Research shows this is the biggest trend in marketing

[The Writer’ s Life] January 25, 2017 Hi {NAME}, Over the past two days, my friend Gordon Graham has unveiled the rich opportunities you can enjoy as a "content copywriter." Many copywriters — including Gordon — love this niche specialty because it's straightforward. You don't have to worry about "touching emotions" or digging deep into your prospect. But, is content copywriting just a flash in the pan? Something here today, gone next year? Here's what Gordon has to say about that! Yours for a successful copywriting career, [Signed] Will Newman --------------------------------------------------------------- 5 Reasons Content Marketing is Here to Stay By Gordon Graham Gordon Graham First I told you about [the four types of writing]. Yesterday I suggested that writing to explain — with a pinch of writing to persuade — [opens the door to the opportunity of a lifetime creating content for companies]. Today I'm going to explain why content marketing is not just a passing fad. In fact, I can think of five good reasons why writing content for companies is the opportunity of a lifetime for most writers. Please don't miss out. Reason #1: Content is THE biggest trend in marketing today I follow tons of B2B marketing blogs, newsletters, and experts, from the [Content Marketing Institute] to [Marketing Sherpa]. And I don't see anything else on the minds of more B2B marketing people today. Content marketing is an irresistible trend, driven by technology and the rise of the online world. With audiences fragmenting and traditional media crumbling, every company needs new ways to attract business. One of the best ways is to become a publisher. In a nutshell, content marketing means publishing useful information for prospective customers. Good content improves SEO and makes a company easier to find in search results. And once a prospect knows you, likes you, and trusts you, they're more likely to buy from you. That's why this trend is here to stay. Reason #2: Every year, companies need more content Since 2010, the Content Marketing Institute has taken an annual survey. And every year, B2B marketers say they'll create more content in the future. For example, [the 2017 report] says 70% of B2B marketers surveyed plan to produce more content than in 2016. Only 2% plan to do less! After all, Google needs lots of content to index. Every B2B company needs to show Google (and other search engines) they're a going concern. The best way to do this is to add fresh content to their websites often. In fact, companies are competing to create the most content, get noticed by Google, and climb higher in search results. That way, prospects will see them and click on them first. Reason #3: There aren't enough writers to go around Don't listen to all the doom-and-gloom from amateurs who hang out at eLance and write "articles" for $10 a pop. That's a race to the bottom of a commodity market. You can earn much more writing for companies with a realistic budget for professional content. In fact, once you build your experience and confidence, writing content is a "seller's" market for writers! There are 5 million B2B companies in the U.S. The Content Marketing Institute says 89% use content, which leaves 4.5 million. And the U.S. Department of Labor said in 2014 that there are 136,500 [writers in the country], including poets and playwrights who don't want to write content anyway. This unbalanced supply and demand surely favors copywriters. Once a client likes your work, they will come back to you over and over. Why would they switch to anyone else when there's such a shortage? Reason #4: Many projects naturally recur Companies need a continuous stream of content, not just a little bit now and then. I routinely hear from clients who need two, four, or six case studies. One client in Montreal had 60 customer stories to write up — that took a whole team of writers to dive in! Many projects naturally recur without any effort on the writer's part: - Blog posts: The more often you blog, the better. If you write a company blog, you'll likely need to create a new post at least once or twice a week. - Newsletters: If you write a newsletter, you're always working on the next issue. I wrote company newsletters for 15 years, and I loved the repeat business. - Press releases: Companies need a press release any time they launch a new product, open a new location, or land a new client. - Slide decks: Most companies take part in several events a year. If you do slide decks or speeches, you'll be busy helping clients getting ready. Once you're in with a client who likes your style, they will come back to you for years. Literally. I routinely write for clients for five years at a stretch, and sometimes 10. And (don't tell anyone), the only reason I stop is because I get bored with their projects! Reason #5: You can turn one project into several On top of repeat business, you can turn one project into several through "repurposing." It's a lot like recycling: A plastic bottle comes back as a fleece or a piece of carpet. So one piece of content gets recycled into a couple other pieces. With just a casual mention to your client, you can add on a big chunk to your original fee. For example, suppose you write a white paper for an average fee of $4,200. Then your client agrees to add on three blog posts for $250 each, a press release for $250, and a slide deck for another $750. That's an extra $1,750 — more than 40% of your original fee — for some add-ons you can likely knock off in one day. After all, you already know the material since you created it in the first place. Everyone knows it's easier to sell something else to an existing customer than to find a new one. Repurposing content into other formats gives you an ideal way to accomplish that. So, there you have it: Content marketing is a huge trend that means companies need more writing every year. But there's a shortage of good writers, so it's easy to break into this market. And once you land a client, repeat business often flows in naturally. And finally, you can upsell clients on related formats and earn lots more from this simple repeat business. So I ask you: What's not to like about writing B2B content? When are you going to dive in? Remember "interruption marketing"? In the old days, a B2B company could run a few ads in trade journals, send out some direct mail, and set up a telephone bank for cold-calling. All these tactics relied on interrupting people who were already doing something else: prepping for a meeting, opening their mail, going about their workday. Companies hoped that a few would be interested in buying what they were selling, then and there. But few were, and anything more than a 2% response was considered great. The other 98 people out of 100 were mildly annoyed that you had interrupted them to deliver a message they weren't interested in. But with Google, and as Seth Godin explained, the Web gave rise to a new approach, which he dubbed "permission marketing." --------------------------------------------------------------- FROM WILL: So, how about it? Does content marketing sound like a career you could parlay … quickly … into the writer's life? Also want to know how to get started as a content writer? Then you'll want to take a look at Gordon's program where he details the 12 different types of content writing opportunities and how you can turn them into a thriving career. [All the details are here.] And take a minute to comment [here] to give us your thoughts. And come back tomorrow when we visit with another very successful copywriter … one whose style and career is much different from Gordon's. But every bit as successful. *** What We're Recommending this Week *** Quick-Start Guide to Profitable B2B Content Writing Writing B2B content is a lucrative part of the B2B world … except most writers just focus on sales materials and miss this income stream entirely. Why make that mistake? Let award-winning B2B content expert Gordon Graham guide you through the 12 most popular forms of B2B content – including what to charge, how to finish fast, and even how to easily get clients to say "Yes!" to extra projects from you. [Order by Jan 25th and save $100!] AWAI Exclusive: Ben Settle's 10-Minute Workday AWAI and Ben Settle have recently joined forces to show you step-by-step how you can create an email copywriting business of your own. Ben's "10-Minute Workday" email writing business is tailor-made for anyone interested in writing for a living but don't want to work with clients. You'll learn how to choose a "market" you can write about (one you absolutely love), create products that help people, build a fanbase of readers, and how you only need to write one email to make it all happen. [Learn more here.] --------------------------------------------------------------- Trouble viewing this email? [View in your browser, here]. For questions or requests: [contact us online]. --------------------------------------------------------------- ©2017 American Writers & Artists Inc. Do you know of someone who would benefit from reading The Writer's Life? Simply direct them [here]. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- American Writers & Artists Inc. 101 SE 6th Avenue, Suite A Delray Beach, FL 33483 (561) 278-5557 or (866) 879-2924 Ensure your subscription delivery. 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