Create Great Content

• Create Great Content
• New Features
• Resources & Links

Last Christmas, I asked what was the single topic that readers of Newsletter Resource: Tips, Tricks, & Secrets were most interested in and the results are in! More than anything else, creating content seems to be the major issue. So here are a few tips on making it much less painful.

The two most important questions
Before you begin to think about content, you need to have a mission. Ideally, this is developed when you first begin your newsletter but it's never too late to develop it. There are two questions to answer:

1. Who are my readers and what do they need to know?
2. What do I want them to do?

The answers to these two questions will drive all of the content of your newsletter - and possibly - all of your marketing material. Here's an example:

Who are they: Suppose you're an insurance agent. Let's say that your target audience is professionals, some own their own businesses or work for themselves. Maybe a majority of them are women between 30 and 54 with an income over $40,000. That's a pretty specific group, but it will really help to generate content ideas.

What do they need to know: Maybe they need to know about updates for home business insurance, how to insure their personal or business assets, security issues for women, business travel insurance information, or any type of industry update that might save or cost them money.

What do you want them to do: You probably want them to have enough confidence and trust in you to come to you with any of their insurance questions. Building credibility and familiarity is more important than just trying to sell your services. Always remember - especially if what you're dealing in are services - it's much better to develop a trusting relationship that just sell. People do business with people that they know, like, and trust - then they tell everyone they know! Once they trust you, they'll do what you recommend - which translates into sales for you.

Develop a mission statement from the answers to these two questions. You can even incorporate it into the tag line of your newsletter. Here are a couple of examples:

Secretary's Letter: Today's newest & best success ideas for secretaries
Tea Leaves: News for prescient readers
Retirement Today: Financial strategies for retired canadians
Preemie Primer: Resources for parents of premature babies
West Hills Wildlife Alert: Monitoring flora and fauna in Fairfield western ecosystems
Last Call: Trends in square dancing from Anchorage to Miami
Headliner Highlights: Tracking the hottest bands in the hippest clubs

Can you see how adding a mission statement as a tag line not only helps generate content ideas, but it also helps your readers identify themselves. The minute they pick up your publication (or see the subject line of your email) they say, "Oh, that's for me!" Cool, huh?

So - What next?
Now that you've got your mission statement, take a minute to brainstorm about all of the ideas that it brings to mind. Write down all of your ideas and set them aside so you can come back to them. Ideas have a way of germinating in the back of your mind so it's a good idea to let them sit for a while.

Here's what I do next when I'm working with a client. We go over their list of ideas and ask "When would that be appropriate?" For example if we use our insurance person from before, maybe the idea is travel insurance. Well most people start to think about traveling as summer approaches, right? So we start scheduling ideas. Develop an "editorial calendar' for your publication. Here are a couple examples of editorial calendars: quarterly or monthly. It's really helpful to try to fill out the year if you can. If you can't, at least try for three months at a time.

Now that you've got some topics planned, as you go through your day be aware of items that cross your path that might relate to that topic. I encourage my clients to create a folder for each issue and just drop things in as they come across them. This way, when you're ready to assemble your newsletter, just pull out the folder for that issue. You'll find that it's really pretty much complete content-wise.

Get outside contributions
Getting others to contribute to your newsletter can be helpful as long as you make it easy for them. Perhaps when you were writing down your ideas, you thought of a particular expert that you'd like to hear from. Just send them a quick form for them to fill out with the bare bones of the story (who, what, where, why, when) and have them send it back. The shorter the better. Here's an example of a form that I use. Now that you've got the facts, all you do is connect the dots and write it up.

Still need more ideas?
If you find yourself really stuck for an idea for content or filler, here are some that never fail:

1. Give real-life examples. Describe a problem you've solved for a client/customer, and use that as a springboard to offer more general advice. This positions you as the expert in your readers' minds more than your coming out and saying so.
2. Think of the areas in which you'd like your clients to think of you as a resource. Then develop content in those areas
3. Read industry publications for ideas. Are there any hot issues in your field right now? The more controversial, the better.
4. What questions have your clients asked you consistently? Make a list and answer one in each issue.
5. Share info that you've gotten from an industry conference, workshop, seminar, or insightful article.
6. Offer a list of your top 5 or 10 tips on a certain subject.
7. Interview associates whose expertise would interest your readers (while not competing with yours)
8. Recommend books and resources that you use, and offer full reviews on them.
9. Invite readers to write you with their own questions, and answer one in each issue. Right after their question, publish the person's name, business, e-mail, and Web site address. They'll enjoy the attention/publicity!
10. Invite readers to send in profiles. Ask them to tell you about themselves -- their names, businesses, locations, and how they use the information gained in your newsletter. Feature one profile in each issue or one every few issues.
11. When all else fails, borrow an article! There are dozens of Web sites offering hundreds of articles that you can use in your newsletter. The articles are free and available for you to use immediately. The only catch is you're required to leave the entire article intact, including the author's promotional information.

Email me to let me know if this article was helpful.

New Features
Coming Soon! I'll soon be offering access to do-it-yourself email services for those of you interested in venturing into the world of cyber newsletters. You'll be able to come in and sign up for your own account. You'll be able to do as much or as little as you'd like from developing your own emails to having me do it all for you. Plus, it will be at a very reasonable price.

For those of you who prefer print services - never fear! I have to admit that print is still my favorite way to go. I'll be adding print and distribution packages at a much lower price. I'll keep you all posted.

Links & Resources
Dirty computer screen? On the computer for more than 2 hours a day? At the end of the day, your eyes sting, you can't see straight? It's the fault of the screen. It's dirty, but on the inside. A quick and free visit to www.clean-your-screen-for-free-now.com will wipe away this unpleasant phenomena. In 30 seconds, your screen will become transparent once again. No downloading of software, hence no viruses. And turning up your speakers is recommended.