An Easy Content Formula: Because Who Really Cares About What You Have to Say

Who cares what you have to say?

There are over 2.5 million podcasts…

One hundred seventy-five new websites are created every minute…

Why would I listen to your podcast or read your blog?

Why should I care about what you post on Instagram?

No, really… Answer the question. Tell me why I SHOULD.

Today, we are talking content!

Why I Don’t Post Much on Social

I have published content at least once per week for 590 weeks.

Without missing a single week EVER, I have published content for the last 4,130 days.

It’s not a habit I have built up. At this point, it is part of my DNA.

But…Very little of that content has been published on social channels.

Why?

Social media is a phenomenal tool for business. It’s a great way to connect with your customers, build online relationships, and even start sales conversations.

You SHOULD be posting on social media.

However, most social media is a horrible home for your valuable content. For example, the lifespan of an Instagram post is 48 hours at best.

I’ve always been more interested in long-form content that will be useful in 48 hours and 48 months.

80% of my content is written.

Blogs are boring, and they won’t make you famous. But they will get indexed by search engines. Search engines will serve up your content if it’s relevant today and in 10 years.

Then there’s YouTube and Podcasts.

People like to lump YouTube in with social media. Nah, I like to think of it as the second largest search engine in the world, second only to its big brother, Google. YouTube videos stand the test of time; they get indexed and will be helpful today and in 10 years.

Podcasts are the same. While smaller, podcast platforms get indexed and serve users content. Now, if you add a transcript to a podcast, put that on your blog; you are getting indexed as blog content on Google as well.

Start thinking about these facts in your content-publishing workflow.

Social is good, but how can we make the same content live forever?

A Simple Formula

So step one, create content.

Step two, create content and put it on social BUT ALSO put it somewhere with a longer lifespan.

Step three, use a formula.

As a writer, a blinking horizontal bar on a blank screen is daunting. But it’s not daunting when I am following a formula, and I have multiple formulas I use to produce content.

Today, I want to give you one that has helped me a lot over the years.

CONTENT CREATION FORMULA

Problem + Solution + VALUE + Results = Content Marketing

Content marketing is what we are all doing when we create content. We provide prospects with value and show our expertise in hopes they will want to work with us. The formula above says it all.

Here’s how it works:

First, state the problem.

• Example: Having trouble losing weight?

Next, what’s the solution?

• Example: Zone 2 Running is a great way to burn fat.

Now, the VALUE.

• Example: Here’s an entire 4-week program with Zone 2 running you can implement today.

Lastly, results.

• Example: We have had over 200 people use our Zone 2 programming to lose 9 lbs on average.

Obviously, you would expand each section. How much you expand is up to you. This could be a video where you detail it out, a podcast where you talk it out, or a blog where you write it out in 1,000+ words.

Where most people lose is they forget the VALUE part. You don’t have to give away free programs, but you have to provide real value. People can spot “fake value” in an instant.

You will only survive if you remember the value.

This brings me to my last point.

The Game is Changing: One Action Item for Today

The content game is changing.

YOUR CONTENT HAS TO BE GOOD

Refrain from producing content because someone told you you should. The days of “just do it” and “be consistent” are dead.

The days of repurposing content… GONE.

To survive in the content creation world moving forward, your content must be excellent.

So let’s end where we began…

WHO CARES?

Who cares about your content?

Why would anyone care about it?

What makes you different?

At least 1,000 People are publishing the exact message you’re posting. So even if you are a niche within a niche, you have a ridiculous number of competitors.

So why would anyone, or why should anyone care at all?

What makes you different than other people who are like you?

Why should anyone care about your content versus someone else producing the same type of content?

Answer that question, and you will be on your way to more success with content than most people ever achieve.

Try harder,

JM