Content Mastery Guide

Editor and Ghostwriter

Article marketing magic: Consistency is the key

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Article marketing works like magic – IF you know the right tricks. One of those tricks is consistency. If you can persevere with your article writing efforts and apply them consistently, articles can provide a steady stream of readers, prospects, clients, customers and money.

There are several reasons that consistency is so important for effective article marketing:

How you do anything is how you do everything

I first heard this important truth from Andrea J. Lee, author of Multiple Streams of Coaching Income, and I have never forgotten it. When you have a service-based business, your customers are buying YOU just as much as they are buying the results that you will deliver.

Since everything you do is a reflection of you, that means that whatever you do, wherever you go, whenever you are interacting with people or the world around you, you are teaching people what they can expect from you.

Your prospective customers want to know they can rely on you to show up when you said you would and deliver what you promised (but don't worry – they don't expect you to be perfect). Are you curious about what else your customers want you to know about what they want? Sonia Simone has a list of 50 things. 

If they see you publishing a newsletter or blog consistently, especially if you keep up with a schedule that you've posted, you're giving them a little taste of the level of service they can expect when they hire you or buy from you.

You'll build on your own momentum and success

Action creates action and inaction creates…well, inaction creates nothing (more inaction). I have proven this to myself time and again as I have sometimes vacillated between working too little and working too much. 

Accomplishment is so gratifying. Once you've taken time to rest and celebrate your successes, you can also reinvest some of that energy to do more of the same.

Your content collection will snowball

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. When you consistently generate new content, you will build an empire of information one article at a time and you will be amazed at the volume of content you have produced.

Here are three strategies that can help you develop the discipline to write consistently:

  1. Set a schedule. Make a commitment to yourself (e.g., a monthly newsletter and one additional article in between issues). An editorial schedule will help you avoid feeling overwhelmed because you can plug in potential topics ahead of time. 
  2. Declare your schedule. Make a commitment to your readers; let them know exactly when they can expect to hear from you.
  3. Turn article marketing into a team sport. Whether it's professional assistance with ghostwriting, editing or article submission, or simply a buddy arrangement with another coach, all of a sudden you are accountable for finishing the article a few days before you need it, so whoever is helping you has time to review it.

Article marketing can have magical results; growing your mailing list, increasing your visibility, enhancing your credibility and bringing you new customers, clients and revenue. So why would you stop after only one article?

If you feel like you're lacking the discipline, skill or structure that you need to apply the power of article marketing to grow your business, contact me now about how I can help!

Intuition Tuesdays – Listen to Linda Dessau and Laurie Foley

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Laurie Foley was kind enough to invite me to join her for this week’s Intuition Tuesdays call, and I had a wonderful time! Thank you to everyone who called in and participated.

Laurie posted a recording of the call on her website: http://lauriefoley.com/intuition-tuesdays-may-12-2009/

You can listen to other calls from this page of her website, or subscribe to her blog for announcements of upcoming events as well as regular tips on how to access and use your own intuition.

My intuition was wrong on this one – and Sheila caught it!

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I don’t know if I’d go as far as calling it “intuitive editing,” but I will say that a lot of what I do as an editor is to follow my instincts about what looks and feels right.

It was when I was researching and writing The Customizable Style Guide for Coaches Who Write that I got more serious about learning or re-learning the actual rules behind my instincts.

And so it really doesn’t surprise me that I sometimes come upon a grammar lesson that I need a refresher on, or maybe one that I never learned properly to begin with!

Sheila Finkelstein caught an error in my blog post about Laurie Foley and Intuition Tuesdays, involving my use of the phrase Laurie and I.

She suggests that if you’re not sure whether to use Laurie and I or Laurie and me, try removing the other person from the sentence to see if it still makes sense.

For example, join Laurie and I on the call would become join I on the call. Well, that doesn’t make any sense! So the correct phrase must be join Laurie and me on the call.

On the other hand, Laurie and me will be discussing would become me will be discussing. So the correct phrase here would be Laurie and I will be discussing.

Thanks for the lesson, Sheila! I have also added this to the Troublesome Words page of the For Readers Only website. Style Guide readers, you’ll find the password to this page in Chapter 26.

Write from the headlines: Michelle’s Obama’s vegetable garden

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I came across a local news blog post about Michelle Obama's vegetable garden at the White House, and then I followed up with a little more reading at the New York Times. It is exciting to think about how this seemingly small effort has the potential to influence so many important issues in the U.S. and the entire world – healthy eating, sustainability and other environmental, social and health concerns.

Here are some coaching article ideas that sprouted for me as I considered this topic:

  • Parenting/Family coaches: 10 must-have's to start your own family garden
  • Food/Cooking coaches: 10 vegetable side dishes from your organic garden
  • Life coaches: 10 reasons that gardening is good for your soul
  • Money coaches: 10 ways that healthier eating can save you money

Writing prompt: Did these topics spark any ideas for your newsletter or blog? What's the connection between your specialty area and the Obama garden?

I’ll be on Intuition Tuesdays with Laurie Foley, Tuesday, May 12th

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Idea Generator blog reader Laurie Foley and I connected on Twitter after Laurie had emailed me with some really lovely comments about the blog (I even incorporated them at the bottom of my newly rewritten Home page).

Laurie helps people experience the profound power of their natural intuition in a practical and unmistakable way. "It's all about the tingle," she says.

Join Laurie and I this Tuesday, May 12th at 1:00 p.m. Eastern as we discuss several intuitive writing topics such as Einsten hair, idea catchers, the creative power of water and why sometimes you must simply "Drop the mouse and step away from the keyboard!"

You can call in to participate or listen later – all of the information is on Laurie's website.