So if you’re like…shoot I think I’ve been using the wrong thing all this time, here’s a clear (ultimate) guide between copy, content, and my favorite magical third concept, relationship copywriting!

What is Content?

In short… Content nurtures.

This type shows off your brand story, your values, the transformations you provide, what you stand for in your business, who you support, your personality, your vibe.

It uses a lot of storytelling.

A quick note on storytelling…I think people have been using “storytelling” as the big buzzword lately because it’s so important to share connective pieces of your story. Things that make people go “me too!”

And that is important… But you can’t just be a storyteller. Just like you can’t just hit people with the sales stick over and over.

Speaking of hitting people with the sales stick…

What is Copy?

Copy always thinks about the conversion.

There’s always a goal attached to it, whether it is a monetary goal, (like enrolling in a program) or an action goal (like new email list subscribers).

You need copy to support your business because without customers, you don’t have a business, you have an expensive hobby. You need to tell people how to hire you / work with you / give you money in exchange for your expertise. And you do that by using goal-focused content, AKA copy.

Okay, so what if you want to blend the two? After all, copy and content are not mutually exclusive. And a skilled copywriter (that can be you when you claim your message, values, mission, transformation and blend it with a sales-focus that lets people know why and how they can work with you.

Blend Both for Relationship Copywriting

Good copy can and should use elements of storytelling to evoke emotions and guide someone to completing a conversion. This is what I call relationship copywriting.

You’re creating a connection and you are producing that piece with a goal in mind (sales, signups, etc).

Content creates connections. Copy sells. Good copy does both.

Blending both of them is a fine balance between knowing what your audience needs to hear so they’re connected to you and so they want whatever result your offer, service, or product promises them.

This takes some introspection to discover what makes them take notice and say, “Yes, same, me too, that sounds perfect!”

It also takes some skills in being persuasive enough to tell them why they need to join with you in purchasing matrimony.

How to Put in the Work to Make This Possible

1 – Think about what you want to be known for. Make that front and center when you’re writing your copy. After all, yes you need to write for SEO, but a human needs to be able to read it and feel something when they come across your content. Feelings are what sell.

2 – Infuse that into everything you create.

3 – Practice. Practice makes perfect! It’s the best way to clarify your ideas. The more you write it, the more you finesse and refine it. Then, the more you feel it and can truly make it yours.

If you want a space to learn these skills of strategy and copywriting, plus have a safe space to get messy and practice, Copy Magic is for you!

Copy Magic is my group coaching program that will help you confidently show up in your marketing so you can draw clients and opportunities to you like magic! It blends group coaching with practical skills-based knowledge and time to actually do the work to give you an experience that’s supportive, spacious, and sustainable. Infuse your marketing with Copy Magic for messages that connect and copywriting that is so effective!

Learn more here or DM me on Instagram @heyangelicaross to talk about Copy Magic so you’re confident about your message when you share it to the world!

The post Copy vs. Content: Understand the Essential Variations for Effective Communication appeared first on Angelica Ross.

Betcha didn’t see that one coming, considering the title of this post has to do with emails, huh??

In all seriousness, it’s widely accepted that in the [highly unlikely yet still maybe could happen] event Facebook is wiped off the planet, at least you have a way of reaching your customers.

It’s also THE PLACE to tell your customers about upcoming sales, promotions, and exclusive flotsam only they have access to in exchange for access to their inbox.

Think of it like this: anyone can see your social media posts. It’s like dating. People can check you out and decide if they want to know you more. You’re showing off and putting your best foot forward.

(Why is it “foot” by the way? Did some fetishist decide that was going to be the saying and it stuck?)

Now, the inbox…that’s where the magic happens. Someone has decided they like what they see and want to get it on at a deeper level.

That said, it can be daunting to think of what to write every week. Hell, even if you’re just sending an email once a month, it has to be informative, entertaining, and have a rockstar subject line that gets people to open.

 And THAT is a tall order.

The bottom line is you want to use your email to connect with your potential clients, readers, and any trained monkeys who have made it on your email list.

You want them to open and read and learn from it. It’s the best way to build trust with said audience.

The key is knowing what to put in those emails to get people to open.

It can’t be boring shit or waste people’s time. And even if you don’t have anything to sell, you still want to send out emails on a schedule to get them used to opening so when you DO have something to sell, they’ll see it. They’ll be primed and ready to buy.

Email 1 | A Surprise Freebie

Who doesn’t love a surprise gift? This can be an exclusive offer just for the top people who open your emails or it can be across the board. Create a freebie and let it loose. Have no expectation that it’ll come back to you. Just send it to be a nice person. You’ll be surprised what you’ll get back in return.

Email 2 | A Personal Letter

Instead of sending out a mass email to everyone, write an individual, personal note. Try to offer something valuable to the reader based on what you know about them. Perhaps they’re always commenting on your blog posts; tell them you appreciate it! If they’ve purchased a shitton of your candles, let them know how much their support means to you.

Email 3 | An Exclusive Introduction to a Blog Post

My favorite emails to read are the ones that have some exclusivity to it (as if you couldn’t tell from the first two suggestions).

These are the emails that are more than just a copy and paste of a blog post. There’s something just for me, whether it’s a personal story that acts as a preamble to a blog post or a tip that isn’t included in the post; I get to hear more from you because I’m in with the in crowd.

Email 4 | A Piece of Advice

The content of my emails are mostly made up of advice. Sometimes it’s about marketing, sometimes it’s about being a graceful business owner, sometimes it’s about time management.

Regardless of the specific topic, I make sure that there’s a lesson someone can take away from this email and/or a tactic they can implement.

People don’t buy from people they like, they buy from people they trust. Show that you’re a leader in your field, whether it’s as a coach or as a baker.

Email 5 | A Story

Humans crave connection. That’s why daily copy is so powerful for your business.

Tell your audience about you. Dazzle them with a story.

Share a story that reveals who you are as a person rather than a business. For example: if you started your screen printing company because you tried screen printing for the first time at a hands-on museum workshop with your mom and it sparked something in you to make it your life’s work to share beautiful prints in an accessible format, tell that museum story!

I feel like this needs a caveat: only share what you’re comfortable sharing. Even if it’s a bit scary to pull the curtain back, you need to be 100% secure in your decision to unveil this piece of information. Once it’s out, it can’t be taken back. 

Email 6 | Work that You’ve Done

If you are a service-based business, this is for you. Similar to giving advice, sharing client work is a great way to build trust. It shows that you know what you’re doing (and that people have paid you to do it) and emphasizes your aesthetic that may be attractive to someone else. So go ahead and share a design you made for someone’s website or copy you wrote for them.

Email 7 | Brag About a Client

Also similar is bragging about a client. Did they take a piece of your advice and have a 6-figure launch? Has someone recently had a huge breakthrough after a coaching session with you?

Brag about how awesome they are and how much they’re killing it (with permission, especially when there’s confidentiality to watch out for).

Email 8 | A New Product

You don’t have to do a hard sell here, but it’s great to share what you’ve made. Like #6, but for product-based businesses, highlighting a new pottery piece is a great way to share recent work you’ve done and get people excited to see more.

Email 9 | A Link Roundup

Everyone has a million links secreted away on Pinterest, Feedly, Pocket, Instapaper, Facebook Saves…you get the idea. Send out a link roundup!

You know your email list’s demographics, so you know what would appeal to them. Find a few favorite useful, thought-provoking, and/or just plain funny links, toss them into an email with a sentence about what each link is and why it’ll help them, and off you go.

Bonus: if you can segment your email list, you can get really tactical about this. For example: if someone joined your mailing list from your opt-in about Instagram hashtags, you can assume they’re interested in Instagram and you can tailor the content to them. 

Email 10 | Something You’re Obsessed With

If you’ve really been digging something and it needs to be sung about from the rooftops, do it! This is a great platform to share the particular item and why you love it so much. Include what it is (duh), where to find it, and why it’s so kickass. Boom, another way to build trust with your audience and humanize yourself at the same time.

In case you couldn’t tell, I strongly believe that an email list is a direct link to your readers and/or customers and it’s a fool-proof way to help you to build a relationship with your subscribers so they know, like, and trust you.

These emails can showcase a product or service, but the goal isn’t to sell anything. It’s to inform and build up the connection so they’re primed to give you their money (almost) without you asking for it.

What’s been your favorite email to receive? Or who does a killer job with their emails?

Original post published October 26, 2017, has been updated with: better copy (I wrote it so I can say that), new techniques, and new graphics.

The post 10 Non-Promotional Emails to Send to Your Subscribers appeared first on Angelica Ross.

See, people say you need a marketing and content plan, but don’t really take the time to explain why.

Like I shared in my post showing you how to Create a Marketing Plan (with an awesome freebie at the end), a marketing plan gives you a bird’s eye view of the moving pieces in your marketing.

It shows you times in the year when you launch, important dates you want to punch up, sales you want people to know about (and buy from)….the list is endless. Basically every marketing moment should be placed on your calendar.

A content plan pays the foundation.

I take it one step further and don’t just have a marketing plan with the year, I break it into quarters and into projects. And it all revolves around the content I’m going to share.

Because have you ever jumped in the car without knowing where you’re going and gotten there effectively?

I’m not talking about the summer nights when you crank the Highway to Hell and rock out while driving aimlessly.

I’m talking about the long road trips when you know when you have to stop for snacks (well, to be fair, a 20-minute drive for me also has snacks), gas, and pee breaks.

No matter what kind of drive you’re taking, you know when you want to get there and work backwards to tell you when you should leave, when you need to take the dog out, and when you need to lipstick up before going.

See, you had an itinerary and road map. You knew when, where, and how.

That’s what a content plan is going to give you: when, where, and how you’ll reach your content and marketing goals.

Absolutely every piece of content you share must have a goal – otherwise, what’s the point? Your audience will be like, “Thank you, next,” and that saying should be reserved for ex-boyfriends and drama-filled relationships you don’t need in your life anymore.

Even if the goal for your quarter is to generate connections by having 20 “getting to know you” calls, every piece of content should be aimed at connection.

If your goal is to get people excited for the launch of your thing in 2 weeks, your content should be written with that goal in mind.

Now, I’m not saying you beat them over the head with the information that it’s 2 weeks away. No, now it’s 1 week and 6 days!!! HANG ON!! One week, five days left!!

Effff no. You’ll turn people off faster than Date Mike and his backwards cap.

What I am saying is that your content should come from the energy of launch excitement. You could tell a story about how you thought of this idea.

Then you could ask a question that may shape your launch and/or how you present it. Then you could share the results a beta tester received from using this thing you’re launching.

See, you have a plan and it isn’t just beating people neanderthal-crazy with the information.

I truly believe that having content and marketing plan allows you to be more creative. It gives you a container to work in and flex the boundaries of it.

It also allows you to have time.

No more rushing to get shit together because you needed to tell people that pre-sales started…..three days ago.

You can pick goals for the month, break down a project into a 2-month ramp up plan, and be intentional.

This also allows yourself to focus on your specific goals and why you are doing this – measure all decisions against your WHY. (In case you haven’t heard, I believe everything starts with WHY. Here’s why!)

A content plan gives consistency to your marketing.

Now, I’m not saying, “It allows you to post daily” unless that’s your jam and, quite honestly, I don’t think you need to post every day if you can’t commit to that.

I’m saying it allows you to be intentional and strategic. When you show up with a goal and something to say, people will listen. If you post daily just to hear your keyboard click….who cares?

Things done with intention get way more traffic and generally have a better return on your investment because they are thought out and purposeful.

You wouldn’t host a dinner party for your 6 dream guests and wing the menu with things in your fridge (which are probably mostly just cheese and eggs anyway. I’d love that, but not so sure Nora Ephron and Amy Sherman Palladino would).

Yes it will take time, but you can be strategic and think things through when you have things planned out.

You’ll actually save time in the long run since you’ve thought of everything and worked it out way before it’s time to execute. No more last-minute dashes. No more, “I wanted to post but I couldn’t find the right words in the moment.”

Have a plan, know your goals, be strategic, kick ass. Repeat!

Need help planning out your content? I got you! This post breaks down how I generate a quarter’s worth of content ideas (that’s 3 months, y’all) in an afternoon (that’s 3 hours, y’all)!

I even have a handy-dandy download that you can snag for FREE that helps you DIY the process in a simple, easy-to-follow format!

The post Why You Need a Content Plan appeared first on Angelica Ross.

It suuuuucks. (I’m not one to mince words.)

I can almost guarantee the people you see on Instagram with unfocused, lackluster content are the folks who don’t have a marketing plan in place.

A marketing plan is like the bird’s eye view of your year (or month or quarter) so you don’t feel like a tiny worm trying to tackle a year’s worth of content and getting completely buried.

I don’t know about you, but I find it much easier to write when there’s a topic already picked out.

Don’t take my word for it. Think about people making a movie. There’s a storyboard.

Someone writing a book? She has an outline.

Your social media is just a smaller version of a book. It’s paragraphs in a chapter instead of chapters within a novel.

Make sense? Good. Hopefully with this short yet powerful visual, you’ve seen…you need a plan.

And here’s how to do it easily!

Seriously. This is exactly what I do with myself and my clients. It helps to:

• Focus your writing so your marketing is also focused (no one is going to read a rambling Instagram post with no point – or, if they do, they won’t take action on it.)
• Ensure your Why is baked into every delicious thing you write (remember your Why? It’ll inspire your customers to take action and follow an enticing leader.)
• Guarantee no marketing moments are missed (nothing like remembering the day before an event to start promoting that you’ll be speaking there!)
• Add humanizing elements into your daily content (people buy from people, remember?)
• Give you a starting place to being writing (AKA: removes the Blinking Cursor Syndrome so you can get to work.)

Before we dive in, I made you a handy workbook with fillable spots for you to do this as you read, or come back to it later. Either way, it was created to be used so you can create content that you want to share and that’s valuable to your audience!

Just enter your name and email here for an instant download right in your inbox.

Step 1 | Identify Categories, Pillars, and/or Topics

What areas do you write about with authority? What topics will you explore in your social media, blogs, and emails?

These are things that you can talk about over and over, find different ways to share similar ideas about this, and so on.

Pillars and categories are generally the same thing. They’re topics you focus your content around. Think of them like blogging categories that you extend to social media, email, podcast interviews, etc.

They also are the pillars, or backbone, of your content.

For example: If you’re a florist, you may talk about:

• Arrangements: making monochromatic arrangements, how to start arranging flowers, using unique plants to add visual interest to your arrangements
• Cut flower care: how to care for all the different kinds of flowers, ways to make your flower arrangements last longer, how to cut flowers from plants in your yard so you continue to get beautiful blooms
• Making things with flowers: creating wreaths, making a wall garden, what to use to make a desk-top zen garden with succulents and cacti

Is there a florist reading this because I just gave you GOLD and I didn’t have to think for more than maybe three minutes!

Pick 4-6 final topics. The more focused you are, the more people will associate you with those areas of authority (AKA: you’ll be “known for something” and not “that person with the stuff doing the things.”)

Step 2 | Plan Out Themes for Each Month

When you have a monthly theme, everything will revolve around that and take away some of the Blinking Cursor Syndrome. They give you a direction on which to focus your writing.

These are overarching ideas (think: organization, inner wisdom, and so on) that are broader than your categories.

Remember: your categories will relate to your business and are things you can never run out of ideas to talk about (even if you just repurpose them in different ways. We’ll get to that!)

While your monthly themes will be broad, try to pick topics that relate to your business in some way. Even if it’s in abstract ways, make sure you can bring them back around to your business.

For example: my monthly theme for March is Spring Cleaning, so most of my content will focus on refreshing, cleaning, and organizing in some way.

Step 3 | Brainstorm Blog Titles and Specific Posts

Look at your categories and themes. What are the specific posts you’ll write that fit with your topics?

Pick a theme and start jotting down titles; just generate ideas and write, no censoring yourself or overthinking it here!

Even if you think something doesn’t have enough to be a full post, it could become a point within another larger post, so write it down.

Be as specific as possible. None of this “What’s my favorite flower” nonsense. No! Your titles should be strong and compelling. They should have a clear topic and drive the post.

For example: let’s say your monthly theme is Roses and your category is Arrangements.

Instead of “Why I Love Roses,” your title could be:

• 5 Reasons Roses are the Best Cut Flower for Arrangements
• The Number One Reason to Add Roses to Your Arrangements
• 10 Non-Cheesy Ways to Use Roses in Your Flower Arrangements

They’re specific, they tell the reader the benefit or knowledge they’ll receive, and have a strong point of view that correlates with your florist business.

Seriously, any florists want to work with me? I am a treasure trove of topic ideas!

If you need some inspiration to get started…

Think about your industry and the things you do in your business. Can you expand them into blog posts that your audience will find helpful?

The idea with sharing content is to position yourself as an expert and give away information. Yes, give away.

Use this as an opportunity to show people why they want to work with you instead of telling them, “Hey, work with me. I promise I know what I’m doing.”

You don’t have to give away all your secrets if you don’t want to. Truly, most people don’t care how you do it, they just want to know some insider info and feel special.

I mean, don’t you feel special knowing this is my exact process for generating a ton of ideas?

I bet it’s making you say, “Damn, I need to talk to her and see if she can do that for me.” (PS: we can totally sit – and work – together!)

Look at other blogs in your industry. Can you put your own spin on what they’ve started? Link back, of course! Stealing shit is so not fetch.

(Okay, I’m done with the Mean Girls references.)

Look at what you’ve already written. Has anything changed and you want to write the post fresh? An alternative is refreshing the current post with new information.

Is there anything you could follow up on? Maybe there’s a series idea in there, like a series on caring for succulents. Water, light, soil, and so on.

Perhaps you already have enough content to create a series, so your new post can be a roundup of your 5 best flower care posts.

Step 4 | Sort Your List by Category

When you have a substantial list, go back to your categories and color code.

You can do this on your page with markers or write each topic on a colored Post-It Note. Mark each topic idea you generated with what category it would fit in.

This is also the time to look over the topics and cross off or combine anything that doesn’t stand alone.

Assigning categories to posts now will help as you build your calendar in the next step. You’ll quickly see if you’re too heavy in one topic area at a time.

Step 5 | Assign Publish Dates

Give your posts a job and assign them a publish date.

But first…. Be realistic about your posting schedule!

Try to do less than you think you’re capable of doing. Essentially, don’t overcommit yourself.

There’s a good chance you’ll get behind, overwhelmed, or skip a day or two and don’t get back on track if you give yourself too much too quickly.

(Hello, Speaking From Experience Party of 1, your table is ready!)

When you batch plan, write, and schedule your content, it’s less likely for that to happen. But still. Don’t borrow trouble.

Set yourself up for success and little wins, especially if you’re just starting or recommitting to this muscle of writing.

If you have a fear of running out of ideas….that’s totally valid and that won’t happen. You just generated a huge list of topics and you’ll probably generate more ideas as you begin to outline.

Trust me.

You’ll see that one post is long or find a topic that could be split in two.

Pick a good, better, and best number for posts you’re holding yourself to producing. I learned this from Steph Crowder of Courage and Clarity. This always works for me.

Start filling in with the “good” number, then add to it until you have topics assigned for each day with your best number.

Now that we have had that conversation…

Plan your posts out on a calendar. Do it on paper, move it into your calendar, or add it to your project management tool (hello, Asana!)

Now, look at the color coding from the categories and vary your posting so you don’t have all flower arranging tips in one month and nothing about cut flower care.

The easiest way to do this is to mark Topic 1 on your calendar, then Topic 2 for the next date, then Topic 3 for the next, and so on.

Make a series and just go through each category making sure each one is represented, then repeat from the top.

And that’s that.

Everyone will tell you that you need to plan things and your editorial content is no different.

Whether it’s social media, blogs, and/or emails, having a schedule and knowing what you’re going to write helps the actual writing process.

I made you a handy workbook for you so you can print it out and do this on paper as you go through the practice of creating a content calendar for your marketing (I’m a total pen and paper gal) or fill it in and save it to your computer.

Just pop in your info and it’ll be waiting for you in your inbox!

And if you’re really like…..”Ahhhhh what do I write???” I have another solution for you!

Grab Copy That Connects In A Box!

Copy That Connects in a Box is all you need to generate at least three months of marketing copy so you can sell with ease using only your words! Yep, that’s 15 weeks (these are generous months!) of prompts and social media marketing content already planned out for you.

You’ll also receive membership into my exclusive Facebook community where you’ll find other business owners like yourself to help brainstorm as well as trainings and more from me! Learn more and get your content calendar here!

Learn more and join here!

The post How to Create an Marketing Calendar and Plan a Quarter of Content in an Afternoon appeared first on Angelica Ross.

But if you don’t know what your big, overarching “Why” reason it, it’s hard to make a consistent and cohesive message that your audience will connect with.

In a recent post, I wrote this about finding your Why…

I talk about finding your Why a lot. It’s the basis of everything I write for myself and my clients. It starts the conversation when I’m helping someone to plan their content.

Simon Sinek breaks down this concept of Why in Start With Why.

He looks at this as a top-down cone moving from Why at the top to How in the middle and What at the base of the cone.

Your Why is your purpose, cause, belief behind what you do. It’s not about making money, it’s about why you do what you do, why you exist as a business.

You need to have a reason and overall driving message, a mission, both for yourself so you know what direction to take and also for your audience. Give your customers something to get behind!

Conveying your why in everything you write will show your beliefs; your audience will then be able to place themselves in your message. They will “get” your company and want to back it because they see their beliefs (and themselves) in your message.

It also shows that you’re trustworthy, you get “it” and them. Your audience is seen and feels heard and comfortable with you because you speak their language and you’re sharing with them something they want. It goes back to that idea of being able to see themselves in you.

When you provide that belief mirror, their strengths and values are reflected back on them. Who wouldn’t want to stick in the orbit of someone who’s like, “Yeah she gets me and what I’m struggling with. She’s probably been there, too. I want to feel more of what she makes me feel!”

Conveying Your Why

Consistency is key here as with most things. It makes your audience see your trustworthiness. Always focus on the same message. It solidifies your authoritative status to build trust in you.

What’s the Point?

Always write with your Why center stage. Have a goal. It gives your writing direction and ensures it provides value to your readers, even if that value is forming a greater connection.

Use Your Pillars

Think of the categories of content you share. These are your pillars and are the things you can talk about forever. They can always connect to a story to show your values.

Use these pillars to tie it all together and bridge the gap. Show your audience what you value by telling stories using these categories. Then, everything is consistent and always has an undercurrent of helpfulness, inspiration, aspiration, and so on when you impart your Why into everything you share.

Look at Feedback and Testimonials

Look at your feedback and testimonials. What are your customers saying they value? If they align with your values, great! You’re on the right track.

Perhaps your messaging needs some tweaking. To make your customers “get it,” are there any strings you can follow to find the language your customer uses? That way, you can impart your Why in their words.

Overall…

Before doing anything, THINK. Ask yourself is it: Truthful, Helpful, Inspiring/Informative, Necessary, Kind?

If it is, and said in your words, it’s worth a share. If it isn’t, don’t share it. It’ll confuse the message and muddy your Why (both for yourself and your customers).

The post How to Convey Your Why to Your Audience appeared first on Angelica Ross.

Myth 1 | Quantity Over Quality

I don’t know if anyone believes this anymore since I feel like a lot of people have debunked the myth that more is more. It is so not the case. And it’s certainly not the case when, in the online marketing world, there’s so much noise and pressure to stand out.

Yes, you do have to have everything spot on. And yes, consistency is important. However, I firmly believe and other experts agree, that quality is tops. A lackluster caption on a stock photo that has been used by 100 other creative entrepreneurs is not going to cut it. It’s better to post when you have a message than write something just because you “need to post 3 times a day.”

Do this instead:

Have a kickass photo and something to say! Provide quality and value to your followers. This goes for email, blogs, social…be of service before selling.

Having a plan and batching your work helps with consistency. Instead of feeling the pressure to post something and coming up with a half-ass attempt on the fly, you’re able to create high-value copy and take your own photos that convey the right message ahead of time.

Being strategic and soulful – hello!

Myth 2 | You Can Keep Doing What You’ve Always Done Before

You don’t have to change a thing, you’re doing great! I mean, yes you are perfect and wonderful and everyone loves you and you’re great. But also…when was the last time you looked at your analytics?

The worst thing, in my opinion, is to hear, “But that’s how we’ve always done it before.” Annnnnd how’s that working out for you? You know the definition of insanity is to do the same thing and expect different results, right?

Do this instead:

Look at your numbers. Figure out what’s driving traffic to your site and spend more time cultivating relationships there. If you know that your audience doesn’t really see you on Facebook, and all your traffic comes from Twitter anyway…stop doing what you’ve always done (AKA spending time on Facebook) and go where the traffic is.

In other words: re-assess frequently, pivot as needed.

Myth 3 | You Exist in a Vacuum

Along the lines of doing what you’ve always done before is believing that you’re the only one out there and people should buy what you’re selling just because you’re on Facebook. False. You don’t exist in a vacuum. While yes, it’s good to keep your head down and focus on you, it’s also good to have a bit of an idea of what others are doing.

Do this instead:

Think of a few people you want to be sure to make key contacts with each month. The Content Planner calls this a “Hit List.” It can be other businesses you want to collaborate with, people you want to network with, folks you want to cultivate a relationship with, businesses you want to follow and get ideas from, and so on.

And remember: your story is what makes your business what it is. Share that. Share education on what you’re doing in your industry to inform others and position yourself as the expert. There are lots of ways to get your face known and generate relationships. It’s worth it to spend some time nurturing that.

Myth 4 | You Have to “Teach” How to Make Money

This is something I’ve been turning over in my head for a while and Christina at The Contract Shop made an Instagram Story about this that just hit me in all the right places.

You don’t have to teach people how to do what you do. Similarly, you don’t have to go B2B and sell to the competitors in your niche. You can just do what you do.

So, like, remember a few years ago in the blogging world where a few big people found success and started writing posts about how others can find the same success using their methods? It felt like everyone was blogging about blogging. Newsflash, you got popular because your blog was a real-time story of your life, not a how-to guide to be your clone!

Do this instead:

What works for you! Seriously. Don’t feel like you have to teach others to do what you do. Like I said in my post earlier this week about what 2018 taught me in business, show up and do your work. Keep your head down and focus on you.

Say you design themes for WordPress and your target is fashion bloggers, don’t sell to other designers. Focus on your target of fashion bloggers!

Myth 5 | The Experts Know Best

Well, yes, the experts do know best But I’m seeing a lot of these “get rich quick” posts and/or hacks and it’s making me feel so squeamish. There are people out there that give a lot of shoulds and a lot of “follow these steps and you’ll get a magic bullet of success propelling you to the top of the charts.” And ain’t no one can promise those kinds of results!

Do this instead:

Leave the shoulds at the door and know that anything worth doing takes time. And also know that every business is unique, so there’s no “one size fits all” “do this and you’ll be rich” potion. That’s just snake oil and we know how those claims turned out!

Find a coach that you vibe with. Someone you trust and click with. Ask for their advice. See what they’d do in a situation because chances are good, they’ve been here before. They got through it and can give you some ideas of how you can take their solution and make it unique to you.

Are there any myths that you think should be busted this year? What would you add to the list?

The post Marketing Myths to Release in 2019 appeared first on Angelica Ross.

For some reason, I’ve been really into those BuzzFeed personality quizzes lately. I can tell you which Wes Anderson movie I should be in (Moonrise Kingdom, obvs), what blend of characters I am from How I Met Your Mother (Lily and Robin, because I’m quirky and like whiskey), which Melissa McCarthy character I’m most like (Diana from Identity Thief, ironically), and which Golden Girl I should be (Dorothy, duh).

So it should come as no surprise that I have created a quick quiz for you focused on….drum roll please….marketing! Okay, so it isn’t as exciting as learning which cheese you most resemble, but it is helpful.

I partnered up with the folks from Interact* to bring you Where Are You in Your Marketing Planning Process? A quiz designed to help you identify how prepared you are in your marketing plan.

I’m launching this today and will absolutely check in later this summer to share some concrete results, but Kayla Hollatz has driven so many email sign ups just by having a quiz run on her website. She breaks down the four must-have elements to think of when creating a quiz for your website when you want to drive email list growth.

Before we get to the quiz, let me share:

A few things I’ve discovered through this process…

It is a lot harder than it looks to create a quiz. If you want to have a well-organized and thoughtful quiz, here are a few tips I learned from my early start in the process.

Plan, plan plan.

You MUST have a plan. It helps to have the quiz topic, results, and questions figured out in advance for everything to flow well together. I’m a fan of taking pen to paper, so I should have mapped out my quiz on paper first before launching it on the website. It would have been so helpful to have a direction and a flow chart first instead of putting it together after.

Interact has analytics built in, so I’ll be interested to see where and how I can tweak this for best results down the road.

Think of the results, then write the questions.

I really appreciate that Interact arranges the quiz builder by presenting the results first, then the questions. Like having your destination in mind before you get in the car for a drive, it allows you to know where you’re going before creating the content.

Have a freebie in mind to help with your direction.

At the end of the quiz, each result matches up with a section in my Bootstrap Your Marketing Blueprint eBook. From there, I easily was able to embed the download URL so you can learn more about where you are in the marketing planning process and how to finish up a plan for you that makes sense and gets results.

Are you ready for the quiz now?

Sure you are! Dive right in. I’d love to hear any questions you have in the comments to help you create a marketing plan that you love using for your business!

Fun fact just for you for reading all the way to the bottom of this post: my aunt took the Which Golden Girl Are You? quiz and got Stan. Picture an older woman saying, “I got Stan,” like Charlie Brown says, “I got a rock,” on Halloween.

*In exchange for creating a quiz and reporting back on the process through a blog post, I was able to use Interact for free. I really enjoy their software and would recommend it to anyone looking for a way to boost content upgrade downloads, email subscriptions, and lead generations. I wouldn’t be writing this if I didn’t think it was useful for you as well as me!

The post Where Are You in Your Marketing Planning Process (and a Quiz!) appeared first on Angelica Ross.