Where, EXACTLY, do I start?

If you are like most, by now, you likely have a basic understanding of how powerful it can be to leverage organic content in your business marketing plan. But having an idea of why, and some clarity on what…doesn’t always equate to clarity on what it the FIRST step.

Today, I aim to help break down this barrier. To give you the path of what to consider first, and how to actually take that first step to creating meaningful content online for your business. In the next few minutes, you will discover how we define success, where to start, and how to measure progress.

Lets dive in…

Defining Success

Before we can start creating content and posting online, we must first understand WHY and WHAT our end goal is. There are many outcomes that are possible when posting online, the questions is, which is right for you and your business? This is the part where we define what success looks like…or at very least, what ‘done’ looks like. When will we know we have arrived at the reason we started this process in the first place?

I have found that there tends to be 3 general buckets most business owners fall in. These three are Lead Generation, List Building, and Awareness.

All three are powerful in their own right. All three tend to require different content types to produce the desired outcome. At this stage, we simply want to address the purpose and goal of why your business will be creating content online. If you are unsure which to pick, I would recommend starting with a bit of awareness and list building. As the list (and follower count) grows, it will be easier to shift into consistent lead generation later. Awareness tends to be a great tool for assisting sales conversions (as most people will do a bit of research before making a purchase).

When it comes to setting the desired outcome, there is no right or wrong, simply set a goal to provide the guidance for the next steps in the process.

Where to Start

The easier you can make it for you (or your team) to be consistent in creating and posting content, the more success you will likely find.

Often, choosing to do everything all at once (posting to every platform, creating long and short form written and video posts, etc.) can become quite overwhelming…leading to burn out, inconsistency, and ultimately a lack of real results.

I have found that it can be best to start with the medium you know the best and think in the best. For example, if you are a natural writer and love to take time writing and journaling every day…then this is the perfect medium to start with. With experience comes the knowledge of what works and what doesn’t. In this example, if you are an avid journal writer, and this is where your thoughts and ideas simply flow, then this is an indication of the right medium for you.

On the other hand, if you are like me, I tend to be best when I am active and verbalizing my thoughts aloud…almost like having conversations with myself to explore ideas. This leads really well to a podcasting platform, or even short form video.

When we use a methodology that we are most comfortable with and already have a habit around, it becomes much easier to create consistency in creating content for our businesses. There is an ability to stack current habits with new habits and create congruence.

In a similar way, I have also found it to be easiest to start posting content to the platforms I use the most. This gives a sense of familiarity and a better understanding of what and how content is posted on that platform. For example, I tend to use Instagram and YouTube shorts a lot, so it is easiest for me to create content for these platforms. On the other hand, I never use Snapchat…I would have do to a bit of real research in order to know what and how to post effectively on that platform. This would make it much harder for me to remain consistent.

Most importantly, it is all about making it FUN and EASY. When we are excited to create the content and share our thoughts or experiences, it becomes much easier to authentically and consistently deliver.

Measuring Progress

“I am fulfilled when I make progress today”. This was a quote that a mentor of mine once shared with me. Progress, no matter how big or small, is the name of the game for success in any area of our business and life. It makes sense, then, that it is important to measure success as we begin to share content online.

Here are the four areas that I find to be the easiest and most useful in measuring success of consistent content creation:

1. How big is the audience growing? This one is measured weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly. The goal is to look at this metric time period over time period to see the growth of the audience (followers, subscribers, email subscribers, etc.)

2. How fast is the audience growing? Similar to the measurement scale from above, this one is all about how fast is it growing. How long does it take to double the audience and what is the month to month rate it takes to double.

   1. As a subset of this measurement - I also recommend measuring how fast you are adding to your OWN database, rather than just follower count on a specific platform.

3. What is the conversion rate from Call to Action to Purchase? This is the first phase of tracking sales. Ultimately, the work we put in online should produce an outcome of sales. For the content produced that has a CTA (book now, buy now, call now, etc.) it is important to measure the rate between clicking that button and completing a purchase.

4. Finally - Return on Ad Spend (ROAS). This one may take a bit more time and skill to measure properly, but is by far one of the most powerful. With the fact that most who read this will not be spending money in ads for their content, I encourage you to add up the time required in lieu of dollars. While there may not be a financial cost for you to create and post content, there is a time cost…and your time is worth something. Measure and track this to ensure that, in the long run, your time investment also achieves a return on investment.

Getting started in content doesn't have to be scary. Just like anything else we do in marketing…or business in general…start with a clear focus, then take the next first step. Learn as you go, measure along the way, and continue to make minor corrections until you begin to see the results you desire.

When in doubt, or once you have hit a sticking point, seek out guidance from those who have been there before. Hire a coach or a mentor and take your business to the next level. For those who are interested in learning what it is like to have a coach, I encourage you to connect with the team over at ActionCOACH Central Texas (or email tannerobrien@actioncoach.com for more information).

See you next week!

p.s. - I would love to see some of the content YOU are producing today (all forms) - DM me on Instagram at tannerobrien001 or send me an email at beneficmarketing@gmail.com with some of your favorite content. Ill even do my best to drop a comment and share.