Our Handyman is Horrible…But We Still Hire Him

It rained last night. I knew this even though it was still dark out. Walking across the kitchen, I stepped in a puddle near the patio door.

 The door that was supposed to be replaced months ago. The door that now leaks every time it rains, which means putting rags down to catch the drips so that the wood floor doesn’t get ruined.

 Why don’t I call someone to fix it?

  Oh, I have. In the past several months I’ve called and had conversations with our handyman. Let’s call him Bill. 

MEET BILL

Bill is one of those dyed-in-the-wool Vermonters. He doesn’t have a cell phone. He makes quotes on scraps of paper with a stub of an eraser-less pencil. He returns my calls...sometimes. Other times, we go weeks between conversations.

 So why, you might be asking, do we continue to hire him?

 Two reasons:

1) Bill is dependable--once he begins a project, he shows up and works hard.

2) Bill does good work--our home is a testament to this. 

 The fact that he is too busy to worry about returning all his clients' phone calls and doesn’t, I'd guess, spend a dime on marketing doesn’t hurt his business.

  When he visited the other afternoon to take a look at the leaking door, he told my husband and me that he’s completely booked up into early 2021 and isn’t taking any new projects until the spring. 

UNLESS YOU’RE BILL, EFFECTIVE CONTENT WRITING IS ESSENTIAL

Chances are, you are not a “Bill”.

 Some lucky individuals like plumbers, electricians, contractors, and our handyman, rarely have to concern themselves with marketing. Most stay flat-out busy by word-of-mouth advertising alone.

 For most businesses though, online content marketing is extremely important.

 Why?

 Imagine trying to sell your product or service without a website. What if you had no email? No social media accounts?

 Or, what if you have all of these outlets but they aren’t generating sales?

THE "GOOD OLD DAYS" OF MARKETING...ARE GONE

Surely, I’m not the only one old enough to remember the flyers with the little tear-off strips? The ones you hoped people would feel compelled enough to rip off and use later.

 Remember costumed-figures standing outside of a business waving their arms and often signs to draw attention? What about running ads in the weekly free newspaper or posting your business cards on every bulletin board you passed?

 We live in a golden age, outreach-wise. We are able to connect with potential customers and clients around the world. Take a minute and think about how powerful and miraculous that is. (Cue the heralding trumpets and confetti.)

 But with that reach comes new challenges: over-saturated markets, busy potential customers, and lots and lots of online noise. 

 How do you cut through the clutter? 

 3 MUST-HAVES FOR EFFECTIVE COPY

“But I’ve tried content marketing. I’ve been writing blog posts and no one reads them. We post on social media and get interaction but it never leads to sales. What am I doing wrong?”

 Here are three things to do if you’re frustrated with your content marketing  (I prefer the term, “outreach” as it feels and sounds much less sales-y but use marketing because it's the industry norm):

1. Take your pulse. Not your physical pulse, but that of your content. Do you have the basics covered? These include a content marketing strategy, a “key player” tracking document, and regular, consistent blog posts and/or articles on Medium, LinkedIn, and other platforms.

 2. Get a critique. Nothing is better than getting feedback from a professional who is an expert in copywriting and content marketing. Like a web designer or branding expert who knows the ins and outs of how to improve your existing website, logo, and more. a seasoned copywriter makes your website more effective and compelling.

 In fact, creating this kind of website content is more likely to get visitors to take action.  (Note: if you’d like to learn more about my copywriting critique services, please get in touch. Four spots per month are available.)

 3. Make it doable. Frustration mounts and content marketing is kicked to the curb when you can’t keep up with it. Better to commit to 15-minutes of content marketing daily, than infrequent bursts one week and then nothing for the next three. Like the old story of the shoemaker whose children go barefoot, this is an area where I struggle, too. 

 Consistency is your friend. If you can’t keep up with the plan, tweak it until you can or consider hiring assistance. Maintaining a focus on what you specialize in is a much better use of your time than writing content “because you can”.

 Lastly, keep it simple. Simple content is powerful content.

IS CONTENT MARKETING WORTH IT?

Is content marketing worth the effort?

 All signs point to yes. 

Smart Insights notes, “Content marketing is still very much at the heart of digital marketing, with content continuing to be a vital tactic for bringing in traffic and encouraging conversions.”

 Statistics from the site say that 69 percent of B2B marketers have a written content marketing plan. And those businesses with a written content marketing plan were the most successful of the participants surveyed. 

 The annual report, “B2B Content Marketing 2020” from Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs indicates that 81 percent of companies planned to increase their content marketing budgets this year. It's safe to assume that this number will increase in 2021 and beyond. 

 What are your content marketing plans for the remainder of 2020 and into the new year? Is there anything holding you back? Please share your content marketing plans in the comments.  

Joy Choquette has been writing professionally from her home office in northwestern Vermont for the past 12 years. She helps small business owners to cut through the clutter online by creating shareable stories and memorable messages that motivate customers to action. She's obsessed with simplifying complex things, hot beverages, and British period dramas. 

*This article was originally published on the writer's website, www.joychoquette.com