If you’re a small business owner, chances are you’re also the marketer, financial manager, designer, web manager, juggler, and fire-breather–all rolled up in one!
As discussed in the video above, the biggest issue for soloprenuers is being the end all be all. However, there’s only so much you can do in 24 hours, not counting the actually delivery of your products. In my interview with @TonyLBrownHQ from TonyLBrown.com, he outlines actionable tips that you can use to systemize your business for success.
Previously, we discussed the difference between systemization and automation. In that discussion, Tony emphasized the importance of having a personal touch in your automated processes. I’m pigging back on this to stress that your communications should be RAW BRANDED™. Even though someone else may be stepping into your shoes to help spread your messages, that message should be authentic to you and your brand. It shouldn’t appear as if you are being cast by a robot.
In this video, Tony L. Brown credits fellow entrepreneur and digital superpro Chris Ducker with outlining the items that you should be outsourcing. This includes: what you can’t do, what you don’t like doing, and what you should have been doing. If you have any of these items taking up the majority of your to-dos, it’s time to seek some help. You can do so by delegating tasks to a virtual assistant. Yes, it’s time to let go and put your trust in someone else. However, this will not be a scary feat if you lay out your systems.
Tony advises business owners to develop a staffing structure then recruit for the roles you have in mind. By creating a framework, your VAs will understand how to deliver services to your standards. Don’t get trapped by your creation. Systemize your business for success and for sanity!
Are you systemizing your business operations? Drop a comment below.
Do you know the difference between automating v. systemizing your business for success? In my Blab interview with entrepreneur @TonyLBrownHQ from TonyLBrown.com, these terms are defined, and we discuss the relationship between the two processes. You will learn why small business owners need to systemize their operations for time management and greater efficiency. Most importantly, you will discover how to maintain your authenticity as your business is being systemized. Here’s a quick breakdown thanks to @TonyLBrownHQ:
Systemization – creating and systems and processes that govern your business operations, such as social media management. Systemization maintains a personal, authentic touch.
Automation – can be a part of a systemized process if it adds value to it. Your automated communications should not make you sound like a robot! Ex: Clicking to follow someone on Twitter and receiving canned auto requests to download their product. Ugh! Direct Messaging (DMing) can be done well as long as (once again) there’s a personal touch.
Specifically, if you are a small business owner who is juggling the task of being the CEO as well as the marketer, financial manager, designer, webmaster, etc., you can delegate your tasks to others in a systemized manner. In other words, you map out the blueprint and hand this off to those in charge of automating your process. The difference between this and straight automation is that your blueprint should be in line with your brand.
For example, if you have a virtual assistant who is charged with automating your social media posts, you should systemize the process for your VA, so he/she knows the appropriate images, tone of voice, and content that should be shared on your behalf. It should be the next best thing to cloning yourself! Most importantly, you will remain RAW Branded in a systemized manner. Got that one?
If you already have a blog or website set up for your brand–kudos to you! That was your first milestone. Now, how is your site performing? Do you have visitors, or is your website more like a no man’s land? Sometimes it’s not enough just to build it in order for them to come. You also need to pull people into your site. One way to do this is by implementing keyword strategies. Don’t turn around and walk away! I know this one often sends content creators running. With the help of @dantegd76, I’ll give you bare bones, simple, and actionable SEO tips for your blog that can make a big difference on its performance.
Tip #1 – Utilize keywords.
You will be ranked by search engines according to your keywords’ relevance, so make sure that you select keywords that pertain to your blog topic. This will require some research. One simple way to do this is to start typing the first few words in Google. You’ll notice that Google will list similar long tail keywords (longer strings of words) in which site visitors frequently type into search engines. The longer the keyword, the more you’ll be able to niche down on your topic. There is a whole science that involves the popularity and competitiveness of keywords and data mining. However, looking at Google’s keyword autocomplete api is one way to quickly and easily identify what people are searching for. Furthermore, you’ll be able to find your list of competitors, based on the search results.
Tip #2 – Make sure keywords are included in your blog title.
The tech term for this is your H1 tag. In the HyperText Markup Language (HTML) coding world <h1> is your most important heading. Your H2 tag is second in priority to your H1 tag, followed by H3 tag and onward tags. Your H1 tag is visually the larger, pronounced text on your page and most likely (but not necessarily) your page title. A single H1 tag is needed to clarify what is most relevant on your webpage. For instance, this webpage’s H1 tag is <h1>actionable seo tips for you blog</h1>. If you’re using WordPress, there are several plugins you can use to simply type these keywords into your H1 field. The most important thing is to be consistent with the keywords you select for your page title and h1 tag.
Tip#3 – Include your keywords in the first paragraph of your page.
This will enable search bots to understand that your content is actually pertaining to the your topic. It must all appear seamless. Once upon a time, not long ago, digital marketers were abusing this tactic in order to quickly and easily rank in search. However, with the release of Google’s Panda and Penguin updates, bots got smarter and caught on to these “black hat” tricks. Many a sites have been banished by Google as a result. Use your keywords sparingly to avoid punishment!
Tip #4 – Have sizeable content.
The ideal length of blog posts are often debated. A good rule of thumb is to have at least 500 words in your post. Now, I have been known to break this rule myself. In my previous blogging life, I would write posts that were worthy of book chapters. I’ve since scaled back and often push myself to add more words! Bottom line, your blog post needs to have rich content. In the past, cyber sneaks would throw up sites plastered with ads and rank them for keywords in order to make big bucks. Are you old enough to remember those annoying sites? If not, just note that this why content is more important than ever. Your webpage needs to address the topic outlined in your title and H1 tag. Yes, Google bots are watching!
Tip #5 – Include meta tags.
Once again, this involves HTML. Meta elements outline your page description, author, attribute, and keywords (yes again). Your <meta> tags don’t appear on the page itself. They are usually located in the “head” section of your website’s code. You may notice meta descriptions are sometimes displayed in Google’s search results. While meta attributes tell robots whether or not they should follow the links on a page and index/display the page in search results. If you want to get techy with it, you can play around with the meta tags in your HTML … just don’t blow up your website! My advice is to download a nifty SEO plugin in which you can simply populate these fields and have them automatically display in your website’s coding.
That wasn’t so painful, now was it? These actionable SEO tips should increase the likelihood that your blog or website will turn up in searches. At the very least, search engines will have a better chance of crawling your website.
If you are ready to take a deeper dive into SEO strategies, sign up for my RAW BRANDED® Courses, where I will show you the step-by-step process of creating a website and optimizing it for search engines.
In case you haven’t noticed, today’s marketing efforts are centered on creating solid content. Yes, oh, yes, content is king! Your content should not only be of value to the end user, but it should also be shareable. Nothing is worst that having people stumble upon your blog, actually like the information that you’ve created, and then … run off into cyberspace. Save yourself some of the time spent marketing by having your target audience help you. Readers who vibe with what you have to say are more prone to share your information with others. Your job is to not only have this rich content available but to also have it ready for distribution. You need shareable blog content to ensure that your audience will pass along your good news. Don’t complicate this process. Remember, site visitors have short attention spans and little time. Catch them while you can!
How can you go about doing this? Make sure that your website has share links accompanying each blog post. This will make things quick and easy for readers to email, tweet, like, and pin your tidbits. This doesn’t just apply to your written works. If you have eye-catching visuals, you’re golden. This will amp up your chances of having your images circulated on Pinterest, Tumblr, and similar photo driven social networks, where traffic may be driven back to your website.
WordPress has several plugins which easily integrates into blogs. I’ve been using the Simple Share Buttons plugin, which includes the most popular social networks, including Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, Digg, and Reddit. However, there are other plugins with a lengthier list of options. Despite your plugin of choice, the end goal is to make it easy to share your content. Watch thte video above for a quick overview.
If you find this information useful … don’t forget to share it! I also encourage you to leave comments or questions below.
You sit there for endless minutes staring at the computer screen, trying to formulate something worthy enough to warrant a post. This scenario repeats itself for hours and perhaps even days. You need content that will resonate with your audience, but you’re not sure what that looks or sounds like. No worries! Here are my five strategies that you can use to come up with great, shareable blog content.
Tip #1
Find the communities in which your target audience frequents. A few years ago, it was all about niche websites and forums. Now, this includes social networks. Wherever your prized peeps are gathering, you need to prop your ears open and listen. Keep your ears to the ground and listen to all the problems in which your audience discusses as well as the hot topics in your industry. This is the relevant content that you should be addressing.
Tip #2
If you’re seeking feedback from a professional audience to generate content for your blog then LinkedIn groups are just for you. Join an open group centered on your industry and once again … listen. Spend some time hearing about your target audience and peers’ likes, dislikes, successes, and challenges. These items make ideal fodder for blogging.
Tip #3
Another method of finding answers as well as to identify common problems is to visit Quora and/or Yahoo Answers. These sites are known as go-tos for people seeking a wide range of answers on endless topics. Try typing in a subject related to your blog topic and see the many responses as well as helpful links to other sites in your genre. This can help you with generating content ideas and/or fuel networking opportunities.
Tip #4
More and more social media sites like Blab and Periscope are integrating Twitter into their operations. What that means for you is that more people will be hoping onto the social network willingly or just out of convenience. Regardless of the motive, there are approximately 300 million current Twitter users. This is an ideal tool for free data mining. If all else fails, this may help you tremendously.
Tip #5
Facebook groups are another method of gaining content. As with the other hubs, guess what you’ll need to do–yes, listen. Stay tuned to the insights or issues that you should be writing about.
Bonus Tip
Why? Because I likey you! Another simple strategy for whipping up content is to look at what’s taking place in popular culture. You can always use this trending topic as a way to weave in your tips. Your goal is to lend perspective. Pull from your latest reality spectacle and provide key takeaways related to your expertise.
This is just a few ways in which you can spark some interesting blog content for you blog. Need in-depth tips on the who, what, when, and why? Sign up for my RAW BRANDED® Courses.
It is believed that there are approximately 42 million WordPress blogs on the internet (as of 2013)! With more bloggers popping up on the daily, it is imperative that your blog stands out from the pack. Now, with stats like this, you may believe that the odds aren’t forever in your favor. Do not fret! As many blogs that pop up on the scene, there is an equal amount that are abandoned. However, don’t let that happen to your blog!
One way to ensure that your readers will continue to tune into your content is by establishing a tone of voice. Your blog’s tone is its personality. It’s the unique way in which you choose to communicate with your readers. This can be lighthearted and sarcastic (eh, hem), funny, or serious. Your main goal may be to solely educate your readers, or perhaps you are seeking to educate and entertain. You will convey a clear brand once you determine the overall goal for your blog then pair this with your blog’s personality.
You may also want to establish your voice based on the preferences within your industry. For instance, if your blog is centered on finances, you may want to adopt a straight, educational tone. However, you should be cautioned that this is not a rule! There are many successful blogs out there that have been formed by writers who have broken these rules. Yes, some rules are made to be broken! You will find just as many bloggers who write humorously about their financial woes and advice as those who mirror a corporate feel. The choice is up to you; however, you are best suited by establishing a blog that fits your personality, especially if you will be the sole writer. Most importantly, once you find your tone of voice, stick to it. Consistency breeds familiarity, and people will seek out the vibe in which you consistently establish. Your vibe will attract your tribe!
Needs more clarity on this topic? Watch my video (above) with quick tips that you can use to enhance your blog today. Don’t forget to drop a comment or question below.
