For a while now I’ve been on what I call an Information Diet.
I love learning, so sometimes this is as difficult as not eating chocolate covered raisins at the movies.There are just so many blogs and podcast out there that have great content. But, I’ve found many of them distract me from my goals and focus. So I've really narrowed my focus to a few sources of information that I really trust.I wanted to share a few articles with you from 2017 that I really enjoyed and felt were valuable enough to share with you. I think they might help you get some clarity on your focus for the year, execute more effectively, and move the needle in your life.
1. Behind the scenes of what 1,000 true fans can do for your business
If you've been a part of my audience for a bit you’ve probably heard me mention a pretty famous paradigm shifting article called “1,000 True Fans” by Kevin Kelly. If not, you should definitely take a few minutes and read that here.However, the above-mentioned post in a behind-the-scenes look at how this brilliant theory actually works in practice. Ramit Sethi breaks down exactly how his 1,000 true fans interact with his brand, make purchases, and what that means for his business.
2. 11 Killer Lead Magnet Ideas & Templates
In the “industry” we talk about giving away free content in exchange for an email address. I often teach people to use these pieces of content as a secondary or “low-commitment” call to action on their site to add value to visitors who are too early in the buying process to take any big steps or risks. Most people simply call them Lead Magnets.This article shows you a bunch of cool lead magnet ideas and how to actually create that content. This is a create read if you are interested in building an email list, increasing leads, and growing revenue.
3. Marketing Foundations
Many small business owners know they should be doing something to grow their influence only and make money there, but they don’t know exactly what they should be doing. The online space is big, scary, and ambiguous.This article will help break down this barrier and show you what are probably the 3 most important first steps if you want to see the biggest impact in your online marketing in the shortest amount of time.I call this The Path of Engagement.
4. The Tony Robbins Guide to Goal-Setting
Tony Robbins is a genius. After attending Tony’s conferences in December, my friend Mike wrote this article about the goal-setting process they went through together. I found it so intriguing I decided to use it for my own goal setting.
5. How to talk about your business without feeling (and looking) silly
So many business owners and leaders of organizations suck at talking about what they do. They can’t do it on their website. They struggle to do it in sales meetings. And they almost always blow it in casual conversation.A misunderstanding of who we are and what we do is a MAJOR reason why our businesses lose sales, organizations stop receiving donations, and churches don't reach people in our community. It’s not a lack of quality or ability, rather a lack of clarity that creates a gap between us and our audience.It's called the 3 Steps to Crafting the Perfect One-Liner. It will help you skip the word-fumbling and really grab people’s attention when you are trying to explain to people what you do.I can promise you this is a powerful exercise.
*Bonus* How to live a full life (and leave nothing on the table) by 30
Not necessarily marketing related. But one of my favorite articles of the year for the 20-somethings out there.
