Promotion is vital for your business and now and then you’ll be presented with a fantastic opportunity to get your name ‘out there’.
How?
By being invited to contribute an article to one of your industry’s leading titles (whether online resource or physical magazine).
They give you some vague guidelines (usually word count) and then ask you to get on with it.
What do you write about?
If you want to make sure your article is accepted and published, the following is not the thought process you should have:
- This is a fantastic opportunity so I must get the most out of it
- I’ll start by making a list of why we’re so amazing
- How do I turn that into an article?
- I know, I’ll start by highlighting everything that’s wrong with our competitors
- Now I’ll tell them what we do
- Hmm, doesn’t seem strong enough
- I know, I’ll add in ‘we’re market leaders’, ‘we use state of the art technology’ that always sounds good
- Nearly forget about SEO, I’ll just cram a few more keywords in there
- Phew, finished. SEND
The right way to write your article
Following the process above will probably lead to a rejection of your article, so I suggest you follow this method instead:
- Do a bit of research on the magazine/website to find out who their readers are, and the format other articles follow
- Think about your audience and what they want to know
- Come up with an angle for your story and write about a particular problem facing your industry
- Offer genuine, helpful advice that readers can immediately put into action (without plugging your products or services)
- Write in the second person, so you are addressing them directly and use simple language and no jargon
- Don’t fill your article with links to random pages on your website
- Create a byline for the end of the article that shows you as the author, your position in your company and a concise description of what you do with a link to your site
- Proofread it and read it out loud to make sure it flows well
- SEND
Why does this version work?
Simply because you are giving your readers valuable information that will help position you as an expert in your field. You’re not pushing your own business down their throats, but instead helping them without asking for anything in return.
Your readers will be impressed by your knowledge and generosity and take a look at the byline to see who wrote it (and more than likely follow the link to your website to check you out).
You see, promotion isn’t all about shouting from the rooftops. Helping others is far more effective.
Sally Ormond has been creating compelling content for her clients for over a decade. Working internationally, she knows how to convey your brand’s ethos and values to your audience to make you stand out.