Maybe you don’t know what content marketing is. Your question may be “how often do I blog or write my newsletter?” Or “how does having content make me money?” Or “how do I get people to respond to me online?”Content marketing is simply creating content—like written articles, blogs, newsletters and tips—or recorded information like videos, podcasts or audios, that you share with others to educate them about your business. It’s a great form of marketing because it’s relational or teaching based rather than salesy. And I know you hate to sound salesy!
But here’s the rub: if you don’t have a strategy for your content, it’s hard to get any response from this kind of marketing. And most solopreneurs underestimate how much time it takes to create quality content. Notice I said quality there, which means, don’t bother creating schlocky stuff because it will actually hurt your chances with your potential customers. After all, I’m sure your service with your clients is never subpar—but putting out poor quality content will make it seem like it could be.
Here are the four questions you want to answer before deciding whether content marketing is for you:
1) Do you love to speak, write or create content around your main business topic—or do people tell you they love how you explain things or love how you tell stories that illustrate a point?
2) Would being seen as an expert in your field increase your ability to sell your service or product?
3) Do you have the capacity to create a strategy for your content approach and analyze, review and tweak your content strategy once you’ve started—if not, are you willing to get help to do this step?
4) Do you have time in your weekly schedule to create or edit content or manage someone else who does?
If you answered yes to all four of these questions, then YES, it’s time for you to get going with content marketing. If you answered no to one or more questions, then maybe not yet. You’ll need to have all four of these in place in order to get any impact with your content marketing. Because it’s not just about doing it, it’s about doing it well.
Have a topic you want me to address? Please send me a note: linda@lindabasso.com