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[09] How to Know Exactly What Content You Should Create

In this weekÔÇÖs episode we proceed to the next step in our series on content marketing strategy by discussing how to know what content you need to be delivering to achieve your content marketing goals.

Important links from this episode:

Transcript

Jerod Morris: Welcome to Sites, a podcast by the teams at StudioPress and Copyblogger. In this show, we deliver time-tested insight on the four pillars of a successful WordPress website: content, design, technology, and strategy. We want to help you get a little bit closer to reaching your online goals, one episode at a time.

IÔÇÖm your host Jerod Morris.

Sites is brought to you by StudioPress Sites — the complete hosted solution that makes WordPress fast, secure, and easy ÔÇª without sacrificing power or flexibility. For example, you can upload your own WordPress theme, or, you can use one of the 20 beautiful StudioPress themes that are included and just one click away. Explore all the amazing things you can do with a StudioPress Site, and youÔÇÖll understand why this is way more than traditional WordPress hosting. No matter how youÔÇÖll be using your site, we have a plan to fit your needs — and your budget. To learn more, visit studiopress.com/sites. ThatÔÇÖs studiopress.com/sites.

Welcome to Episode 9 of Sites.

Last week we discussed strategy, outlining 10 content marketing goals worth pursuing. Assuming you are focused on pursuing at least one of those goals, and hopefully many more than one, itÔÇÖs now time to resume our series on content marketing strategy.

In Episode 1, we outlined the three-step process for creating a winning content marketing strategy: the who, the what, and how.

Then in Episode 5, we took a deep dive into the first step in that process, the who, by analyzing how to attract your ideal customer with perfectly positioned content.

And in this weekÔÇÖs episode we proceed to the next step, the what, by digging into a decision that can be, at times, really exciting and fun, and at other times somewhat challenging and even frustrating.

WeÔÇÖre going to discuss how to know what content you need to be delivering to achieve your content marketing goals — one of which, I assume, is to convert more prospects.

And since the blog post that I am adapting for this episode was written by Brian Clark, you wonÔÇÖt be surprised to find out that there is discussion of the heroÔÇÖs journey and examples from Star Wars right around the corner.

LetÔÇÖs dive in now and learn how to know exactly what content to deliver to convert more prospects.

How to Know Exactly What Content to Deliver to Convert More Prospects

Back in the 1940s, psychologists Fritz Heider and Marianne Simmel conducted an experiment. They showed study participants an animated film consisting of a rectangle with an opening, plus a circle and two triangles in motion.

The participants were then asked to simply describe what they saw in the film.

Before you continue listening, if you want to take a look at the film yourself, go to the show notes for this episode at studiopress.blog/sites09. ThereÔÇÖs a link to the film on YouTube right there at the top of the link bullets. ItÔÇÖs a short film, about a minute. IÔÇÖll be here when you come back.

So … what did you see?

Out of all the study participants, only one responded with ÔÇ£a rectangle with an opening, plus a circle and two triangles in motion.ÔÇØ The rest developed elaborate stories about the simple geometric shapes.

Many participants concluded the circle and the little triangle were in love, and that the evil grey triangle was trying to harm or abduct the circle. Others went further to conclude that the blue triangle fought back against the larger triangle, allowing his love to escape back inside, where they soon rendezvoused, embraced, and lived happily ever after.

ThatÔÇÖs pretty wild when you think about it.

The Heider-Simmel experiment became the initial basis of attribution theory, which describes how people explain the behavior of others, themselves ÔÇª and also, apparently, geometric shapes on the go.

More importantly, people explain things in terms of stories. Even in situations where no story is being intentionally told, weÔÇÖre telling ourselves a tale as a way to explain our experience of reality.

And yes, we tell ourselves stories about brands, products, and services. Whether youÔÇÖre consciously telling a story or not, prospects are telling themselves a story about you.

Are you telling a story? And more importantly, does that story resonate with the way your prospective customers and clients are seeing things?

This is the key to knowing what your prospect needs to hear, and when they need to hear it, as part of your overall content marketing strategy. And in a networked, information-rich world where the prospects have all the power, this is your only chance to control the narrative.

What kind of story should you tell?

You need to tell a Star Wars story. And by that, I mean you need to take your prospects along a content marketing version of the mythic heroÔÇÖs journey.

In The Hero with a Thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell identifies a ÔÇ£monomythÔÇØ ÔÇö a fundamental structure common to myths that have survived for thousands of years. CampbellÔÇÖs identification of these enduring myths from disparate times and regions has inspired modern storytellers to consciously craft their work following the monomyth framework, also known as the heroÔÇÖs journey.

Most notable among those inspired by the heroÔÇÖs journey is George Lucas, who acknowledged CampbellÔÇÖs work as the source of the plot for Star Wars. As a content marketer, you can also consciously incorporate the monomyth into your launches, funnels, and general editorial calendar.

If you go to Brian ClarkÔÇÖs original post, at copyblogger.com/what, youÔÇÖll find an image that shows the general elements of the heroÔÇÖs journey.

They include elements youÔÇÖre likely familiar with if youÔÇÖve learned about the heroÔÇÖs journey in the past:

The call to adventure
Meeting the mentor
Crossing the threshold between The Ordinary World and The World of Transformation
Helpers and Challengers
Into the Innermost Cave
The Supreme Ordeal
Seizing Your Treasure,
And finally, The Journey Home

ItÔÇÖs important to note that not all monomythic stories contain every aspect, but the original Star Wars faithfully follows almost every element of the heroÔÇÖs journey.

LetÔÇÖs focus on the first two steps of the journey, in the ÔÇ£ordinary worldÔÇØ before the journey truly begins. HereÔÇÖs how those elements occurred in the original Star Wars.

Luke is living in the ordinary world of his home planet, working on the family farm.
The ÔÇ£call to adventureÔÇØ is R2-D2ÔÇÖs holographic message from Princess Leia, the classic princess in distress.
Luke initially refuses the call due to his family obligations, until his aunt and uncle are killed.
Luke meets his mentor and guide, Obi-Wan Kenobi, who convinces Luke to proceed with his heroic journey.
Obi-Wan gives Luke a gift that determines his destiny ÔÇö his fatherÔÇÖs lightsaber.

How does this apply to content marketing? Simple.

Your prospect is Luke. You are Obi-Wan.

The mistake most often made in marketing is thinking of your business as the hero, resulting in egocentric messages that no one else cares about. The prospect is always the primary hero, because they are the one going on the journey ÔÇö whether big or small ÔÇö to solve a problem or satisfy a desire.

The prospect starts off in the ordinary world of their lives.
The call to adventure is an unsolved problem or unfulfilled desire.
ThereÔÇÖs resistance to solving that problem or satisfying the desire.
A mentor (your brand) appears that helps them proceed with the journey.
You deliver a gift (your content) that ultimately leads to a purchase.
By making the prospect the hero, your brand also becomes a hero in the prospectÔÇÖs story.

And by accepting the role of mentor with your content, your business accomplishes its goals while helping the prospect do the same. Which is how business is supposed to work, right?

8 core steps in the buyerÔÇÖs journey

Brian Clark has been using the heroÔÇÖs journey to teach marketing and sales since 2007. He has found that just the act of thinking of the prospect as the hero makes you a better content marketer.

When you think in terms of empowering people to solve their problem by playing the role of mentor, youÔÇÖre naturally performing better than competitors who take an egocentric approach.

This is also the exact way we come up with content marketing strategies for our own launches, funnels, and general editorial calendar. After years of using this strategic process, IÔÇÖve found that every buyerÔÇÖs journey contains key points where you must deliver the right information at the right time to succeed at an optimal level.

Remember, each journey is tied to a particular who that you have documented. Some people create content journeys for multiple personas, but my advice is that you pick one at first and focus. Even Apple stuck with one target persona for the entirety of the Get a Mac campaign, which we discussed back in episode 5.

YouÔÇÖll notice I use the word ÔÇ£problemÔÇØ here coming up, rather than ÔÇ£problem or desire.ÔÇØ An unfulfilled desire is a problem in the mind of the prospect, so it works on its own.

Here are the 8 core steps in the buyerÔÇÖs journey:

1. Ordinary World: This is the world (and worldview) that your ideal prospect lives in. She may be aware of the problem that she has, but she hasnÔÇÖt yet resolved to do something about it. You understand how this person thinks, sees, feels, and behaves due to the empathy mapping process.

2. Call to Adventure: The prospect decides to take action to solve the problem. It could be a New YearÔÇÖs resolution, a longstanding goal, or a problem that rears its head for the first time.

3. Resistance to the Call: At this point, the prospect starts to waver in her commitment to solving the problem. Maybe it seems too hard, too expensive, too time consuming, or simply too impractical. As weÔÇÖll discuss in a bit, this is a key content inflection point.

4. The Mentor and the Gift: This is the point that you are initially accepted as a mentor that guides the buyerÔÇÖs journey. The prospect accepts your offer of a gift, in the form of information, that promises to help her solve the problem.

5. Crossing the Threshold: This is the point of purchase where the prospect believes that your product or service will lead to the problem being solved, which will lead to transformation. The most important thing to understand is that, unlike flawed funnel metaphors, the journey does not end at purchase.

6. Traveling the Road: The customer begins using the product or service with the goal of achieving success in the context of the problem. Who cares if the customer stops the journey right after purchase, right? Wrong ÔÇö too often this leads to a refund request; plus you miss out on the huge benefits that accompany a happy customer.

7. Seizing the Treasure: The customer experiences success with your product or service. What does this look like for them and you? How will you know when it happens?

8. The New Ordinary: The customer has experienced a positive transaction with you, and yet weÔÇÖre just now getting to the really good stuff. This is a perfect time to prime them for repeat or upsell purchases or referrals. At this point, deliver content that aims at retention for recurring revenue products, and make savvy requests for direct referrals, testimonials, and word of mouth.

Of the eight, only Traveling the Road isnÔÇÖt universal ÔÇö if youÔÇÖre an electrician, you show up and either fix the problem or donÔÇÖt. But if youÔÇÖre selling software-as-a-service, for example, content that gets users engaged with the platform is critical to reducing churn.

These core steps can provide you with a beginning framework for a detailed map of the buyerÔÇÖs journey. The next step is to add the touchpoints that are unique to your product or service.

Your unique journey map

You may be thinking about how exactly youÔÇÖre supposed to map this out. Fortunately, thereÔÇÖs already an established procedure for this, just as during the who phase.

An experience map is a visual representation of the path a consumer takes ÔÇö from beginning to end ÔÇö with your content, and then with your product or service.

By mapping the journey, you know where the additional crucial touchpoints are, and what content can empower the journey to continue.

There is an example of an experience map in BrianÔÇÖs original post at copyblogger.com/what.

The map demonstrates the journey a consumer would take while riding the trains in Europe. It follows her from the early stages of research and planning to the end of her trip.

You see what she is doing (searching Google, looking up timetables), what she is thinking during each action (do I have everything I need, and am I on the right train?), and what she is feeling (stressed: IÔÇÖm about to leave the country and Rail Europe wonÔÇÖt answer the phone).

Do you see the correlation with the empathy mapping exercise you did back when developing a snapshot of your ideal customer in Episode 5? ItÔÇÖs no coincidence that weÔÇÖre now applying what the prospect is ÔÇ£Thinking,ÔÇØ ÔÇ£Seeing,ÔÇØ ÔÇ£Doing,ÔÇØ and ÔÇ£FeelingÔÇØ in their ordinary world to the journey they need to travel.

In a piece called the Anatomy of an Experience Map, Chris Risdon at Adaptive Path suggests your experience map should have these five components:

1. The lens: This is how a particular person (or persona) views the journey. Keep in mind, this journey will not be the same for everyone. You will more than likely have more than one experience map.
2. The journey model: This is the actual design of the map. If all goes well, it should render insight to answer questions like ÔÇ£What happens here? WhatÔÇÖs important about this transition?ÔÇØ
3. Qualitative insight: This is where the Thinking-Seeing-Doing-Feeling of an empathy map comes in handy.
4. Quantitative information: This is data that brings attention to certain aspects of your map. It reveals information like ÔÇ£80 percent of people abandon the process at this touchpoint.ÔÇØ
5. Takeaways: This is where the map earns its money. What are the conclusions? Opportunities? Threats to the system? Does it identify your strengths? Highlight your weaknesses?

If you want more insight on customer experience maps, IÔÇÖve placed a link in the show notes to a post on Copyblogger by Demian Farnworth that does a deep dive into the subject.

Like empathy mapping, it can be done solo, but works even better as a collaborative process, so that everyone on your team understands the journey from the perspective of the prospect and subsequent customer.

Mapping the 7 key influence principles

When you consider influential content, you may naturally think that itÔÇÖs about how you present the information. While thatÔÇÖs true from an engagement standpoint, which principle of influence to apply and when to emphasize it is an exercise in what as well.

In other words, beyond the raw information of the what, youÔÇÖll also want to identify the order of emphasis for things like reciprocity, social proof, authority, liking, commitment and consistency, unity, and scarcity.

Every successful digital marketer I know purposefully applies those seven principles in their content and copy, because they all treat the book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini as their bible. If you havenÔÇÖt read it, you should ÔÇö but in the meantime check out two additional links IÔÇÖve included in the show notes, at studiopress.blog/sites09: one a short video that explains the original six principles of persuasion, and then also an article by Sonia Simone on the all-important 7th principle of unity.

At Rainmaker Digital, we think in terms of four different types of content when mapping the buyerÔÇÖs journey. Keep in mind that great marketing content contains all of these elements; youÔÇÖre simply selecting a category based on the primary aim of the individual piece at the appropriate time.

First up we have Attraction content, otherwise known as ÔÇ£top of funnelÔÇØ information.

This corresponds best with the Resistance to the Call point of the heroÔÇÖs journey ÔÇö it addresses the problem while also addressing common objections to moving forward. In addition to creating the feeling that ÔÇ£youÔÇÖre reading their mind,ÔÇØ youÔÇÖre also invoking early influence through reciprocity, social proof through share numbers, and establishing authority.

Next up, you have your cornerstone influence principle thanks to Authority content.

The important thing is that you demonstrate authority, rather than claim it. Your Attraction content sets the stage, and your Authority content should be gated behind an email opt-in. At this stage, youÔÇÖre establishing clear authority, continuing to leverage reciprocity and social proof, and adding liking, plus commitment and consistency thanks to the opt-in.

Next is Affinity content, which solidly positions you as a ÔÇ£likable expert,ÔÇØ but it goes beyond that.

This is where you let your core values shine. You reflect the prospectÔÇÖs worldview back to them in a completely authentic way, prompting the powerful principle of unity. Never underestimate how often people choose to do business with people they like, and who also see the world like they do.

Finally, it all comes down to Action.

You donÔÇÖt look for ultimate action at the beginning of the journey. But you do rely on smaller actions along the way, especially at the bridge between Attraction content and Authority content. That said, the key influence principle at this stage is scarcity, which youÔÇÖve earned the right to employ thanks to the other six principles. People fear missing out more than they desire gain, so make sure to use it ethically.

This is the outline of your story

ItÔÇÖs tempting at this point to try to imagine how youÔÇÖre going to execute on your strategy, but youÔÇÖre not quite there yet.

For now, map the journey experience. In addition to your character, youÔÇÖve now got the plot points in the narrative youÔÇÖre weaving.

All thatÔÇÖs left is to figure out how to tell the story. ThatÔÇÖs coming up in four weeks when we hit Content again and continue our series on content marketing strategy.

Now stick around ÔÇª this weekÔÇÖs hyper-specific call to action is coming up.

What you just heard was adapted from Brian ClarkÔÇÖs blog post How to Know Exactly What Content to Deliver to Convert More Prospects, originally published at Copyblogger.com. You can find a link to the original article in the show notes at studiopress.blog/sites09. ItÔÇÖs a pretty simple link: copyblogger.com/what.

Now to this weekÔÇÖs hyper-specific call to action …

Call to action

As usual with these episodes adapted from BrianÔÇÖs content marketing strategy series, the CTA is pretty simple and right there in the post.

For this episode, it is to map the journey experience you want your audience to go on as they interact with your content.

Think about the 8 steps in the buyerÔÇÖs journey that we outlined in this episode, and then figure out how the four different types of content — Attraction, Authority, Affinity, and Action — will help you create that experience.

You can use the experience map example in the show notes to help you, or you can devise your own style of mapping, or even just describing this experience.

At a minimum, think about it. Take some step toward being intentional and strategic about the experience you want your audience to have as they go through your content.

And remember: THEY are the hero, not you. You are the mentor, the guide, but itÔÇÖs THEIR problems youÔÇÖre looking to help solve, THEIR goals youÔÇÖre looking to help them achieve, THEIR objections youÔÇÖre looking to overcome.

This call to action may take you a little bit longer than the others, but itÔÇÖs worth it.

Coming next week, itÔÇÖs back to design. WeÔÇÖre going to talk about a specific type of design: UX design, or user experience design, and how doing this right is an investment that pays off in numerous ways.

ThatÔÇÖs next week, on Sites.

Finally, before I go, here are two more quick calls to action for you to consider:

Subscribe to Sites Weekly

If you havenÔÇÖt yet, please take this opportunity to activate your free subscription to our curated weekly email newsletter, Sites Weekly.

HereÔÇÖs how it works: Each week, I find four links about content, design, technology, and strategy that you donÔÇÖt want to miss, and then I send them out via email on Wednesday afternoon.

Reading this newsletter will help you make your website more powerful and successful. Go to studiopress.com/news and sign up in one step right there at the top of the page. ThatÔÇÖs studiopress.com/news.

Oh, and I should mention, we occasionally include special offers in these emails too — stuff that isnÔÇÖt otherwise marketed publicly. So if you like StudioPress products, keep your eye out for special deals in your Sites Weekly email. Again, itÔÇÖs studiopress.com/news.

Rate and Review Sites on Apple Podcasts

And finally, if you enjoy the Sites podcast, please subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts (formerly known as iTunes), and consider giving us a rating or a review over there as well.

One quick tip on that: to make the best use of your review, let me know something in particular you like about the show. That feedback is really important.

For example, here is a recent review we received Apple ID Enlightenment Through Food: ÔÇ£I was looking for some advice on setting up my site, but I didnÔÇÖt realize how important my content and strategy is. It doesnÔÇÖt matter how pretty your site is if you arenÔÇÖt getting your message out and creating an audience. Thank you for helping with this piece of my site puzzle!ÔÇØ

YouÔÇÖre welcome Enlightenment! Thank you for listening, and for being so open to additional ideas for how to create a thriving web presence.

To find us in Apple Podcasts, search for StudioPress Sites and look for the striking purple logo that was designed by Rafal Tomal. You can also go to the URL sites.fm/apple and it will redirect you to our Apple Podcasts page.

And with that, we come to the close of another episode. Thank you for listening to this episode of Sites. I appreciate you being here.

Join me next week, and letÔÇÖs keep building powerful, successful websites together.

This episode of sites was brought to you by StudioPress Sites, which was awarded ÔÇ£Fastest WordPress HostingÔÇØ of 2017 in an independent speed testÔÇÅ. If you want to make WordPress fast, secure, and easy — and, I mean, why wouldnÔÇÖt you — visit studiopress.com/sites today and see which plan fits your needs. ThatÔÇÖs studiopress.com/sites.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

Sites Weekly: How to Hack the 3 Influencers of Attention

Welcome to another edition of Sites Weekly.

A few quick reminders before this week’s links.

First: don’t forget to submit your website question here.

I’m curious to know what you’re wondering about, or what you’re stuck on, so that I can tailor these newsletters and future episodes of the Sites podcast to help you take meaningful steps forward.

Second: there is a flash sale going on right now for the StudioPress Pro Plus All-Theme Pack.

The basic details are that you get $125 off (plus your returning customer discount, if you’re a StudioPress customer), and it lasts until this Friday, July 28, 2017.

Click here to learn more before the offer expires.

Okay, now on to this week’s links …

Content: When data and intuition collide

I learned this concept a few years back, and it has had a huge impact on how I write copy.

It also just makes sense: people are more likely to do something you ask them to do when you give them a reason why they should do it. Fortunately, data backs this up.

The blog post is short, so you don’t need a whole lot of preamble from me. Just click it, read it, and put it into practice … because I can tell you from experience, it works.

A Simple Copy Hack That Can Increase Conversions By 55% (Because ItÔÇÖs Easy)

Design: How to hack the 3 influencers of attention

If you’re an online content creator, then you’re in the business of competing for attention.

Every potential audience member has a finite amount of time and headspace they can invest in your content, and you’re competing with every other content creator and potential activity out there.

Sounds a little daunting, doesn’t it?

Which is why we need to find every little advantage we can. And one big advantage you can have is understanding what processes in the brain influence attention and how you can influence them with your design.

The article linked below is written by a cognitive psychologist and outlines what he refers to as H.E.R. attention maps, which help you understand the basics of capturing and retaining attention.

Hack Your Customer’s Brain

Side note: I also linked to this post because its design is remarkable.

Technology: Google Analytics is about to become more helpful

If you’re like me, the thought of opening Google Analytics can sometimes be headache-inducing.

It’s not that I don’t want to see the numbers and use them to make better decisions, it’s just that I sometimes feel intimidated by the plethora of options and menus, and I wonder if I’ll be able to easily get the information I need.

Well, it sounds like this is about to become a much more intuitive process.

As Matt Southern of Search Engine Journal explains, “Retrieving the Google Analytics metrics you care about is now as easy as asking for them using natural language.”

I’m sure this won’t be perfect right off the bat, but it’s a huge step in the direction of Google Analytics becoming more inviting and simple to use — not to mention instantly more informative.

Get the Google Analytics Data You Need Using Natural Language Queries

Strategy: Could these two sites be untapped resources for attracting new audience members?

Reddit and Quora get tons of traffic, but they can also be intimidating for new users. There are plenty of community norms to learn, and both sites require a genuine, long-term investment before you can effectively refer people to your site or offer services to the right prospects.

But that’s how it should be.

What’s great about both Reddit and Quora, and what makes them worth investigating as you seek to develop more relationships with potential audience members, is the curiosity level of each site’s users and the ability to target specific niches for engagement based on topics of interest (subreddits) and specific questions (Quora).

This post breaks down how to take a long-term and strategic view of both Reddit and Quora, so that you can invest time in each site and ultimately drive real bottom-line results.

How to Turn Your Industry Expertise Into More Sales on Reddit and Quora

Bonus article: Is it time to refresh your email signature?

This blog post offers some practical tips on how to create an email signature that goes to work for you — subtly and smartly —
with every email you send.

What Does the Perfect Email Signature Look Like in 2017?

So …

Which of the ideas in these posts will you put to good use immediately?

I’ll be back with a new edition next week.

Keep building.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

[08] 10 Goals that Make Content Marketing Meaningful

In this episode of Sites, we revisit a classic post from Sonia Simone that lists and describes 10 content marketing goals that are worth pursuing. Which ones are you already pursuing? Which ones should you add to your mix? Listen and find out.

Important links from this episode:

Transcript

IÔÇÖm your host Jerod Morris.

Welcome to Episode 8 of Sites.

Last week we talked about technology and did quite a deep dive into SEO. That means that this week we come to the conclusion of our second full cycle through our four pillars of a successful website: content, design, technology, and ÔÇª strategy.

And I know what youÔÇÖre thinking from looking at the title of this episode: strategy? But isnÔÇÖt this about content?

Yes.

ItÔÇÖs about strategy and content.

Just like last week, when we discussed SEO, it was really about strategy and technology (and, in some ways, content and design too).

As I mentioned when we launched this podcast, and first explained these four pillars that will guide our content, overlap is inevitable. And that is okay. The goal is simply to make sure we donÔÇÖt miss anything essential. ItÔÇÖs certainly not going to hurt us if we double up or triple up or even quadruple our focus on these important concepts in any one episode.

Plus, as youÔÇÖll see, while some of the 10 goals weÔÇÖre going to discuss in this episode deal specifically with actual blog content, others donÔÇÖt — #7 especially.

And thatÔÇÖs why I chose to cover this topic for one of our strategy episodes.

Because if you arenÔÇÖt pursuing at least one of these content marketing goals, and probably many more, you clearly donÔÇÖt have a defined strategy for your website that is going to lead you in a positive direction.

Chances are, you are indeed following one or several of these goals. But might there be a new one you could add to the mix? Or might hearing these ideas spark a new one in your mind?

I sure hope so.

This weekÔÇÖs episode is based on an article that was originally written by Sonia Simone for Copyblogger. It is called 10 Content Marketing Goals Worth Pursuing.

LetÔÇÖs get to it ÔÇª

10 Content Marketing Goals Worth Pursuing

Ever wonder why content marketing works so well for some businesses ÔÇö but doesnÔÇÖt seem to do anything at all for others?

Curious about why some content that seems great doesnÔÇÖt do anything to build a business?

ÔÇ£Content is kingÔÇØ has been an online clich├® for years now, but itÔÇÖs not true. ItÔÇÖs never been true.

Content all by itself ÔÇö even terrific content ÔÇö is just ÔÇª content.

It may be entertaining. It may be educational. It may contain the secret to world peace and fresh, minty breath, all rolled into one.

But it has no magical powers. It wonÔÇÖt transform your business or get you where you need to go, until you add one thing ÔÇª

Content marketing is a meaningless exercise without business goals.

So ÔÇª what makes content marketing work?

To make content work, you need to understand your marketing and business goals. Then you can create content that serves those goals, instead of just giving your audience something to pass the time.

Your blog posts, email marketing, ebooks, podcasts, advertising ÔÇª all of it needs to fit into a larger picture.

Now, if you blog purely for creative self-expression, go ahead and write as the spirit moves you.

But if youÔÇÖre using content to market a business, you need a strategic framework so you can get the most out of your time and hard work.

Here are 10 of the business goals that drive our content marketing at Rainmaker Digital.

You might focus on just one or two, or you may use all 10. As you listen to this episode, see which of these you can apply to your own content marketing plan.

Goal #1: Build trust and rapport with your audience

This is the most obvious use of content marketing, and itÔÇÖs a good one.

When you create useful, interesting, and valuable content, your audience learns they can trust you. They see that you know your topic. They get a sense of your personality and what it would be like to work with you.

Lack of trust kills conversion. An abundance of valuable content builds trust like nothing else.

But too many marketers stop there. In fact, itÔÇÖs just the beginning.

Goal #2: Attract new prospects to your marketing system

We all had it drilled into our heads by Mr. Godin when we were just baby content marketers: You have to be remarkable.

Your content has to be compelling enough that it attracts links, social media sharing, and conversation.

Why? Because thatÔÇÖs how new people find you.

No matter how delightful your existing customers are, you need a steady stream of new prospects to keep your business healthy.

Remarkable content that gets shared around the web will find your best new prospects for you and lead them back to everything you have to offer.

Goal #3: Explore prospect pain

No, youÔÇÖre not doing this to be a sadist.

The fact is, most enduring businesses thrive because they solve problems.

They solve health problems, parenting problems, money problems, business problems, technology problems, ÔÇ£What should I make for dinner?ÔÇØ problems.

When you understand your prospectÔÇÖs problems, you understand how to help them ÔÇö and then you have the core of your marketing message.

Strategic content dives into the problems your prospects are facing. What annoys them? What frightens them? What keeps them awake at night?

A smart content marketing program leaves room for audience questions. These might come in email replies, blog comments, or you may hold Q&A sessions or webinars specifically to solicit questions.

Listen to the problems your market asks you about, and use those as a compass to guide your future content.

Goal #4: Illustrate benefits

Obviously, we donÔÇÖt dig up prospect problems and leave it at that.

We talk about solutions.

We talk about what fixes those annoying problems. Techniques, tips, tricks, methods, approaches.

If you have a viable business, you have a particular take on solving your marketÔÇÖs problems. Your individual approach is the flesh and blood of your content marketing.

Your ÔÇ£10 Ways to Solve Problem XÔÇØ post shows the benefits of your approach. It illustrates how you solve problems and shows customers what they get out of working with you.

Strategic content doesnÔÇÖt just tell a prospect ÔÇ£My product is a good way to solve your problem.ÔÇØ It shows them. And thatÔÇÖs a cornerstone persuasion technique.

Goal #5: Overcome objections

Your prospect is looking for ways to solve his problem, but heÔÇÖs also keeping an eye out for potential problems.

Strategic content can be a superb way to address prospect objections ÔÇö the reasons they donÔÇÖt buy.

Is price a pain point? Write content that demonstrates how implementing your solutions saves money in the long run.

Do your customers think your product will be too complicated to use? Write content that shows customers going from zero to sixty ÔÇª painlessly.

Understand the objections that keep customers from buying, and then think about creative ways to resolve those objections in content ÔÇö often before the buyer ever gets to that sales page.

Goal #6: Paint the picture of life with your product

Ad-man Joe Sugarman was one of the great early practitioners of content marketing. He was a master of long-copy magazine ads for his company JS&A (a consumer gadget company) ÔÇö ads that were often as interesting and compelling as the magazine articles they appeared next to.

In his Copywriting Handbook, he described how he might approach writing an ad for a Corvette.

Feel the breeze blowing through your hair as you drive through the warm evening. Watch heads turn. Punch the accelerator to the floor and feel the burst of power that pins you into the back of your contour seat. Look at the beautiful display of electronic technology right on your dashboard. Feel the power and excitement of AmericaÔÇÖs super sports car.

Sugarman isnÔÇÖt describing the car. HeÔÇÖs describing the experience of the driver.

Sugarman was a master at mentally putting the customer into the experience of owning the product ÔÇª whether that product was a pocket calculator, a private jet, or a multi-million dollar mansion.

It works very nicely in an ad. It works even better in your content.

Storytelling is one of the best content marketing strategies, and itÔÇÖs a superb way to let customers mentally ÔÇ£try outÔÇØ your offer before they ever experience it for themselves. Use content to show what itÔÇÖs like to own your product or use your service.

Case studies are terrific for this, as are any stories that show how your approach to problem-solving works. Pick up SugarmanÔÇÖs book for lots of ideas about how to create fascinating content for products that might not immediately suggest a fascinating story.

Goal #7: Attract strategic partners

Once upon a time, Copyblogger was one writer.

No software business. No marketing education business. No Authority, no Rainmaker Platform, no premium WordPress themes from StudioPress, no super-fast and secure WordPress hosting with StudioPress Sites, no Digital Commerce Institute, no Rainmaker.FM ÔÇª you get the idea.

From very early days, the quality of the content posted here has attracted strategic partners ÔÇö the partners Brian Clark worked with to create every line of revenue-generating business we have today.

Eventually, that evolved into the creation of a new company ÔÇö Rainmaker Digital (formerly Copyblogger Media). The partnership brings together a great complement of skills, and together we can go farther and faster than Brian could have on his own.

Whatever your business goals are, partnerships are often the smartest way to get there. When youÔÇÖre passionate about creating excellent content, youÔÇÖll find that potential partners are attracted to that passion.

Goal #8: Deepen loyalty with existing customers

This one is probably my favorite.

Every company needs to attract new customers. But the biggest growth potential in most businesses comes from building a tighter relationship with your existing customers.

A solid base of referral and repeat business is the hallmark of a great business. Even if you never did any content marketing to anyone other than your customers, you could radically improve your business by improving the communication you have with your customers today.

Create a richer experience for the people who have already bought from you. Make your products and services work better by pairing them with useful, user-friendly content.

DonÔÇÖt treat the waitress better than you do your date. Give great stuff to the people who have already bought from you, and theyÔÇÖll reward you for it.

Goal #9: Develop new business ideas

Your content stream is a fantastic place to try out new ideas.

Thinking about repositioning your key product? Trying to better define your unique selling proposition? See a new problem on the horizon that your customers might want you to solve?

Get those ideas into your content, and see how people react. You can watch what excites people and what fizzles out.

Business writer Jim Collins talks about firing bullets, then cannonballs. In other words, when you get a new idea for your business, fire off something low-risk to test the waters.

DonÔÇÖt start firing your big ammunition until youÔÇÖre sure you can actually hit the target. (And that thereÔÇÖs a target there to hit.)

Content is an amazing low-risk way to try out your ideas while risking very little. Your audience will let you know with their reactions which ideas fire them up and which ones leave them cold.

Goal #10: Build your reputation with search engines

Lots of content creators think this is reason #1 to create content ÔÇö but if you put this goal in the wrong place, youÔÇÖll probably struggle with SEO.

ThatÔÇÖs because search engines find you valuable when readers find you valuable.

Search engines are looking for content thatÔÇÖs valuable to their users. If you create that type of content, your SEO battle is 9/10 done.

So put the first nine content marketing goals first, and the 10th becomes a matter of relatively simple SEO optimization.

Stick around ÔÇª this weekÔÇÖs hyper-specific call to action is coming up.

Again, that was a reading of Sonia SimoneÔÇÖs blog post 10 Content Marketing Goals Worth Pursuing, originally published at Copyblogger.com. You can find a link to the original article in the show notes at studiopress.blog/sites08.

Now to this weekÔÇÖs hyper-specific call to action …

Call to action

Answer this simple question:

WhatÔÇÖs the main thing youÔÇÖre looking to get out of content marketing? What is your goal?

To be more specific, what is your business goal?

Because as Sonia said in her post, ÔÇ£Content marketing is a meaningless exercise without business goals.ÔÇØ

And, as with all these goals, donÔÇÖt just think about it. Write it down. In your journal, on a piece of paper, in Evernote, in an email to yourself — thatÔÇÖs actually what I usually do when IÔÇÖm listening to a podcast and think of something important. I shoot off a quick email to myself so that IÔÇÖm forced to see the idea again when I process that email. That works for me, it may not work for you, but just an idea.

The point is: think about this question, experience your answer through the act of recording it, and then actually take some action on it.

So if your goal is #6 from SoniaÔÇÖs post, paint the picture of life without your product, then really work on getting into the shoes of your audience and then telling a compelling story that will help them experience what life will be like with you or without you, depending on the context. Actually write that blog post.

Or if your goal is #2, to attract new prospects to your marketing system, then get content out there that will do that ÔÇª and, of course, have a marketing system for them to opt into. Get your email list going, have an autoresponder, make offers, etc.

You get the idea.

Again, this weekÔÇÖs question: WhatÔÇÖs the main thing youÔÇÖre looking to get out of content marketing? What is your goal?

Write it down.

And you know what? Do something else with it. Tweet it to me. @JerodMorris. J-E-R-O-D-M-O-R-R-I-S. I want to know. And if you have a goal that we didnÔÇÖt discuss in this episode, all the better! Send that to me too.

WeÔÇÖre now 8 episodes into this podcast. LetÔÇÖs start to get to know each other a bit, shall we? Send me a tweet. Let me know your answer to this weekÔÇÖs CTA. I want to know.

Coming next week, we go back to the beginning. After two complete cycles through our four pillars of content, design, technology, and strategy, weÔÇÖre back at content. And that means we take the next step in our series on content marketing strategy that Brian Clark outlined.

WeÔÇÖll be exploring how to know exactly WHAT content to deliver to convert more prospects. It dovetails nicely with this weekÔÇÖs episode, because who among us doesnÔÇÖt list among our content marketing goals: convert more prospects? Hopefully we all do!

That will be a great discussion. DonÔÇÖt miss it.

ThatÔÇÖs next week, on Sites.

Finally, before I go, here are two more quick calls to action for you to consider:

Subscribe to Sites Weekly

If you havenÔÇÖt yet, please take this opportunity to activate your free subscription to our curated weekly email newsletter, Sites Weekly.

HereÔÇÖs how it works: Each week, I find four links about content, design, technology, and strategy that you donÔÇÖt want to miss, and then I send them out via email on Wednesday afternoon.

Rate and Review Sites on Apple Podcasts

And finally, if you enjoy the Sites podcast, please subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts (formerly known as iTunes), and consider giving us a rating or a review over there as well.

One quick tip on that: to make the best use of your review, let me know something in particular you like about the show. That feedback is really important.

For example, here is a recent review we received, from gembrechts: ÔÇ£This show came in the exact moment I needed it. Although I have owned and operated a few businesses, this is my first dip into content marketing. So everything they are converting is the information I need to take in and internalize. Funny, I just love the music on this site. It is very uplifting.ÔÇØ

Thank you gembrechts. First off, itÔÇÖs great to know that you find this show at a time when it can make a huge impact for you. ThatÔÇÖs the reason we started it. And secondly, can I just tell you how much I appreciate the kind words about the music? I spend an inordinate amount of time trying to identify the perfect songs for every podcast I host. I actually really enjoy the process. And IÔÇÖve never felt more enthusiastic about the intro and outro music for a show than for this one. So IÔÇÖm so glad you like it!

By the way, I found the music at Premium Beat. ItÔÇÖs a good resource if youÔÇÖre looking for podcast music and willing to pay a little bit for it.

Anyway — to find us in Apple Podcasts, search for StudioPress Sites and look for the striking purple logo that was designed by Rafal Tomal. You can also go to the URL sites.fm/apple and it will redirect you to our Apple Podcasts page.

And with that, we come to the close of another episode. Thank you for listening to this episode of Sites. I appreciate you being here.

Join me next week, and letÔÇÖs keep building powerful, successful websites together.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

Bonus: I want your website questions!

In this ultra-short episode, I put out a call to action for your current questions and desires. What issues are keeping you from moving forward with your website? What burning website desire do you have that a well-timed piece of advice can you help you move toward? Let me know!

Two ways to submit your question:

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

Sites Weekly: How to Conduct a Compelling, Candid Interview

Welcome to another edition of Sites Weekly.

I hope this week’s edition finds you in the midst of an ultra-productive week in which you are making significant progress with your website.

And speaking of progress with your website …

I want to take this opportunity to welcome questions — your questions. We’ve been humming along with this newsletter and the new Sites podcast, and both are going well. But now it’s time to incorporate your feedback into the content planning and production process.

So, what questions do you have about your website? What obstacles are preventing you from taking the next step? What challenges are you facing?

Send us your questions, and we’ll make every effort to find answers for you and include them in future editions of the newsletter, the podcast, or even separate blog posts.

I will be personally reviewing every submission, so I look forward to seeing what you send in.

And now on to this week’s links:

Content: How to conduct more compelling interviews

Interviews are ubiquitous.

Late-night TV. Podcasts. Magazine articles. Everywhere you look, content is either delivered in a straight interview format or based on an interview but presented in a prose or narrative format.

There’s good reason for this.

An interview is a magnificent way to create good content — whether you present the words of the interviewee verbatim or use parts of the conversation for a larger story.

The question is: how do you get good at interviews?

My co-host on The Showrunner, Jonny Nastor, knows a thing or two about this. He’s conducted 300+ interviews for his podcast Hack the Entrepreneur.

A blog post he published recently on Copyblogger includes this gem:

“Once the interview begins, your job is to be fully present in the conversation ÔÇö so let go of your research. Following your notes is distracting.”

In fact, this is one of the most important lessons I’ve learned from Jonny, and I always appreciate being re-exposed to it.

Because it’s so easy to get pulled out of the moment during interviews — wondering what question to ask next, trying to jot down bullet points for show notes, etc. But doing so puts a wall between you and your guest and makes it impossible to elicit the comfort and rapport that produces truly engaged and candid discussions.

And while Jonny’s post is specifically geared toward podcasters, there are lessons here that are valuable for anyone conducting interviews.

How to Conduct Not-to-Miss Podcast Interviews

Design: Best practices for using icons to support content

I am a non-designer and non-visual thinker who has (fortunately!) been forced to learn a lot about what makes web design work.

And one of the biggest lessons I have learned is about the importance of subtle details, and how much seemingly insignificant elements can make a design work and be such important complements to content.

Enter: icons.

You’ve seen icons all over the web, but do you know the techniques and strategies for employing them effectively?

This 2009 post from Nathan Barry still holds up today and provides a crash course on how to get the most out of icons.

How To Use Icons To Support Content In Web Design

And, as a bonus, here are some free business-related icons you can use under the Creative Commons license.

Technology: Tech tools that can help you build better personal connections

Ignore for a moment that this post inexplicably skips from #5 to #7 without mention …

The premise of the post is that the ~~seven~~ six highlighted tools will help you make your personal brand more personal. And they will.

But the upside of the post is that these tools are valuable even if you aren’t aiming to develop a personal brand.

I was most intrigued by Quora. I’ve landed on the site from Google searches but haven’t participated much as a contributor. That might need to change. It’s certainly a great place to conduct market research and listen.

See which of these tools can help you build better personal connections with your audience members and potential customers.

7 Tools That Will Help Make Your Personal Brand Online More Personal

Strategy: The essential principles of data analytics

If you’re a grizzled data analytics veteran, then this post may not offer you anything you don’t already have ingrained in your mind, body, and soul.

If you’re still new to data analytics, however, then the six principles outlined in this post are well worth your time to read and reflect on.

It can be so easy to get lost in a morass of numbers, unsure which ones matter most and are more trustworthy than others.

But if you follow these basic principles, you will be well on your way to following data down the path toward good decisions as opposed to being misled down a path of confusion or, worse yet, conclusions that are actually contrary to reality.

The 6 Rules of Behavioral Data Built Into All of Us

And finally, here is a helpful bit of inspiration from Seth Godin, especially if you’re just starting out on your audience-building journey. “If you’re not the irreplaceable, essential, one-of-a-kind changemaker, you never get a chance to engage with the market.”

Which of the ideas in these posts will you put to good use immediately?

I’ll be back with a new edition next week.

Keep building.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

[07] Are You Making This Common SEO Mistake?

In this episode of Sites, I walk you through a critical mistake related to SEO that too many website owners are making. Then I will provide you with 3 action steps that will help you compete in the modern, and future, SEO landscape.

Important links from this episode:

Transcript

IÔÇÖm your host Jerod Morris.

Sites is brought to you by StudioPress Sites — the complete hosted solution that makes WordPress fast, secure, and easy ÔÇª without sacrificing power or flexibility. For example, you can upload your own WordPress theme, or you can use one of the 20 beautiful StudioPress themes that are included and just one click away. Explore all the amazing things you can do with a StudioPress Site, and youÔÇÖll understand why this is way more than traditional WordPress hosting. No matter how youÔÇÖll be using your site, we have a plan to fit your needs — and your budget. To learn more, visit studiopress.com/sites. ThatÔÇÖs studiopress.com/sites

Welcome to Episode 7 of Sites.

Last week, we discussed design. I explained three ways that web design can help you better connect with your audience.

So letÔÇÖs say you followed the call to action in that post, and you came up with a design change that will achieve one of the three goals we discussed: help your site be read more easily by human visitors, evoke emotion, or tell a better story.

WhatÔÇÖs next?

How do you leverage your websiteÔÇÖs newfound power of connection?

Simple: you have to get more people to it.

If your website is ready to connect, and youÔÇÖre targeting your ideal audience member (as we discussed in Episode 5), then you simply need to get more such ideal audience members to your website so you can connect with more people.

Makes sense, right?

And one way to do that — one proven way to do that, which isnÔÇÖt going away anytime soon, if ever — is search engine optimization.

In this episode of Sites, IÔÇÖm going to walk you through a critical mistake related to SEO that too many website owners are making. ItÔÇÖs a mindset mistake, and fortunately itÔÇÖs an easy one to fix.

Then I will provide you with 3 action steps that will help you compete in the modern, and future, SEO landscape.

LetÔÇÖs get to it …

The Big SEO Mistake Too Many Website Owners Make

LetÔÇÖs begin by defining what we mean when we say ÔÇ£SEO.ÔÇØ

You probably know the words that make up the acronym: S is for search, E is for engine, and O is for optimization.

But hereÔÇÖs the critical mistake too many people make when thinking about SEO: they group the first two terms together.

And, even more critically, they then simplify those two terms down to one term ÔÇª Google.

And then, people often simply it down even more ÔÇª because when most people think about Google, they think going to Google.com and typing in a search, or typing a search phrase into their web browserÔÇÖs address bar.

And that makes some sense. I get it. I do it too.

In fact, the entire reason I am doing this episode, the way I came to understand this mistake, is because I myself have been making it!

ItÔÇÖs easy to see why.

WeÔÇÖre all so used to typing in our searches. And Google remains the clear #1 search engine. More searches are done there than anyplace else. Google matters. It can make or break some businesses.

But typing is only one way searches are being done these days. And Google is only one place where search happens in an increasingly fragmented web where people are always looking for meaningful stuff.

So, if youÔÇÖre not doing this already, I urge you to correct this easily correctable SEO mistake and actually think about SEO in terms of its component parts:

LetÔÇÖs start with Search — meaning all the ways in which people can search for something.

It could be typing, it could be voice, which is becoming increasingly popular with GoogleÔÇÖs own voice search function, and virtual home assistants like Alex.

Heck, at some point when we all have little chips implanted into our brains it could be just thinking, with the search results appearing right there in our sightline via special contact lenses.

Good lord, can you imagine? Well, based on some of the podcasts IÔÇÖve listened to recently and articles read, itÔÇÖs not as far-fetched as it sounds.

Anyway — the key here is to remember that the way people type in a search term will likely be different from the way they say it out loud (or, how they think about a query, in the future).

Context matters. And your site needs to be prepared for all semantic contexts.

How do you do that? IÔÇÖll share a simple tip coming up.

Next, letÔÇÖs consider Engine — meaning all the places where people can search for something.

We talked about Google. And you know the other traditional search engines like Bing.

But what about YouTube? What about Apple Podcasts? Those are massive search engines for video producers and podcast producers. If you focus only on Google and never consider these engines, youÔÇÖre limiting the potential exposure to your videos and podcasts.

And it gets even more micro and focused than that.

What about the email newsletter you sent many months ago? Will it surface easily, and be clicked on, if someone searches their archived email for a relevant phrase? Better use that subject line wisely, right?

And what about the helpful forum post you submitted the other day? Will it surface when someone comes to the forum next week and uses the forum search to find past answers about a related question? It should.

Where else could people go for answers and potentially find you?

Wherever it may be, chances are there is some kind of search function to help them narrow down their field of vision and find the stuff relevant to them in that moment. You want to give yourself every opportunity to surface and be the result that gets clicked on.

IÔÇÖll offer you a useful tip for how to do this too, coming up.

But first, itÔÇÖs essential that we consider the final element of S-E-O: optimization.

You need to structure and deliver your content in such a way that all relevant engines will be able to locate it, understand it, and serve it up in that critical moment of high impulse and action-oriented curiosity when people perform searches for relevant terms.

And while there are always subtle tweaks that can be made at different engines to improve your chances of ranking higher, based on the particular algorithms each engine uses, donÔÇÖt let this intimidate you.

The reality is that the vast majority of the factors any engine will use are similar.

What basic, relevant keywords are in the title or subject line?
What basic, relevant keywords appear in the body text?
Has this piece of content proven to be helpful to people — as shown by other people linking to it, or voting it up, or favoriting it, or accessing it often and for substantial periods of time?
And are basic technical requirements in place? For example, is the website mobile responsive? Is the podcast file type playable across podcatchers?

Frankly, once you internalize this, it isnÔÇÖt a lot to keep track of.

Search engine optimization is better viewed as a habit you want to practice repeatedly over time than some kind of quick fix that will help you make an immediate splash.

And when you think about each component of search engine optimization individually — search, then engine, then optimization — you realize that its importance will not diminish anytime soon ÔÇª if ever.

Because even as the Internet trends move toward experiences with virtual and augmented reality, content will always be a fundamental feature of the web. There will always be massive amounts of it, and weÔÇÖll always need reliable functions for sifting through the morass to find the specific piece weÔÇÖre looking for, at the specific time we need it, in the specific context weÔÇÖre requesting it.

So your goal, as a content creator, is simply to make your content as optimized for being found in relevant engines for as many different types of search inputs as you can.

That is search engine optimization on the modern and future web.

And if youÔÇÖre thinking about SEO in any other way, youÔÇÖre making a critical mistake.

YouÔÇÖre also making a critical mistake if youÔÇÖve started to believe that SEO no longer matters. It does. Perhaps even more so, and in a more wide range of ways, than you realized.

And it will matter for as far out on the horizon of the Internet as I can see ÔÇª it always will.

Okay, now that we have corrected this critical mistake in how we view SEO, letÔÇÖs close this episode by discussing three critical action steps you can take right away to improve each of the three elements of your SEO practice.

These are steps that will help you maintain a smart, consistent SEO practice into the future that will deliver reliable results.

3 Important SEO Action Steps to Begin Taking Right Away

The first step — which relates to the first term in SEO: search — is to make sure that you are actively working to understand the language that your ideal audience uses.

This is how you ensure that your content has as good a chance at surfacing for text-based searches as it does for spoken searches and, eventually, for thought searches.

Certainly, using tools to search GoogleÔÇÖs keyword database is helpful. For example, the Content Optimizer tool that is built into StudioPress Sites helps with this. This is a valuable window into the terms and phrases people actually search for when looking for content related to your subject matter.

But remember: this is just one context.

What about when people talk about and converse about your topic? What about when they ask casual questions?

This is where social media can be a great listening tool. This is where going to meetups and talking to real people in person can be helpful. This is where free response audience surveys can provide great insight.

True masters of search engine optimization are masters of listening and empathy.

When you know how your ideal audience talks about your topic, and what kinds of questions are most pressing, you have the knowledge you need to create titles, and subject lines, and body content that will be relevant for a wide variety of different semantic contexts.

I know youÔÇÖre a content creator if youÔÇÖre listening to this podcast. Starting today: be an even more active listener than you already are.

The second action step you should take is to brainstorm all the different engines where people may be looking for your content ÔÇª and then figure out a way to get yourself into a new one.

For example, I mentioned YouTube earlier. ItÔÇÖs actually the second-most popular engine behind Google itself.

Do you have any videos uploaded to YouTube that answer the kinds of questions that a subset of your ideal audience is almost surely typing into YouTube?

If not, get one in there.

Seriously, start with just one. Do it as a test.

It can even be crudely produced: Just take a portion of a blog post and turn into some text and basic imagery that has a voiceover or background music. If you want some help doing this, check out a site like lumen5.com.

Then make sure you choose your title wisely and provide a useful description so that YouTube will know what kind of searches your video is relevant for.

Try it out and see what happens. Then keep identifying different engines you arenÔÇÖt currently available where it makes sense to provide access to your content.

And finally, the third action step you should take, which will help immensely with your optimization, is to make sure your website itself is on the most solid footing it can possibly be on.

Because when it comes to any search context (text-based or voice), and when it comes to any engine that may deliver your website as a result (so think Google or Bing), you need to make sure that the hosting and design infrastructure of your site has all the basic elements in place:

Your site needs to load fast — a factor that actually influences several different ranking factors because of how it impacts visitor experience
Your site needs to be mobile-responsive
Your site needs to be safe and secure
Your site needs to be coded clearly and cleanly

I could go on, but I think you get the point.

ItÔÇÖs not just about the words on the page. ItÔÇÖs also about every single element of the page that will impact the experience that search engine robots and real-life visitors will have on that page.

This is why, for example, StudioPress Sites was built to be fast and secure.

And this is why, for example, the Genesis Framework was built to be mobile-responsive and as clean as possible in terms of code.

I use those as examples because theyÔÇÖre each what I use for my personal websites. And sure, I work for the company who makes them, so thatÔÇÖs easy for me to do.

But the fact is that I am a serious website owner. My side projects are important to me. If I thought I was compromising my siteÔÇÖs optimization just to use Genesis themes or StudioPress for hosting, I wouldnÔÇÖt.

Take this opportunity to review your current theme framework and hosting. Make sure you arenÔÇÖt making any optimization tradeoffs either.

So there you have it.

We discussed the critical shift in your SEO mindset that you should make right away, which will help you get better results today and well into the future.

And weÔÇÖve discussed three action steps you can begin taking immediately to put that new mindset into practice:

Listen better and empathize more
Identify new engines where your content should appear
Make sure your hosting and design are as optimized as they can be

So, the question is, now that youÔÇÖre motivated by your fresh, new mindset, which action step will you implement first?

***

Here is this weekÔÇÖs hyper-specific call to action …

Call to action

ItÔÇÖs pretty simple: pick one.

I just outlined three different steps you can take right away to start improving your SEO ÔÇª once you make the mindset shift we described in the first part of this episode.

So, I guess, if you havenÔÇÖt yet made the mindset shift, start there.

Break the term SEO up into its component parts and really consider what that means for not just your website, but your content overall.

And once you feel comfortable that youÔÇÖre thinking about SEO in the proper way, choose your next action step:

Listen better and empathize more
Identify new engines where your content should appear
Make sure your hosting and design are as optimized as they can be

Once you do one, and youÔÇÖre ready to tackle the next one, proceed. And you can always reference this episode or the show notes if you need to. The show notes, transcript included, will always be available at studiopress.blog/sites07.

Coming next week, we transition from technology to strategy. WeÔÇÖll discuss 10 Content Marketing Goals Worth Pursuing.

That will certainly be an episode worth listening to, so I hope youÔÇÖll join me.

ThatÔÇÖs next week, on Sites.

Finally, before I go, here are a couple more quick calls to action for you to consider:

Subscribe to Sites Weekly

If you havenÔÇÖt yet, take this opportunity to activate your free subscription to our curated weekly email newsletter, Sites Weekly.

HereÔÇÖs how it works: Each week, I find four links about content, design, technology, and strategy that you donÔÇÖt want to miss, and then I send them out via email on Wednesday afternoon.

Rate and Review Sites on Apple Podcasts

Also, if you enjoy the Sites podcast, please subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts (formerly known as iTunes), and consider giving us a rating or a review over there as well.

One quick tip on that: to make the best use of your review, let me know something in particular you like about the show. That feedback is really important.

For example, one of our recent reviewers, the awesomely named teagoblet, says: ÔÇ£Sites immediately stood out from other podcasts IÔÇÖve listened to ÔÇª the focus on content, design, technology, and strategy makes the overwhelming job of building and maintaining your website easier. You have to check out Episode 3 to hear Jerod MorrisÔÇÖ background with website hosting. An incredible business story.ÔÇØ

Thank you teagoblet. Yes, in Episode 3 I described a horror story I experienced when I tried to maintain a massively growing sports blog on cheap hosting. It didnÔÇÖt go well and was an important lesson IÔÇÖll never forget.

And with that, we come to the close of another episode. Thank you for listening to this episode of Sites. I appreciate you being here.

Join me next week, and letÔÇÖs keep building powerful, successful websites together.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

Data-Backed Advice on How to Improve Mobile Conversion Rates

Welcome to another edition of Sites Weekly.

Before we get to this week’s links, I want to let you know about a special offer that expires at the end of this week.

We sent it to existing StudioPress theme customers, and I got the go-ahead to include it in this week’s newsletter as well.

It’s simple, and valuable.

This week’s special offer

Get started with StudioPress Sites Hosting this week, and you will receive a coupon for one free migration from our friends at Fantasktic.

All you have to do is choose the right plan for you — Content or Commerce — and then when you check out you’ll receive your free migration coupon.

And then?

You can check out SP Sites Hosting and see how features like the Content Optimizer work. If you decide to stick with SP Sites, then just give the coupon code to Fantastkic when you’re ready to migrate your site, and they’ll do it for free.

Your site gets better performance and becomes more powerful … all without any headaches on your end.

The only “catch” is that you have to click this special coupon link, otherwise the coupon code won’t be included at checkout.

The free migration offer expires this Friday, July 14, at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time.

And by the way, if you’re currently hoping to save money on your website costs by using cheap hosting, this is definitely an offer you’re going to want to take us up on.

For more on why that strategy is shortsighted, check out the link below in the Technology section.

I know the guy who wrote it. He can be trusted.

Okay, now on to this week’s links!

Content: Are you working too hard to placate the naysayers?

A couple of years ago, I had the good fortune to meet Bernadette Jiwa at our live event in Denver. She and I also did a podcast interview.

I was struck by her eloquence, her generosity and kindness, and how insightful she could be in so few words.

This blog post is a great example of her work. It’s not quite Godin-esque, but it’s close.

My guess is that you’ll see the first three stories coming. But the fourth story that Bernadette describes may stop you in your tracks — either because you didn’t expect it, or because you realize it’s a story you’ve been overlooking.

Don’t overlook it anymore.

Four Stories Every Business Needs

Design: Data-backed tips on how to optimize for mobile

You already know that having a mobile-responsive design (or even a mobile-first design) is a must. People are using the web more on mobile devices than desktop devices — a ship that sailed a while ago.

But …

That doesn’t mean that mobile conversions are outpacing desktop conversions. They’re not (yet).

And there is still a long, long way to go before most websites are actually optimized for mobile conversion. Part of the reason why is because we’re only just now starting to scratch the surface in terms of our understanding about what mobile conversation rate optimization actually means and entails.

This post from Marketing Land gets into some of the details, which are quite interesting (especially the data on how render start time impacts conversion). You’ll learn three important tips that can help you improve your mobile site’s optimization right away.

New evidence highlights the conversion lift of mobile optimization

Technology: Good hosting is an investment; cheap hosting is an expense

There are times when itÔÇÖs okay to go cheap.

But when it comes to website hosting, you almost always get what you pay for.

So if you want slow, unreliable performance, then go cheap. Pay less than $10 per month. YouÔÇÖll save some money, but youÔÇÖll also severely handicap your siteÔÇÖs ability to grow.

If, on the other hand, youÔÇÖre serious about your website, and you want outstanding speed and uptime you can trust (especially when your traffic spikes), then you need to invest in better hosting.

The bottom line is that outstanding performance is critical to the success of your WordPress website … and itÔÇÖs worth every penny.

In my latest post on the StudioPress blog, I describe five important reasons why you need to consider hosting more as an investment that can pay massive dividends rather than an expense to minimize at all costs.

5 Reasons You Need to Avoid Cheap WordPress Hosting

Strategy: Are you missing opportunities with your Thank You pages?

This article opened my eyes.

I don’t think I’ve been giving Thank You pages the respect they deserve as opportunities for further engagement with the most enthusiastic members of my audience — those who have already completed a transaction.

Just makes sense, right?

This blog post from Inbound Rocket highlights several ways that you can use your Thank You pages as part of an engagement and conversion strategy that isn’t myopic, and actually thinks past the initial sale.

See if you can incorporate one of their ideas into the next Thank You page you create.

Lead Generation DoesnÔÇÖt Stop At The Conversion: Using Thank You Pages To Take Your Post Conversion To The Next Level

So … which of the ideas in these posts will you put to good use immediately?

I’ll be back with a new edition next week. And don’t forget to check out StudioPress Sites Hosting this week so you can get your free migration before it expires on Friday.

Keep building.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

[06] 3 Ways to Better Connect with Your Audience through Design

Good design is not just how a website looks; itÔÇÖs how it works. In order to create a web design that connects, we need it to reach new levels of interaction with our audience. LetÔÇÖs walk through three ways we can do that.

Important links from this episode:

5 Reasons You Need to Avoid Cheap WordPress Hosting (Note: Blog post contains special offer that expires July 17, 2017!)
Try StudioPress Sites
Sites Weekly Newsletter
Subscribe to Sites on Apple Podcasts
Rafal TomalÔÇÖs article: 3 Ways Your Web Design Can Better Connect You to Your Audience

Transcript

IÔÇÖm your host Jerod Morris.

Welcome to Episode 6 of Sites.

Last week we talked about content, walking through how to attract your ideal customer through perfectly positioned content.

And while attraction is important, itÔÇÖs only one step. What happens when your ideal customer actually reaches your website? It takes a lot of hard work to get them there, and you want to make sure you capitalize on it.

You want to make sure you ÔÇª connect.

And thatÔÇÖs why this week, we discuss design — specifically, how you can use your web design to help you connect better with your audience.

IÔÇÖm excited to share some wisdom on this topic from Rafal Tomal, our lead designer at StudioPress and Copyblogger.

Before we get to that, I do want to make a special announcement — which includes a special offer that is extremely timely.

You heard me mention StudioPress Sites at the beginning of the show. If you want to build your WordPress website on hosting that will give you amazing performance, StudioPress Sites is the way to go.

And this week only, there is a special offer: if you get started with StudioPress Sites by Friday, July 14, 2017, youÔÇÖll get a coupon code for a free migration. HereÔÇÖs how you can get your code …

Head over to the StudioPress blog and read the article I published recently called 5 Reasons You Need to Avoid Cheap WordPress Hosting. The URL is studiopress.blog/avoid. Again, thatÔÇÖs studiopress.blog/avoid.

The post provides a handful of useful tips on why good hosting is something you should invest in, not just an expense to be minimized. You may recall that this was the topic we discussed in episode 3 of this podcast.

Read the post, and then click the link at the end of it. Once youÔÇÖve clicked that coupon link, you can get started with Sites and youÔÇÖll receive your free migration. ItÔÇÖs that simple. Not only will you not have to pay for your migration, but you wonÔÇÖt have to deal with all the hassles and headaches. It will all be taken care of for you. Having migrated many a site myself, I can personally attest to how valuable that is.

One more time, the URL is studiopress.blog/avoid. The blog post will be there forever, and always be useful, so visit it anytime. But the special migration offer expires the Friday after this episode is originally published: July 14, 2017.

Okay, and with that little bit of housekeeping out of the way, letÔÇÖs dive into todayÔÇÖs topic.

I actually remember when Rafal originally submitted this blog post to Copyblogger, because I was the editor back then. I learned a lot from it at the time, and I learned a lot from it again reviewing it for this episode.

I know you will too.

LetÔÇÖs talk about how to use web design to create better connection with our audience.

3 Ways Your Web Design Can Better Connect You to Your Audience

How do people recognize good web design?

There is a big difference between good and bad design. Many people can identify a good design, but they donÔÇÖt know what makes the difference.

Most people are not looking at a website and thinking: That website has well-matched serif and sans-serif fonts and a nice usage of white space!

Nope. Only designers think that.

In most cases people just feel like there is something good about it. Maybe itÔÇÖs that eye-catching font or maybe that vibrant color, but they never actually know for sure.

There is something more to good design than making it just look right.

Because you can design your website according to all the major design rules with surgical precision ÔÇª and people may still not like it.

Form, function, and feel

Good design is not just how a website looks; itÔÇÖs how it works.

Yet a website is also not a machine. There is no simple code base or recipe for a good design. You canÔÇÖt program it, generate it, or somehow automate the process.

ThatÔÇÖs why your design needs something more.

In order to create a web design that connects, we need it to reach new levels of interaction with our audience.

LetÔÇÖs walk through three ways we can do that.

1. Design for humans

Your websiteÔÇÖs design creates a first impression with your users, and you want to make their interaction with your site as human-friendly as possible. Nobody wants to be greeted and instructed by a robot.

Making your website human-centered means making it easy to use and not making people guess what they are supposed to do next. It means that you focus your design around peopleÔÇÖs actions and how your visitors expect your website to work for them.

You can improve user experience on your site by easily solving common problems that would otherwise take your visitorsÔÇÖ time to figure out.

Here are the most common problems that visitors find on poorly designed websites:

One problem: ÔÇ£Is it clickable?ÔÇØ
All elements that need interaction with a user should be clearly visible or stand out in some way. Links and buttons should at least be marked in a different color than the rest of the body content.

Another problem: ÔÇ£Where am I?ÔÇØ
Visitors will feel lost on your website when your design layout is not consistent. When people donÔÇÖt know where to go, theyÔÇÖll always find the exit.

You canÔÇÖt move the navigation or change the layout too often between pages. You should use common patterns throughout the entire website so your visitors can learn your websiteÔÇÖs interface.

Consistency is one of the most important aspects of a well-designed website.

Another problem: ÔÇ£I canÔÇÖt read it!ÔÇØ
Is your content easy to read? If not, your text may be too small or the color contrast between the background and text color may not be clear enough.

Remember that you design your website typography for the human eye.

If your targeted audience is a little older, you need to make your typography even bigger and add more contrast. You should focus on your usersÔÇÖ needs; donÔÇÖt worry if it doesnÔÇÖt look aesthetic to you anymore.

Take some time to get to know your typical visitors and study their behavior on your website. Find their common questions and problems, and try to solve them.

Make sure your website is usable by visitors that matter to you. Forget about making your design flat or using fancy colors if itÔÇÖs not working for your people.

Now letÔÇÖs move on to the second way we can design our website to better connect with our audience ÔÇª

2. Design for emotions

Emotions have a big influence on most of our decisions. Therefore, we canÔÇÖt ignore emotions when designing websites.

It all matters when it comes to peopleÔÇÖs feelings. By using specific fonts, shapes, icons, photos, or colors we can affect the way people feel about our products, services, or brand.

You can see big brands playing with our emotions all the time. Just look at companies like Apple, Target, or Starbucks.

Product design is definitely one of the main factors in AppleÔÇÖs success. Apple spends a lot of time and money making sure their products look sleek, sexy, and modern.

ItÔÇÖs also not just the way the product looks, but how it works and feels when you use it. Most Apple products have smooth, nice-to-touch surfaces and consistent rounded corners. It feels good, right?

So, how can you use emotional design? There are several ways. LetÔÇÖs walk through four of them.

Number one: Give your brand a soul.

Choose one emotion you want people to feel about your brand or website, then focus on it and be consistent.

Do you want your website to be on the light-hearted, humorous side? Then use joyful colors, smooth shapes, funny characters, and combine it with light jokes all over the place.

But letÔÇÖs say youÔÇÖre running a blog about sports cars. You want people to associate with your brand, so you need to make them feel cool about it. You may want to make your design sleek, modern, sexy, and use a strong color like red.

You wouldnÔÇÖt want to use bright pastel colors or Comic Sans font because that would mismatch your design with the taste of sports car fans.

MailChimp is one of those websites that has its own unique style and character. A funny cartoon chimp mascot brings humor to the site and evokes a positive mood.

A second way you can use emotional design is by surprising your visitors.

Do you want to get some attention? People remember things better and pay more attention when their feelings are associated with it. Surprise your visitors by making something unexpected but positive.

For example, show a ÔÇ£Thank youÔÇØ message on a simple action, make interesting parallax scrolling effects, or employ animations when the cursor hovers over some elements.

DÔÇÖangelico Guitars.com uses parallax scrolling effects and custom designed pages to surprise their visitors and make exploring the website very interesting. You can see an example at their website dangelicoguitars.com.

A third way to incorporate emotion into your design is by giving your kids candy when they cry.

And yes, thatÔÇÖs a euphemism.

How do people feel when they go to a website and itÔÇÖs not working or they get a 404 page? They may feel confused, disappointed, or frustrated.

You definitely donÔÇÖt want people to feel that way. You can fix it by making a funny 404 page or setting up your own custom page when your website is inactive due to some maintenance work.

Make people smile when there is a problem, and keep them busy when they have to wait.

Your 404 page doesnÔÇÖt have to be boring. Be creative, write something funny, or suggest another step that should be taken.

And finally, a fourth way to incorporate emotion into your design is by simply keeping it positive.

This is a general rule of thumb: evoke only positive feelings. You never want to associate any bad feelings with your brand (unless thatÔÇÖs really your goal and you know what youÔÇÖre doing).

Try to use positive icons like check marks, smiley faces, and thumbs-up signs. You may also want to associate positive feelings with desired actions on your website. For example:

Show a smiley face (reward) after completing a task
Use a green ÔÇ£add to cartÔÇØ button
Show check marks for correctly filled out form fields
Use a progress bar in multi-page forms

PhotojojoÔÇÖs shopping cart icon turns to green with a smiling face when you click the ÔÇ£add to cartÔÇØ button. It makes the entire shopping experience more pleasant.

WeÔÇÖve now gone through two major ways that we can use design to better connect with our audience: number one was Design for humans, number two was design for emotions.

Number three is ÔÇª

3. Design to tell a story

The age of making home pages look like airplane dashboards is over. We avoid overusing buttons, calls to action, and all the other distractions these days.

The new role of website design is to tell a story.

Imagine a comic book page. You can see various size strips and illustrations to make the story more interesting. ItÔÇÖs designed to get your attention, keep you interested, surprise you, scare you, make you laugh ÔÇª and this is accomplished with only good narrative and images.

Your website can tell a story too. LetÔÇÖs walk through three ways to do exactly that.

The first way is to design a layout that enhances exploring.

Try to keep your page content in a proper narrative and progressive order. Use a simple vertical design for easy visual eye movement and flow.

You may want to start with a good eye-catching headline and a simple description above the fold. Then, tell the visitor about your best features, show your clientsÔÇÖ stories, list people who are using your services or products, and finally lead to one ÔÇö and only one ÔÇö call to action (and optimize it).

Divide your content into parts, but make sure there is a clear connection between them. This way your visitors can read it like a real story, with no pause or break.

Also remember to have a good visual balance, both horizontally and vertically. Let your readersÔÇÖ eyes smoothly move from left to right. If one section is left-hand heavy, make the other one right-hand focused, and vice versa.

At StudioPress, on the features page, we illustrated all Genesis Framework features to make browsing the page more interesting and enhance exploring.

A second method to tell a story with your website is by using various content elements to keep visitors interested.

Make sure your story is interesting. You can use different interactive elements like tabs, sliders, and scrolling animations to keep your users engaged in exploring your website.

Avoid using long and boring paragraphs of text. You can chop them into smaller portions supported with videos, graphics, and illustrations. Or you can introduce some organization and make a bulleted list, which is always easier for the eye to read.

DonÔÇÖt be afraid to change background colors between the page sections. This allows you to manipulate the balance and can encourage scrolling if the background colors are in a certain order.

And finally, a third way to use design to tell a better story is to encourage action.

Every story has an ending. Put your main call to action at the end of your story, so people can take the next step.

Make sure the vertical flow of the page leads visitors right to the final call to action. You may want to make it more prominent than any other elements, with a headline or button text that looks like a continuation of your story.

And there we go. The three ways that you can use design to better connect with your audience:

Design for humans
Design for emotion
Design to tell a story

So, what is your next step?

ThatÔÇÖs coming up in this weekÔÇÖs Call to Action ÔÇª

*****

That was a reading of Rafal TomalÔÇÖs blog post 3 Ways Your Web Design Can Better Connect You to Your Audience, which was originally published at Copyblogger.com. You can find a link to the original article in the show notes at studiopress.com/sites06. The post includes several helpful visual aids and examples that obviously canÔÇÖt be included in an audio podcast.

YouÔÇÖll hear from Rafal again soon here on Sites. He has so many insightful blog posts at Copyblogger and his own website, rafaltomal.com, and I want to bring several more of them to you.

Okay, now here is this weekÔÇÖs hyper-specific call to action, and it comes from Rafal himself.

This is how Rafal ended his blog post:

There is always so much we can do to improve our website designs. I encourage you to take it one step further. Go deeper behind the scenes.

You can never be wrong by simply taking care of your visitors and improving their experience. Consider their feelings and add more sense to your website content by designing a good story.

What is one simple design change you could make today that would improve your usersÔÇÖ experience on your website?

So there it is. To repeat: What is one simple design change you could make today that would improve your usersÔÇÖ experience on your website?

Think about all of the examples Rafal provided in this episode. Listen to it again, or go check out his blog post if you want to review the specific ideas he gave.

Then jot down your answer in Evernote, or in a notebook, or email yourself — whatever youÔÇÖve been doing for the other calls to action from past episodes of Sites. But donÔÇÖt just jot it down — take action on it. ThatÔÇÖs the key.

Because one simple design change could be the difference between a design that better connects with your audience ÔÇª and one that doesnÔÇÖt.

Next week, we move from design to technology. WeÔÇÖll be talking about SEO. What really matters when it comes to SEO? How do you make sure that youÔÇÖre spending your time and your money on factors that will actually make a difference? IÔÇÖll provide some guidance.

ThatÔÇÖs next week, on Sites.

Okay ÔÇª now donÔÇÖt forget: head over to the StudioPress blog and read the article I published recently called 5 Reasons You Need to Avoid Cheap WordPress Hosting. The URL is studiopress.blog/avoid. Again, thatÔÇÖs studiopress.blog/avoid.

The post itself is informative and will spell out clearly why good hosting is something you should invest in, not just an expense to minimize at all costs. A topic we also discussed in episode 3 of this podcast.

And, the best part, is that it includes an offer for a free migration to StudioPress Sites. But the offer is only for a limited time. You have to start your StudioPress Sites website by Friday, July 14, 2017 to get the free migration. Click the link at the end of the blog post to claim your free migration.

Again, the URL is studiopress.blog/avoid.

Finally, donÔÇÖt forget to subscribe and stay connected with the show:

Go to studiopress.com/newsletter to subscribe to Sites Weekly, our curated email newsletter.
And go to sites.fm/apple to subscribe to the Sites Podcast on Apple Podcasts, formerly known as iTunes. If you like the show and want to leave a rating and review as well, that would be much appreciated.

We just had this review left by JimmyJoeATL:

Wow, IÔÇÖm early in the startup of my online presence. I am very glad I found StudioPress Sites podcast. IÔÇÖve listened to the first four episodes back to back and IÔÇÖm ready for more! With SO much competition out there for my target audience it is great to have a coach like Jerod Morris. IÔÇÖm now thinking about MY site in terms of the four pillars of success: content, design, technology, and strategy. And like any good coach, Jerod sends me off with drills and exercises (the calls to action) at the end of each podcast.

ThatÔÇÖs so great to hear Jimmy! Thank you for this review. You are having exactly the experience I hoped listeners would have. LetÔÇÖs keep it going moving forward!

And with that, we come to the close of another episode. Thank you for listening to this episode of Sites. I appreciate you being here.

Remember: go to studiopress.blog/avoid and click the link at the end so that you can get a free migration if you decide to level-up with your hosting and build your online presence with StudioPress Sites.

Be sure to join me next week, right here, same time, same place, and letÔÇÖs keep building powerful, successful websites together.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

5 Reasons You Need to Avoid Cheap WordPress Hosting

[Editor’s note: Don’t miss the special offer at the end of this blog post. It expires Friday, July 14, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time.]

There are times when it’s okay to go cheap.

For example, are you looking for a last-minute flight for a quick weekend getaway? Find the cheapest fare.

Need an external monitor for your laptop? I recently found one that was cheap but highly rated, and it’s working great.

And, of course, plenty of studies have found that unless you’re a sommelier, you probably can’t actually tell the difference between an expensive bottle of wine and a cheaper one.

I also recently found a blog post that listed┬á17┬áproducts┬áand explained how the cheap versions performed far better than their more expensive counterparts in independent tests. (A few examples: tea steepers, corkscrews, and cooking thermometers.)

The lesson is simple: paying more doesn’t always get you more value.

But do you know what product wasn’t on that list of cheap, but high-performing, products?

And would never be found within 100 miles of such a list?

WordPress hosting.

Because when it comes to hosting, you almost always get what you pay for.

So if you want slow, unreliable performance, then go cheap. Pay less than $10 per month. You’ll save some money, but you’ll also severely handicap your site’s ability to grow.

If, on the other hand, you’re serious about your website, and you want outstanding speed and uptime you can trust (especially when your traffic spikes), then you need to invest in better hosting.

The bottom line is that outstanding performance is critical to the success of your WordPress website … and it’s worth every penny.

Why cheap hosting sinks you from the start

I’ve launched a bunch of websites. Not one of them was guaranteed to succeed when it started. This made paying $5/month for hosting seem alluring in the beginning.

I’d think to myself … Let me just get the site started on a cheap hosting plan, get some content out there, see if it connects, and if it does,┬áthen I’ll ramp things up and pay more for hosting.

I mean, it seems logical.

But the same (big) problem always waits just around the corner: the cheap hosting will likely keep me from succeeding in the first place.

How could cheap hosting kill a website before it even gets off the ground?

Here are five quick reasons …

1. Your website will be treated like a sardine

Those $5/month offers are always appealing, but the reality of such cheap hosting offers is that your site will be jammed on a server with hundreds ÔÇö perhaps even thousands ÔÇö of other websites.

Ever opened up a can of sardines? The can is the server and your site is one of those slimy, smooshed-up sardines.

Basically, the hosting company is betting you wonÔÇÖt ever, ever get substantial traffic — but that youÔÇÖll still keep paying the fee in obscurity.

Because if you do get traffic …

2. Performance will be substandard — especially when you need it most

The result of your site being jammed in on that server with all those other sites is that you’re competing for finite server resources.

These are resources your site needs when visitors are trying to access it, especially when you get a traffic spike … which, I mean, hopefully you will because let’s prepare for success, right?

These are also resources you need when you’re back in your dashboard posting content or making edits, a resource-intensive process.

Have you ever been working on your website and had it take forever to move from page to page or to save simple changes?

It’s the worst.

One of the single most frustrating experiences a website owner has.

And it’s rather common when you’re trying to edit a sardine rather than a website.

This is the trade-off you make by going with cheap hosting. Inevitably, your site will slow to a crawl or crash when you need it at its best.

3. You put yourself at risk for paying overages

Here’s some irony for you: even if you go cheap, you might end up paying much more than you think while still getting poor performance.

Because if you exceed those restrictive plan limits, then you could be hit with hundreds of dollars in extra charges for bandwidth, storage, CPUs, or RAM.

I had this happen to me on an old site when I went cheap with hosting.

Needless to say, I wasn’t pleased.

Getting poor performance while spending more money would be a double whammy of bad. Don’t let that happen to you.

4. You don’t get important extras that add real value

It’s pretty easy to calculate the cost difference between cheap hosting that costs you $5 per month and premium hosting that runs you, say, $24 per month.

But how about calculating the value difference? That’s not so clear cut.

Take our hosting platform, StudioPress Sites, as an example.

First of all, you can ignore all three of the problems described above, because:

Your website isn’t packed in with hundreds of other sites.
Performance is remarkable enough that Sites was named “Fastest WordPress Hosting in 2017” by Webmatros.
You won’t ever be charged overages. Ever.

Those factors alone make StudioPress Sites worth the difference in cost over the cheap options.

But then consider all of these additional features you get with SP Sites:

20+ mobile-responsive StudioPress themes available at a click (with more on the way)
Unlimited access to Rainmaker Digital’s patented Content Optimizer, which can greatly enhance your SEO efforts when used consistently
WordPress updates handled automatically for you
One-click access to a variety of fully vetted partner plugins
Daily security scans and DDoS protection

And more, but you get the picture.

The point is: make sure you look at total value, not just cost.

If a premium hosting provider is going to deliver extra features you would otherwise have to pay for, that needs to be factored into your cost calculation. And if you get extra features that will help you grow your audience faster, you’ll have to determine how much those are worth to you as well.

And finally …

5. You won’t get personalized support when you need it most

Running a website can sometimes be a scary, lonely activity … especially when things go wrong.

And they will go wrong.

- What happens if you save a colossal mistake in your code, can’t figure it out, and need to roll back to the previous version of your site. Who will help you restore a backup?
- What happens if a plugin crashes your site and you don’t know why? Who will help you figure it out and get your site back up?
- What happens if you just have a simple question about how to do something? Who will have your back with an answer?

As all grizzled website veterans know, a major part of the value provided by a managed hosting provider is the support. And it can’t just be occasional support; it needs to be personalized support when you need it most.

Do you really think high-level, responsive, and reliable support is priced into the low cost of cheap hosting?

In my experience: no.

So if you go for cheap hosting, just know that you’re essentially on your own.

Sure, this might seem okay now, when you’re not dealing with a major issue and sweating bullets as you desperately try to get your site back online. But the value of good support is basically priceless in those moments when you need it and it comes through.

Quick word to the wise: make sure any hosting provider you choose has support testimonials like these.

What to Do Next if You’re Thinking About (or Using) Cheap WordPress Hosting

Well, it’s pretty simple …

Reconsider.

Unless you’re not serious about your website, in which case carry on.

But if you are serious about your site, then it’s time to get serious about your hosting. That means investigating premium WordPress hosting and choosing the best provider for you.

Special Offer: This Week Only

You should start your investigation of serious hosting options with StudioPress Sites — for all the reasons described above.

If you’re running a theme built on the Genesis Framework, this is a no-brainer because StudioPress Sites is optimized for performance and compatibility with Genesis themes.

And if you’re reading this blog post between July 10 and July 14, then here is another reason why getting started with StudioPress Sites today is a no-brainer: for a limited time only, we’re offering a free migration when you start your StudioPress Sites account.

All you have to do is click one of the links to StudioPress Sites in this blog post — like this one. They are special coupon links and that will add your free migration to the checkout process.

So learn more about the benefits of using Sites, get started, and then let us handle the process of migrating your current site away from low-cost/low-value hosting onto a platform that delivers everything you should be paying for … and so much more.

Click here to get started with StudioPress Sites and claim your free migration.

You’ll be so glad you did.

So will your visitors.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

Studio Pro: A Slick, Creative Theme for Your Agency

If you are a creative agency looking to showcase your portfolio to potential clients, the Studio Pro Theme by Seo Themes is the perfect solution.

Studio Pro allows you to customize each page with its own hero image by simply setting a featured image. Just upload your own video or a YouTube URL for the background.

In addition, you can create responsive galleries in minutes with an automatic lightbox applied to gallery items, enable a sticky header with a second logo image that stays fixed at the top of the screen, or create icon boxes, calls to action, counters, and more — all with lightweight WordPress widgets.

If you need to build an online shop, Studio Pro is WooCommerce-ready and has been designed to seamlessly match the rest of your website.

Studio Pro also includes a number of features that makes this a must-have theme for your creative business:

A mobile-responsive design that looks amazing wherever itÔÇÖs viewed
Custom gradients to complement your background images
WooCommerce-ready to help you build and showcase your shop
Masonry grid to showcase your portfolio
Ample navigation ÔÇö create the menu system that fits your layout
Airtight security and SEO so you can rest easy

Get the Studio Pro Theme by Seo Themes.

This blog was originally posted on Studiopress.com This post is in no way associated with Kembel.ca. For more posts by this author, please click here.

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