But a month later, I’m looking at a new freedom. I’m starting on some of my own info products and will be launching an ebook series later this spring.  I’m finally doing what I want to do with my business and have honed my specialty to serve a very specific client market – entrepreneurs, startups and tech companies.

After nearly three years of chasing other people’s dreams, working on projects just to generate a check and seeking to please people, I’m working on my business. And it’s something I recommend everyone do at some point in their business – get clear about what you do and why you do it.

Then, take out the trash. Clear out the things that are getting in the way of what you really want for your time, money and work.

This post is a hint at what I’ll be releasing in the next couple of months – an in-depth e-book series and new blog on how to get very clear about what you do.

It’s based on a model I’ve been using in helping my clients understand who their clients are and their pain points for years. Now, I’m putting this successful, simple strategy on paper for others to use to get clear on what they do.

If you’re interested in the details, please drop me a line or learn more here.

Last night, I was craving fries and ice cream. I’m blaming the kid growing in my belly. I don’t normally eat fast food. 

However, I caved and got the green olive (size of the baby) some junk food.

The rant is about the girl at the window. She said to me as she handed me my bag – “How are you tonight?” and “Have a great night.” And she never even looked at me.

Even though your words are polite, your actions need to match or it’s just bad service.

But I’m taking a few minutes to point something out that has to do with why I’m so busy.

Ann Wayman – a writer I follow – did a survey last week on whether people learn best through video or written words.

The survey was conducted among many writers, so it may be a little biased. However, I think the people who commented here – made a dang good point.

Why you may ask? It’s robbing you of an opportunity to offer exclusivity to your email list.

Let’s explore the mindset of a customer that opts in for your email newsletter and likes you on Facebook.

Ms. Customer signed up for your email newsletter to learn about new merchandise and to receive exclusive offers. What’s exclusive about an offer that you send out via email, post to Facebook, put on your blog and Tweet seven times in a day? Nothing.

Why should Ms. Customer stay on your email list? She’s not getting what you said you would give her – exclusive updates and discounts.

The reason for multiple channel marketing is to reach more people, but you’re doing it wrong if you’re just pressing send and blast. Each network has a specific audience with specific needs and wants. If you use that channel – whether it be email or Facebook or a community, you should always have the audience in mind.

Consider that next time you start that email newsletter. Don’t just post. Your audience is valuable and your content should be just as valuable. And it should fit the audience of the channels you decide to use.

Here’s a traditional advertising comparison – would the Lifetime network play commercials targeting young, single men? No! They are targeting women who like emotional stories.

Same thing goes for email. People are looking for news about your company in a newsletter or discounts in a promotional email. They aren’t looking for you to post the same thing to Facebook. Facebook users don’t want to see “SALE SALE SALE” in their newsfeed. They will unlike your page after too much of this.

The bottom line – consider the audience before you click send on any of your content.

Blogs can have many focuses and they can enhance the user experience when they visit your website. You can use them to share product updates, tips and tricks, news, thought leadership articles, your take on what’s happening in the industry, recipes or photos.

Whatever focus you take, the purpose is the key. The purpose of your blog is to build trust, loyalty and to provide useful information for your audience. And it helps people who don’t know you find you through the search engines.

If you’re thinking about starting a blog or want to enliven an existing blog, it’s important to understand the commitment:

• Your readers will want to hear from you at least once a week.
• Your blog should not be sales-driven. It should be educational.
• Your blog needs calls to action that ask the reader to take the next step. You don’t want to push them away.

If you’re interested in discussing the life you want to create for your blog, let’s chat. Contact me for a free consultation today.

Have you noticed how many people have been hitting the gym and making an attempt to delete the junk from their diets the past couple of weeks? It’s definitely a resolution revolution these first few weeks of January, which means it’s the perfect time to set some goals for pumping a little health into your content. Here are five ideas for how to do just that:

Put your content on a diet.

Someone sent me a list of the 25 most common typos and copy mistakes last week. One of those tips stuck out – look out for redundancies such as centered around. If you read that correctly, you’re saying the same thing twice. It’s actually centered on. But this is a great point. We need to trim the redundancies out of our copy. So, I challenge you to see how much you can trim your content.

As Peter Shankman said last week in his recap of his year to 10 percent, we should focus on eating meat and vegetables and leave out the carbs. Redundant words and overused jargon are just like the carbs; they may up the word count, but they do nothing for the health of your content. Simple sentence structure with simple words hits much harder.

Introduce quality supplements.

Content marketing is based on building an audience from people searching for solutions via the search engines. As you know, there’s also been a focus on quality with search algorithm changes and smarter content consumers.

It’s getting more crowded out there in the online marketing space (kind of like the gyms this time of year), so it’s important that we introduce some quality supplements to our every day link bait articles and blog posts.

Your audience is searching for you. Give them video. Give them a simple slideshow or infographic. Anything that tells the story in a new way and shakes things up. Supplements are meant to enhance what you are already doing. Make this the year that you introduce that e-book series or start that podcast.

Stop doing the same old routine.

I’ve heard this from numerous fitness trainers – getting on the elliptical machine for 30 minutes at a pace where you can read a book doesn’t do much for your long-term fitness. Sure, you’ll burn some calories, but your body adapts. It gets used to the exercise and you hit a plateau.

That’s why you have to change the intensity, track your heart rate and introduce new exercises all the time for real fitness. Same thing with your content. Doing the same thing over and over may get you some results for a while, but unless you get out of your comfort zone, your leads and traffic may get stagnant.

Add more daily movement.

A study released in the summer of 2011 showed that people who had more “incidental activity” in their lives had better fitness levels. The same goes for your content marketing. You’ll do better peppering a little content marketing activity each day.

Scheduling in some social media and blog brainstorming blocks can really help you improve on these daily habits. Similar to the rotation of how we clean our homes (laundry day, bathroom day, deep cleaning day, etc.), we can establish content marketing habits.Try focusing on one vehicle during each “incident.”

Finished with a project? Jump into a conversation on Twitter for 10 minutes? Ask a question on Facebook. Share that news item with some takeaways in a quick blog post. Content marketing doesn’t have to be a long, arduous workout. The mini sessions really do add up, especially if you fit them in every day.

Get a professional opinion.

Want to know the number one reason workout plans and diets fail? The goals are too broad. Most exercisers start out with a goal of losing 10 pounds or more. Most dieters drastically change their habits. This much change too soon can work well for a while, but every time you slip, it’s harder to get back with the program. If the program is complicated, it’s even more difficult to get back into it.

I’m not saying that you need to outsource your content marketing or dieting for the rest of your life. However, professionals are there to help you define your goals, create plans you can stick with and give you accountability. A professional opinion can be the difference in getting results and giving up.

I personally had to enlist the help of a professional for my fitness. I tried giving this mentor up last year in January because I could do it myself. Know what happened? I barely exercised between February and November of last year. I lost all the muscle my trainer helped me develop. I lost sight of my goals for excellence. I signed back up in November and have been with the program 90 percent of the time.

In my next post, I’ll outline what you need to look for in a content marketing professional. This person can help you pump a little health into your content marketing.

If you’d like a no-obligation consultation on your content marketing strategy and goals, please contact me and I’ll put you on my calendar.

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

• The questions are more important than the answers. If you ask bad questions, your interviewee and your audience aren’t going to get much out of the experience. Spend some time tailoring the questions to your keywords, your audiences’ needs and desires and finding something new.
• Answers need editing in the written form. Interviews on video can be a little less edited, but if you’re writing a blog post Q & A or even an e-newsletter Q & A, it’s important that you edit for the reader. Clean up the punctuation. Also be sure bullet important points and call out memorable quotes.
• Takeaways or next steps are key. Sure, reading an interview or Q & A is great, but it’s important to call out the lessons and next steps. This makes your post or email interview actionable.

So, just like every other type of content marketing, a Q & A post requires a strategy. If you need help developing a content strategy, contact me and be sure to subscribe to my content marketing ezine –  Content Confidential.

The Editorial Calendar – This will be a regular feature on the best tips and tools for perfecting the editorial calendar. This is the essential backbone piece for any content marketer and I’ll share ways to improve, innovate and ignite your content with this tool.

The Case Study – This regular feature will give you a real glimpse of how a content strategy flopped or fired up a company’s campaign or strategy. Sometimes it will be a lesson learned or a real success story. You’ll just have to sign up to see how it pans out.

One Thing to Do This Minute – Everyone can do something to improve their content marketing – right now, this very minute. Each issue, I’ll share one tip you can do this minute to ignite your content marketing success.

I’d love to hear your feedback and ideas for the ezine. The first issue will be out before the end of January. Be sure to sign up and remember, I promise to never rent, share, or give anyone else a peek at your email address. I value your privacy and interest in Content Confidential. Talk to you soon!

She mentioned that she didn’t have the courage or the time to make the plunge yet. In my response, I mentioned to her that it does take a whole lot of guts and time to make it as a freelance writer. It takes faith and planning.

And then I realized those two keys are universal to content marketing and business. You have to have faith in your content (and your business) and you have to plan.

Content without faith or, more appropriately belief, falls flat. It doesn’t have a purpose. If you don’t believe it, then why would your audience?

The greater issue here is that you have to believe in your business whether you sell your writing (as I do) or a gadget. Belief in your product, your message and even your content are the keys to success.

Planning allows you to pour that belief into your business, your content and your clients/customers. When you plan, you think from a place of conviction and the content that stems from that is believable and engaging.

I’d like to thank that writer for reminding me of the two keys to success in all content marketing and business. Good luck to you. I hope you find your courage and time because you’ll be great when you do.

When you become content (i.e. happy, laid back) with your content (info up for discussion/sharing with your audience), you’re walking on thin ice. Sure, formulaic blogging is a great starting point, but we really need to make sure content is fresh, fierce and fetching.

Content contentment can take away from that fresh, fierce and fetching approach to producing content. So, how do you know when you’re becoming a little too content with your content? Here are a few indicators:

Too much focus on the search words

Yes, content marketers are looking to gain search engine traffic, but your content has a higher purpose – to be engaging and educational. And it’s purpose is to etch credibility and trust into your audience’s minds. When your content becomes resourceful, they come back. And that’s the secret to content marketing.

Too narrow a focus or too much repetition

Some blogs are geared toward providing tips and tricks on how to use a product. That’s all great, but it’s important to pepper in some benefits to all the features. It’s important to make connections to what’s happening in the industry or your space. Look at your category list for a little inspiration. If there’s a content gap in a category or two, and the blog is getting traffic to those categories…maybe it’s time to beef them up a bit. Adding some customer case studies or a tie-in to something cool in the news is a great way to harness attention from both your audience and the search bots.

Too much focus on product info

I make my living writing for a number of blogs and companies who know the value of content strategy. However, sometimes a theme is weak or the topic is just losing its luster. When you reach this hurdle, looking at the search terms, what the competition is doing and outside your industry spark fresh, fierce and fetching ideas.

Too little focus on your audiences’ needs

The reason someone found your content in the first place is because they have a need – a need to solve a problem, a need to learn how to do something or a need to be entertained. They searched or heard about you from someone else and need you to help them. If your content is content with only addressing audience needs once in a while, you’re missing the point of content creation and missing out on opportunities to help people. That’s why we should be in business – to help others and get paid for doing a good job. Does your content do that?

Spreading your content in too many directions

Content marketing is as much about the medium as it is about the words you use. However, I learned something from a great former boss – sometimes the medium is the problem. Let me give you a couple of real-world examples.

Email bombardment

I’m on quite a few email lists because I need to know what’s going on in the industries I write about. However, this past week I’ve been bombarded with emails for whitepapers, industry reports and other promos I don’t care to read. So, I unsubscribed from the email list of a publication I respect. But the unsubscribe didn’t work (big no-no). I’m still getting emails with content I could care less about. I’ve filed a complaint with the director of online marketing. Hopefully, this will be fixed soon.

Spinning your wheels in the wrong space

Some mediums are filled with people just like you looking for an audience. Twitter is a great example. In some cases, Twitter is a great place to converse and spread the word. But for some companies, it’s not the right place to be spending your time. I’ve witnessed recently that a client has gotten response from Twitter, but the response has not been from the right people. If the audience isn’t right, why spin your wheels?

Is your content suffering from contentment? Contact me to help you develop a strategy for getting it out of its comfort zone.