The Ultimate Guide for Creating Content That Cuts Through the Noise
I know, especially when you’re more introverted, the thought of sharing your work, promoting, marketing, and (worst of all) selling can be enough to pack up your business before you’ve even started.
In fact, one of the most common topics that comes up in the entry questions to my Introvert-Friendly Business community is “How do I create content without adding to the noise?”
It can definitely be a huge point of resistance and procrastination when it comes to getting seen and heard for the work that you do, finding your dream clients, and getting your business off the ground. I get it. I’ve struggled too.
But, over the years, I’ve found that creating valuable, relatable, and helpful content is the #1 way to get your work out into the world and in front of the people who need what you’ve got.
This post is my ultimate guide for creating content that cuts through the noise, connects with your dream clients, and invites them to take the next step with you. This is the exact process that I use myself and share with my 1:1 clients and Emerge and Expand members!
I highly recommend you save or bookmark this post to refer back to later! Grab The Seen and Heard Handbook for all the questions from this post!
There are so many ways to get your work in front of new people but all of those ways are through content of some sort.
The key is finding what you love to create and giving it the time it needs to build momentum.
The perfect way to overwhelm and burn out is to try and implement every single strategy out there. Or jumping from one to another and getting fed up doing lots of work with little results.
Let’s put an end to spinning those wheels, creating content that nobody sees, and building a plan for your work that will form the foundations of your business and online presence.
Step 1: Seen and Heard – Focus and Foundations
Begin With The Bigger Picture
It’s something I don’t see anyone really talking about so I think it’s important to start with some key questions so you have a deeper understanding of what you’re doing and why before you start creating anything.
1 – Why this business?
There are so many directions you could have taken, why this one? What lights you up about the work you do and the big vision you have for it?
2 – What is your offer?
You might have more than one, but focusing on one at a time helps. This is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow that you’re inviting your people into. Not everyone will take it, don’t expect them to! Your job is to invite your dream clients in who are ready for your next step (ie, your offer)
3 – Who is it for and how does it help?
You can’t be for everyone, you’re not Oreos. The more specific you get, the easier it is to call in the people you can best support. It will change and evolve, but let’s start somewhere!
4 – What do you people need to hear from you?
There’s a lot of noise out there, but you only need to speak to YOUR people. What do they need to know about you and your work? Do they have questions? Are there certain things they aren’t sure about? How will they know if they’re ready for your offer or service?
5 – What do they need to believe is possible?
At the end of the day, everyone has their own personal power, right? But often we find ourselves walking down paths, not knowing how we got there. What possibilities do your people need to see in order to realise they can change their path?
6 – What action do they need to take?
Whether it’s small, immediate actions they can take from your free content that will help them get started, or bigger steps that they feel excited for. Like joining your program or booking in a call, get clear on actions you know would help your people.
Having this deeper awareness of what you’re creating and why makes it so much easier to move forward with intention. You want to be seen and heard because you have an amazing program, offer, or skillset to share.
TAKE ACTION: Grab the Seen and Heard Handbook and fill out the questions so you’ve got some clarity anchored in before you even start creating your pillar content!
What’s Pillar Content?
Pillar content is your foundational content. It’s in depth, it’s long form, it’s the content you’d expect to show up in a Google search. (Versus a 30 second reel or post on Instagram that is going to get most of its views in the first day or two).
Some pillar content examples might include:
- Blog posts or articles on your website or other sites (such as Medium.com, Patreon, KoFi, or LinkedIn)
- Videos on YouTube
- Podcast episodes
- Video or audio interviews
- Livestreams on social media
- Masterclasses, webinars, or live trainings/experiences
- Epic newsletters to your email list
The sky’s the limit, but generally I think of pillar content as a longer form of sharing your ideas that is informative, valuable, and gives your people something to learn, take away or implement in their lives.
This is not disposable content, it’s your best ideas and the heart of the work that you do. It helps your audience to understand who you help, how you help them, and what you stand for that will be discovered for years to come.
Choose Your Content Format and Platform
There are so many options to create content these days. It’s just about getting started where it feels easy for you..
I follow plenty of people who never created anything until joining TikTok and now make money just doing that. I had a client who documented her own healing journey on Instagram, and we turned her IG posts into blog articles years later.
You might even already be creating content on your website, social media platforms, or elsewhere around the Internet.
But if you’re just starting out (or wanting to get more intentional about your content), you’ll want to get clear on two things:
- What format/s you’re going to use based on your strengths
- The platform/s you’re already on or would like to create a community on
Your format is whether you’re going to choose writing, video, or audio. There are a million ways to do this, but go with what feels easy and plays to your strengths. Eventually, your end goal will likely be having a mix of all three. But, to start with, choose the one that feels most doable for you.
Your platform is where your content is going to be housed. It might be a blog on your own website. Or videos on YouTube, Maybe it’s livestreams on a social media platform. Or podcasts on Spotify/Apple Podcasts, etc.
TAKE ACTION: Choose what kind of pillar content you are going to create (or already create!). What format and platform will you be using? And is there anything else you need to work out before you get started?
(N.B I’ve had clients who have built HUGE followings on social media platforms by sharing value-rich pillar content and not having a blog, podcast, or channel. When I say the sky’s the limit, it really comes down to your work, your preferred way of sharing, and your strengths and energy!)
Choose Your Social Media or Connecting Platform/s
Social media is a great place to start creating a community and sharing your content. Many people think it’s important to have a website and all your pillar content ready to go before starting to share on social media, but it’s such a personal preference (and very much a ‘chicken or the egg’ debate – essentially there is no right or wrong, just what feels good for you).
Once again, you might already be on one or more connecting platforms, such as:
- Facebook page
- Facebook group
- TikTok
- Weekly newsletter to your list
I think of these as connecting platforms as they’re a great way to CONNECT with your people. And also a great way to connect your people with your pillar content.
(N.B I’ve had clients who hate social media and don’t want to be on there at all. Instead, we’ve explored new and creative ways to share their work off socials. In fact, that’s the reason I created a whole bonus Trello board of ideas called Anti-Social in The Content Ecosystem).
TAKE ACTION: Choose at least one way you’re going to share your content and start building an engaged community. Over time, you can add others, but I recommend just choosing one to start with!
Now you’ve got clarity around your foundations and focus, the question still is, what content are you going to create that will cut through the noise and connect with your ideal audience?
The #1 way to do this is by simply asking them!
Step 2: Cut Through The Noise and Find Your Ideal Clients
Why research is important
The number one thing that has always bugged me around those very popular ‘ideal client avatars’ in business programs is that it’s much easier said than done. Guessing is definitely not getting us anywhere, though, so I highly recommend doing some good, old fashioned research.
There are so many reasons why research and feedback are important to the content creation process. The number one reason is that where you are right now – the information, knowledge, life skills, and experience that you have – is not necessarily where your people are at.
In fact, it most likely isn’t.
It can get so easy to get in our heads about these things, so the best thing to do is to research and ask what your people are looking for.
I’m going to share with you three different ways you can do some simple research to get new ideas and information to help you start planning out your pillar content.
Search tools and forums
This is a great starting point, especially if you’re new and haven’t built much of a community yet. There are LOADS of forums online such as Quora and Reddit, where you can simply type your niche in and see the questions people are asking.
You can also search Google, YouTube, and Pinterest to see the kinds of questions or problems people are creating content around. Pay close attention to the comments sections of blog posts and YouTube videos, because people will also share their questions there.
You can go one step further, doing keyword research on Google Ads or – my favourite – >>TubeBuddy<<. This allows you to see what keywords are popular, topics or ideas, and popular content that’s being created. TubeBuddy is a YouTube tool but many of the free features will still help with brainstorming and suggestions!
Pay close attention to:
- The questions and problems people are asking
- The solutions and answers content creators are giving
- The kinds of content your people seem to be enjoying
- Additional questions that are being asked in blog and video comments
- What ISN’T being said, or what you would say differently from your perspective
- The language/wording that people are using
- Any other ideas or thoughts that come up as you go
Take Action: Start making a list of ideas in a notebook, spreadsheet, or Trello board so that you can organise them later.
Groups and Communities
I’m going to preface this by saying that I absolutely hate being in groups where people just ask ‘research’ questions off the back of somebody else’s hard work. Someone has gone to the effort to build a community and other people then think it’s fine to fish for clients and information and it just bugs me.
Having said that, there are RIGHT ways to use Facebook groups, LinkedIn communities and other online spaces to get insights into the questions your people have!
This might be just simply scrolling through groups that you’re in where you know your ideal clients are hanging out and just paying attention to what comes up.
Groups are great because they are usually already quite specific and you can see the engagement based on likes and comments. This can help you to see pretty quickly if the topic is a good one!
The search function (especially in FB groups) can help you to search for more specific ideas and see what people are asking for help with, instead of scrolling through months (or years) of posts.
TAKE ACTION: Set your alarm for an hour or two and find some groups (or go through the ones you’re already in), jot down your ideas and observations from the different groups.
Ask Your Audience
Asking your own audience is definitely the best way to get the most specific and relevant information. If you don’t have an audience yet, that’s okay. Even if you’re an introvert, starting to build an engaged community makes a huge difference in your business.
[Let me know in the comments if you would like me to create some content around building or growing your community – guess what, size doesn’t matter!]
You might also like to check out this video on cutting through the noise where I share my #1 tip for calling in your audience.
Being able to ask your audience just makes the research process SO much easier for everything, not just content.
It’s a great way to test an idea for a new offering, by just throwing out a post before you start creating anything to see if people are interested. You can do this so easily by just saying “I’m thinking about running a [insert free or paid offer idea] about [problem you solve] for [$$], who’s interested?”
Other ways you can easily ask your people what they’d like to hear from you, include (but are definitely not limited to):
- Making and emailing your list a really simple survey using Survey Monkey, Google Forms, or TypeForm;
- Creating entry questions to your Facebook group;
- Polls!! So simple and effective. Most of the social media platforms have a poll feature (including FB groups, pages, Instagram stories, LinkedIn and Twitter);
- Use the ‘question’ sticker on Instagram to get your people to ask you questions.
Regardless of the format you prefer, keep it quick and easy for your people to respond.
TAKE ACTION: Plan on choosing at least one way to connect with your audience and ask them what they’d like to hear from you, what they’re looking for right now, or what they would wish for if they had a magic wand.
File and Follow Up – Turn Your Answers Into Content
By this point you likely have a pretty good list of ideas from your research. One of the best things I ever did was create 3 entry questions to my Facebook group. My group has become an ongoing survey of what my people are looking for.
The second best thing I ever did was record and segment that information. Over time, I’ve been able to see very clear topics that my audience are looking for support around. And I have a running list of ideas to create content that’s relevant to them.
Yep, creating content that cuts through the noise and finding ways to be seen and heard online are two hugely popular topics that come up over and over again in the results.
Keep a list, spreadsheet, or Trello board with responses to your polls and surveys. Keep track of conversations you have with your people, comments and questions you get. It’s a gold mine of ideas when you’re not sure what to create next.
If you also keep a record of the person’s name, you’ll be able to reach out and let them know you answered their question. And this gives you a really genuine and easy way to connect in a more deep and meaningful way with your audience too!
TAKE ACTION: Start your list and keep a record of questions, comments, or responses, people’s names and demographics. Once you’ve got a few, you might even start to see patterns forming that will make up your ‘content buckets’ or pillars.
I promise your future self will thank you when it comes time to plan out your monthly or quarterly content plan!
Step 3: Creating a Plan For Content That Cuts Through The Noise
At this point, we want to build a path between your audience research and your offer or solution. And the path is your content.
Why? Because, if you’re anything like me, you’ve got about zero interest in a hard sell.
I also know my audience needs time and space to think. They need to get to know me and trust me. And I want them to keep their power and make a decision that feels right for them. Not one they feel pushed into – no sleazy sales tactics here, thanks.
Creating valuable content and opportunities for my audience to get to know me, experience my work, and start taking action gives them the information they need to make a decision for themselves.
The outcome isn’t up to me. But having a path to invite people along creates so much clarity for me and my audience. It feels natural and easy.
Map Out Your Journey
So far we’ve mapped out:
- Your bigger vision or goals and personal needs
- Your focus or offer for the month/quarter/year
- What pillar content you’re creating
- Where you’re going to share your content and build your community
- What your people are looking for answers or solutions around
Now it’s time to pull it together so that it makes sense and has focus and direction, right?
It’s up to you how you do this! You might choose to focus on one theme or offer per month. Or you might have specific launch dates throughout the year.
I like to plan quarterly, based on my own energy and business. I find yearly is too big and monthly often feels too rushed. Not sure what will work for you? There’s no right or wrong to how you do it. In fact, most of the time it takes a bit of trial and error to find your flow.
I’m going to share two options to give you a starting point to work with. Keep in mind there are so many ways to do this!
OPTION 1: MONTHLY CONTENT PLANNING
With a monthly focus, you will likely be thinking about a main call to action or offer that you’re going to focus on. You can absolutely create content around different subjects or themes, but think how aligned and specific your content can be if you focus on one theme for the month.
This is great if you’re just starting out. Or you have a few different offers you want to focus on throughout the year. It also works if you have evergreen offers (always available, such as digital products or 1:1 services)
Think about:
- Your focus or theme for the month (For example, getting organised for the new year)
- Your call to action or offer for the month? (Eg, booking in a call for your 1:1 coaching or downloading your free guide, etc)
- 4 ideas for content that bring together your monthly focus, your call to action, and your research responses
Eg.
- How To Set Goals For The New Year That You Actually Stick With,
- 3 Things You Need To Start The Year With Ease,
- My Favourite Tools For Planning Your Year,
- Why Choosing A Word For The Year Is Better Than Resolutions
This is obviously based on creating pillar content each week and planning your month like a binge-worthy ‘mini series’. When the posts are all connected, you can link them to each other. Then if someone lands on one, they can go back and read the others.
The great thing about this example and mini series like this? You could reshare this same content every year because there will always be people who missed it the first time, or who need to read it again!
TAKE ACTION: What are you going to focus on for the next month? What’s your offer? What’s your call to action? And what ideas off your list are going to work together as a mini series?
Does this feel too rushed and you’d prefer to go for a more quarterly planning style?
Read on.
OPTION 2: QUARTERLY CONTENT AND LAUNCH PLANNING
The quarterly focus is pretty similar, but gives you a good lead up to a more traditional launch. But instead of giving yourself a week or two, you’re giving yourself and your audience 10-12 weeks. I find this a gentle way to to build energy and momentum around a launch.
This is how I like to plan my content and my focus these days (most of the time anyway!) I still reverse engineer it (similar to the monthly focus). But I also like to think about a ‘launch activity’. And I always have a few different calls to action along the way.
Plan out your months similar to the monthly plan, but you might also add:
OFFER: (Program/course/etc)
LAUNCH DATES: (Eg Launch start and end, early bird, etc)
LAUNCH ACTIVITY: (Eg webinar, free training, video series, livestream, challenge, pop up group)
BEHIND THE SCENES LAUNCH TASKS: (Eg emails to be written, sales pages, ad copy, etc)
Remember, this is a much longer lead up time but you can still break your journey down into monthly focuses that all work in a cohesive way, becoming more advanced or specific as you get closer to your launch.
TAKE ACTION: Use the monthly plan and just plot it out over three months. Or make a numbered list and start to fill in the content ideas to create a beginning, middle, and end journey for your audience.
Consider:
- What are the first things they need to know?
- Do you have some actions or ideas they might take to gently get started (the basics)?
- Is there anything they might they do or need to learn once they’ve got the basics?
- And what do they need to learn, know, or do before they are ready to take the next step?
People will hop on and off the path at different times, based on their needs. But you can still use your content to create a journey for those who are ready for it (or who might discover and binge it later).
Create options and invitations
Because everyone is going to be at different points in the journey, it’s important to consider how you can accommodate a variety of people without spreading yourself too thin or confusing people.
That’s why I often recommend having one core focus or offer per month or quarter.
I love creating different kinds of content that allow people to engage, learn, try things out, and experience me and my work in a variety of ways. It also gives you some options for calls to action so you’re not adding “Book in a discovery call with me here” to every single article, video, or social media post!
Having different options and invitations also means that you provide more depth and value to your people. A simple call to action is, “Hey, if you liked this [post/episode/freebie], you’re going to love this…”
Every step of the way, you’re inviting people to choose their own adventure with you.
If you’re just starting out, you don’t need to have this all straight away. These are just some things to consider when you’re ready:
- Free resources and tools for people who would like a bit more.
For example, if you’re enjoying this post, make sure you get the Seen and Heard Handbook. It has prompts, questions, and steps in one place so you don’t have to scroll back through this whole post.
You can grab the Seen and Heard Handbook:
- Links to other posts
It’s always important (and good for your ecosystem and SEO) to link to other relevant content. When you focus on mini-series months, you can link each post to the one before it. Plus you can make the most of old content and add more value and depth to what you’re sharing or teaching when you’ve got old posts to connect people to.
For example, if you’re enjoying this post, you might like to take a step back and go deeper with your business planning strategy for 2022 by checking out this post.
- Launch activities
These build momentum and a bit of excitement and energy around your launch. They might be free workshops or masterclasses. A video series or livestream for people to tune into and get an experience of your offer before they make a decision. Live experiences, in particular, are a great way to connect with your people, answer their questions, and show them what it’s like to work with you.
I have done all of these at some point and they always create momentum!
- Low priced offers
There’s a lot of messaging in the online business world about ‘high ticket offers’ being the only way to build a successful business. But they can be super inaccessible to a lot of people. There’s also a lot of criticism about low priced offers. But I often find these more valuable than high end programs I’ve joined! Low priced offers are a great way to give people the key information so they can get started taking action. Even if they’re not quite ready for your main offer.
The Content Ecosystem is my version of this. You get all the tools and content from my Emerge and Expand membership and my 1:1 mentoring. Plus you get access to the core information and then make a choice to invest if you’re looking for more guidance, accountability, and customised support.
And please let me stress here, you don’t have to start with all of these! In fact, I recommend you only work with what you’ve already got or could easily add without much extra work, knowing that you can build and expand throughout the year (we’re only focusing on one quarter at a time, remember!)
TAKE ACTION: Start a log of your existing content (including links). Add your freebies, and digital content to integrate into your pillar content to make it even better!
Step 4: Create Killer Pillar Content That Cuts Through The Noise
Create Your Pillar Content
You’ve got your list of content for the quarter. You might like to batch tasks or create your content one piece at a time. This will take a bit of trial and error to find the flow that works best for you.
If you’re batching your videos for the month (ie. recording a month’s worth in one day while you’ve got your camera face on), draft your plan or script in advance so you know what you need to say for each one.
For blog posts and articles, you’ll obviously have to write a draft before you publish.
I like to ask myself
- What do I want people to learn, know, and feel?
- Which key points do I want to cover?
- And what is the ‘next step’ for someone who wants it?
TAKE ACTION: Create your first (or next) piece of pillar content
Edit and review your work
Once you’re done, take a step away and come back in a few hours or even a few days. The creation and editing process do not work simultaneously. It’s important to take a step back, clear your head and come back fresh.
Make sure you have:
- A clear introduction or hook to invite curiosity
- A clear ending, wrapping up your main points
- And a clear call to action for anyone who wants to take the next step
- Personality! You’re not writing a book report for highschool. Who you are in your content is as important as what you have to say!
- Prompts and questions to keep your audience engaged
TAKE ACTION: Edit and review your work, make sure it makes sense, check for any technical or spelling errors, and check you’ve got a clear beginning, middle and end. Maybe even ask someone else to review your content as well, if you want to get some extra feedback.
Create graphics, links, and shareables
Your content isn’t just about the words you write or say. Remember, we’re considering an entire ecosystem here where everything works together to support and enrich your ideas and message.
Once your pillar content is written, think about the links, resources, and other content you can refer to or include from your earlier planning.
For your graphics, you’ll likely want a featured image for your post or a thumbnail (for videos). Plus other graphics for your ‘sharing’ platforms (social media, etc). I got into a lot more detail in The Content Ecosystem but Canva* is a great place to get templates and inspiration for the graphics you can create!
I used to use expensive software like Adobe InDesign and Photoshop. But these days I just use Canva to create all the graphics, templates, and PDFs I need. There’s a free version, but I highly recommend investing the $15-20 a month into the premium version because it’s so good.
Creative Market* is also a great place to get templates, fonts, and elements to take your content to the next level.
TAKE ACTION: Add at least one link to an existing piece of content. And link to an offer or optin freebie to your post. If you’re creating video or audio content, you can add these to the show notes. Create at least one branded graphic to add to your content.
Schedule In Your Content
I tend to switch between being super organised with my content and doing a lot on the fly, when I’m in the flow. I personally don’t believe there is just one way to do anything, it’s entirely up to you.
But when I’m on top of things and schedule them in, stuff actually gets OUT into the world.
Scheduling my content is my #1 tip for consistency. I’m not a consistent person, my energy is not consistent. So scheduling when I’m in the mood is my saviour.
Some things I create and schedule in advance:
- YouTube videos via YouTube creator studio (via your account)
- Facebook page and group posts via Facebook creator studio (via your business account)
- Instagram posts and videos via Later*
- Tweets and LinkedIn posts via Hootsuite
- Blog posts via WordPress or Squarespace scheduling
TAKE ACTION: Schedule in your content to be shared across the week or month. Or create a simple checklist if you prefer to do it live so that you can just sit down on the day and not miss anything!
Step 5: Get Seen and Heard – Share Your Work
Make the most of your content
For many of us, the planning and creating part is EASY because it’s so aligned to our introverted strengths, am I right? But it’s the sharing part that we might not be so great at.
I hate to say it, but this is the most important part because you’ve done all this amazing work… but no one will see it if they don’t know it exists.
Sharing once is not enough (sorry). Most platforms have so many users creating content that even if you have thousands of followers, they are most likely not going to see your post that one time.
It’s doing a massive disservice to your time, energy, passion, and expertise. As well as to your people who might really need to hear what you have to say, if you don’t share your stuff until as many people as possible have seen it.
Cut Through The Noise on Social Media
Social media is a great place to get started because, let’s face it, everyone is already hanging out there. That’s not to say you have to use social media. I have clients who are finding new and creative ways to share their work off socials. (I also have a whole bonus Trello board of ideas called Anti-Social in The Content Ecosystem for this exact reason).
If you’re focusing on growing one platform, this is your chance to make the most of it. Create graphics, videos, polls, Q+As, stories, to share your pillar content in as many different ways as possible.
Once you start thinking about your social media content as just bite sized, shareable chunks of your bigger pillar content, it gets so easy.
Want to do this but don’t even know where to start? That’s why I created The Content Ecosystem. All my best tips, templates, and tools are gathered together in there to start small and then really start to realise how much content you can create from just ONE idea.
ACTION: Take a look at a piece of pillar content you’ve created. Challenge yourself to think of 5-10 different ways you could share it. I’d LOVE to see what you come up with. Come into the >>Introvert Friendly Business<< group and share on this post OR tag me @miss_kms on Instagram when you post it.
Newsletter list and optin ecosystem
Your newsletter list and optin ecosystem are probably a whole post on their own! But, essentially, your very, very VIP people are going to join your list. In the age of endless emails, these people trust you enough with their personal information AND they want to hear from you!
It’s such a beautiful energy exchange because you create something that will help them and, as a result, they join your list and get updates of all your new content. Which leads them back to checking out your content, and deepens the connection with them!
TAKE ACTION: If you already have an optin freebie, make sure to continue promoting and sharing it! Try and email your list at least once a month, even if it’s just with updates on your new content that they might not have seen yet!
If you haven’t got one yet, check out this post on why list building is important for your business and start thinking about what you might create.
Save to reshare and repurpose
I’ll say it again, your content isn’t disposable. And just because you might have created it when it felt relevant for YOU, doesn’t mean that it’s not going to continue to be relevant to others at different times.
For this reason, it’s oh-so important to keep resharing it and repurposing it over time. Eventually you’ll get to a point where you won’t have to be creating so much new stuff and you’ll be able to do a combination of new content and repurposed content. Meaning you then free up your time and energy to focus on other things.
Social media is fickle and fast moving. There is NO WAY that every person who even follows you is going to see everything you post. Keep track of your best stuff and reshare it.
TAKE ACTION: Your pillar content is ALWAYS going to be important. By definition, it’s foundational to your work. Keep a log of it somewhere (in a spreadsheet or a Trello board), categorise it, save it somewhere like on Google Drive or Dropbox (in case your website or computer ever go down!) and remember to reshare it every 6-12 months, or as relevant to your focus or offering.
Step 6 – Expand Your Reach (Optional!)
This section is completely optional but I’m including it if you’re ready for more or you just want to have some ideas for how you can grow from the get go. Please always try to start small and gently expand, keeping your needs, your time, and your energy in mind.
We’re creating content with a purpose and that is to be seen and heard by the people who will resonate with our message and us, right? So we need to have plans and strategies in place to find those people.
Invite your people to share your work
Let’s start with the easy one because everyone has someone who will check out their early content (yep, even if it’s your mum). Ask your inner circle if they would be happy to share it. Add calls to action to your content to remind your community to share with or tag someone who will enjoy it.
In my experience, people are always happy to share our work, but sometimes don’t even think about it. A gentle ask is a super easy way to start expanding your reach, and a great way to get into a practice of asking and reciprocating by sharing the work of others as well.
With that in mind…
Enjoying this post?! It would mean the world to me if you’d hit one of the buttons below and share it!
TAKE ACTION: Who can you ask to share your work? Or what’s a simple call to action you can ask of your community to share your work?! Add one to your next piece of content.
Cut Through The Noise Via Someone Else’s Audience
If you have the capacity, I’d suggest choosing one way to get in front of some new people as part of your focus for each quarter. So if you create a weekly blog post, for example, consider reducing the content you create on your own site to maybe 2 per month so that you have the time and space to start contributing guest posts on other sites.
You’ll be creating the same amount of content but doubling your reach potential. And you can still repurpose and share that content, as well as building your online presence in different ways.
There are LOADS of news-style websites out there that are always looking for content.
If you’re in Australia, I highly recommend signing up to SourceBottle because journalists and sites are always looking for sources and guests. I’ve gotten some of my best media opportunities through SourceBottle!
Medium.com and LinkedIn allow you to publish your articles without much fuss at all, and you might just get in front of some new people that way.
TAKE ACTION: Do a bit of research and start a list of websites where you can submit guest posts. Look out (or do a Google search) for “Write For Us”, “Submit a Post” or “Contribute Here” call outs. Make a commitment to write at least one guest post this quarter.
Cut Through The Noise With Paid Advertising
In the online business world, there seems to be two schools of thought. People who say you shouldn’t ever pay for advertising and those who insist that it’s necessary to grow your business.
But, in reality, it’s kind of a mix of the three kinds of traffic.
Organic – people who find you via search, hashtags, etc;
Referral – from others sharing your content and work, and;
Paid – via ads, affiliates, influencers, etc.
Paid advertising is probably going to be in your plan at some point to get in front of more people.
I’m not an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I learnt this concept and everything I know from Zach Spuckler. Check out his 48-Hour Ads Training. (This isn’t an affiliate link, I just love Zach’s work!)
Run a Live Event, Workshop, or Challenge
Essentially, this is like the launch activity that I mentioned above. There’s a completely different energy to a live offering that gets you seen and heard just because activity attracts attention!
For your audience, a live offering of some sort gives them a whole new level of accountability. It’s easy to read a blog post (or not), or download something and never look at it. But when there is a live event, they are more likely to turn up and get involved.
As you get more comfortable creating your pillar content, you’ll also start getting more information from your audience. Creating a free or low priced workshop, event, or challenge will invite people to go deeper with your work. A live experience also encourages them to take action and build momentum by simply participating.
I highly recommend choosing an event that showcases your skills and what people can expect when they work with you!
TAKE ACTION: If you’ve been thinking of doing a live event, this is your chance to do it! Start planning it out using the pillar content plan, and don’t forget to promote it a LOT.
If you’re not ready for that now, keep it in the back of your mind. Take note of questions or topics your audience wants to know more about and plan to do something before the end of the year!
Team up and collaborate
We can absolutely sit and hope the invitations will come our way for that podcast we love. Or we’ll get invited to be on the cover of a magazine. But it rarely work thats way. Creating your own opportunities is a great way to start gently building our visibility.
- Pitch yourself to podcasts you love. Make sure to include why you love it and highlights from episodes so the host knows you’re a fan. Tailor your pitch to their audience and niche!
- Team up with some of your business besties and collaborate on a project
- Don’t want to do live streams on your own? Get a friend or two and jump on Instagram or Facebook live. It’s a great way to start expanding your comfort zone and share audiences.
The possibilities are endless for creating new and inventive ways to collaborate and get seen and heard by new people.
TAKE ACTION: Make a list of people you want to collaborate with, podcasts or websites you want to pitch to, and anything else you can think of to start getting in front of some new people. It can be as simple as jumping on Instagram live with a friend and chatting about a topic you’re both passionate about, just start practising and who knows where it’ll lead!
Ready to Be Seen and Heard In Your Business?
I’ve already mentioned that being seen and heard is a visibility block that so many of us have. Especially at the start of our businesses, and especially for those of us who are more introverted.
Feeling ‘ready’ is not really a destination you just arrive at one day. Being confident and 100% sure of yourself is something that grows with time and… I hate to say it… practise.
In my experience, it’s impossible to learn, expand, and evolve without going through the growing pains and awkward ‘figuring it out’ stages.
Do I still feel like hiding sometimes and not creating anything for months at a time? Absolutely I do.
Do I still do a bunch of work, think it’s rubbish and delete it and start again? Yup.
Do I give stuff a go, know that it will only get easier if I keep going, and be prepared to fall a few times before I get it right? Also, yes.
Yep, I’m the biggest bottleneck in my business and if there’s a chance to change my mind and not publish content, I will almost always take it.
Why am I telling you this? It probably seems counterintuitive to be so honest about my own personal flaws. Social media has told us we should be experts and professionals. But I don’t agree. If I show you that I can do it, then hopefully you’ll realise that none of us have our shit together.
The time it takes before we find our way is always different. The approach or strategies that work for each of us. But the one thing I see, time and time again, from the hundreds of people I’ve worked with is this:
The people who give it a go, try different things, and keep showing up (even before anyone else does), always find their way to the success they are looking for.
Are you ready to create content that cuts through the noise?
TAKE ACTION: Before we close out this post I want to give you one little action item! Comment below with ONE thing you learned from this post. Tell me how you’re going to put it in ACTION in your business?
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