The other day, I heard someone on a mainstream pop radio station referring to the information in his newly revised book as “content”. “More content than ever before!” I gasped, “‘Content’ has reached the masses!” and my husband stared at me.

Anyway, I’ve been thinking about content a lot lately. We talk about it, complain about it, strive to produce more of it. Because that’s what brings the shiny new people and helps them to love us. And we love love.

A lot of the questions that I get revolve around content. People complaining, “But I don’t want to blog, I just want people to love me and buy from me. How much does that cost?”

Errrm. It costs whatever it costs to hire someone to produce amazing content for you. Information is the pony on this carousel. People don’t want to hear all about you, you, you. “We have been in business for 400 years! We sell cheese fries that are delicious!” Who cares? But man, I bet they’d love your cheese fry recipe. And your hilarious video entitled “How to eat cheese fries while standing on your head”.

That’s content. That’s why I emphatically recommend a content-driven website strategy. For anyone, everyone, and yes, even you.

But uggggh…I don’t want to BLOG!

It’s not about blogging. That’s why I don’t use the term. It’s content. Think about all the different types of content that you encounter on a daily basis. Actually, why don’t you step on over to my chalkboard so I can show you a few of the types of written content that there are in the world. (This isn’t even including other types of media…just written for now).

Yowza, right? So forget blogging. If you don’t want to blog, don’t blog, ever. Brainstorm what kind of amazing content fits in with your business…whether you’re a retailer, a service provider, a public speaker, or part of a juggling circus. And then publish it consistently.

And bloggers who are thinking “Umm…yeah. Obviously content is the main thing. I knew that in 2005.” I challenge you (and me) to reach outside of how you’ve previously defined your content. “Content” does not have to equal “blog post”. Or, more clearly, “blog post” does not have to equal “list of things I think everyone should do because I’m doing it” or “[fill in the blank with some sort of technology that we love] is dead” or “rant about my mother-in-law’s cooking” (although you know how I love food analogies).

P.S. You know I gotsta remind you that the early-bird pricing for our Gold-Digging Excursion is ending soon. Don’t forget to put your registration pants on and sign up before the deadline!

I love old people. There’s a lot of freedom that comes with the experience of living for a long, long time. It’s fascinating how time changes us.

Web design is notorious for changing every 5 minutes. But there are some principles of effective web strategy that I’m still going to be rallying around when I’m 92 (unless we’re using pure telepathy by then; in that case I would hand my mic over to the dude with the shiny purple turban).

1. Effective web design is not nearly as much about aesthetics as it is about achieving a desired result. Design for design’s sake does not work on the web. If your goal is to impress the ten people who end up somehow finding your award-winning site, bravo. You did it.

   But I’m betting you had different reasons for wanting a fabulous-looking site. Things like building up a list of people who adore you. Getting email inquiries by the bucketful. Selling your incredible creations to people who appreciate them deeply. Remember: A pretty site does not a successful online venture make. (Although ugly is definitely worse.)

2. The most effective web strategies are the result of a first creation. Back in the day when Stephen Covey was the only productivity guru I’d ever heard of, I used to mull over his idea of the first creation — this idea that everything involves not one, but two creations. The first being the intentional in-your-brain/on-paper creation that determines the second actual/in-real-life creation. Remember: A lack of the first always leads to a lack in the second.
3. Today’s never-fail attention-grabbing strategy is tomorrow’s invisible dog. My childhood best friend (whose name was/is also Sarah, resulting in me being called “Sarah Joy” for the second six years of my life) used to have one of those leashes that had an invisible dog on the end of it. I thought that was the coolest thing. And that’s what your web strategy looks like if you’re doing the same things you were doing a year or two ago. Except not as cool. Remember: Keeping people’s attention requires constant innovation. No laurel-resting allowed.
4. If you’re noticing that everybody’s using a particular strategy, it’s probably on the down-swing. Web strategy needs to be constantly applied in new ways that run against-the-current. They must be tailored to you and your particular brand of awesome. Most busy online entrepreneurs simply adapt what others are doing and call that their strategy. And while that may work for a while, the results will be a watered-down version of what you could be achieving. Remember: While there are tricks and principles to tattoo in your brain, there are no cookie-cutter solutions.
5. The most successful and enterprising people online make themselves their own best client and customer. Hat tip to Men With Pens for talking about this yesterday. When your business explodes, it’s really hard to keep this in the forefront of your business practice. If anyone knows this, it’s me. But it’s got to be said…hiring strong people to help you is better than crippling your growth. Remember: If you put your business’ oxygen mask on first, you will be better able to serve the world. And oh yeah, define life on your own terms.

These are the reasons I’m launching the Gold-Digging Excursion today. Because there’s something missing in our web presence — it’s the first creation, the strategy. It’s the know-how to actually make our dreams come true. I want you to be equipped throughout your online adventure to make stuff happen in a big way. (And also…gold mining! How fun is that?!)

So I’m betting you’re wondering where I was yesterday, right? Oh, it didn’t even cross your mind? Well, I’m going to pretend that it did.

The morning started off bad, got worse, and then spit in my face at the end of the day. I keep telling myself that it’s only February, and even pirate queens get cranky this time of year. What more can I expect?

So to make myself feel better, I’m going to show you a glimpse of my under-the-sheets project. That I’ve been working on since September. And then give you an opportunity to get on the pre-launch daisychain so that you’ll be the first to know when I’m opening the doors (because that’s what the pre-launch daisychain is for, y’know? That and seeing more sneaky-peeks before it’s unveiled to the public).

Just a glimpse, okay? I haven’t even shown this to my dad, and that’s saying something.

Oh yes. And here’s the link to the daisychain (or you can click on the image itself). If you’re already subscribed for yummies, you’re not already on the daisychain. It’s a separate thing.

I feel better already.

I’m back! (Notice how I take off on vacation without warning anyone? Yay!) Still on the road, but I’m down from my turkey high at least. Let’s test that theory. I’m just going to jump right in today.

What are you writing about? Most of us write about what we know. If you knit, you write about knitting. If you paint, you write about painting. Makes sense. Except, not really.

If your blog isn’t bringing you more and better business, maybe you’re writing about the wrong thing.

Hello, Captain Obvious! Actually, let’s pretend I am Captain Obvious, and I run a spaceship-making company. I know all about making spaceships, so I blog about everything I know. It attracts people from far and wide. Everyone who has ever wanted to learn about making spaceships is visiting my website. Hooray!

But wait a second. Nobody’s buying anything. Why is that? Oh, I know! Because they aren’t spaceship-buying people. They’re spaceship-making people. Drats. Foiled again.

Give the people what they want

We do this weird chanting thing in my house whenever we’re getting impatient and want something now. Like during dinner or something. We’ll start banging our forks and knives on the table while rhythmically chanting “Give the people what they want; give the people what they want.” It’s sort of weird, and I blame my friend Curtis, but it makes us laugh so we keep doing it.

So what do the people want?

They want completely different things. Not to say that writing for one won’t influence the other in some way, but you’re going to get tremendously better results if you gear your content to the people who ultimately buy your stuff. Kapeesh?

Now that I’ve got that out of my system…price increases! Brought to you by my new-fangled time tracker of kung foo delight (made that up), I’ve discovered some really interesting things about time. For one, everything takes twice as long as I thought. For two, it’s time to adjust for that. But I won’t be increasing until the new year, so don’t worry your fuzzy stockings about it just yet.

So, are you writing for the people that you serve? Or are you writing for someone else…your colleagues, yourself, or your Uncle Pete? How’s it working for you?

This would be my nightmare: To wake up one morning without an inquiry in weeks. To watch subscriber numbers drop like like it’s the second coming of Christ. To see all that I’ve worked for start to recede instead of grow. Shudder.

Actually, it used to be a reality for me. I’d have a time of impressive growth followed by a period of screeching-halt slow-down. And I couldn’t figure it out.

Eventually, one of my blogging superheroes pointed out my sporadic publishing schedule. I would publish every day for a while; then I wouldn’t publish for a week. I was busy, so I would write when I had free time between projects. I figured that paid work had to come first. Wrong.

Crazy things that happen when publishing isn’t a high priority

Your readers stop taking you seriously. They don’t see you working away on your many projects. All they see is “sometimes she’s around; sometimes she’s not”. They decide you’re a flake. And all of your “sorry I haven’t posted in a while” posts don’t help. (Sidenote: Even if you haven’t posted in a while, don’t apologize.)

Your content becomes cheap. In your readers’ brains, flaky writer = flaky content. What you put out to the world gets branded as an afterthought.

People stop checking in. A BIG portion of your visitors don’t subscribe. They bookmark your site and come back periodically to check for new content. It’s like they’re coming to your show, and you’re not there. Eventually they stop coming, and in their place…crickets. (Darn those crickets!)

People forget about you. Your content is the online equivalent of showing your face. Reminding people, “Hey, I exist!”. If you stop showing up, you’ll be forgotten in a sea of people who DO show up.

How to make publishing a priority when EVERYTHING is a priority

Create a publishing schedule. When will you post? Every Tuesday? Tuesdays and Thursdays? Write it on the calendar as an actual event that you can’t miss. Give yourself no loopholes. You ARE sticking to the schedule. Repeat: no excuses.

Schedule posts in advance. I’ve never been good with this, but many professional bloggers live and die by scheduled posts. It releases the pressure to write while simultaneously ensuring that you stick to your publishing schedule. It can also help you batch process your writing, which can cut down on your writing time. (Bonus: You can then make full advantage of those times when the words flow…write several posts during those times instead of just one.)

Test the theory. Go ahead. Ignore my advice. Personal experience (and the ensuing pain) are world-famous teachers. (And I know that from…ahemmm…experience.)

A lot of the stuff I write about content-driven sites sounds good when applied to service providers. You can clearly see how having your rich juicy content on your home page would do all kinds of crazy/awesome stuff for your business. But what about sites that feature products? I’m clearly not talking about them, right?

Wrong.

E-commerce sites are people, too

Service providers are beginning to understand that in order to captivate an audience, we have to have content that they want to read. It has to be fresh and different and reliable. And we need to arrange our entire website around that content.

No more home pages that say “We are exactly what you’re looking for” with a strategically-placed happy person leaping off the page. No more website with a blog attached (because the blog gets all the traffic, and then a small percentage of those people click over to your “real” website). You want warm bodies in the seats from the get-go. Right? We’ve covered this.

E-commerce sites can do this, too. In fact, if you jump on this now, you will be ahead of nearly all of your competition. Listen to me here. I’m letting you in on a Big Secret.

We’re putting all of our eggs in the wrong basket

Most people do not buy a product the first time they hear about it. We know this first-hand. When we find out about a cool product, we go to the website and think “Man, that’s awesome.” Then promptly forget about it, lovely information-overloaded creatures that we are. I do this, you do this, and the majority of the people visiting your e-commerce site do this.

Yet even the best of e-commerce sites are catering to impulse buyers, even though their product is not an impulse-buy type of product. They display it attractively right next to the cash register. They show all of its delicious features, and they package it just right. “Buy me, buy me, buy me.” And sometimes we do. But most of the time, we don’t need it right then and promise ourselves that we’ll come back. We rarely do.

For a product to be an impulse-buy type of product, the purchaser has to be able to get it right then. Like candy in the grocery store aisles. And unless you’ve invented some kind of internet miracle, your buyers have to wait for their candy. It is not an impulse buy.* And even if it were, most impulse buys rely on strategic branding messages to create that urgency. (Break me off a piece of that Kit Kat bar, baby).

* Information products and software products do fall into the impulse-buy category. But those are about the only exceptions I can think of.

We are on the internet, people

It’s great to have a search-engine optimized store so that people come to your product exactly in their time of need. (I search for hand-knit socks, and bingo…a hand-knit sock site. How nice.) It’s great to generate lots of buzz in a word-of-mouth campaign. Getting your product featured in a national magazine is fantastic.

But by neglecting to take advantage of the fact that information is the currency of the internet, you are missing out on a huge opportunity. And I can’t for the life of me understand why more e-commerce stores aren’t taking advantage of this.

More sticky, minus the icky

Obviously, a content-driven e-commerce site is not going to look the same as a content-driven service-based site. The product and the “product shelves” do need to take center stage on the site so that people can find what they’re looking for easily. But there are so many ways that the content could be creatively integrated so that your visitors stick around and become your raving fans.

Whatever you decide to create, it needs to be honest. It should be as fantastic and unique as you can possibly make it. It must be genuinely helpful and not sales-y. Otherwise, your “valuable content” becomes one of those cheap recipe books that you get on the mayonnaise jar. Here are some ideas off the top of my head:

• A gourmet food store covering big time, real-life bashes and how to re-create them.
• A baby products store featuring a real mom blogging about issues with her newborn and first-time parenthood.
• A clothing store street-spotting fashion trends as they happen.
• A bookstore featuring impeccably edited, unusual reading lists. (“Five books to read when you’re trying to stay awake.” “Eight books to read when you’re in a bad mood.” “Two books to read if you have ten days to live.”)
• Or even…even…writing about your products in an entertaining and informative way, a la Trader Joes. (Except right there…on your home page. Not only in a downloadable pdf.)

Remember, I’m not talking about having an e-commerce store with a blog attached. This is being done (and it’s sometimes done well, but rarely). It’s better than nothing, but still…you are ushering your visitors to your happening blog party only to have to convince them to follow you into your stuffy sales room. With your content on your home page, it’s all party, all the time.

I’d love to see more exploration in this area. Showcasing real content on a home page that already has limited screen real estate is a challenge, for sure. But it’s one I would take in a heartbeat.

I love my blogs. Maybe it’s because for a while there, I didn’t have time to read any of them. Twitter was my sole method of online information-getting. But now that I’m immersing myself back into my favorite blogs, I feel more connected. I’m appreciating the immense amount of thought that goes into every post. I feel like the information they contain has become more valuable now that we have 140-character tweets in the mix.

There has been a lot of criticism about blogging and online information-sharing. People say we just echo each others’ thoughts — that we have no real thoughts of our own. We are just living in an echo-chamber. I don’t agree. Or rather, I sort of agree, and I like living in the echo-chamber.

Repetition changes the world

I read books all the time that change my life. For about a week. Then they sort of slip away from memory, a new book comes along, and I’m changed all over again. It’s great. I get to feel like I’ve changed without really doing it.

The internet is different. I get to read different takes on a topic, and it DOES sink in. It becomes a part of my ever-increasing knowledge of the online world and how it is evolving. I don’t have to worry about re-reading an article over a period of months so that I don’t lose it. I can rest in the fact that the information I’m taking in is slowly and continually shaping and changing me…for the better. It puts my information growth curve on a sort of auto-pilot.

More than likely, this article will show up elsewhere in a different form and with a different viewpoint, so I don’t have to even bookmark it or pretend that I’ll come back to it later (I never will). I just trust that the concepts are sinking in, and I choose my information intake wisely.

Repetition as a branding tool

The problem business owners have with a content-driven website is that they have to continually create new content. They are afraid they’ll run out of stuff to say. I’ve dealt with this too. Writing to website owners about their websites seems like a pretty limited (and boring) topic. But…I have a dream. (You can start the background gospel music now.)

I dream of regular Joes having the information and tools they need to maintain websites that are exciting to their audiences. No more boring, stuffy websites. No more websites that scream “I don’t care about you! Let’s talk about me!” No more websites with 14 visits a month…that all end up being from you.

This is going to take some major immersion, right? Some soaking into new information that will change the way you look at your website and how it works. I love what Mark said in a comment a few weeks ago.

“People come to new knowledge much more slowly than we like to admit…For most people, if they really wanted [the information], it lit a spark somewhere, and it’s just taking awhile for the fire to catch. And that’s okay. No one here is any rush.”
Mark Silver

We are the coal that won’t light on the first try. And you, the writer, have a fire that becomes your branding. Your core message that you’re trying to get across. Without repetition, that message would be unclear. You’d be covering anything and everything, but the real point of your dream won’t come across.

So don’t be afraid to repeat stuff. Repeat the things that are the core of your message. Repeat it in different ways, in different formats. Repeat it in the verbal, the audial, and the visual. It becomes your story, your brand.

The web is saturated with self-proclaimed gurus and “experts” in every field imaginable. There’s a reason for this — people want to go to the expert. They want advice/services/products from the guy who has driven the hard road and come out the champion. The gal who has found the secret solution to their biggest roadblock.

Whether they know it or not, the first thing your visitor is wondering when they get to your site is “Is this guy legit?” “Does she know what the bones she’s talking about?” “Should I stick around or go somewhere else?”

Answer their question, for Pete’s sake

Obviously, you’re credible. I know that and you know that. But they are still in the dark. Your site’s design and logo obviously have a big part in your perceived credibility, but so does your voice. The things you say (and how you say them) DO matter.

Look at the front page of your website. It should be at least 75% credibility. 75 percent, Jack! If yours isn’t, that should be a big priority.

Things that increase your credibility

• Your picture. “He’s a real person. Slightly funny-looking, but he looks trustworthy. I want to buy from him.”
• Testimonials. “These testimonials look real…not made up or contrived. I want to work with this gal.”
• Concrete numbers that show success. “Wow…they’re now selling their 1 billionth t-shirt. Must be good.”
• Waiting lists. “It sucks that I have to wait. But man, it’s going to be worth it.”
• Name-dropping. “Her grandmother was Marilyn Monroe! No stinking way!”
• Good connections. “He runs in the same circles as those WWDC yuppies. He must know a lot about design and technology.”

Things that decrease your credibility

• Low numbers. “That guy only has 10 subscribers? Cheesy.”
• Weak connections. “Why do I care that she’s in the ‘Mommies Who Clean, Cook, and Do Business At The Same Time’ community?” (Ooooh…that hurts.)
• Trying too hard. “Ick.”
• Too many attempts to get people to do stuff. “‘Share this! Tweet this! Comment here! Vote now! Buy three!’ What do they think I am, their pet monkey?”
• Blandness. “This organization is generic. Nothing new here.”
• Not having cohesive content. “This guy writes about steak knives, ballet, and mariachi bands. What the heck?”
• Self-serving copy. “I can’t find any of the information I need on this site. It’s all about how awesome this person is and how I should buy from them.”

Credibility is one of those things that you can tweak in the teeniest tiniest way and get gigantic results. It’s like taking the veil off of how cool you are. There are enough veiled, muffled voices online — it’s fun to rip it off and let your coolness show. (Also? It pays the bills.)

You know how you say a word over and over and it completely loses its meaning? Or how a whole group of people (or a whole society) do it, and you don’t even think about what it means anymore? I think that’s what happened to these guys.

‘Useful’ is kind of overrated anyway

I learned long ago not to mention the word “usability” around clients. They start counting the number of arm hairs they have before I even get to the “-ility” part. And while not exactly the same thing as usability, “useful” is boring. It’s no fun. I’d rather have graphics and gizmos that spin!

Now hold on a minute. You CAN have those things. I’m not the usability nun. (I love Jakob Nielsen as much as the next web designer, but come on…his website sucks.) However. Let me let you in on a little secret: every single thing on your website that does not serve a purpose is a wasted opportunity. Let me say it in another way: you’re losing out on the potential to be more successful than you are right now.

My website is useful. Of course it’s useful! (It’s useful…right?)

Maybe. But most people think about what other websites do as a model for what they are going to do. They look at other websites in their field, say “most of them have this, this, and this”, and then make sure they have that, that, and that. They might think it’s necessary or cool or an industry standard. But what they should be thinking is…is it useful?

Homework: Let’s have some fun. Make four columns on a sheet of paper. Label them “Thing on my website,” “What it does for me,” “What it does for my people,” and “Ways to up the usefulness.” Or something like that. Whatever makes sense to you.

In the “Thing on my website” column, write down every aspect of your website. Navigation, images, newsletter subscriptions, the words at the bottom of your website (the footer), links, etc. Everything.

In the “What it does for me” section, write down what kind of benefit your business is getting from that thing. Is it generating leads? Allowing you to get feedback from your customers? Making you look darn good?

In the “What it does for my people” column, write down the benefit that your visitors get from that thing. Does it help them communicate with you easier? Does it give them really valuable information?

Go through those three columns for every item before moving on to the fourth column. Now, in the “Ways to up the usefulness” section, you’re going to brainstorm on how to make the element more effective for your website. If the thing doesn’t do something insanely good for you AND fabulously wonderful for your people, then it needs to be improved.

Change the size, change the placement, change the design. Or maybe get rid of it and replace it with something else. Your website will be phenomenally more exciting, and you’ll be eons more successful than you were before.

I was on the phone with cj Madigan yesterday, and we got to talking about content-driven websites. Traditionally (if you can say traditionally, since the web is still young), companies have a main page that talks about them and what they’re doing, some additional pages about their products and services, and a blog. Nothing wrong with that. Until this past weekend, I was doing the same thing. And then I made the switch.

Danielle LaPorte talked about this a few weeks ago, and I marinated in it. I could definitely see the benefits but felt like I didn’t have the time to make the changes. Then we discussed it in my Fire Starter session, and it clicked so profoundly with me that I spent the entire weekend (days, nights, and everything in between) making it happen.

“It” (if you’re still wondering what the heck I’m talking about) is moving from that traditional “home page with a blog” to something called a content-driven website. Here’s what it does for you:

1. It makes you look like you know what you’re talking about. By putting your knowledge and expertise front and center, you send the message that you are an expert. A guru. A giant fount of information and special-ness. Who wouldn’t want to work with your bad self?
2. You don’t look like one of those companies who think “Let’s have a blog so that we can sell stuff to people!” When you make your content the superstar of your site, you are treating it as a genuine communication tool instead of the latest gadget in your marketing bag-o-tricks. It’s kind of ironic, considering the next point.
3. Your products and services will always be the answer to the question. Blogs usually go from two extremes. On the one end, you have the “Here is stuff that I like. And I’m also a sculptor!” blogs. The person/company has a blog that may or may not pertain to their field, and then they have a link to their “about” page that finally tells you what they really do.

   On the other end, you have the “I’m in business, and I blog about…my business!” blogs. The person/company usually only blogs about what they’re doing, where they’re going, and why you should buy their stuff. These are the ones that give company-owned blogs a bad name.

   Then there is the content-driven website. People read what you have to say and then ask themselves “Who is this person? What kind of work do they do? Where have they been all my life?” The answer: read about your services. Discover that you are the hotness. Come back again and again and again.

4. You will automatically write better, more useful stuff. When your content is the main thing, it’s got to be strong because it is your spokesperson. It shows people how smart you are, how helpful you are, what your principles are. You won’t be slacking when the stakes are so high.
5. People don’t care about you, you, you. In a perfect world (for you, at least), people would be flocking to you, singing your praises and sending you loads of money. Because they, too, see how great you are and just want to support you. Here on Planet Earth, people aren’t going to go to your website because YOU want them to. They’re not going to buy your product because YOU said to do it. And they won’t subscribe to your newsletter just because YOU asked.

   Maybe the most insecure among us will do those things (at least at first), but if you aren’t offering something that people desperately need, then they don’t care about what else you’re doing. With a content-driven website, you get the opportunity to give something fabulous — your insight into your field. Free professional advice! Who isn’t going to keep coming back for that? Which brings us to…

6. You will get more readers. When you’re writing a blog, maybe you don’t care about readership. You’re just doing it as a little add-on to your business so that people can see that you know a few things. But when the content is the main thing, you are offering something so valuable that people will flock to it. More readers equals more people considering your services. More people coming to your company for what they need.
7. Search engines will bring the people to your company site. Content is the yeast the search engines feed on. It’s Google’s life blood. If you bring it content, it will bring the people to you. When you have a blog, those people are coming to your blog. They may or may not ever check out your company site. With a content-driven website, Google is constantly driving people to your company. Which means more connections with people that you might potentially do business with.

A few caveats

Your content is not a “blog.” You must get that out of your head right this instant. You don’t put cute but irrelevant buttons and banners all over it. You don’t talk about how Whiskers ate your stash of Almond Joys last week (well…not often). You do not participate in memes, promote random things so that you can win a prize, or post mushy letters to your loved ones on their birthday.

This is your business website. Be cool, be interesting, but make every single thing relevant to your mission and vision. That doesn’t mean promoting your stuff everywhere. It means establishing yourself as a credible resource…someone that people want to do business with.

Also, this does not give you permission to use a blogspot blog or a wordpress.com blog as your business site. If having a blog IS your business, you can get away with it (at least for a while). As a competent, credible business person, using a hosted blog (yourcompany.blogspot.com) sends a weak message about your success and your commitment to your work.

After switching to the “content-driven website” concept (in a little over three days), I’ve gotten more opportunities to work with really incredible people who run intelligent, passionate companies. Every single inquiry I’ve had has been with people who I really want to work with. I’ve nearly doubled my blog suscribers, I’ve gotten more traffic, and everything I’m doing works together. It’s called getting the most for your efforts. A subtle switch that multiplies the excitement factor a hundred times over.