Do It! Marketing Blog: Marketing for Smart People™

Guest post by Hendrik-Jan Francke

If you are not actively implementing a content marketing strategy – because you don’t have the time, expertise, or don’t see the value – you are actively denying yourself the visibility and opportunity to get in front of prospects who want what you have to give. You are denying yourself more business!

Even if you do implement a plan, there is always room to improve. Learn why you need a content marketing strategy and a few tips to improve what you’re already doing.

Content marketing increases visibility, trust, and value of your brand

61% of consumers say custom content improves the way the they feel about a company and are also more likely to buy from that company.  Why do you need content marketing? Because consumers want it. Content marketing can help you:

• Get found by more people
  The more you post to your blog and promote content across social media, people will start to take notice. You will drive more traffic to your blog and to your site.
• Build brand trust and credibility
  By positioning yourself as a subject matter expert on the web, people will recognize your content is valuable and listen more intently to what you have to say.
• Boost your SEO rank
  Content marketing is not an SEO strategy, but should be part of your SEO strategy. Relevant, insightful content, basic keyword optimization, and strategic social sharing can boost your traffic and improve your site’s overall SEO standing.
• Prime and prepare prospects 
  When prospects that are primed with your content, prospects that already value your expertise, contact you for your services – why wouldn’t you close that deal?

Tips to Make Content Marketing more effective

So know you know the why, but the how takes more time and expertise. Time is fleeting, so take advantage of these tips.

• Limit involvement to what is manageable
  You don’t need to blog daily or spend your day posting to social media to be effective. Limit your involvement to what is manageable. Create a content calendar to map out and schedule your blog posts, set aside a few hours each month to write, then use a tool like HootSuite to batch schedule social media posts promoting that article.
• Know when, where, and how often you should post
  Maximize engagement by sharing and posting content where your audience will find it. If your audience isn’t on Pinterest, you don’t have to be either. But you can increase impressions and clicks by using analytics to track when your audience is most active on each social media platform.
• Recycle your content to make it go further
  Generating 50 new blog ideas can be exhausting. Instead, take one strong piece of content you have and break that down into 10 web-friendly chunks you can use as blog articles. A little spit, polish, and strategic optimization can give your old content new perspective.

Bonus Tip: Know when to delegate!

This is probably the most important tip you need. If you can’t get the work done, delegate the tasks to an expert who can. You have the subject-matter expertise that your prospects want, but a partner that has the web writing, social media marketing, and key word optimization techniques can more effectively reach those prospects.

Start putting your plan into action

Take a quick survey of the content you already have - a book, presentations, white papers - and jot down a few ideas of how you can convert that into a blog and share it. The sooner you start your content marketing strategy, the sooner you will get results.

Ready to delegate the content marketing grunt work to a strategic partner that can amplify your results? You might be ready for your own Content Marketing Concierge.

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Hendrik-Jan Francke is the owner, creative director, usability expert, and lead generation specialist of Bright Orange Thread. He and the Bright Orange Thread team deliver digital marketing solutions that engage visitors, encourage action, and result in more – and better qualified – leads.

Here's a training module (it's #1 out of 3 available FREE here) on why and how YOU can create, promote and profit from private coaching programs built around the expertise you ALREADY have - whether you consider yourself a "coach" or NOT!

To get the rest of this FREE "Private Coaching Success" video series, click here.

Shazam!!

Please post your comments and questions below. Hit the "Like" button above so that you get notified via Facebook when I post more videos.

I hate to embarrass people in public. Even if they deeply and richly deserve it. And I’m not about to start now, even though this story about an otherwise respected professional who wanted to start a private coaching program (for all the wrong reasons and with zero preparation) may send chills down your spine. All names have been removed to protect the goofy.

By the way, if you want to cut to the chase and find out how to do this right from the get-go, check out my new FREE video training series "Private Coaching Success" - grab some popcorn and go here. 

Back to our story... It all began with this exchange (via Facebook message) between me and a successful international keynote speaker with whom I am friendly (and who earns in excess of $20,000 per speech):

• HIM: hey you do ongoing coaching type programs, right? 
  like you get clients that pay you X per month or year for telephone time or something else?
  im asking because i was approached recently by a CEO who wants me to do executive coaching/mentoring for him.  do you have some sort of outline i could follow please? i havent structured a deal like this before

• David Newman
  I do marketing coaching, not “executive coaching” but many of my clients DO - usual structure is 2-3 phone meetings per month with email access to you in between and for CEOs I wouldn't charge less than $5k per month. 7500-10k per month if the meetings are in person. Normally you'd lock them in for a 6- or 12-month commitment.
  That's all you need to know to close the deal. Boom - you owe me a Pepsi.

• HIM: lol thanks. but what do they get for their money ? in terms of time commitments etc and i dont have any formal program structured. or is it pretty informal? they call and you just shoot the shit?

• David Newman
  If the content of the expertise you're trying to sell isn't in line with what the CEO needs or expects, you're toast - you can't just charge for something and "wing it" - don't mean to be harsh, bro - but are you playing to your strengths here??

• HIM: he approached me, not the other way around
  he was in my audience recently and came over to me and said he wants to hire me to be his executive coach
  so i certainly havent promised him anything i cant deliver
  but i dont have a bunch of papers and programs and checklists or any formal program, because this is not something i normally do.

I’ll stop there simply to spare you the pain and embarrassment of more.

What’s wrong with this picture? I could go on and on but I promised myself this would be a short post.

PLUS I want to hear from YOU in the Comments section below about your reactions and advice in avoiding this type of train wreck.

Here’s my 6 cents on what is dangerous and crazy about this exchange:

1. Someone who can deliver a killer keynote speech (regardless of fee level) does NOT automatically qualify as an executive coach. Totally different skill set. It’s like hiring a virtuoso pianist to build a custom stereo - yes, they both make music. But the similarity ends there.
    
2. “Do you have some sort of outline I could follow?” Imagine this question coming from a jet fighter pilot, a brain surgeon, or a trial attorney. There is no outline -- it’s a skill set that is a combination of serious expertise plus deep experience. You don’t “follow an outline.”
    
3. “I don’t have any formal program structured.” Here’s your first clue, Sherlock Holmes - if you don’t have a formal program for what you’re trying to sell, then you have no business selling it. Holy cow, do I really have to spell this out? Shouldn’t this just FEEL wrong? Apparently not...
    
4. “They call and you just shoot the shit?” Umm, no. I just gave my friend some pricing guidance that a high-level executive coaching program is at least $5,000 per month. And he asks me if that money goes toward “shooting the shit”? Seriously? Meanwhile - there are serious, committed, high-value executive coaches that just read this and their foreheads are about to explode. And I don’t blame them.
    
5. “But Dad - HE started it!” OK, that’s not exactly what he said. It was “he approached me, not the other way around” as if THIS makes it OK to charge money for a service that my friend is neither qualified nor prepared to offer. But wait. we’re not quite done - it gets worse...
    
6. “I don’t have a bunch of papers and programs and checklists or any formal program, because this is not something I normally do.” Again, let’s transplant this statement to a different profession - forensic accounting, cancer research, or defusing bombs. You’d probably want each of these professionals to show up with more than “a bunch of papers and checklists” to fulfill their responsibilities, correct? And you might even be more nervous to learn that “this is not something they normally do.” The lesson? THEN DON’T DO IT!!!

Tell you what - if you'd rather do this faster, smarter and better - then check out my FREE video training series "Private Coaching Success" - you can grab it right here.  

You'll be very glad you did. I guarantee it. 

Alright, you talked me into it... 

I get a ton of questions about book marketing - how to sell more books, how to market your book, how to do your book launch, yadda yadda.

Example FAQ's: 

• How can I market my book as a first-time author?
• My book came out X years ago - is it too late to launch it properly? (Answer: NO!)
• Do those amazon bestseller campaigns that cost $5k or more really work? (Hint: NO!!)
• How much should I pay a publicist to help with my book launch?
  (Surprise: Zero)
• How do I let my email subscribers and social media followers know about my book without being a pushy jerk?
• How do I get celebrities and famous people to endorse my book?
• What do I need to do before, during, and after my book comes out to ensure sales, media attention, and tons of great reviews?

And the list goes on...

And I love it because I'm ridiculously passionate about book marketing and I'd love to see YOU and your book enjoy the same massive success that my book has had...

So I'm going to take the bull by the horns and ANSWER your questions in a series of short videos.

Please click here to take this ONE-question survey.

Let's DO this:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Book-Marketing

You're awesome. Thank YOU!!

As a speaker, consultant, thought-leading executive or entrepreneur, you may have heard about the importance of building an audience for your work... Sounds great. 

Here are 17 vital differences between a market and an audience.

You can spend YEARS attracting and serving an audience that is NOT your market. And that's just sad, painful, and frustrating. 

These are as pernicious as they are deceptive. 

WHICH of these has been holding you back - confusing you - or set you to wondering how come you're not making more money?

Let's go down the list... 

1. An audience listens - A market pays attention
2. An audience wants entertainment - A market wants to solve problems
3. An audience values an experience - A market values expertise
4. An audience wants to watch - A market wants to act
5. An audience wants information - A market wants implementation
6. An audience reacts - A market responds
7. An audience wants their questions answered - A market wants their answers questioned
8. An audience wants you to be popular - A market wants you to be right
9. An audience asks “What can you do?” - A market asks “What’s next?” and “What else?”
10. An audience says, “Great show!” - A market says, “Great job!”
11. An audience tells their friends - A market tells their boss
12. An audience buys your book - A market reads your book
13. An audience likes your ideas - A market implements your ideas
14. An audience wants your autograph - A market wants to give you their signature
15. An audience applauds - A market refers
16. An audience says, “Thank you” - A market says, “Thank goodness!”

and finally - most important of all - read this next one as often as you need to...

17. An audience will HEAR you - A market will PAY you (well, often, and gladly)

Expert marketers not only build an audience - they develop a market for their value, ideas, products, services, and programs.

Want to apply for your Speaker Strategy Call to see how you can IMPLEMENT some of these concepts right away? Apply for your call here.

The ad above first appeared in Business Week in 1958 – 56 years ago!

The moral of the ad’s story was relevant then and it is even more relevant today: establish expertise and build relationships before you try to sell.

The good news is that experts win on value and generalists die on price. 

The bad news is that we live in far more cynical times than the sellers of the 1950’s; but more good news is that YOU have so many more tools available to help you address the problem.

If you're investing in "Expert Marketing" (it goes by several other names like inbound marketing, thought-leadership marketing, and content marketing)... then you've probably asked yourself: 

How (and when) will this generate a sale?

And that is completely the WRONG question.

By the time you're done reading this article/ rant/ manifesto, you'll see exactly why - AND you'll be able to ask (and answer) much better questions for your business right away. 

Asking when expert marketing will lead to a sale is like filling up your car's gas tank and asking, "Why aren't we there yet?" 

Answer: Because filling your car with gas is a NECESSARY but NOT SUFFICIENT step to getting you to your destination (a new customer or client).

Do you have a chance of arriving now that your gas tank is full? You bet.

Did you have a chance of getting there with your tank on empty? No way. 

Let's move on... 

Insight #1 You need to sell the same way that YOU buy.

Look at your email spam or bulk email folder. Yes, you. Yes, right now. I'll wait... 

tap... tap... tap... tap... You're back. Excellent.

Did you see that spam email from the toner cartridge company? Did you catch the pitch from the SEO firm that filled out your website's "contact us" form? Did you respond to that great deal on vacation cruises? NO? 

OK now pop over to your paper mail pile on your desk. Did you check out the latest "triple play" offer from Comcast (or whatever hellacious Cable Satan runs in your neck of the woods)? How about that compelling cell phone offer from Verizon? The Wall Street Journal subscription offer under that postcard? Or how about that postcard - you know, the one from the home heating oil company? NO? 

When's the last time you gave your credit card number over to a cold caller who interrupted your family dinner? NEVER??

I'm shocked...

Because you seem pretty excited about YOUR cold calls - and sending out YOUR spam - YOUR offers - YOUR postcards - YOUR sales messages.

The problem with doing it this way? In four words...

Zero. Value. For. Prospects.

And hello? YOU don't BUY this way. What in the world makes you think your prospects DO?

Look once more at the ad above - and answer one simple question: 

Question #1: What VALUE have I ADDED to my prospect's world in order to EARN the RIGHT to INVITE them to a conversation and OFFER my solutions to their urgent, pervasive, expensive problems?

Insight #2 Referrals are great - but they are neither deaf, dumb, nor blind

Next, you'll say that you don't NEED "expert marketing" because 99% of your business is repeat and referral business and it's always been that way and you don't see how this "newfangled marketing" is going to move the needle in closing more sales.

Do you seriously think that referrals don't check you out online before picking up the phone?

What messages are you sending to your valued referrals with...

a. Your outdated website (articles from 2008 are outdated, friends. And from 2003 even more so. And design aesthetic from 1997 most of all.)

b. Your sporadically updated blog that you leave dormant for 2 (or 4 or 6) months at a clip.

c. Your abandoned Twitter account you set up because someone said "you had to" and that now has 37 followers while your competitors have 3,000 (or a whole lot more.) 

d. Your sketchy, bare bones LinkedIn profile that has 300 connections but only 2 recommendations (From 2005. From people with the same last name as you.)

e. Your "glory days" articles and TV clips and PR placements from 20 (yes I'm serious), 10, or even 5 years ago. Nothing screams "has-been" like old media.  

Make no mistake: Getting repeat and referral business is great. But don't kid yourself that this absolves you from having a top-notch web presence, social media platform, and body of knowledge that is ultra-current, super-relevant, and obviously abundant.

In fact, you are leaving yourself open for EMBARRASSMENT if your advocates hear back from their referrals and find themselves in the awkward position of having to DEFEND you to them because your web presence has fallen behind and now casts your professional expertise into doubt.

Question #2: Does my overall web presence REASSURE and REINFORCE the referrals I earn with the most current, credible and relevant expert marketing messages, positioning, content, resources, and value that will make my advocates LOOK BETTER - not worse - for referring me? 

Insight #3 Expert Marketing is a 4-layer enchilada (aka You don't get to eat the delicious golden-brown cheese without first layering on the meat!!)

The first layer - at the core of the matter - is your Reputation. Your work. Your track record. If you stop there, you'll have a VERY hard time attracting NEW leads and prospects to your doorstep. "My work should speak for itself" is what a lot of very smart people say - smart people who have a hard time making their mortgage payments.  

The second layer is Amplification. Ways to make your "expert signal" stronger. Enter social media marketing, niche PR, article marketing, blogging, keyword research and search engine optimization. This is the key to spreading your ideas and broadcasting your expertise.

The third layer is Leverage. This is where you begin to capitalize on your "expert marketing" assets such as articles, blogs, videos, podcasts, interviews, white papers, special reports, book excerpts, and other value-first marketing tools. You can now reach out to high-probability prospects both individually (on LinkedIn for example) and collectively (on your blog for example). This is where your job becomes putting the right bait on the right hooks in the right lakes to catch the right fish.  

The fourth layer is Gravity. Just like Jim Collins talks about the "flywheel" concept in Good to Great (it takes a long time to get it spinning but then is very hard to stop because of the power of momentum) - this is where you start to see payoffs. More leads, better prospects, bigger opportunities, more conversations, higher profile alliances, more invitations to speak, publish, guest post, contribute, teach, and (drum roll please...) more invitations to do great work at premium fees for great clients who NOW know you, like you, and trust you enough to hand over 5- and 6-figure checks because their level of confidence in your expertise is pretty damn close to 100%.

Question #3: Do you want to make more sales to strangers? (Good luck with that). Or do you really want more people to recognize, respect, and request YOU by name when they have a need, project, or problem that they instantly see has "your name written all over it"? If that's your goal, then expert marketing is for you. 

Re-read the McGraw-Hill ad above and let's do a 21st century spin on it together...

• I don't know who you are.
• I don't read your blog. 
• I don't subscribe to your newsletter.
• I don't see your name in my industry's publications.
• I don't hear my peers spreading your ideas.
• I don't come across your content in Google searches.
• I don't connect your solutions to my problems. 
• I don't feel the gravity of your credibility or credentials.
• I don't have any tangible way to gauge your expertise or experience.
• Now -- what was it you wanted to sell me? 

So here's the ultimate (and most important) question for YOU: 

How can you realistically expect to SELL anything by NOT setting the necessary pre-conditions for ANY sale with Expert Marketing?

The answer is as simple as it is obvious: you can't. Just like you can't drive your car from Denver to Sheboygan just by filling up your gas tank. You need to get behind the wheel, plan your route, use your GPS, add more fuel along the way (and probably some beef jerky and Sno-Balls and root beer) AND put in the hours and the miles to get you to your destination.  

Nobody -- and I mean N-O-B-O-D-Y -- hires speakers, consultants or professional services firms sight unseen. You wouldn't. I wouldn't either.

And the facts prove out that today's buyers are just like YOU and ME. 

Expert marketing is a marathon, not a sprint. And as any marathoner will tell you - the best (and only) way to run a marathon is one mile at a time. 

What do you think? Please post YOUR COMMENTS below and... 

It all started with this passionate rant...

If I see one more idiot posting about "millionaire speaker" bootcamps or info-marketing mega-courses, or moronic pitches to "work less and make more" I'm going to pop an artery because these are complete B.S.!!

You want the secret to work less and make more?

Great - here it is in three words: DELIVER. MASSIVE. VALUE.

Maybe four more words would help: WORK. YOUR. BUTT. OFF.

In addition to my main speaking and consulting work, I've made a very nice secondary income since 2008 in group coaching programs. 

HOWEVER - let's not sugar-coat things, either: they are a tremendous amount of WORK. Preparation, planning, building the modules, marketing the programs, filling the classes.  

And no, these aren't the $97 per month automated type of programs with canned emails and videos.

These are personally led by me in real time with real interaction and they carry a premium price tag and they are extremely well-received.  

I can say with pinpoint accuracy that between 2008 and 2010, I ran...

• The Speaker Marketing Toolkit program 12 times since 2008 ($144,000)
• The Product Development Tookit 3 times ($28,800)
• The Speaker Profit Blueprint 3 times ($23,100)
• The 30-day SpeakerLiftoff program 5 times ($37,375)
• The Do It! Marketing Accelerator 8 people at $277/month ($6,648)
• The inaugural 2014 Book Marketing Workshop had 12 people at $777 ($9,324) 

So if you truly want to leverage your time, talent, content, expertise, and experience...

You must learn to create, market and sell group coaching programs.

They're a great supplement and complement to your main business as a speaker, author, coach, consultant, or independent professional.

There is no magic bullet. There is no "millionaire fairy"... Get to work and you'll get these results.

p.s. Ready to go behind the scenes and do this for your own business? If so, then this might be exactly what you've been looking for. 

Welcome to our carefully chosen list of thought leadership marketing tools. We use these tools here at Do It! Marketing World HQ and highly recommend them to our clients and partners.

Good news: Many of these tools are free. A few are not. Almost all come with a risk-free "try before you buy" option to make sure you love them as much as we do. Please note that if you decide to make a purchase, I may (and probably will) receive a small commission. This commission is at no extra cost to you, and in fact, MOST of these links contain special discounts, free trials, or bonuses only available through these links.

With that said, please dig in and take full advantage of these hand-selected resources. They will help your business thrive, scale and grow -- just as they have helped ours!

Email Marketing: ConstantContact | Aweber | PopupDomination

Shopping Cart: KickstartCart | Infusionsoft

Social Media: Tweetadder

Online Audio/E-learning: AudioAcrobat | JigsawBox | Ruzuku

Graphics: Pixabay | ReciteThis | PicMonkey | MyECoverMaker

Webinar/Screen Sharing: Screenr | StealthSeminar | AnyMeeting

Ecommerce: PayPal | Clickbank | Infusionsoft

Landing Pages: LeadPages | Unbounce | LaunchRock

Website Builder: Strikingly

Thought Leader’s Bookshelf 2014

Here are 7 books filled with great ideas that every thought-leading entrepreneur and executive needs to read, absorb, and implement.

If you want to be considered a genuine expert by your prospects, clients, customers, followers, subscribers and fans, these 7 books are your go-to resource library. Enjoy!

1. Ready to Be a Thought Leader: How to Increase Your Influence, Impact, and Success

2. Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World

3. Do It! Marketing: 77 Instant-Action Ideas to Boost Sales, Maximize Profits, and Crush Your Competition

4. Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business

5. The Expert's Edge: Become the Go-To Authority People Turn to Every Time

6. How to Position Yourself As the Obvious Expert: Turbocharge Your Consulting or Coaching Business Now!

7. POP!: Create the Perfect Pitch, Title, and Tagline for Anything

BONUS: Here's a great slide deck on thought leadership from Art Kleiner of Strategy & Business magazine, put out by Booz & Company:

Got some other great book recommendations along these lines? Please use the COMMENTS area below and join the conversation...

Maybe 2014 will be the year that you…

1. Start thinking bigger

2. Ask for help (partners, affiliates, advocates, allies, clients)

3. Stop playing small

4. Give up your victim mindset

5. Learn to sell smarter

6. Invest in yourself

7. Stop whining

8. Be of service to more people, whether they buy or not

9. Listen more deeply

10. Stop competing and start collaborating

11. Let go and move on

12. Get smart about your money (earning, saving, spending, investing)

13. Embrace the unknown

14. Scale your business

15. Don't sweat the small stuff

16. Give more of your time to your best clients

17. Amplify your voice

18. Sharpen your vision

19. Multiply your impact

20. Get off the hamster wheel

21. Leverage more 

22. Labor less (simplify, eliminate, delegate, outsource)

23. Serve a wider audience

24. Dig deeper

25. Write more

26. Stress less

27. Spend more time with family

28. Get off the email crack

29. Manage your day smarter

30. Take 100% ownership of marketing, sales, and business development

31. Stop pitching and start solving

32. Make more videos

33. Build a community around your expertise

34. Trash your self-limiting beliefs

35. Buy this book

36. Get serious, get help, or get out

37. Upgrade your marketing materials

38. Stop tolerating bullshit in all areas of your life

39. Embrace healthy habits (food, exercise, sleep)

40. Aspire to be bigger, better, smarter, kinder

41. Show up

42. Step up

43. Stop doing work you’ve outgrown

44. Stop serving clients who no longer fit

45. Raise your sights

46. Raise your fees

47. Seek out better, smarter, more successful friends

48. Seek out better, smarter, more successful clients

49. Quit doing stupid shit (yes, you!)

50. Free your imagination

51. Sing your song

52. Make your mark

53. Write your book

54. Launch that thing you’ve been dreaming of

55. Rediscover your passion

56. Unleash your enthusiasm

57. Get the hell off Facebook

58. Mentor someone who needs your wisdom

59. Reframe your losses

60. Remember your wins

61. Write down your goals

62. Live out of your calendar, not your inbox

63. Set your GPS for greatness

64. Go for bigger fish

65. Use better bait

66. Bag the elephant

67. Be more tenacious

68. Focus like a laser

69. Stop distracting yourself

70. Get more results by doing less marketing

71. Develop a “marketing magnet” speech

72. Identify target-rich audiences

73. Deploy irresistible offers

74. Master your “enrollment conversation”

75. Start doing social media right

76. Become more comfortable being uncomfortable

77. If you’re not scared, you're probably not up to anything interesting

78. Go to more conferences

79. Cross-pollinate your best ideas

80. Join a mastermind group

81. Read more for pleasure

82. Read more for business

83. Collect smart friends

84. Feature and leverage other people

85. Keep a notebook to capture your best ideas

86. Start your podcast

87. Interview other experts

88. Interview your prospects and clients

89. Serve on a non-profit board

90. Do something artsy (music, painting, dance, theater)

91. Upgrade your wardrobe

92. Buy that new car (PDF)

93. Give more generously

94. Stop judgment and embrace openness (mind, heart, spirit)

95. Apologize even (especially?) when you don’t need to

96. Be more humble

97. Punch people in the face with value

98. Become genuinely interested in others

99. Ask more and better questions

100. Make more lists

101. Send more cookies

102. Be more grateful

103. Always over-deliver

104. Yes, this is item #104 out of 101

105. Always say please and thank you

106. Please share this post

107. Thank you for being awesome