Content marketing

How Often Should You Blog?

How frequently you should you post blogs or send emails to your lists? If you have an email list, you may struggle with questions like:

Is it better to show up in the inbox every day, or to write less frequently, in more depth?

How do you remain memorable without being annoying?

When I first started blogging, the standard advice was to blog at least once a week, ideally three times or more a week.

That was then, this is now. Our emails boxes are overflowing. Who needs to hear from us on a daily basis?

Sure, Seth Godin publishes a valuable and thought-provoking post on a daily basis. I’m not Seth. Most of us aren’t.

I’d suggest that you find a consistent cadence frequent enough that people remember who you are, but not so frequent that you drive them nuts. Also, make sure it fits into your life.

My Every-Other-Week Experiment: Results are In

For years I sent a writing-related post it to my email list once a week. Two years ago, I dialed back to every-other-week. (I’d say bi-weekly, but I’m never sure if that means every two weeks or twice a week.)

Here’s the post I wrote about my decision at the time: Balancing Frequency, Length, and Substance in Writing

Two years in, it’s time to report on how that’s going:

Great!

From the audience perspective: No one has complained. My email open rates remain high. People read and comment on the posts.

It’s possible that the readers didn’t really notice that I’d cut the emails in half. (The spotlight effect is a common cognitive bias in which we think people notice us much more than they do. That may apply here.)

From my perspective, switching to every other week gives me more breathing room and the opportunity to explore ideas and spend time polishing the posts. Not every post is polished, but that’s another story.

I feel better about my blogging—more inspired—on this schedule.

Instead of scrounging around for topics under deadline pressure, I accumulate a list of ideas and can be selective about the ones I develop. I feel that the quality of the posts has increased, and that they are more substantive.

This schedule also leaves me more time for other writing, including:

New books
Guest blogs on other sites
Book reviews and other posts I don’t include in my Writing Practices emails

Every-other-week is frequent enough to keep me focused on expanding my ideas about writing.

So, two years in and I’m pleased with the results.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog or on my email list, how does this frequency feel to you? Do you want more? Or still less?

And if you blog yourself, what kind of frequency do you use? Let me know in the comments.

Master Content Strategy by Pamela Wilson – A Book Review

Short Version

What is content strategy, anyway? In this relevant and approachable guide, Pamela Wilson lays it all out in a practical, actionable, and fun guide. Master Content Strategy will become one of those books you refer to again and again.

Long Version

Few people understand content marketing strategy as thoroughly as Pamela Wilson. Lucky for us, she is generous about sharing her wisdom.

Her previous book, Master Content Marketing, is a classic in its genre. (Read my review here.) Now she’s written the perfect companion: Master Content Strategy: How to Maximize Your Reach and Boost Your Bottom Line Every Time You Hit Publish. If content is any part of your marketing strategy, grab this book. You will be happy you did.

Advice for Bloggers in Every Phase

Advice about content strategy is often either too deep for the novice or too bland for the expert. One size does not fit all.

Although she is expert at managing mature websites, Pamela knows what needs to happen at every phase. The book describes a “lifecycle” approach to content strategy.

It makes so much sense! To liven up the approach, Wilson compares the stages of content maturity to a developing baby, mimicking advice for new mothers in the What to Expect When You’re Expecting books.

The analogy works for me.

She has separate chapters for new websites, growing websites, and “mature” websites with over 300 or more pieces of content.

If you’re just getting started creating blog posts, podcasts, videos, or other content, you’ll find solid advice on finding and targeting your core audience. My favorite quote here is this on:

“If you write to the wrong person, you’ll attract them.”

Once your feet are under you and you’ve been churning out content for a while (possibly using the content crash course in the book), you’ll find guidance on creating “deep dive” content and expanding your reach across different platforms.

With a mature website, your role changes: “Approach your content like a resource librarian and maintenance person.”

We get so caught up creating content, we forget to maintain what we’ve already done.

This is a guide to keep by your side for a long time. These are a few of the highlights you may return to again and again:

Images and how to deal with them on your website
Creating deep dive content
How to upgrade older published content
Updating older pieces
Repurposing content across different formats
Content amplification strategies

What I Love About This Book

Is content strategy an innately exciting topic? Not for most of us, honestly. But reading this book is a pleasure. It‘s both practical and inspiring, and that‘s a rare mix.

Masterful writers can make any topic compelling. Pamela Wilson fits that category.

Her lifecycle approach is likewise invaluable. Needs and responsibilities change as your site accrues more content, and few people address that fact.

I’m off to work on maintaining my blog and repurposing content. Go read Master Content Strategy.

Talking Writing on the Marketing Book Podcast

Why is a book about writing the subject of a Marketing Book Podcast episode, you may ask?

One of the biggest challenges of content marketing is creating great content. That means writing well. If you need to up your game, understand what your readers are experiencing.

That was the topic of this podcast interview. Give it a listen here, and then go subscribe to this marvelous podcast.

Digging Into an Abundance of Ideas

If you’re one of those writers who waits until a great idea strikes to write, then you may find yourself running low on fodder. For many of us, the act of writing itself primes the mind to identify insights and create something new.

This is yet another chicken-and-egg writing situation (like writing and outlining). You must write first to get the ideas to work with.

Coming Up With Ideas

This post is inspired by one of my email list subscribers who, responding to my question about her biggest writing challenge, sent me this:

Coming up with fresh, inspiring content

I hear you.

Marketing professionals in particular often suffer from this problem. They are tasked with creating fresh ideas for businesses, to fuel content marketing goals. Creating content for the marketing machine is like feeding a teenage boy – there never seems to be enough.

Here’s the advice I shared with her: Commit to writing regularly, even when you feel empty.

Ideas are truly abundant, but we have to be open to finding them.

By sitting down regularly to write, even when you have nothing inspiring to say, you signal to your brain that you are serious about the work. Eventually, your mind comes through with the content you need. It notices connections, identifies patterns, or even overhears snippets of conversation that lead to an insight.

Louis Pasteur said that chance favors the prepared mind. The same is true for writing.

Creativity favors the writer who is writing.

Eventually you may suffer from the opposite problem: deciding which ideas to dedicate your time to writing. But that’s another post.

A Challenge for the Holidays

If you are sitting down soon at a holiday table, prepare yourself to be alert and open to ideas relevant to your writing.

Before you go to (or host) the gathering, steal a moment to think about your writing. Open a file or journal page and pen a few notes about subjects you’d like to cover or a problem you’re facing in a larger work.

Then go enjoy the meal, but keep a notebook handy. Make notes of words, ideas for metaphors, quotes, anything interesting as the conversation passes. By the end of the day, or early the next day if you’re still digesting, look through your notes or recollections.

You’ll probably find something fresher than the leftover turkey to work with. Let me know if this works for you.

Related Resources

Do Not Save Your Best Writing for Later

Videos about barriers to writing

Lazy But Efficient Content Marketing [Book Review]

A Review of Master Content Marketing by Pamela Wilson

Partway into the prolog of Pamela Wilson’s Master Content Marketing, there’s a section with the following heading:

“My Lazy (But Efficient!) Approach to Content Marketing”

As soon as I read that heading, I knew that I’d found a content marketing and writing soulmate. My life goal is to be lazy but efficient – anything that helps get me there is golden.

The book did not disappoint. It is a terrific guide to the nuts and bolts of content marketing – specifically, business blogging with a purpose. I wish that she’d written it years ago.

This small package packs a ton of practical, actionable advice on creating the content that fuels successful content marketing, including:

A crystal clear, non-nonsense explanation of business blogging strategy – what you write
Solid advice about writing process and habits – how you write

The combination is a one-two punch for writers looking to be more effective. Writes Wilson,

“When you combine solid content structure with habits that will help you develop lifelong writing skills? Well, watch out, world!”

Demystifying Effective Business Blogging

The online world is littered with lonely, inconsistent, or ineffective business blogs.

Many businesses and entrepreneurs realize that they need to maintain a blog, but don’t know how to populate it with great content. So they toss up random posts every month or so, and wonder why blogging doesn’t work for them.

This book covers the whole business blogging process, from creating a strategy and finding topics to churning out posts consistently. This may be one of the best explanations of business blogging that I’ve ever read. I learned a few things and will have to up my game now.

The Habits of Effective Content Creation

How we write is almost as important as what we write. To create consistent, high-quality content in a busy, interrupt-driven world, we need to form habits that protect the work and our sanity.

This is the “lazy-but-effective” part of the book’s pitch, and it’s terrific. Writes Wilson,

“Content creation is a habit you form. Part of the process is setting up your physical environment for success — carving out a space and laying out your tools. The other part of the process is withholding judgment on the outcome.”

Preach it, Pamela!

Wilson divides the work of blogging into four phases, spreading it across multiple days:

Day 1: Build Your Article Backbone
Day 2: Fill in the Details
Day 3: Polish and Prepare to Publish
Day 4: Publish, Promote, and Propagate

In The Writer’s Process, the writing recipe calls for dividing the work into its different steps. This book offers another approach to that same advice.

This Book Is For Anyone Who….

… wants to consistently create blog content for business purposes. That includes:

Content marketers (the title is a dead give-away)
Authors marketing their books. Blogging is a powerful book marketing strategy: through blogs you can provide useful content that converts strangers into acquaintances.

… currently maintains a blog. You’ll find tactics for making the content creation process easier and your blogs more effective.

… is new to business blogging. I can think of no better way to start than with this book in your hand.

Check it out and let me know what you think.

Three Keys to Writing Copy That Sells More Books

[Update 2020: This is a rare guest post from the wonderful Chris Syme—a woman who shares my combined interests in books and marketing. First published in 2017, the advice is timeless. There is an updated version of her book, which is linked in this article.]

Book descriptions, blurbs, social media posts, ad copy. Even though you consider yourself an author, your head may start to spin at the thought of having to write a book description or copy for a Facebook ad.

Yes, copywriting is a different animal with a different goal than writing a book. But fortunately it’s a learned skill. To simplify the process of learning, let’s consider three keys to writing copy that will sell more books.

Put On Your Marketing Hat

First things first. Why is copywriting different than writing a novel or a nonfiction book?

Your goal is not to tell a story or teach, but to get the reader to take an action. If you approach copywriting with your marketing hat on it will make more sense. Before we look at the three keys, let’s define the marketer’s mindset.

1. Know that a well-crafted book description will sell more books. Your book description is not a throw away. Successful indie author Mark Dawson surveys his readers via email every year. In his recent survey he asked his readers what convinced them to buy one of his books. Of the 5000+ readers, the overwhelming majority said the book description. Don’t think good descriptions sell books? Think again. My reader surveys (much smaller sample than Mark’s) have confirmed the same. The book cover gets them to read the description and the description makes them click the buy button.

2. Think like a marketer. What influences people to to buy a product? Authors need to use time tested marketing principles to help influence readers to buy.

Social proof: Make sure your books get reviews and recommendations early. When people see a long line at a restaurant, they think the food must be good. That is social proof—lots of people like it; I will like it. Develop a strong advance review team. Use a “street team” to help you promote the book on social media. Build a network of loyal fans.
Make them say yes. Marketers have used this technique for years and it’s critical in copywriting. Getting people to answer “yes” to a question makes it easier for them to say yes again when you ask them to buy. Make sure you touch on an emotion or experience that readers can identify with and say yes to.
Authority. This one is particularly important for nonfiction writers. People respect recognized experts and want to follow their lead. Nonfiction writers should establish their expertise.
Scarcity. The rule of the few. When there is a limited supply of something, people are anxious to act. Do you have a limited time preorder or launch sale? What about a bonus available for a limited time? Create an urgent need.

3. Remember the goal: get them to read the next line. Think of your copy as a compelling story. But story does not mean regurgitating the book’s plot. It’s about the story of the reader experience. Every line of copy needs to propel the reader to the next line. Remember people don’t buy stuff, they buy an experience. Where is your book going to take them? What problem will it solve? What emotions are you going to connect with? Marketers know how to push their buyers’ buttons.

The Three Keys

There are three keys every type of sales copy needs: a hook, compelling movement (or also called the “line”), and a call-to-action. Let’s break these down first as they apply to book descriptions. Then, we’ll take a look at how they may differ for ads and social media posts.

1. The Hook is Gold

Every copywriting expert I’ve ever learned from agrees that your hook is the most important piece of your copy. The hook is an attention-getting statement that will lay the foundation for the rest of your copy. In other words, it can’t be what we call “click bait”, or a sensational headline that grabs attention but has absolutely no relation to the book. Those hooks are cheating and usually make readers mad. Just don’t do it.

The hook is part of the traditional copywriting formula called “hook-line-sinker.”
A good hook is a promise. It will tease readers’ emotions and connect with a need the reader has. In fiction, it’s the need to read a good story or be entertained. In nonfiction, it’s the identification of a problem and promise of solutions your book delivers.

Hooks are not paragraphs; they are one or two sentences max. They may even be a sentence fragment. But one thing they do: make the reader want more information. Copywriter Bryan Cohen describes a hook this way: “If someone was making a movie of your novel, what would be the one liner on the poster?”

Many copywriting experts suggest that you brainstorm a list of hooks, leave them for a day, send them out to trusted friends, and revisit to distill. If you have an advance review team, they might be a good source of feedback. I suggest you not post your hooks in a general author Facebook group. Many of the authors there are not your readers, and different genres have different conventions. You’ll get good feedback from a small group of trusted people that know your genre and your voice.

Here are hooks I’ve run across that grab attention and connect with an emotion readers would be looking for in that genre. Let’s start with fiction; notice the different tone and voice in different genres:

Could you murder your wife to save your daughter? (crime and thriller)
What’s done in the dark will be brought to the light… (thriller and suspense)
Three generations of women. One family funeral business. Two suitors. And a very fat cat. (cozy mystery)
I was born into British aristocracy, but I’ve made my fortune in Manhattan. New York is now my kingdom (contemporary romance)
Something frightening is happening to time. (Young Adult)

How about a couple from nonfiction that identify a problem-solution for readers in that genre?

The difference between helping and selling is just two letters, but those two letters make all the difference. (marketing and sales)
What if you could wake up tomorrow and every area of your life was beginning to transform? What would you change? (business and entrepreneurship)

All these hooks succeed in connecting with the genre’s audience and compel readers to move on to the next line.

NOTE: Sometimes a hook is placed after a declaration that has to do with the book’s bestseller status or its series—I’ve noticed this in the crime and cozy mystery genres quite a bit. If you begin your description with a declaration—a high profile recommendation, a nod to the book’s bestseller status or the name of the series—make sure that piece of the description is short and the bolded hook follows immediately.

2. Identify the Most Compelling Pieces

Whether your copy is a book description or a Facebook ad, take some time to identify the most compelling pieces of your book. The biggest mistake I see fiction authors make is just regurgitating a plot summary complete with at least four character full names and one or two towns thrown in where the action takes place. This is a mistake.

Sit down and brainstorm a list of the most compelling pieces of your book. What is driving the action? What is the conflict for the hero? Is there an important backstory you can tease? Nonfiction: what is the problem and what are the most important solutions?

Many fiction authors have a severe case of TMI (Too Much Information) when it comes to book descriptions. Here are some problem areas I see often:

Too many character names — One or two will suffice and you don’t need last names.
Too many locations— You don’t need to name every town involved in your book, or even one unless it’s a compelling part of your story.
Spoilers – This isn’t just about giving away endings. Every backstory doesn’t need to be explained in the book description.
Too many words to explain —Be succinct. Weed out the prepositional phrases and other poor writing. Write your book description and then edit, edit, edit. Bryan Cohen calls this cutting to the chase.
Describing the hero’s entire journey —Leave something to the reader’s imagination that will make them want to read on.
Wandering into secondary plots—Stick to the main events.
Citing reader reviews in the description. Unless you have a well-known author or well-known publication’s endorsement, don’t put this in your description. Relegate all this info to the Editorial Reviews section.
Don’t repeat yourself—This is especially true for nonfiction. Start with a list of benefits, prioritize them by which ones are the most life changing and limit yourself to five bullet points that address common pain points for all your readers.

The bottom line is that the description needs to tie pieces of compelling information together—not just the retelling of a story you believe is compelling. When it comes to sales copy, people will quit reading when you don’t keep them moving forward. Read your description out loud several times to make sure it sounds continuous and not choppy. The object in a good description: get readers to move to the next line. Personal note: I like to watch movie trailers in a genre when I am working on a description. Sixty seconds to entice people to see the movie. It’s good creative practice.

3. End With a Call to Action

The call-to-action is the “sinker” part of the hook-line-sinker formula. Many authors forget that a book description is, in fact, a sales description. You are trying to get the reader to buy something. You will be remiss if you don’t include a call-to-action at the end of your description. If they make it to the end, give them something to do to. Don’t be afraid to sound pushy–you won’t be. You got them this far, lead them to the logical conclusion.

Calls-to-action should not be just, “buy this book now.” There are a number of different ways you can ask people to buy. In Words That Sell, copywriter Richard Bayan has a wealth of suggestions. I highly recommend his book for anyone that writes any kind of sales copy. It sits on my desk.

Here are a few of my favorite examples for books:

I invite you to…or You are invited…
Get your copy now…
Start reading today…
Just click “add to cart”…
Put this book in your shopping cart and start reading now…
Can’t wait? Get your copy right now…
Get it now for a limited time price…
Join the story by grabbing your copy today
Start (solution to problem) today…

What About Social Media Posts?

The formula for social media posts is pretty much the same except for the length. Twitter will give you only 140 characters and you should be thinking of no more than 400 or 500 on Facebook unless you are including buy links in your post.

There is a golden rule when it comes to selling on social media that many authors are missing: you must engage with people to earn the right to sell. The majority of your social media posts on any channel should be about adding value or making people feel an emotional connection. When you gain their trust and they see you as a valuable connection, you have earned the right to sell.

“Buy my book” billboard posts on social media without the element of an established relationship will never take full advantage of social media’s power to sell. If you abuse that purpose and just post sales ads, people will tune you out. Just don’t do it. Take the time to develop connections and trust. Then readers will give you permission to sell; and they’ll help you sell by telling their friends about you.

Good social media copy understands the psychology of buying and social media’s particular buying culture. People have different motivations for being on social media. People want to connect with other people and causes that fill an emotional need. According to research from HubSpot, people go to social media to feel:

Happy. People love to laugh, smile, feel good about themselves, others, and their world.
Inspired. Inspiration is a key to perseverance. Let’s face it—the world can be a cruel place. Inspiration gives us confidence and courage.
Compassion. Compassion is the capacity to care about people and things outside ourselves. We all want to live in a caring world.
Informed. It’s not just FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) that drives people to information. Help people stay on top of news, cultural trends, what’s going on with your books, and much more.
Supported. People want to feel that they’re okay and that others identify with their lot in life. Be a friend to everyone and look for posts to share that celebrate diversity and hope.
Connected. We humans have a driving need to connect with others. No man (or woman) wants to be an island.

In my new book, The Author’s Guide To Sell More Books With Less Marketing I teach a social media copywriting formula called the 80-20 Content Rule. I explain that if 80 percent of your content is about adding value, readers will expect you to sell 20 percent of the time. You earn the right to sell by adding value first.

The copywriting formula for ads is much like the formula for book descriptions. You want to remember that the object of an ad is to sell something or sign someone up for something so it’s okay to reference buying in your hook or line sections.

In an ad, your hook is a promise. What are you delivering? An experience, a promise of rise in income, or a particular outcome after reading the book? Many good ad hooks start with a question about a universal problem that will lead to a “yes” answer from the reader, as I mentioned above. You also may hear the term “pain point,” especially as it relates to nonfiction books. What is your reader’s pain? How is your book going to solve that problem?

Good ad copy takes a lot of rewriting, editing, and rewriting again. The fewer character numbers you are allowed in the ad, the tougher the challenge. Amazon ads, for instance, are extremely short. The hook becomes the main attraction there. Facebook ads give you more rope to hang yourself. My college writing professor always said it is harder to write shorter. She was right.

No matter what kind of sales copy you write, it isn’t like writing a book. The three-key formula can guide you into writing effective succinct copy that will help you sell more books.

Chris Syme has over 20 years experience in the communications industry and is the principal of the award-winning agency, CKSyme Media Group. She is a former university media relations professional, a frequent speaker on the national stage, and the author of the popular SMART Marketing For Authors book series. Her book marketing books are available on Amazon, Kobo, and Nook. Her latest venture is Women Finishing Well.

How Often Should You Blog?

Master Content Strategy by Pamela Wilson – A Book Review

Talking Writing on the Marketing Book Podcast