s well worth your time. 3) Define Your Metrics In content marketing, it’s important to be able to track the performance of your content. That said, you’ll need to establish some metrics to track things like the traffic your content garners, who is referring followers to your site, how long people are spending on your site and how many pages they’re visiting, what your bounce rate is and how many social shares your content is gaining. Implementing a set of metrics helps you better target your content and cater to customer wishes. 4) Calculate Resources Resources, in this context, mean more than just money. Do you have several great writers in your company? Would it behoove you to hire a content marketing agency? Who will be responsible for each piece of the content marketing burden? Deciding these things now helps you have a clear plan going forward. 5) Write a Mission Statement Every good company should have a mission statement. Like a road map, a mission statement defines where you are, where you’re going and why you’re going there. Each mission statement should answer one of these 4 questions: What do you do? How do you do it? Who does it benefit? Why is it valuable? Although a mission statement may seem unrelated to content marketing, writing one can help you clarify your direction and become an expert voice on the web. 6) Develop a Target Persona A target persona is incredibly important when it comes to knowing whom you’re marketing to. It’s tough to create great content without having a specific customer in mind and creating a target persona is a helpful way to … Read more

The Power of Copywriting & Content Marketing Today (Case Study)

June 19, 2024July 13, 2015 by Adam Oakley

Understanding how powerful copywriting, and in a bigger picture, all of content marketing is doesn’t require you to look any further than the sheer amount of content that is produced on a daily basis. Content marketing has long been considered a mainstay of digital marketing and marketers. Considered a cornerstone of the industry, content marketing allows businesses to attract and keep a customer base. And a fundamental part of content marketing is copywriting. It’s like the ham to the eggs. Think about it: if your content marketing is a good blog, than your ham to that egg is the written blog. Design, SEO optimization with your plugins, correct categorization, etc. all tie in. Let’s think back to the overall picture. Now as most marketers can tell you, saying something without showing what it looks like in cold, hard facts is simply spouting hot air. The statistics of the matter bear out our original hypothesis: content marketing makes a major impact in the world today. Content Marketing by the Numbers There has been a constant reminder by content marketers that content is king, but only until you realize the statistics that exist behind the statement do you realize how powerful a king content really is. On average per minute— Nearly 2.5 million pieces of content are shared by users on Facebook Instagram has 220,000 new photos posted to its servers YouTube gets over 72 hours of new video uploaded Twitter is used around 300,000 times Over 200 million emails are sent Over $80,000 worth of sales is generated by Amazon And that is only PER MINUTE. Every sixty seconds for the whole day this kind of change happens. And it’s appreciating these massive movements of data that make us realize exactly how powerful social media is to the production and distribution of content. How Has Copywriting & Content Marketing Contributed to These Numbers? It is estimated, according to Content Marketing Institute, that nine out of every ten businesses today utilize content marketing in tandem with their sales force to generate awareness and increase their profits. And you know what the foundation of content marketing is? Good copywriting. Based on what we understand about the interplay between marketing and sales it’s not a stretch to see why these companies have adopted digital content marketing as an aid to raising their sales. The expenditure in advertising compared to the return on investment makes it a no-brainer to use content marketing. Case Study: Express Writers (We Call Ourselves a Content Agency, Right?) Hey – if we sell blogging and content, we better be good at it, right? Yes. But you’d be surprised how many writing agencies don’t care about maintaining their blog. Here at Express Writers, we’ve truly utilized content marketing to a degree of success. We adopted the idea in an effort to increase lead generation and sales through a targeted strategy incorporating guest blogging and SEO to a massive extent. The results we got were far better than many of the competitors in our very industry – we outrank 95% of them – and proves the potency of content marketing in the framework of a modern developing company. I would recommend any business that wants to see significant growth over time to consider content marketing as the vehicle to achieve that goal. You could say we’re among the 89% of companies that use content marketing and testify to its effectiveness. The development of our content marketing plan is: Four 2000-word pieces per week for our own blog, along with 4-6 more pieces per week for major guest blogs including such high-authority sites as Search Engine Journal, Site Pro News, SEM Rush and Content Marketing Institute. We also have over 80 site pages, 50 of which are our main service pages (one for each of our writing services) and are about 500 words or more each. I could tell you all day long how well our content does, how great our team does at compiling it, how we research the topics and develop the concepts, but here’s some cold hard stats for you to digest. We average 500-700 visitors in organic traffic daily, from Google keywords. We have 165 keywords indexed in SEO, 100 of which are in the top ten positions (screenshot from SEMRush): Also from SEMRush, a screenshot of some of our keyword positions as of June 2015: Many of our individual blogs are doing very well in search. For example, this blog written in 2013, “Website Copywriting for Dummies”, ranks #4 in organic search (screenshots via SEMRush): When we take into account the amount of growth our own company has seen over a single year, it’s not impossible to imagine how much content moves per day and how it can affect a company’s exposure and generate leads based off its content marketing strategy. It’s a testament to the kinds of things that we can expect from content marketing in the coming years. Now that we’ve disclosed how much content marketing has helped us, let’s delve into… The Cost of Content Marketing As an industry, content marketing is responsible for a massive amount of expenditure. In 2013, brand management site Brafton estimated that the total expenditure for new content creation for the year would reach about $118.4 billion. That’s billion, with a B. Although based on the amount of new content is produced daily and factoring in a cost like this into it, you can see why content creation itself can cost very little but the sheer volume of its production can add up to so much. Mashable approximates that as much as twenty seven million pieces of content are shared on social media per day. That’s a LOT of outreach for something that could cost you a couple bucks to make. Why Content Marketing Has Such An Impact With twenty seven million shares a day you’re probably starting to see how content can influence consumers to such a level that a message can go viral. As much as 58% of consumers trust editorial content, according to Nielsen. If you could … Read more

How Gary Vaynerchuk Wins at Marketing

December 31, 2020July 2, 2015 by Adam Oakley

Gary Vaynerchuk. If you haven’t heard of him, I really don’t know what kind of marketer you are. (Kidding! Or not…) For a start, he’s a reputable entrepreneur, public speaker, social media expert, investor, Internet personality, Jets fan, self-taught and self-proclaimed wine expert, and author of several bestselling, motivational books, such as The Thank You Economy, Why Now Is the Best Time to Cash in on Your Passion and Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook. Three Reasons Why Gary Rocks For Gary Vaynerchuk, family comes first, but after that, his ever-growing empire is listed as one of his top priorities. We love this guy because he is forward thinking and ahead of the curve. He isn’t afraid to make his voice heard and lead the pack; he understands the new realities of the 2015 content marketing industry and doesn’t hesitate to lend a helping hand to small business owners looking for pertinent advice on how to grow their businesses. 1. Gary Vaynerchuk’s Marketing Insight Is Not for the Faint of Heart. Bold content pieces with daring titles, like, for instance, Marketers Ruin Everything reflect the challenges experienced by entrepreneurs who are disconnected or unable to see any real ROI, in spite of their continuous efforts. His take on content marketing is pretty straightforward: in order to explore the full potential of your content and use social media as a convenient marketing tool, you have to give more than you actually ask for in return. In other words, you have to avoid becoming an annoying noise maker by providing increased value to your readers through your innovative, problem-solving, engaging content. 2. Gary Vaynerchuk Practices What He Preaches. As a CEO and hustler, Gary Vaynerchuk doesn’t waste any time. After growing his dad’s company from $3 million to $50 million through a unique combo of aggressive pricing, email marketing tactics and ecommerce hacks, Garyfounded VaynerMedia, a digital agency focused on social media, and also started VaynerRSE, an investment fund estimated at $25 million. All the advice that he generously offers to fellow entrepreneurs is derived from his past experiences and based on his marketing insight, skills and know-how. 3. You Can Ask Him (Almost) Anything. #AskGaryVee is the best place to get answers to your everyday marketing, entrepreneurship and social media-related questions. Takeaway: whatever you do, don’t miss Episode 108, especially if you’re very fond of elevators, e-commerce and aliens, or at least wish to discover the connection between these three elements. Here’s how it works: you ask questions, and GaryVee answers them. Check out his YouTube channel, free your curiosity and get inspired. Five Crucial Content Marketing Lessons That We Can All Learn from Gary Vaynerchuk In 2015, when the battle for supremacy and the highest number of eyeballs is fierce on any digital market, small business owners need leaders and influencers more than ever. Vaynerchuk is one of the path openers who could help you overcome any challenge that you may encounter while trying to lift your online business from the ground. Here are five important lessons that you can learn from this talented all-in-one social media guru, entrepreneur and author. 1. Creating Quality Content Is a Matter of Respect. According to Vaynerchuk, proper content creation revolves around the concept of respect. First of all, you have to respect the platform that is going to carry, distribute and promote your marketing message. One must strategize around the platform, and adapt the storytelling tactic based on the way in which a prospect actually interacts with that particular channel. For instance, activity on different social networking websites is linked to different mindsets. A woman may use Instagram and Pinterest to discover new trends, while also relying on Facebook to stay connected with her friends, family members and favorite brands. Each of these channels require a unique content strategy tailored to the prospect’s intent. At the same time, you have to respect the audience and give your readers instant access to quality food for thought. Play with different nuances, explore the unique features of your products and convert them into benefits and incorporate a surprise element to stimulate the curiosity of your public. After all, Five Genius Organizing Solutions That Will Help You Keep a House Clean with X Young Kids sounds much more interesting than Here’s What You Can Do with the Cheap Plastic Containers That I’m Selling,” right? 2. Hustling Is the Key to Survival in Any Environment. In the world of content marketing, you have two options at hand: you can either go big or go home with an empty wallet. If the latter alternative doesn’t exactly appeal to you, consider the fact that only a cohesive, well-rounded content marketing strategy will offer you the desirable long-term results. As Vaynerchuk puts it, every minute has to count for something. As far as we’re concerned, every success involves a struggle, and every struggle is geared towards creating and delivering better content that resonates with a specific audience, encourages feedback and improves conversion rates. 3. You Have to Provide Real Value to Your Customers. Unless you have been on vacation for the last decade or so, you must be fully aware of the fact that clients are now more selective and difficult to reach than ever. Why? First of all, they are bombarded with more than 5,000 branded messages daily. Secondly, even if they manage to cut through the dreadful advertising clutter, your visitors have a short attention span and tend to be quite self-centered. In this context, you have to step up your game by providing real value to your potential clients. According to Moz, you can achieve this objective by providing exclusive information that your readers wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else, delivering content presented in a unique manner and prepping the ground for a major upgrade in terms of website design, accessibility and aggregation. 4. You Can Improve Your Luck by Improving Your Content. In order to make your brand visible, you have to put it in front of your … Read more

7 Ways ModCloth Is Winning at Content Marketing

January 1, 2021June 22, 2015 by Adam Oakley

If you are unaware of what ModCloth is, you must not be into old-timey, vintage women’s clothes, accessories, and home décor. But really, who isn’t? I’m going to assume that most people are huge fans of this brand. I know I am. One thing I like about ModCloth is their amazing content marketing strategy. They really know how to organically sell themselves, and through this, they have shed a light on the retro, vintage appearance in general. Because marketing is so important, companies that do it well are always the ones people should be looking to follow. ModCloth is an example of these content leaders. For a group that is dedicated to vintage apparel, they sure are forward-thinking in their marketing. 7 Ways ModCloth’s Content Is Killer ModCloth has several content strategies that I love but here are six (and a half) things that they do that I think are especially innovative. 1. They use real models. If you go to the ModCloth website, you will not always see the average model. ModCloth sometimes even uses their own employees to show off their great designs. In fact a campaign they ran earlier this year took several of their employees of all different sizes and had them model the same swimsuit. ModCloth makes use of ‘real’ models in many different ways. They were one of the first retailers to sign the “Heroes Pledge for Advertisers,” which consists of guidelines on limiting Photoshop use in ads. They boosted their plus-size collection shortly after they signed the pledge. If you want to model for them, they make it easy for you to apply even if you do not have modelling experience straight from their website. In fact, they claim that they often find models in untraditional places, from, in their own words, “parties and shopping districts to airports and libraries.” The reason this works is because they are committed to making clothes for the everyday girl, and they realize that if they want to sell to that everyday girl, they need to show potential customers what someone like them would look like wearing that outfit. Plus, not for nothing, it got talked about in the Huffington Post, Buzzfeed, Gloss, Cosmopolitan, and tons of other big name markets. Lesson to Learn: Be up front and honest about your product. If you try to flatter and deceive, customers might use you once, but they won’t come back. Plus, this is such a rare concept that when you do it, tons of people will want to cover it. 2. They keep their retro-y vibe even in modern-y formats. As does any e-retailers, and hopefully most if not all retailers, ModCloth has a blog, a Twitter account, Instagram, Tumblr, and you get the picture. All of these social media platforms have something big in common: they are all decidedly un-vintage. How can a company that is dedicated to celebrating all things retro use modern forms of marketing? The answer is by turning those modern forms into a retro playground. If you look at ModCloth content, you still get that vintage feel that you would expect from them. Through color schemes, images, and product descriptions, you forget that you are using technology from this era as you are transported back to the time that ModCloth wants you to envision. What is the lesson here for all employees, though? Remember who your audience is. You might not have young women who love that old-time feel as your target reader. So don’t advertise for them. But do figure out who you want to target, and then make sure your content reflects the image you want those people to feel. Don’t let technology control you. To an extent, you have to follow the crowd. If Twitter is where the people are, you have to be on Twitter. However, just because you need to use these modern marketing methods does not mean you have to market on their terms. Turn these formats into platforms to showcase your visions. 3. They let their customers upload images. Similar to the real life models point, ModCloth is great about encouraging people to upload their own images. Other places do this, but I have never seen it done quite as much as I have on ModCloth’s site. When you go to view an item, you can see whole galleries of real customers wearing that same piece. This is a great concept for so many different reasons. Free models. The more you get people to show off your product without having to pay them, the better it is for you. Customers feel like they are part of your team. When you let them help, customers feel like they are part of the family. And the more they feel like they are part of the family, the more they are likely to remain a loyal customer. People see what it looks like off the shelf. One of the worst things about shopping online is that you cannot see how you will look in an outfit before purchasing. Just because it looks good on a model, does not mean it will look good on you. And even if the model is just an ordinary person, the photographer is taking the picture at just the right angle with just the right light. However, if you get to see the outfit worn by someone of the same size as you (the uploaders include their measurements and the size they ordered to help make picking the right size easier) in a real life situation, you are more likely to purchase it. What should you take away here? Let your customers get in on your content marketing plan. They’ll give you free marketing and will want to keep coming back. 4. They give you access to their stylists. ModCloth makes it easy to get the information you want most through their ModStylist feature. Most sites have a chat feature where you can talk to a customer service rep. But ModCloth takes it … Read more

20 Marketing and Business Books That Will Actually Change Your Future

December 31, 2020June 8, 2015 by Adam Oakley

The world is full of great business books by awesome authors. I want to specifically look at the bookshelf of someone who’s involved in marketing and business and recommend the best-ever books they could put on their shelves. I’ll admit to not reading each of these cover-to-cover (yet they are all on my must-read list), BUT I know plenty who have benefitted from reading them, and recommended them; plus, I am familiar with each of the authors . I hope you find this book list helpful! Get Ready To Change Your Life With These 20 Business Books Many entrepreneurs and captains of industry started off as regular people, but the books they consume changed who they are at a fundamental level so that they were able to make the decisions that put them into the positions they are today. And, a book is like an insight into another person’s mind. People inspire people. Want to be inspired by someone? Read what they write and understand where they’re coming from. Business coaches, self-starters and entrepreneurs all write books detailing their thinking and the model of their success. By reading their books, you can pattern your thinking around theirs and reap similar results. Here’s a list of the twenty most influential business books I’ve come across that are very likely to change your future. 1. See You at the Top – Zig Ziglar: Originally rejected by over thirty publishers, this particular book is one of Zig’s greatest works. Although it’s a bit dated (it was published in 1974) a lot of the principles it teaches regarding your own personal motivations and how you get what you want are still relevant. Through a series of steps based around your own, honest self-evaluation, he develops a method for changing your outlook on life and your aims of accomplishing what you believe needs to be done. It’s not new information, but it’s a brand new way of looking at yourself. 2. So You Think You Can Write? – Julia McCoy: Authored by yours truly, this is a summary of all the lessons I’ve learned on how to craft successful, winning online copy after 5+ years in the field learning it on my own. I left nursing school and built a multi-million dollar company around online writing. Now, I’m sharing all the lessons I know so you can change your life by a) writing winning online copy for your brand that gains you rankings and reads or b) make a career out of online copy. It’s on Amazon as print and Kindle. 3. Maximum Achievement – Brian Tracy: As far as motivational manuals go, this one is among the best available. Brian Tracy is a self-made-man. He outlines his tactics in Maximum Achievement and creates a roadmap for all of his readers towards success. Although the things that Tracy propounds should be obvious to anyone, the way in which he presents them makes you think critically about your goals and your results. It delves into the idea of result-oriented tactics. Even if you don’t follow what he says, his writing will forever change the way you look at a task. 4. The Art of SEO – Rand Fishkin: This book is a must-read for marketing professionals, simply because of how well laid out it is. Fishkin and company outline and define the important aspects of SEO, ranging from the basics to the extremely advanced approaches. And when I say it covers everything, I do mean everything. Anyone, at any level of SEO knowledge can pick up this book and learn something from it. It’s obvious that as time goes on, SEO will be even more relevant to everyday life, which is what makes this book an investment in understanding the future. 5. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Stephen. R. Covey: You’d be hard pressed to find someone in business and industry who hasn’t read this book. It belongs on the shelves of everyone because it helps you to get your mind focused on your tasks at hand. Covey developed a methodology for personal effectiveness that is as important today as it was the day it was published. Another oldie (this one was also published in the 70’s), the book goes back to the roots of what drives success and makes you think about your character first and your personality second, something that many books of the period seem to do in reverse. It’s definitely one of those business books that will affect the way you look at life. 6. Rich Dad, Poor Dad – Robert Kiyosaki: Kiyosaki, a self-made multi-millionaire, explored the differences in conditioning between a rich parent and a poor parent and explores the differences between the thought processed between the two social classes. It’s semi-autobiographical and reads extremely easily. By applying Kiyosaki’s lessons to your own financial situation and change the way you perceive value. That’s a lesson that tends to follow you all the years of your life. 7. Ogilvy on Advertising – David Ogilvy: This particular book has helped many entrepreneurs figure themselves out. Ogilvy focuses on big-picture thinking, proposing that your most important ideas are the ones that are huge. Those ideas are the ones that drive your success. He also writes about dealing with negativity and always having your facts to hand, two things that serve you very well in day to day life. Although the book is mostly aimed at advertising professionals, everyone can glean some form of inspiration or insight from it. 8. The Magic of Thinking Big – David Schwartz: Schwartz deals with the mind-over-matter phenomenon. It’s a book that has changed the lives of many people by teaching them a time-honored lesson: “don’t sweat the small stuff”. It’s mostly self-motivational in content, but it does help you to overcome hurdles that your own mind erects for you. Most importantly, it has something for everyone, no matter what level of business you find yourself at. From employee to owner, everyone can benefit from reading this book. 9. Switch: How to Change Things When … Read more

The Great Content Roundup: Week 9, How Much Is Too Much Promotion?

June 19, 2024April 15, 2015 by Adam Oakley

Welcome to my Great Content Roundup, folks! Today, I’m looking at a big question that applies to businesses of all sizes. When do you start promoting yourself (your content, your business) too much? The only exception I could think of is local ice-cream shops – I probably wouldn’t ever get tired of seeing their posts, but maybe that’s just me. Recently, I’ve encountered some businesses that over-promoted the “heck outta themselves,” excuse the grammar. I’m talking every HOUR on Twitter they were tweeting about their app. Every other day the rep was messaging me, either on LinkedIn or on my personal email. Granted, the company had a nice Twitter community going and what looked like some actual real interested followers who were devoted fans—but as a prospective client of theirs, I was turned completely off and decided to tell them to “stop spamming me” a few days ago. Now this experience was so fresh and real in my mind, as I read content this week I couldn’t help but place it next to what I was reading about. So, let’s delve into: The Great Content Roundup, Week 9: How Much Is Too Much Promotion? Social Triggers has a great rule on how to build a blog audience: the 80/20 rule. Spend 80% of your time promoting OTHERS’ content; and 20% of the time promoting your own. This is exactly what we do at Express Writers (view our Twitter as proof); and we connect with new followers and great industry friends all the time. 80/20, folks. Those that flip this for 80% self-promotion will soon be labeled a spammer. Neil Patel mentions somewhere in his very useful post How To Inspire Your First Time Blog Visitors To Trust You that you absolutely have the right to share your own content on your profiles. I agree. Um, hello: you own the profile—and you should use it for your advantage! But, he also says this: Blogging is not a one-way street. It’s an exchange between you and your readers. I think this applies to all content you publish. He says you should listen more, and answer questions. (Brian Dean at Backlinko is a very successful example. He emails his new signups with this question: “Reply to this email and tell me one thing you’re struggling with. Even if it’s teeny tiny.”) Patel’s post here is golden. Buffer’s Guide on Content Promotion: How Content Promotion Works for Blogs Big and Small: Our 11 Favorite Content Distribution Strategies. This is an amazing piece, I highly recommend reading it through. The part where the author follows up and emails the person he mentions in his blog for a kudos, thank-you, and new loyal fan—GENIUS! Might I say. And I’m always saying you should mention your influencers. Also, #6 – the top content community is Inbound – I’m on Inbound and can attest to it as a wonderful community gaining us new fans, followers, and engagement overall. The only downside to all this is time. It’s going to take a LOT of time for one person or one marketer to follow all the steps. I recommend involving a team in this process.