We all only have 24 hours in a day, and as an entrepreneur myself, I understand the value of attention and time. Saying yes to something means saying no to something else. And that's a cost many entrepreneurs don't take into consideration. They end up putting everything on their shoulders or opting for quick fixes and sacrifice their time on doing revenue-generating actions.
According to Dr. Brad Klontz, a financial psychologist, "in starting a small business, many entrepreneurs feel the need to do it all. However, the do-it-yourself mindset can quickly become a significant barrier to success, as many entrepreneurs have difficulty delegating and outsourcing once their business grows. Becoming a successful entrepreneur often requires a dramatic shift in mindset."
What is content marketing for entrepreneurs?
Fast Fact
Key takeaway
Why is Content Marketing so important for Entrepreneurs?
With that said, the mistakes many entrepreneurs make without knowing are usually about mindset. Here are 3 common ways of thinking that can ruin an entrepreneur's content and general marketing for their businesses:
1. The wrong mindset entrepreneurs have about Content Marketing: "I don't want to start my content strategy yet because things might change"
Saying that is exactly the same as saying "I don't want to train soldiers yet because I don't know what war we'd be fighting."
Entrepreneurs are so used to buying an ad or executing a campaign to tackle an immediate need in the shortest time possible that they have somehow trapped themselves in this mindset that building a strong foundation equals putting agility at risk.
You don't only start to assemble your troops when a war has begun - you recruit and train your men in the best way possible during peace. So when there is an attack, you know you already have people there to protect and fight for you. Indeed, there might be unanticipated circumstances that leave your soldier empty-handed. But that's when you pivot, adapt, and refine your existing assets.
I know you might think this sounds too dramatic as an analogy to a brand not having a content strategy, but I can't put this any other way. Winning attention in the vast and noisy market now is like a war. But instead of putting together a strategy and framework, people rather release random posts that they think are good at the moment because "things might change".
Well, things will change, and that's a fact. Algorithms and updates will mess with you whenever they want. Trying to catch up to those on the go will kill you. A content strategy is your constant anchor. You do not abandon your strategy to cater to change. You explore new content executions to respond to growth.
It sets the overarching framework and identifies the content you should produce. So even if you offer a new service or tap into a completely new niche - your content strategy remains to be your North star. The ways to get to it might require necessary tweaks, but forfeit having it at all is a mistake.
"One of the most productive things you can do for your brand is to review the content your brand leaves in its wake. As you acquire new content capabilities, advance your story, and change your points of view, you’ll naturally evolve what your brand will say."
- Robert Rose
2. Underestimating the amount of work of Content Marketing as entrepreneurs
Content Marketing is a lot of work.
Because content creation in content marketing is about building trust and interest. That means it is driving for overall brand awareness. It is an inbound method focused on attracting leads throughout the funnel. Audiences will judge the brand based on the quality of all content across different channels. It will affect their level of trust as they are interested in the whole brand rather than just one offering. Think of buying something from a brand because it is your favorite brand. It doesn't take a promotion to get you interested in their product.
Trying to do this all by yourself is not a wise choice.
"If you don’t become comfortable with the digital age then a competitor who may have a less superior product, but a far better marketing engine in terms of a digital personal brand, will outsell you. Paid advertising has a finite window. Once the money is used up your advert and visibility have gone. With digital content, it is evergreen and will be searchable forever. If it is tagged up correctly it can continue to work for you by bringing customers to you, infinitely."
- Peter Boolkah
3. Assuming audiences care
Many entrepreneurs seem to think their leads are like stalkers.
They somehow believe their leads will naturally see every post on their feed, track them down on search, and come to them as long as they exist. They use this awkward mentality to assess their marketing plan, resulting in unbelievable choices such as:
Building a website that can't be crawled nor have any SEO implemented and saying "it's ok" because they think their budget should be spent elsewhere (such as big fancy ads - which at the end of the day, still sends people back to the ill-functioning website)
Creating social media posts without any justification and saying "it's ok" because they think whatever they post will be engaged by both followers and non-followers (without realizing most of their reach have randomly ended up in India somewhere)
Starting different owned channels without a strategy and saying "it's ok" because they believe the more channels = the more chances for closing (which is simply untrue, because if it is, then it's just a battle of more accounts)
You should always assume that your leads are complete strangers, who are yet aware of not just you, but the problem that you solve in their life. As a brand, you need to make a large effort to connect with these people. That does not happen by "owning" more accounts online. It only happens with creating the right content and then distributing them properly on selected platforms online.
"Content marketing is a slow burn. It has to be strategized and then adjusted on an ongoing basis to discern what is, and isn’t, working. Think long-term. As you build up and amplify your content, engagement will increase incrementally. Eventually, you will see a ‘snowball effect’, where your inbound content marketing will generate so much traffic and engagement that it will slash ad spend, cut sales lead time, and reduce outbound spend, aligning sales and marketing successfully together."
- Azadeh Williams
People love quick fixes and somehow are okay when quick fixes fail. But good products and services are here to guarantee long-term fulfilment. And that is the hardest thing for the general customer to accept and invest in. I believe this rings true to content marketing too.
Until quick fixes fail do people look elsewhere. But it doesn't have to be that way. You don't have to waste money and go through failures before reaching success. All it takes is to start on the right foot the first step.
I have spent the decade crafting my content marketing skills that I can guarantee you I only need half of the time you use (or even less) on creating a piece of content or a professional content strategy for you to not make any of the mistakes mentioned above.
"Relying on experts for professional advice can seem foreign for many aspiring entrepreneurs. This kind of thinking is a big mistake. Often, you can’t afford not to have the help and guidance they can provide. You don’t need to hire them on as staff. You could just consult with these professionals when you need them."
- Dr. Brad Klontz, financial psychologist for CNBC
Simply schedule your free 30-minute diagnosis session with me and ask me any digital marketing, social media marketing, and content marketing questions you have. I will be able to give you professional insights and advice on the spot, guaranteed!
In the call, we will go through:
- What you are looking for
- What solutions I can provide
- Q&A on what strategies are
- Follow up with a tailored package and quotation
Make better use of your time. Speak soon!