ENGAGING CONTENT

It doesn’t matter how experienced you are when it comes to content marketing, you’ll always run into a dry spell when it comes to finding inspiration for engaging content ideas. There will be people reading this nodding right now but thinking if we struggle at times, what’s it like for someone just getting started! Actually, remember how it was for you at the beginning! And, if you’re at the beginning of your content marketing journey and finding it difficult to know what to create, the good news is this is the worst it will be; the bad news is that at times it might not get much better!

CONTENT IDEAS THAT WORK FOR EVERY BUSINESS

A quick google search will give you a bunch of generic resources; we have our own resource in our ’75 Ideas of things to post on social media’. I tell all our clients to print it off, go through with a highlighter pick out the ideas that are most relevant to their business, that are comfortable for them, and use those ideas on repeat. You should do it too!

The truth is there are a bunch of ideas that will work for any business. It’s the execution of these ideas that make them relevant to your business and, more importantly, relevant to the audience you’re trying to reach. In that moment, however, when you’re up against a deadline and need to come up with content ideas, there are three places I look to find some quick ideas.

1. I look at my diary – Where have I been? Who have I spoken to? What have they asked me? What have I answered? What else did I say? Where am I heading? What will I be doing? There might be photos or videos I took at the time or can plan to take. If I need to post now, but I didn’t take a photo, I’ll take one then or record a video reflecting on the conversation then!
2. I look at my environment – The truth is, we often overthink things; the everyday for us is the most engaging for people who aren’t within the same four walls as us. Who else is around you that you can feature, where is it you’re working? What’s special about your environment? What do you love about it?
3. I look in my inbox – We’re all signed up for emails that deliver articles that help us do our jobs better. This is how we keep ahead of the game, and we engage with this content to ensure we have the expertise that means our prospects choose to work with us! The job your marketing should be doing for you is to evidence your expertise. So use what’s in those emails! Write about what you’re reading and offer an opinion! Don’t listen to the gremlin voice that tells you not to put yourself out there… unless, of course, you’re not very good at what you do! (FYI – if you’re reading this, I doubt you’re not very good at what you do!)

It’s simple, isn’t it!

Well, I’m making it sound simple, but honestly, these are the three places I immediately go to in order to create my best content!

ONCE YOU HAVE AN IDEA – EXECUTE

I already mentioned overthinking – this is the biggest demon you’ll face. Some people say they don’t have time to use social media, but it’s not because of how long it takes them to come up with an idea, it’s the fact that once they do, there are 100 things popping into their heads telling them why they shouldn’t post or questioning whether or not it’s a good enough idea!

Perfection is another thing that gets in the way, and I love things to be perfect and polished! Without a doubt, though, the least polished your content is, the better it performs! Get comfortable with working at a 6/10. Not every photo I post can be edited by Mark, not every video can be edited by the team. I’m not going to catch every single typo (although I think I’m pretty good at that bit). So I’ve had to get over my need to be perfect, and sometimes it is uncomfortable! But if I wait for a 10/10 on everything, things will stall, and being absent or invisible is worse than missing the odd apostrophe. (I have to remind myself of that quite often!)

BE YOU, BE VULNERABLE

People buy from people without a doubt. Keep the human in your content, and don’t be afraid to be vulnerable! There’s nothing more human than saying, you know what, I don’t have the answer. We’re not always operating at a 10/10, so there’s nothing wrong with saying I’m not Ok today and being honest about that. Whatever – be you. Don’t create content that compromises who you are or what you’re about. That’s the key to success wherever you get your answers from!