Photo Credit: sxc.hu/photo/1398762
Putting out regular, fresh online content is one of the best ways to build your visibility and credibility as an expert. But finding the time while running your business may seem a daunting task.
I love the concept of the 4 Hour Work Week, 4-Hour Body, 4-Hour anything. Who doesn’t want to achieve more in less time?
Trouble is, in my experience, it doesn’t usually work out that way. To my mind, you can get close to that kind of productivity with your online content and make every hour count, if you make a plan and stick to it.
As Daylight Saving Time kicks in, why not spend some time planning? Even though it’s already March, you can still sit down and create an editorial calendar for the year..either 12 months from now or perhaps just until December 2013.
You can map out your content ideas and schedule them with pen and paper, using google maps or special software or with a wordpress plugin called – what else – editorial calendar.
On the calendar, write down the topics you want to talk about and when. Think about holidays and annual trends you can piggyback on for relevant newsworthy content. Work backward from any promotions, special deals, new products or services you have planned for your business so that in the months and weeks ahead, you’ll be laying the groundwork and creating buzz for your new offerings with your content.
You don’t have to flesh out all the specifics right now for the actual posts or videos or whatever content your target audience prefers, just get the general ideas decided and scheduled on the calendar.
Even if you only plan for one month’s content or 90 days worth, you’ll be ahead of many others. The goal is to boost your visibility and credibility and increase the Know-Like-Trust factor with regular posts. As more people get familiar with your expertise and are attracted to what you do, they’ll want to do business with you. The key is to commit to a content strategy and be consistent so your audience can count on seeing your new posts, videos, etc.
Writing multiple simple blog posts or shooting several videos in chunks of time can also help. For example, if you set aside a block of time to write 12 short entries or shoot 12 short video tips all in one sitting every 90 days, you can schedule a year’s worth of weekly posts by doing the work only 4 times a year.
If it took you about an hour each time…hmmm, 4 hours in a year. Where have we heard that before?
And if you pass along the finishing bits, uploading, etc. to an assistant or outsourcer, that’s even more time saved!
As we move the clocks forward this weekend, be ready to spring ahead with fascinating content that grows your business.
What systems do you use to save time and get more visible? Please leave a comment.