Monthly Archives: February 2016

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The Content of Content Marketing

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Content Marketing continues to have a life of its own, riding a wave of non-stop hype. But what are all that text and all those images floating through space really worth to your business? I edit two newsletters,  one short and sweet,  the other several pages long and filled with lots of text and photos. One newsletter I assemble myself by reaching out to obtain snippets of relevant and timely new information and an image or two each month.  The second I solely edit and what a laborious process it is to slog through all that dense text!  Can you guess which entity generates the most revenue and profit?

Why, the owners of the short newsletter that gives splashes of fresh info every month plus one or two new pictures, of course.  Those organization leaders do not bury themselves in the labor and expense of high-maintenance content marketing.  They are instead pursuing clients and making money. They are not merely busy; they are productive. They know their role as business owners.

If you can build and maintain a good stable of clients without a web presence, by golly I say you should do it. Truth be told,  most of the most successful business owners and Freelance consultants that I know have no website and no social media.  Instead, they are known and trusted by clients and referral sources.  They are going to the bank and not to their keyboards or video cameras to crank out “content”.

Enter the experts

The short answer is,  if you’ve done something successfully a number of times,  you can claim the title.  However, there is also the axiom “Those who can do and those who can’t, teach.” My client who has enlisted my services for the production of the monthly weighty tome hasn’t had a client in something like five years (I’m serous). She swans around speaking on panels, moderating panels, writing articles for a couple of journals that don’t pay (I edit those as well) and overall being a very busy girl. But I’m not sure how she pays her mortgage. Trust fund?

Noise makers

Everybody with access to a keyboard or a camera is doing some level of content marketing,  even if it’s only for themselves and their Twitter friends. Everybody’s pulling out a cell phone to snap pictures of something—the first snowfall,  the first crocuses and at the Boston waterfront a couple of weeks ago, when the air temperature was minus 10 and the Atlantic Ocean was about 40 degrees,  the fog that was rising from the water as a result of the 50 degree temperature difference (it was quite a sight). all those photos become content posted to social media.  It’s all noise that competes with what Freelance consultants and other business owners are aiming to do,  that is,  get the attention of potential clients and referral sources.

Branding is not personal

Supermodels and a certain group of raven-haired sisters (and their mother) in southern California seem to have done very well with the personal branding concept,  but that doesn’t hold for the rest of us.  Unless you were lucky enough to have held a job that allowed you to publicly build a reputation amongst prospective clients,  or you descend from a prestigious family,  the differences that you (and I) point out to clients are only differences and not distinctive competitive advantages.  We are the same, only different.

Strategic, original, relevant, concise

If you have the time and inclination to delve into the content marketing fray,  be strategic about the process, most of all. Have a clear and defendable purpose.  My purpose for producing this blog since June 2009  has been to

1.demonstrate that I have good business judgment

2. demonstrate my writing skills

I’ve referred prospective clients to the link for this blog and the strategy has been successful.  I’ve gotten at least three clients,  including a (modest) book editing assignment,  my first. Editing two newsletters also helped me to snare that gig.

Further,  read about business topics in places like The Financial Times,  The New York Times, Business Week,  Inc. Magazine,  the Harvard Business Review and other credible sources. Those can become your inspiration,  along with your owned lived experience,  to generate original content.  Do not bother to try and pass off groupings of links to articles as your blog or newsletter content.  Do not insult people.

Finally,  whatever your topic, two and a half pages of text, or 1000 words, has got to be your max. When writing this blog,  I start thinking about creating a two-part post if I surpass 800 words. Attention spans are not what they used to be in this noise-filled arena of experts.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Plans For Your Business

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Whatever the health and condition of your Freelance business venture, you will at some point benefit from planning.  Business planning of any type provides a roadmap that will help you to successfully achieve your business goals.  Business planning can be instituted when sales are tanking and you need to find a way to improve billable hours.  Or you may have decided to aim for larger assignments  or roll out new services and need to figure out how to make it happen.

I’ve taught business plan writing for 7 or more years and I’ve also developed a one-day business plan writing workshop. As I see it,  the process of writing a business plan gives the writer (or the team) many opportunities to think things through and  get the magical thinking out of one’s head. The business plan shows us first,  if the dream is potentially viable and second,  how to make the dream a reality.

The plan you write will depend on what you set out to achieve.  If you’re launching a start-up that will involve significant outside investment,  then you’ll need a very detailed plan that focuses on financial projections;  marketing plans that delve into customer acquisition, the competitive landscape, the product or service launch, messaging,  sales distribution; and operational aspects such as manufacturing,  staffing and quality control.  Freelance consultants will mostly focus on marketing, in particular defining the target clients,  client acquisition; providing the right services; appropriate pricing; and the budget to pay for their marketing strategies.

Whether your plan will be used to launch a big venture and attract outside money,  or is a boutique style service provider, include the following elements in your plan.  Even if you’ll be writing what amounts to an extended marketing plan used for a one-person shop,  it will be a good exercise to include these elements, because you’ll be encouraged to think seriously and strategically about your mini-enterprise.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Present the business mission statement. Include as well the date when the business was formed; key management personnel; your unique credentials or experience that make you especially suited to start and successfully run the venture; the business legal structure (LLC, Sole Proprietor, or Corporation); the products and services; one or two key competitive advantages (maybe you have a patent?); sales projections; and the amount of capital needed (if you’re looking for investors).

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

It’s traditional to present a brief description of your industry and its outlook,  nationally and regionally. give the details of your products and services and competitive advantages. Identify whether your venture is B2B, B2C, or B2G. If you hold a patent,  detail the competitive advantages that it will convey. Have there been any technological advances that will help or hinder your business?  Divulge here.

MARKETING

The category is a big tent that encompasses sales, product or service distribution,  competitors, advertising,  social media, PR,  networking,  branding, customer acquisition and pricing. The plan written for a mall organization will essentially consist of an extended marketing plan, because for Freelance consultants,  success hinges on identifying and reaching clients who will pay as well as pricing the services advantageously.

FINANCING

Whether you’ll self-finance because you’re wealthy enough,  or the venture is small and  not especially demanding of capital investment,  you nevertheless need to know with a reasonable degree of certainty how much you’ll need to spend to carry out the plan ( that could be a new product, or the purchase of something big, or a marketing plan, for example).  If your strategy is to attract investors,  they’ll need to be convinced by your projected sales revenue figures,  because they’ll want to know when they’ll be paid back or know when to expect profits if they are made co-owners of the business.  A break-even analysis, projected income statement, projected cash-flow statement and projected balance sheet are required by those who will need significant money.

OPERATIONS

How will day-to-day business processes function?  Tell it here,  along with providing the organizational chart,  the business location,  the method of producing that which you sell (if you are,  say,  a Freelance book editor or  graphics specialist,  you produce the service yourself),  your sub-contractors (if you are a special events organizer,  who is your usual caterer, florist,  limo service, etc.?) and quality control methods.  This element is about logistics.

For more information on writing a business plan,  visit the Small Business Association website https://www.sba.gov/tools/sba-learning-center/training/how-write-business-plan

Thanks for reading,

Kim

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Online Reputation Management

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Shakespeare, in Act 2 of his circa 1603 play Othello, said it best: Reputation, reputation, reputation.  It is the original personal brand and one of the defining realities of our lives.  As a Freelance consultant, reputation governs the projects offered to us and therefore, our income and the kind of life we’re able to live.  It pays,  in more ways than one, to cultivate a peerless reputation and guard it vigorously.

In the internet age  that is especially so, in both the personal and professional spheres.  Mistakes and mischaracterizations made in digital formats are extremely difficult to dodge, ignore, deny, or correct.  One’s online reputation is the ultimate flypaper.  Take steps to ensure that what sticks to your name is all good.

Images

Along with Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, Instagram and Pinterest are the sites where images of you are most likely to be posted,  by yourself and others.  When cameras are around,  meaning whenever anyone has a cell phone,  which is about 24/7,  make sure that your behavior represents you and your brand well.

There’s nothing wrong with being photographed in an obviously casual gathering—just make sure that you (or others) are not in the midst of activities that could be misconstrued and reflect poorly on you sometime in the future.  If you regularly appear in photos that you know or suspect will be posted to social media sites, counteract with a photo of your own that shows you at work, paid or volunteer. Balance your accounts, so to speak,  and show that there is more to you than non-stop partying.

Content

Create and regularly post original content that makes you look smart, professional and successful.  On your LinkedIn account, announce when you will attend a symposium,  serve on a panel,  teach a course or workshop,  or have recently earned a professional certification or advanced degree.  If you’ve presented a webinar,  request the replay and turn it into a podcast for your website and YouTube.  If you write a newsletter or blog,  link to your website and LinkedIn.  If you’re on Twitter or Instagram,  produce streams of high-quality feed and images that convey the competencies and values that you want to be known for.

Twitter, Instagram and Facebook can feature glimpses into your personal life as well and it could all be for the good,  as long as you are strategic about what is revealed. Your volunteer work is always a safe bet.  Training for a marathon or even a fun and casual volleyball or softball league would be excellent.  Your parent’s wedding anniversary party would make another good personal aspect to include in your online narrative.  Be aware that narrative is the operative word.  Create the story that you want to be told, in a manner that makes you look wonderful.

Search

About every three months,  search your name and your company name in engines such as Bing,  Google and Yahoo and see what comes up in the first 50 listings.  Are you happy with what you see?  Try keywords related to your business along with your city and check your professional reach in a more profound way.

If you find that your business has been reviewed in an excessively negative and inaccurate way,  contact the reviewing site and request that the offending post be removed.  If customers have offered criticism that just may be constructive, address the matter.  Apologize and offer your side of the story.  Make amends if possible.  By doing so,  you’ll add to your credibility and customer service reputation.

It’s been reported that 70% of US employment recruiters have rejected potential job candidates when something about them that was considered unsavory appeared on social media.  Freelancers should assume that prospective clients will do the same.  Maintaining and monitoring your online reputation has never been more important.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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The Elements of Your Brand Story

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A perennially engaging way to tell clients and prospects about you and your business venture is to spin a good story, ideally one that contains a compelling case study that spotlights your problem-solving ability, creativity and expertise. Everyone enjoys and remembers a good story; they usually feel connected in a positive way to people who tell them well. Expert storytellers have the ability to captivate an audience and gain their trust.

You may never become a TED Talk-worthy storyteller, but it’s still possible for you to devise a more than adequate brand narrative that effectively illustrates what you do; describes your typical clients; and gives an overview of the positive solutions that you create for clients. Your ability to tell the story will improve along the way.

Consider storytelling to be an element of your leadership development process; the most highly respected and popular leaders are excellent communicators and good stories are often included. Those leaders are persuasive. They are likable.  They generate trust and respect and there is great confidence in their abilities. As you brainstorm the elements of your brand story, try organizing your thoughts around the following:

  1. Who you are and what you do

Share a sliver of your personal details, to help your audience understand who you are and what matters to you. Don’t be afraid to break out of the expected corporate mode (while maintaining your comfort level boundaries). Segue into the services that you provide and/or products that you sell. Be succinct, clear and thought-provoking as you describe the needs or problems that you and your team address and resolve.

There may be no distinguishing factors to your work philosophy, but do mention your commitment to excellence and exceeding expectations. Inserting a paragraph about your volunteer work could be helpful. Whether your volunteer work is with those who are trying to improve their professional skills or in some aspect of the arts, that knowledge gives prospects and clients a good sense of your values and portrays you as a community-oriented, well-rounded professional.

2. Why / For whom you work

Name the usual customers that you work with: Fortune 1000 life sciences companies, small not-for-profit arts organizations, or whatever in between.

3. How you do it

Insert case study. The challenge is how to describe what you do without betraying client confidentiality, your proprietary secret sauce,  or overloading your audience with confusing details.  On which projects did you (and your team) deliver the goods that made a difference? Write it down, edit well, rehearse out loud and perfect the telling.

4. Outcomes / Proof of success

Potential clients must feel confident that you and your team will meet, if not exceed, their expectations.  Sharing an example  of a compelling client success story paints a picture of you in action and at your best.  Start with a description of the challenge or difficulty that these clients faced when they came to you.

Next, in simple and concise language (and preserving client confidentiality), explain selected highlights of what you did to achieve the desired results and why you chose that particular course of action. Conclude with an overview of the key benefits that the clients have received now that they’ve worked with you.

Tell case study stories that encourage prospective clients to identify with the challenges or problems that you resolved, so that they will be inclined to feel that hiring you is a smart move, one that will make them look good in the eyes of their superiors, colleagues and staff.

Thanks for reading,

Kim