Content Mastery Guide

Editor and Ghostwriter

Storytelling – Engage Your Reader

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A client asked me to do some research into storytelling as a writing tool, and I started with the book "Never be Boring Again" by Doug Stevenson.

I had remembered Doug because I’d subscribed to his email newsletter years back, and I always liked what he had to say.

Though the focus of the book is on public speaking, and specifically business presentations, I found a lot in here that I plan to use in my writing projects – both for myself and for clients:

1. I’ve added "website for more great resources about storytelling.

Make your Website Work for You: Top 5 Ways to Turn a Curious Visitor into a Loyal Repeat Customer

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  1. Specialize. You can’t be everything to everyone. Choose a “niche” group, envision your ideal client, and write your website copy directly to them.
  2. Attract. Bring traffic to your site with high-quality, professional articles featuring valuable information that addresses the needs of your niche group and ideal client. Then keep them at your site longer with more great content that’s fresh and updated (e.g. a blog).
  3. Capture. On each page of your website, offer a free gift in exchange for the visitor’s name and email address and permission to contact them again.
  4. Keep in Touch. Stay on their minds with consistent and professional messages that provide valuable information and subtly promote your services. 
  5. Diversify. Create multiple streams of income, including products for sale 24/7 from your website and group classes that make more efficient use of your time and get you out into the public eye.

From the Podium to the Page

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An inspirational speaker, who is a client of mine, has been making great use of my "You Talk, I'll Write" article service.

As a speaker, he's obviously great at creating amazing content that inspires and motivates others into action, but he hasn't been taking advantage of article marketing to drive traffic to his website and increase his credibility and exposure.

We meet on the phone, and in one hour we can create content for two or even three 500- to 750-word articles (we're getting quicker and more efficient the longer we work together).

His articles have impressed the folks at a prominent US-based website, currently showcasing inspirational speakers such as Deepak Chopra, Steven Covey and Debbie Ford, and now, my client.

So remember, you don't have to be a writer to wow people with great written resources.

Five Things to Remember When the Imposter Syndrome Sets In

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If you're hesitant to put your thoughts down into an article, special report or e-book, it might be because there's a voice inside of you saying, "Who do you think you are, some kind of expert? Hah!"

I know this situation intimately, since that same thought or one like it pops into my head at least once a day.

It's called the Imposter Syndrome and it can be extremely self-limiting to your success. The good news? You can face these thoughts and talk back to them.

Here are five things to remember when the imposter syndrome sets in:

  1. You can't be wrong if you're sharing something you've experienced personally.
  2. For any given topic, you'll always know more than some people and less than some people.
  3. The people who seem the most confident are sometimes the most afraid.
  4. No one expects you to be perfect.
  5. You can trust yourself more than you think, so watch out for the temptation to put other "experts" on pedestals and hand over your decisions to them.

Quick Writing Prompt: If the Imposter Syndrome is keeping you from putting pen to paper, talk back to that inner voice and write about something you've experienced personally – remember, you can't be wrong!

How Big is the Leap from Your Site to Your Sales?

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Are you asking your website visitors to leap from discovering your site and being mildly interested in you to purchasing your top-level, most expensive service?

Instead, invite your website visitors into your marketing funnel.

A marketing funnel is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. At the top of the funnel are your free products and services, including one main "pink spoon."

Free gifts are easy for your prospective customers to say yes to, and increase the likelihood that they'll hop into your funnel.

From there, the funnel becomes narrower, as the prices of your offerings increase.

Someone may not be willing to go from a free product right up to your highest-priced product or service, so you offer them many levels in between – keeping them in your funnel, building a relationship with them, and showcasing your expertise and skill at solving their problems.

The fuller and more varied your funnel, the longer someone will stay, the more they can (and will) buy from you, and the more likely they will make it to the bottom.

For a more complete explanation of how to apply these concepts, please check out Andrea Lee's masterpiece Multiple Streams of Coaching Income.

Written information products are a great way to fill your funnel. And you don't have to start from scratch. Clients have hired me to:

  • Turn a collection of free articles into an e-book for sale,
  • Turn their coaching program into an e-course,
  • Turn their blog posts into a special report, and
  • Create a learning guide to accompany a recorded tele-class.

Remember, a visitor may not be ready to jump from a free pink spoon to your most expensive offering, so make sure there are some choices in between.

If there are gaps in your marketing funnel, contact me about how we can get started today to fill them.