Category Archives: Better Business
February 17, 2016 Guest Post: 5 Basics for Fresh Content
This guest blog post comes from Kate Leibfried, president of Click Clack Writing. Click Clack is comprised of a team of writers and editors who create quality content for businesses. Enjoy! –Margaret
Feel like your content is stale? Having trouble keeping your website or social media up-to-date? Here are 5 handy tips that will boost you above the competition:
1. Develop a schedule
Okay, okay. This sounds totally boring and tedious, but it is THE number one thing you can do when it comes to creating fresh content. Set aside a chunk of time every day (whether it’s a half hour in the morning, a few minutes during lunch, or whatever) and dedicate that time to freshening up your content. Surf the web, create a list of handy articles you find, and post them to your website or social media platforms. Try to dedicate at least one day per week to creating your own content in the form of a blog post or newsletter.
Look to steps 2-5 for great content creation shortcuts.
2. Subscribe to Google Alerts
Get daily (or weekly) alerts delivered to your inbox about the subjects that matter most to YOU. Do you care about fashion, photography, ice skating? Does your business revolve around career coaching? Diversity training? Security systems? Subscribe to Google Alerts and find interesting new content to share with your audience.
Alternatively, use your favorite RSS feed reader to get updates from your favorite websites.
3. Cross-Pollinate
If you’re attempting to keep up your website, multiple social media platforms, and a blog, it can all feel a little overwhelming at times. That’s where cross-pollination comes into play. You can link many of your platforms together so that your content is disseminated across multiple areas. For instance, you can schedule an automatic tweet/Facebook post/LinkedIn update when you publish a blog post. You can also put a Twitter or Facebook feed on your website so that any site visitors can easily see your recent activity (and the website will always seem fresh). You can link your Instagram account to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, etc. so that your snazzy photo will be shared across all your social platforms.
With cross-pollination, you can ease the burden of trying to be everywhere at once. Focus on what you love and let your content spread through your linked accounts.
4. Post Evergreen Content
What is evergreen content? That’s the stuff that stays fresh and relevant, no matter the original posting date. Maybe you’re a construction company and you’ve written a blog post about winterizing your home–that’s evergreen. It will be relevant year after year for homeowners.
Take advantage of that longevity. Feel free to repost evergreen items every once in a while to your audience.
What’s NOT evergreen? Promotions, holiday greetings, event reminders…anything that will become irrelevant after a given time period.
5. Don’t Get Hung Up on #Trends
It can feel like a social media rat race when you try to tweet or post about whatever topic is trending at the moment. Unless you love being on the daily pulse (or truly have something to say about a hot issue), don’t work yourself into a frenzy trying to keep up with the latest trending topic. Instead, focus on your business and your personal area of expertise. Concentrate on what’s relevant in your industry and what will REMAIN relevant to your audience in the foreseeable future.
Keep in mind: your contention creation is NOT about you. It’s about your audience. Do them a service by relaying quality advice, tips, or professional opinions. Give them information that they can use. Make yourself (and your company) a value resource to them, and they’ll keep coming back.
BONUS TIP: Hire Help
If you’re up to your ears with work, don’t be afraid to hire help. While we encourage you to at least attempt to create your own content for a while (this helps you develop a genuine voice and build an understanding of your audience), we understand that not everyone has the time or inclination. Hire an expert (or several) to either get you going or maintain the content creation work that you’ve already started. Companies like Click Clack Writing specialize in content creation for businesses. Other companies like Tena.cious specialize in social media marketing and can help set you up with a comprehensive social media strategy. Whatever your needs may be, there are companies out there that can help. By hiring outside help, you can get back to the work you really love.
Good luck with creating fresh, interesting content! If you need further help, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us today.
–Kate & the Click Clack Team
MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, INSIGHTS®DISCOVERY LICENSED PRACTITIONER, FOUNDER OF UXL, AND CO-FOUNDER OF THE TAG TEAM. YOU CAN VISIT HER WEBSITE AT WWW.YOUEXCELNOW.COM
Tags: basic content creation, Click Clack Writing, create fresh content, evergreen content, guest blog post, improve contention creation, small business content creation
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November 18, 2015 How Great Leaders Inspire Action
Simon Sinek, photo credit: StartWithWhy.com
How can you get one person to act? How about a bunch of people? How about an entire movement? Great leaders can inspire this kind of action. They lead revolutions and motivate people to buy their products. There is something different and powerful about great leaders. What is it?
Leadership expert Simon Sinek attempts to explain.
“People don’t buy what you do,” Sinek said in a recent TED Talk, “they buy why you do it.” You have to believe in your product or cause so deeply that it inspires others to believe as well. It’s the principle that Martin Luther King Jr. used in his activism. As Sinek says, Dr. King had an “I have a dream” speech, not an “I have a plan” speech.
If you’re not driven by belief and you don’t know why you do what you do, why would anyone else buy into what you do?
The principle makes sense and has been proven over and over again, from Apple to the Wright Brothers. If you have a few minutes, I highly recommend watching Sinek’s TED Talk. It will make you ask yourself, “Why do I do what I do?”
Happy watching:
MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, INSIGHTS® DISCOVERY LICENSED PRACTITIONER, FOUNDER OF UXL, AND CO-FOUNDER OF THE TAG TEAM. YOU CAN VISIT HER WEBSITE AT WWW.YOUEXCELNOW.COM
Tags: great leaders, great leadership, how great leaders inspire action, Inspiring leader, Margaret Smith, simon sinek, TED Talk, UXL
October 14, 2015 Who’s Left Out on Your Team?
It’s a common occurrence. There’s that employee or two (or dozens, depending on the size of your company) that just doesn’t fit in with the rest. Maybe they’re quiet or lack confidence. Maybe they don’t conform with the prevailing office culture. Whatever the case, feeling left out or ignored can have serious negative consequences. The snubbed employee might feel anxious about coming to work, their performance might drop, they might feel self-conscious and afraid to speak up, etc. Not to mention, your organization suffers as a whole because that troubled employee is not doing their best work, and will either quit or come to work miserable.
So what can you, as a leader, do if someone is being left out on your team?
1. Lead by example.
Practice inclusive behavior and do NOT pick favorites. Challenge yourself to talk to everyone at the table during a team meeting and truly listen to what they have to say. One great method of inclusionary behavior is to ask introverted or excluded employees for their opinions or input in front of others. According to Harvard Business Journal, “Listening to employees not only signals to them that you value their contributions, but also demonstrates to other employees that everyone has value. Plus, you get the added benefit of a diverse set of opinions.”
2. Trust.
Put your trust in your marginalized employees. Build their confidence by assigning them challenging projects or asking them to lead a team meeting. Show them that they are a valuable part of the organization by entrusting them to problem solve and create solutions to problems without you looking over their shoulder.
3. Create an Inclusive Environment.
Have you ever been to a team meeting where only a few people dominate the conversation? This is exactly the kind of environment that makes people feel ostracized or unimportant. To avoid these negative feelings, try starting every meeting by going around the table and having everyone give a brief statement about the current project. That way, everyone’s voice is heard at the very beginning. You can also close the meeting out in a similar way by asking everyone to state how they think the meeting went and what they hope to accomplish between now and the next meeting. Another thing you can do is rotate meeting leaders (or co-leaders). That way, all team members get a chance to monitor the meeting.
4. Don’t dismiss others ideas.
Even if you disagree or don’t quite understand a team member’s idea, don’t toss it aside. Instead, ask that person to clarify what they meant and give the idea thoughtful consideration. This open atmosphere is something Google embraces: “Googlers” are encouraged to bring their ideas forward, no matter how farfetched they might seem.
5. Realize that inclusivity is an ongoing objective.
Just because you’ve successful navigated one team project, doesn’t mean that you can ignore inclusivity and move on to other things. Keep this ideal top-of-mind and strive for an inclusive workplace atmosphere.
MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, LICENSED INSIGHTS DISCOVERY PRACTITIONER, FOUNDER OF UXL, AND CO-FOUNDER OF THE TAG TEAM. YOU CAN VISIT HER WEBSITE AT WWW.YOUEXCELNOW.COM
Tags: career coach Margaret Smith, inclusion at work, inclusive behavior, left out employee, ostracized team member, practicing inclusivity, snubbed employee
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