Weekly Ritual for Better Content
One of the things I really love about writing a weekly newsletter is that it reminds me to stop and reflect on the previous week each Friday. Whether I write about one of my accomplishments (or mishaps) in the feature article or in the Editor’s Note or not, this weekly ritual has made me much more aware of how I’ve spent my time.
Most of the time, at least some portion of my reflection does make its way into this newsletter, and even when it doesn’t, the time is never wasted.
Today I’d like to share the five questions I ask that lead to great newsletter content.
- What am I especially happy about learning this week?
A week is a long time when you’re looking at what you’ve learned, so instead of reviewing everything that could go on that list, I focus on the things that were especially rewarding. Shortcuts, new statistics, new computer programs, the list of potential lessons is endless.
To apply this to your newsletter, consider which lessons will be of most interest to your readers. If you’ve learned a new shortcut in Word, will that be useful to them? Don’t worry that your readers may already know what you’ve just learned–chances are, even if it’s a review, the information will be useful to them if it was significant in your week.
- What question have I been hearing most this week?
As you talk with your clients and prospects, pay attention to what they ask you. Those questions can be a great jumping off point for article topics.
If you’re a landscaper, perhaps your clients have been especially concerned about what kind of planning they should do to have a great garden in the spring. Or, if you’re a consultant, perhaps your clients have been really worried about massive team breakdowns and how to prevent them. If you talk to enough people, each week will have its own trends in questions.
- What do I really need to learn next week?
Take a forward look and consider what you could learn that would make life easier or more enjoyable. What do you need to learn to move your business to a new level, improve your performance in a hobby, or get along better with your kids?
Use your newsletter as an opportunity to explore this new area–interview the experts, conduct the necessary research, practice the new skills. You’ll not only have a great article, but you’ll also have made significant progress in an important area of your life.
- What was the biggest client success this week?
Where have your clients really shined? What have you accomplished for them? What have they accomplished on their own?
Besides making you feel great, considering the results your clients are getting opens up a world of possibilities for articles. You might explore how they prepared for the great results they got, or what made this attempt to fix the problem different. You could consider what it means for them in the future.
- What memory from the last week brings you the greatest sense of peace?
This isn’t necessarily what you’re proudest of, or what was the most fun, or what brought in the most money. Rather, it’s all about a feeling. Sure, it’s a little bit mushy, but by focusing on what brought the most peace to your life in the last week, you can offer your readers a bit of that feeling, too.
In their busy, crazy day, offering a tiny slice of ease can make a big difference to your readers. And, by reflecting on that memory, and perhaps sharing it, you’ll be creating more of that feeling in your own life, too.
As you go through this next week, try out these questions for yourself and see what you can do with the answers. Play with it a bit and just see what happens. If nothing else, you’ll have taken a second look back at the week that’s past and that may shine new insights on the week ahead.
I’d love to hear what questions you like to use to review your week and how you might use them to create newsletter content. To share, just post a comment here.
Content Doesn’t Have to Hurt
Photo by Kriss Szkurlatowski
Is your newsletter languishing because you don’t have time to write new articles? Has your blog gone un-updated for months on end? Are you tired of feeling completely guilty because you’re not generating as much content as you’re “supposed” to?
If you’re not contributing to the hourly doubling of Internet content, it’s time to change that. But when you’ve already got too much to do in a day, how do you become more prolific? Here’s what works for my clients.
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Write more. It may be self-evident, but the simple act of writing more *is* an idea sparker in and of itself. See, if you decide you’re going to write one article a day for the next month, you’re going to have to let go of the idea that each of those articles needs to be a masterpiece. In fact, most of those articles might just be awful. But it won’t matter because if you write 30 articles this month, even if only 10 of them are worth printing, that’s 10 more than you had at the beginning of the month.
Challenge yourself to increase your output, not by a measly twice as much, or three times as much. I’m talking writing ten or *twenty* times as much as you’re currently writing. Just for the next month. So, if you usually write one article a month, this month, make it 20. If you usually write 4 articles a month, this month, make it 40.
- Tell a story about the biggest mistake you made last month, and how you corrected it. It’s one thing to be comfortable telling our readers about the mistakes we made when we were brand new to what we do. It’s an entirely different sort of embarrassing to reveal the mistakes we’ve made as experts.
Nevertheless, it works for two reasons. One, being that vulnerable will make you a lot more comfortable writing your newsletter. Once you’ve admitted to that big mistake, and you’ve heard from your readers about it, you won’t worry nearly so much about their “finding out” that you don’t know everything. The other reason it works is that it’s a great test of your creativity, growth, and commitment to learning. Your readers know the only way you’re avoiding mistakes is by not doing anything new, innovative, or creative… Ever. So, admit to those mistakes and let them see for themselves that you’re accomplished, creative, and willing to fail in your pursuit of success.
- Zoom in on something. Last month, I was working on an article about bettering your photography skills for a magazine. I interviewed several photographers and asked them about any number of topics (from effectively using a camera to whether or not the flash is a bad thing) and one thing came up in each interview. Each and every photographer said that non-professionals never get close enough to their subject.
This isn’t just true when we’re taking photos! In fact, I find that most of my clients are really afraid of being too specific, too “zoomed in” whether they’re profiling a client or writing a how-to. Don’t make this mistake! Zoom in. Get close. Reveal the details. This is one time when you simply can’t be a wallflower!
- Rearrange your office. Look around your office. What do you see? In particular, when you’re writing on your computer, what do you see around your monitor? According to Jennifer Hofmann of Inspired Home Office, most people look *away* from the project at hand when they’re concentrating which means that if the area around your computer (or wherever you typically write your articles) is distracting, disorganized, or chaotic, it’s that much harder to focus.
I spent the weekend last week rearranging my office to better take advantage of the view and I’ve noticed a spike in my productivity this week. Sometimes, a change of scenery is all it takes to get inspired. If your office needs more than just a simple rearranging of furniture, change what you can this week, and make a plan for future changes.
- Call a favorite client for a chat. This tip is inspired by something Sara Holtz wrote in her newsletter. She suggested calling your clients so that you’ll know if they have complaints (so you can make the necessary changes). In this case, though, we’re not looking for changes; we’re looking for content.
By finding out what your clients are struggling with, inspired by, engaged in, and want to learn more about you can easily come up with a long list of articles that will be really relevant for your readers. I don’t recommend you ask your clients *for* content ideas because that tends to overwhelm them, but asking them, “What’s been your biggest landscaping challenge this year so far?” or “What do you wish you could do with your iPhone?” will help them inspire you with article ideas.
A final bit of advice: if you want to produce more high-quality content (and I hope you’re not just aiming to generate *any* old content), you need to up your production overall. You can always throw out the awful articles (and there will be some), or the miserable paragraphs. It’s by writing more that you become a better writer. And, by becoming a better writer *and* writing more, you’ll have more content for your readers to love.
This week, embrace one of these tips and let me know how it works for you!
The Tomatoes Made Me Buy Them
Image by woodsy
This weekend, I finally started my tomato seeds–a little behind schedule, but fortunately we have a long growing season here in North Carolina. Before buying my seeds, I knew the types of tomatoes I’d plant, but there was one that was a surprise… Though I’d never heard of it before, the story on the back of the package intrigued me and before I knew it, seeds for tomatoes I’d never heard of were in my cart.
On the other hand, I also spent a half hour this weekend searching for a great coffee mug on Etsy, and came away empty handed. The mugs that I liked all suffered from one (or both) of two fatal flaws–no story, or no details. For me, one of the most important things to know about a coffee mug is … how much coffee it’ll hold, and yet click after click, there were no ounce measurements. Then, other listings were nothing but facts–and uninteresting facts at that. (Sure, it’s probably good to know the mug is food and dishwasher safe, but as the only details in a listing they won’t exactly get the mug sold.)
I’m sure you’ve had this same experience–there’s something you want to buy, but the buying process is so boring that instead of buying, you drift off to sleep (or to the next task on your to-do list). Or, there’s something you weren’t planning on buying that’s made completely irresistible through the use of a great story.
It’s not that you can sell anything with the right story, but when you’re engaging with your tribe, telling them great stories is a really fantastic way to keep them interested and to give them something to talk about with others. So, if you’ve been feeling like your story telling skills could use some work, now’s the time to improve them.
In fact, the very best sales letters are often made up of a series of stories and it’s those stories that keep you reading straight through to the end. So, storytelling absolutely has a place in your marketing, and learning to do it brilliantly is all but non-negotiable if you write an ezine or blog.
If you struggle with telling stories (and, especially with figuring out which details are most compelling), I share my process in a handy little ebook I wrote a few years back. I’d love for you to pick up a copy and start spinning yarns your readers will love.
Getting back to those tomatoes, the ones that found themselves in my cart despite not being on my list were called the “Mortgage Lifter” and the back of the package told a charming tale of a farmer who was behind on his payments and decided to find a really prolific tomato plant that he could start a whole mess of plants and sell them for a buck a piece. In just a few years, he’d managed to pay off his entire $6000 mortgage. Or, so goes one version of the story, anyway 
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Got any great stories to share that inspired you to buy? Share ‘em!
Too Plain, No Gain: How Being Different Will Have Clients Flocking to You
Jessica’s note: I wrote this article originally in October of 2007, but it felt especially relevant to share today. Enjoy!
There’s a virus afoot. No, not a computer virus. Or a bird flu virus. But rather a Sameness Virus.
See, most of the articles that wind up on websites, in ezines, and being circulated at sites like EzineArticles.com are very much the same.
In fact, if you spend a lot of time browsing through content, you might just start to feel like the article writers took the old Sesame Street song a little too much to heart–and avoid standing out at all costs.
You probably think you’re immune. After all, you can see all the things that set your articles apart from other articles out there. But, here’s the thing: just because you know that your articles stand head and shoulders above the rest doesn’t mean your readers can see the difference.
It’s not really your fault that your articles suffer from the Sameness Virus–you’ve been doing things exactly as you’ve been told to. You’ve written that cornerstone article, the one that exemplifies what you accomplish for your clients. And then you’ve supplemented it with more content that addresses the questions your clients most frequently ask. You’ve posted all these articles on your WordPress website, you’ve submitted them to article sites, and you’ve published them in your newsletter.
It’s not your fault that that’s all been a waste of time.
Think I’m being too harsh? Then tell me, how many clients have hired you in the last 3 months as a direct result of those articles you’ve written? None? Two, maybe three?
If you’re a writer of average speed, you’ve probably put in 10-30 hours on all that content. And it brought in 3 new clients… Doesn’t that seem wildly low to you?
Done right, your articles can work much harder for you. They can be round-the-clock salespeople who consistently bring in new business.
But the key is, “Done right.”
There’s absolutely no good reason for you to not make your articles work harder. All it’ll take is curing the Sameness Virus you’ve got coursing through your system.
As you set out to cure yourself of the Sameness Virus, you might enjoy these resources:
- Pop!: Stand Out in Any Crowd by Sam Horn
- Brain Tattoos: Creating Unique Brands That Stick in Your Customers’ Minds by Karen Post
Being different doesn’t equal not belonging (except in that Sesame Street song). In fact, when you set out to blaze your own trail through content only you can write, it’s precisely that unique voice that attracts others to you. Find the cure to your own Sameness Virus today and see for yourself how setting yourself apart will surround you with clients.
