Think of it like this. 

Say you buy a new house and are going to have a housewarming party so that everyone can come check it out. 

So you text, email, invite a bunch of your friends and family but don’t include your address. 

Sure, they’ll be happy about your new home but they won’t show up to your party. They have no idea where to go. 

Your prospects are the same way. 

You need to have an endgame in sight, and a strategy to get there.

Mistake #3: Thinking Your Prospects Care About “YOU”

What good is content that your audience doesn’t care about?

And I hate to break it to you, your prospects don’t care about you or how great you are. They don’t care about how many features your newest product or service includes. 

Before they know who you are, all they care about is information you know that they can use to help themselves. They haven’t even considered that they could hire or buy from you. 

That’s because the vast majority of your content should not sell. It should introduce you. Introduce your philosophy. Introduce them to what a potential solution MAY look like. 

Big picture: They care about content that is relevant to them, their business, and their current thought process. 

If you can’t provide content that is relevant to your audience (or the audience you’re trying to reach), there is a good chance you’ll never attract your audience in the first place OR they’ll leave your site before they’ve even had the chance to see what you offer.

Put yourself in your prospect’s shoes.

What problem are they ultimately trying to solve?

There are a million ways to decide on the content you’ll publish but for starters:

1. Look at your FAQs. What questions do you hear in sales conversations, email support, Facebook messages, on community forums often?
   
   Provide the answer in your blog. Or on your social media channels.

2. Determine what your audience is searching for.
   
   You can use tools like Google’s Keyword Planner (free) or SEMrush to determine the phrases your audience is actively looking for.

Note: Know that the content that you share does not have to be original. You can get similar results by simply sharing content that other people put together. Not everyone is Gary Vaynerchuk and has a camera following them around 24/7. 

So if you are feeling overwhelmed reading this just start by sharing content that you think is good. Just showing that you are paying attention to the industry is a fantastic way to show that you are not a pretender. 

Mistake #4: Not Having a Long-Term Commitment to Your Content Strategy

Good things come to those who wait…

Consistency is important when committing to your content marketing strategy. 

But what we’ve found is that patience is most important.

If someone told you they have a strategy to gain thousands of followers overnight… it sounds too good to be true, because it is.

A thousand followers from people who you would never work with means nothing. 

Building a long-term relationship with your audience that will take multiple interactions over a given period of time will lead to long-term sustainability.

I’ve mentioned it hundreds of times over the last few years…

For a prospect to feel comfortable moving forward with you, whether that be accepting a meeting or signing on as a client, you have to catch their attention over and over again. 

Before you can gain trust you must be memorable. 

Before you can be memorable you must be recognizable. 

Before you can be recognizable you must be visible. 

And before you can be visible you must start content marketing the right way. 

Sign up for my upcoming LEAD Blueprint workshop to see how. 

Mistake #5: Content Marketing is King, but Distribution is Queen

What good is having the perfect content for your audience…… but not having the tools to distribute it properly?

It’s simple… it’s not good.

Content is King with regards to your content marketing strategy, but your distribution strategy is its Queen.

The two are equal partners that need to be aligned properly if you are going to have success. 

What’s that saying?… Happy wife, happy life.

It’s a corny saying but it couldn’t be more true here.

You need to create good content. 

And you need people to see it. 

Share it on social media, share it to your email list, let your clients know, and encourage them to spread the word.

Again, content isn’t an overnight strategy, but if you’re in it for the long-haul you will see massive gains for your business. 

Your Turn

Sign up for my upcoming L.E.A.D Blueprint Workshop

Creating a solid messaging strategy is only one part of an effective lead generation strategy. 

I’ve recently developed a new workshop that goes step by step through the process that has been so successful in our clients’ businesses -- the L.E.A.D. Blueprint. 

In the workshop, we’ll be teaching:

• Exactly what an Authority Leadership Platform is and how you can leverage our Authority Amplifier process to position yourself above the competition, putting your business in an entirely different playing field.
• How to target high-end prospects using online platforms (social media + email) in a unique way that builds instant trust by doing the polar opposite of what most ‘salespeople’ try
• How to develop real relationships online using a highly-personal Multi-Touchpoint Messaging Campaign to naturally guide the conversation towards an appointment
• The right way to automate processes that build trust, improve credibility and increase responsiveness in your campaigns.

Join an upcoming workshop session by signing up here!

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