By Lisa D. Jenkins
When I did a last read-through on the post I had for today, I scrapped the whole thing.
I realized the words IÂd written werenÂt for you. They didnÂt fit. They were too narrowly niched. They were written for my clients. You are not my clients.
Some of you are my peers, some of you are my competitors and some of you are my role models. We gather here because weÂre each building an online business. What I write here needs to serve you and honor your time. It needs to add value to your day.
In the same way, regardless of where you publish, every piece of content you produce should serve your reader, honor their time and add value to their day.
Writing for your own blog is one thing – the occasional tangent piece can humanize your brand, but when youÂre writing for the audience of a peer, colleague or client you must be respectful of the audience thatÂs been cultivated. Whether youÂve been asked to write guest post or youÂre pitching to a new blog, itÂs your job to cater to their fields of interest and needs.
Know Your Audience
Vegetarians donÂt want to know how to barbecue the worldÂs perfect steak.
Parent bloggers donÂt need your sports marketing strategies.
People discussing how to build their online businesses donÂt have a use for decorating tips.
That doesnÂt mean you can’t contribute something worthwhile to any of these groups. It just means that you have to frame what you know in such a way that itÂs relevant to those whoÂll be reading it.
Find A Way To Fit In
If youÂre a barbecue expert, share one of your best sauce recipes and show how it can be used for corn on the cob or a thick slice of grilled cauliflower.
If youÂre a sports marketer, adapt your strategies to helping parents provide visibility for their kids league sports or school athletic teams.
If youÂre an interior designer, help online business owners understand how to choose the right color palette for their website.
Finding a way to tie the knowledge you have to a need your readers have, then sharing that knowledge in a clear concise way so they can put it to work for themselves shows that you understand what you do well enough to explain it simply.
ItÂs All About Perspective
It doesnÂt matter who you are, your content is only a good fit when it helps someone. Never ever make the mistake of thinking youÂre so big that itÂs the other way around.
Photo credit: Sephiroth98
