When you own your own service based business, it can feel like you’re on a treadmill of content creation as you seek to market your business and serve your customers. Just think about all the possible marketing avenues that require quality content: blogs, videos, audio programs, free reports, e-newsletters, articles, and more. The list goes on and on…
So, how can one person or even a small team create fresh, compelling content for all these things? The answer is leverage.
Just like a pulley creates a lifting advantage enabling you to lift exponentially more weight than you could without it, leveraging your content acts as a pulley within your business. In the physical world this is called a “mechanical advantage”. In business, it empowers you to make one investment of time, energy, and effort and then yield a high return over time in relation to that initial investment.
Translated – more effective, more productive, and saner.
Let’s be clear about something very important. Leveraging is not about creating a high quantity of low-quality content. It is not rubberstamping and copycatting what you’ve already done. It isn’t an excuse to be lazy; just the opposite in fact. With conscious and proper leverage, you can deepen your work, reach a greater number of people, and serve your clients in a very rich and satisfying way.
Here are 5 ways to leverage your efforts.
1) Use articles in multiple places
If you write a wonderful newsletter, that article also belongs on your blog. Same holds true for those in-depth blog posts (they should make an appearance in your newsletter). While you don’t want to copy and paste your articles all over the web on different sites because you don’t want to be penalized by the search engines for duplicate content, you do want to use them to their fullest potential.
2) Use same content in multiple mediums
Have a great article? Tweak it a little and turn it into an audio recording. Get in front of the camera and bring that content alive in a video. Turn it into a free class or talk to generate new prospects. For example, I took a topic from a prior speaking engagement, put a new spin on it (and a bit more depth) and turned it into a free teleclass full of success secrets for self-employed business owners.
3) Expand and monetize content
Expand content used in your marketing and turn it income opportunities. Create an information product, e-Book, Kindle book, tips booklet. Expand it even further and make it a paid workshop or program.
4) Spin-off content into a series
Create a high-level overview of a topic and then move your talking points into a series. Each part of the series can then give you even more bang for your efforts if you take each part and do 1-3 with it.
5) Leverage other people’s content
There are several ways you can leverage other people’s content legally and ethically. Let’s face it there is zettabytes of data being created each year. Consider giving yourself a boost by starting with something that already exists. Take a snippet from something you’ve read, watched or experienced (everything from movies to restaurants to books to graffiti can work here) and put your own spin on it. Apply it to the service you offer and philosophies you espouse. Voila, original content.
Need help wrapping your head around a leveraged marketing plan for your business? Contact me for a discovery session to grow your business and free up more time for YOU.