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Marketing
What’s Your Value Proposition? Really.
The words that make my heart sing are only sometimes the same words that make my potential clients’ hearts sing. And I’ve learned that I can be quite wrong about what I think is the value I bring to each relationship. For instance, nagging can … Keep reading…
Email Marketing 101
Starting an email newsletter isn’t especially difficult if you have a propensity for apps and design. You could start tonight and send tomorrow if you really want to. BUT developing and implementing an email marketing strategy that will serve your business – and your readers … Keep reading…
Email Marketing Best Practices: It Depends…
You’ve finally decided to start doing some email marketing for your small business. There are lots of things you know you need to consider and lots of things you don’t know about yet. But you’re game and, having finally made the decision, you hop online … Keep reading…
Proofing Checklist for Error-free Newsletters
Having prepared and sent well over a thousand different newsletters, this is what I know to be true: mistakes happen. There are so many opportunities for error that I still cringe inwardly when I click ‘schedule’ or ‘send’. This checklist gives you an easy way … Keep reading…
“Why Didn’t I Start an Email List Sooner?”
If you’re a small business owner without an email list, at some point your future self is going to think, “Why didn’t I start an email list sooner?” It takes years to build an engaged email audience. If you’re successful (and of course, you want … Keep reading…
23 Things to Put in Your Small Business Newsletter
All the experts know that email is still king. If you’re starting an enewsletter for your small business, figuring out what content you want to put in it might be one of your first challenges. Here’s a quick rundown of a variety of different content sections you … Keep reading…
Is Your Newsletter a Vehicle or the Destination?
Small business owners often arrive at the desire to start an email newsletter from one of two different directions. The route has an impact on the strategy, tactics and tools you will use. A Vehicle Some have already been blogging and, for them, an email … Keep reading…
Email Newsletters – Develop Your Strategy First
The process of starting an email newsletter for your small business involves focusing on these aspects: strategy, tactics and tools. It makes sense to approach them in a logical order from high-level thinking through to detailed work. Strategy First This is where you consider that your … Keep reading…
Your Blogging Deadline is Looming
It’s time to write your next blog post. Or maybe the time has already passed. What do you think when your deadline is looming? My own lament is often, “What can I pull together fast that will be useful?” I talk to a lot of small … Keep reading…
Quality Control for Your Content
You’ve just finished an insightful new article for your blog. You’re anxious to publish it and find out what your readers think. Depending on the topic and type of article you’ve written, it might make sense to do a little research before publishing. Researching after … Keep reading…
Get Focused Before You Start to Write
If you want to be doing more content marketing but aren’t, do you know what’s stopping you? A few months ago I wrote this article – Where Do You Get Stuck? – and ever since I have been committed to developing solutions for these stumbling blocks: … Keep reading…
Pinpoint Your Unique Content Marketing Opportunity – An Example
If you read Pinpoint Your Unique Content Marketing Opportunity last month and are still stuck, this article may offer some hope. First, if you are sitting at your desk alone, new ideas may not come to you easily. This process requires brainstorming – and more than … Keep reading…
What’s the Best Day of the Month to Send a Newsletter?
Wouldn’t it be great if I had a magic bullet for you? The thing is, if I did, everyone else would be sending their newsletter on that day and it would no longer be magic. What I can do instead is give you some suggestions … Keep reading…
How to Answer a Question on Your Small Business Blog
You might think your website FAQ page is the best place to answer questions but I would argue that your blog is even better. In fact, I suggest your FAQ page should list the questions, and perhaps short answers, with links to blog posts for … Keep reading…
Don’t Ignore the Obvious: Daily Tips Work
One of the best things I ever did was to take Anita Kirkbride‘s advice when she told me I should post daily enewsletter tips on social media. It was a very specific and fairly easy task to do. I ended up with an Excel spreadsheet with … Keep reading…
Find Marketing Opportunities in Your Own Content
Marketing analytics can be confusing. You need to learn how to use the software to get data. Then you need to figure out what information you want from the data. Then you need to figure out what actions to take now that you’re wiser. Here’s … Keep reading…
Pinpoint Your Unique Content Marketing Opportunity
If you think writing blog posts about what you do is your best content option, you might be sorely mistaken. The popular approach to content marketing usually includes some combination of blogging (podcasting, video, etc) + email + social media. (I love that equation!) The … Keep reading…
Why Buy the Cow When You Can Get the Milk for Free?
Some people still think there’s a scarcity of information in the world, to be hoarded and divvied out carefully. It’s true that information becomes less valuable the more it proliferates… but there’s definitely no scarcity. If you are ever concerned about sharing too much information, … Keep reading…
Boost Your Expert Reputation with an Evergreen Series
Writing a series of articles is a great way to connect related content together. It is also an attention-getter, encouraging readers to subscribe or return for the next installment in the series. And it can be a showcase for demonstrating your expertise on a particular … Keep reading…
A Call-to-action Formula for Your Free Download
You’ve got your first lead magnet all ready to go and you’ve got a great landing page for it. You’re anticipating a rush of new visitors to download your giveaway and discover how valuable your small business might be to them. If sending a series … Keep reading…
I Want to Start Blogging – Now What?
Think of it as learning to drive a car. You’ll need to learn how to drive and you’ll need a car to drive. Which comes first? Some of the learning… the theory part. You can learn about both driving a car and blogging easily enough … Keep reading…
3 Questions That Need Answering: Lessons Learned From My Lunch and Learn
I recently (like, earlier today) had the pleasure of speaking to a room full of close to 50 people on a topic near and dear to my heart: podcasting. Now I’m not going to sit here and give you a recap of that talk. If … Keep reading…