Business Growth Blog

I regularly talk to companies that are considering starting an inbound sales and marketing program, but they lack the technological capacity required to do the work.

While there's a variety of sales and marketing technology available, the tool we've had the most success with is HubSpot. They put all the necessary functionality required into one system, which improves data sharing, communication between the teams, and work efficiency.

The hardest part of implementing a content marketing plan is figuring out what to write about. Companies usually begin in the self-promotional phase: they write about upcoming trade shows, new hires, case studies, and press releases. The content is very company-centric.

While it’s great to showcase the company culture, products, and services, it’s kind of boring stuff. It’s not likely to pique the interest of many new potential customers.

The most successful content marketing strategies are customer-centric. The content is written to teach, inspire, and motivate. Prospects find it interesting and helpful and become followers and evangelists for the brand. Good content helps companies build a following, generate leads, and increase sales efficiency.

Here are eight steps to help you start developing a list of relevant, highly valuable topics for your content strategy.

I was talking with a client recently, and she told me an interesting story. She said people frequently email her to share that they really enjoy her daily email newsletter. Which is great, except for one thing: She only emails newsletters once or twice per week, not daily!

When she replies to thank them and shares that she only sends newsletters a couple of times per week, her readers are surprised. They really thought they were getting an email from her every day.

When I heard this story, it got me thinking about what this actually meant.

Sometimes I go an unsubscribe spree - I unsubscribe from almost every newsletter that comes into my email inbox. Even emails I like to read. After a while, I just get too many, and it becomes overwhelming. I never read half of them anyway. I hit the “select all,” quickly scan to see if anything stands out, then hit “delete.”

I tell my clients that email marketing is a crucial part of a business growth strategy. And here I am, opting out after opting out. So what's the deal? Is email marketing important or not? Here's my philosophy on what email marketing is really about.

There’s often minimal communication between sales and marketing teams about their corporate newsletter strategy. Publishing email newsletters is typically seen as a ‘marketing’ function, which couldn’t be further from the truth.

Email marketing is meant to build brand awareness, but it serves an even more important role: to support sales prospecting efforts. After all, the contacts on your email list are the same people that sellers are actively trying to convert into customers.

The first place most people go to find the products or services they need is Google. At a minimum, Google is the new phone book. For example, if I wanted to find out where I could purchase dry ice for a party I was having, I would type in, “Dry ice, Saginaw.” I’ll scan the first page and pick the most convenient and trust-worthy looking company.

Google also helps buyers self-educate early in the sales cycle — before they’re ready to talk to a vendor or sales rep. For example, if I was searching for information about types of office layout design, that could signal I’m considering an office renovation.

It’s true that most of our email boxes are overflowing. We can’t keep up. Email marketing is becoming increasingly noisy, which is why we need to make sure we’re marketing across multiple channels to get maximum exposure to our target buyer.

There are a lot of savvy business leaders and industry experts out there that don’t blog. Unfortunately, their hard-earned “intellect” is not being used to its full potential.

For a company blog to be a profitable investment, leaders and experts from across the organization need to take ownership and participate. Prospects and customers don’t want to read boring blogs that anyone could write by doing a little research online. They want to hear real stories, experiences, and ideas from experts in the field.

Blogging is a long-game strategy that takes practice, dedication, and patience, so it can be easy to put off. But the longer you wait to get started, the longer it will take to get results. (And the more time your competitors have to steal your thunder!)

Here are a few ideas to get over the hump and start blogging now.

The thought of sitting down, hashing out ideas and forming them into a blog post for your business blog is daunting. It’s so hard to find the time and make it a priority! I even struggle myself: do I do client work or my own blog?

For example, as I’m writing this, I feel a lot of pressure because I have a meeting tomorrow that I HAVE to prepare for. Technically, I should be doing that right now. Instead, I’m writing this blog because I know it is a critical part of my business growth strategy.

So that begs the question: how do you find time to blog in an already over-worked schedule? Here are 3 ways you can ease the burden and make blogging easier.

I evaluate a lot of company websites and their online presence. The first few things I look for are whether or not they have a blog, if the articles lean more company-centric or customer-centric, and who the authors are.

The Internet is flooded with content. Not every article is going to be a hit, but posts that are interesting and compelling to the right audience can drive website traffic and leads for years. The best articles usually come from people in the trenches: business leaders and industry experts who are actively working in the field. They bring unique insights, advanced learning, and fresh perspectives that drive the conversation forward.

In the following articles, I explored some of the important benefits businesses realize when leaders engage in the blogging process. When you read the titles, you may think they contain the same information. But each blog has a slightly different take. Check them out! Comment below and share what you think about blogging.