I swear to heaven, if I hear that phrase “content is king” ever again, I will activate my orbital satellite gun and vaporize that conservative soul:
Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam.
Can you smell the remnants of burned blogger flesh ?
If not, don’t worry. It’s time to move on:
Our beloved digital world has evolved, and so has our perception. Writing a useful and killer-ass article is essential, but it isn’t enough anymore.
You don’t deliver content, you deliver an experience.
And that counts for everyone who’s producing online content, be it a blogger, coach, indie filmmaker or a business owner.
For example:
If you are a personal coach who wants to improve everyone’s life (may the sun bless you!), you have to create that specific experience with everything you do online. Every message, post, picture and interaction should be flavored with that light-bringing emotion. How ?
Inhale these tips and mind-slave your audience:
Obey your story
I know I have talked about this endless times before, but it’s soo essential. I want to burn in into the darkest areas of your brain. A story is the essence of your brand in sharable form.
Let’s say your story is to build an awesome online business and to inspire others along the ride. With every post and statement you create should convey that mission.
You don’t have to throw it at your readers with every piece of content, but the underlying flavor of doing a remarkable business should always be there.
Spreading your influence and building a remarkable online presence is my story. What’s yours ?
Re-invent your writing style
Most people have such a generic writing style it turns avid readers into avid coma patients. Seriously, being useful is essential, but can’t you bring a little magic into your creations ?
Consider inventing your own combos and words. I luv using my words like Digital Crusader/Digital Crusade/white-red-black magic / epicness. Some of these are invented, some are not. The combination makes the difference.
I also sometimes include ridiculous lines (see the satellite gun in the first paragraph) and strange shout-outs. It’s part of who I am in the offline world, and I bring into the digital realm.
I get a lot of tweets and messages from peeps that use my words and sayings. Personal branding doesn’t get much better than this ;)
Lesson: forget about writing generic trash. Make your message as clear as possible, but flavor it with your words, foibles and obsessions. The more uniqueness, the bigger your digital impact.
Brand your interaction
Someone said that everything you do is part of your marketing, and I believe that’s super-true. Your comments, emails and (Skype) calls are all part of your digital brand. Ask yourself: are my online actions cohesive ? Is the way I write messages similar to the way I talk to people ? If not, make it so.
Bring your brand experience into every interaction. Your flavor, incorporated :)
Create visual magic to captivate your audience
It’s no secret that visuals have a stronger impact than words. The old adage “a picture is worth a thousand words” is true. In fact, I’d go more ballistic. I believe a good picture/design is worth a trillion words.
Some people STILL say that design isn’t so important, but that’s rubbish. I know influential people that avoid good content sites because their design makes blind kids cry.
For maximum online domination, your design must be
1 cool/and unique.Check out website coach Catherine Caine’s beawesomeonline.com.
2 easy recognizable. Your Facebook fan page, LinkedIn profile and Twitter profile must all have the same OR at least similar design !
And always ask yourself: What kind of feelings do you want people to have when they enter your digital presence ?
I put a lot of care into my pictures. The picture you choose for the beginning of your post will influence the way people read your post. If you display a shiny, go-happy image, then the overall perception of your post will be similar.
If you showcase a darker, mystical picture, then that’s the mood your readers will associate with your post.
Most of my pics are shot and edited by myself – it’s my obsession. I carefully think about their effect. If you can’t do yourself (you should), go to http://search.creativecommons.org/ and find some kick-ass license free ones.
Or you can go even more creative and find a photographer online (Flickr !) and start a collaboration ! Ask for a free display by crediting their work on your platform. That’s pure win-win white magic. Abrakadabra !
Remember to still credit your source ;)
I recently branded T-shirts and jackets with my logo, and I wear them on my profile pictures and videos. It visually strengthens the impact of your brand, and makes you look more professional in a cool way. When you promote yourself via pictures and videos, do you “own” your clothing ? Do you always wear the same or at least similar clothes ? If not, you should consider it. Standing out comes from doing things differently – your way !
Wrap up
Some of these methods are unreasonable, but unreasonable people rule the world. If you prefer the average ways, you shouldn’t be reading my blog in the first place.
If you want to strengthen your digital influence, you have to deliver an experience.
The question is: what kind of experience do you want to create ?
And please retweet and Facebook share the magic !
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