Work Better, Not Harder

A few months ago I found a new best friend when I started working with a client who uses Trello. While the client is indeed a friend, the free Trello app is what I'm talking about here. Trello is visual like a bulletin board and, the more things I use it for, the more organized and productive I'm becoming. I have no shortage of content ideas and I'm pretty good about catching them but, well, not necessarily all in one place. I have a notebook, Word docs in a folder in Dropbox, and as of right now, 22 draft posts on this blog. Recently I discovered a recorded message I'd made for myself last year on my phone. Catching ideas and organizing them into a content calendar are two different things - and both can be handled easily with Trello. Here is a link to a public board I created and which you can copy and make your own. If you've used Trello before, you might find this overly simplistic but, well, I'm all about simple. If you haven't used Trell

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: coming up with ideas adapting your ideas for writing starting to write finishing writing editing and proofing finding or creating graphics keywords and publishing Adapting ideas for writing (#2) is a common challenge for small business owners who may not have much writing experience. Here is a way to conquer that stumbling block. 5 Steps to Plan Your Article Before You Start to Write #1. What is your purpose or goal? To give or explain information To persuade with your opinions To share ideas, thoughts or concepts Knowing your goal will inform the style you use for writing. Giving information requires a good detailed outline, simple words, and facts. Persuading requires good research and planning, examples, and

I don't often use terms like 'lead magnet' and ' sales funnel ' on this blog. Not because they aren't good things to have - of course, they are - but because there are lots of others writing about those topics. Here I'd rather discuss ideas for those and other tools we use to attract customers. Content marketing works the best when you focus on the content first. The delivery method is important but won't matter if you aren't creating valuable content. When I opened a newsletter from a friend recently, this headline jumped out at me: Content marketing results in 6x more conversions than other forms of marketing. Advertising costs money. On the other hand, content marketing costs time. Which do you have more of? Click to Tweet this Article

When I received Pantone's email announcement of their Colour of the Year for 2019, I didn't rush to blog about it as I usually would. Mostly I thought, "Huh?" And ever since, I've been wondering if I'll have the opportunity to use it in any of the digital marketing I do. Don't get me wrong, I love  Pantone 16-1546 Living Coral . But it feels a bit feminine for my purposes - which are marketing-related, of course. I decided to have a look at possible colour schemes using Living Coral... I'm kind of liking that triad combo! What do you think? Will you be using Living Coral in your branding this year? Click to Tweet this Article