Have you ever been so busy with your head down working in your business that you’ve forgotten to work on your marketing?
There are a bunch of reasons why you’re not attracting new business and that is probably one of them. Let me tell you what they are and one simple secret that can help you to never be in this situation again.
Reason #1: You’re not creating regular content.
Your blog has been abandoned, you’re not mailing your subscribers regularly and as such, you’re not at all top of mind for people. It’s not enough to create content regularly. You need to create content that is interesting and valuable to others. Stop thinking you can be a thought leader who doesn’t spend time thinking about and creating new content.
Create content that is compelling, use titles that are catchy, and pay attention to the first 96 characters you use. Those characters are the most important to capture attention. In my book, Pilot to Profit, I explain exactly how to use this most often overlooked important piece of marketing real estate.
You can’t be a #ThoughtLeader who doesn’t spend time creating new content. Tweet it out!
Reason #2: Your website looks like it was built 5-10 years ago.
If you’re building an online empire, your website is super important. Yes, I ‘m sure you get business from referrals. Newsflash – it’s 2018 and people check you out before they contact you. When they check you out, they make a decision about you and your business based on what they see on your website. If your website looks like it was designed in 2005, chances are they won’t perceive you as a thought leader or as someone who is innovative or smart enough to keep your brand up to date.
Go look at your website right now. Click on your social media buttons to see if they work or if they direct you to “not found” accounts. Test your contact form and see if it works. Chances are you’re demonstrating apathy towards your website and those who might be interested in working with you by not keeping it fresh and ensuring that it’s working the way it’s supposed to.
Reason #3: You’re not using social media the right way.
Social Media isn’t B2B or B2C. It’s P2P…people to people. People make buying decisions, people share content, and people engage with each other. Sure, you’ve scheduled a bunch of things for various social media platforms but that’s it. You’re so busy talking to people that you’ve missed all the opportunities out there to engage with others. You’re the opposite of social, you’re absent. You may have content that is being posted by or for you, but your personality, your opinion, and interactions with others is lacking sorely.
If you want people to share your content, refer you business, and edify your work, you need to be part of the conversation. Look around at thought leaders who are leaps and bounds ahead of you. Pay attention to how they are building community. They are doing the things you don’t make time for and their businesses are more successful because of it.
Remember, social media isn’t a fad. It’s where people spend the bulk of their time these days. If you’re in the people business, you need to show up and spend some time there too.
The golden secret is simple:
Don’t take your foot off the gas when it comes to marketing. Keep creating content every single week, keep talking to people and paying attention to what’s going on daily. The moment you get so busy working in your business that you forget to stay top of mind or make the novice assumption that you don’t need to worry about marketing is the moment your pipeline starts to dry up.
Consistency may be boring – but it works.
This article originally appeared on LisaLarter.com