30 Days of Content Guide Workbook PDF

30 Days of CONTENT  Welcome Hi, I'm Kim! Founder of Brainy Girl I've been running businesses online since...

30 Days of CONTENT  Welcome Hi, I'm Kim! Founder of Brainy Girl I've been running businesses online since 2001. I began in the field of website development and was an early adopter of social media and content marketing. After many years as a specialist virtual assistant with a team of my own, I became a Digital Marketing & Technology specialist and trainer and now work with novice course creators to help you get visible, grow your audience, and get your courses online. I'm a recognized as a Thinkific Expert. I've successfully launched over 40 online courses and three membership sites of my own, and have helped thousands of novice course creators grow successful online education businesses. With a vast skill set and knowledge of what it takes to be a successful online entrepreneur, I help other entrepreneurs build relationships with their audience through organic marketing, and turn those relationships into revenue, streamlining and automating with digital technology. I help my clients and students scale their businesses with online courses and programs to create residual revenue, increased flexibility, and to ultimately live your life on your terms. I’m a firm believer in “staying in your lane” – being focused on what you do best, and calling in the experts and specialists to help move you further ahead, faster. I am passionate about contributing to your success. I’m driven by helping people, just like you, achieve their goals and live their dreams. I look forward to connecting with you! Kim xoxo BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  WHY Content Marketing? "How do I get more people to read my blog?" or "How do I reach my audience?" or "Why do I need a Facebook group?" Content marketing is at an all- time high. People have access to articles, blog posts, videos, and infographics on every topic on the web on every device - and that's how brands and businesses (like yours!) get found online. The Buyer Journey Your "people" first need to KNOW you exist...and they're going to find you through your online content! One they know you exist they'll determine whether they LIKE you, and if they do they'll then determine whether they can TRUST you. If they trust you they'll TRY something you have - they'll optin for a freebie you're offering, or attend a webinar you're running. If you over-deliver and exceed their expectations, they'll BUY from you! BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  LET'S DEAL WITH Fears! Many people have very real fears about becoming visible online, and those must be addressed in order to really put yourself "out there". Use this fillable worksheet to identify your fears and create strategies to overcome those fears. You can answer these questions in your own journal or write in the worksheet then save it. I don’t want to be visible online because... Can I find evidence that my fear is unfounded, or create some strategies to help me overcome the fear? What I CAN and CAN'T control about being visible online: BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Pillars 01 FREE CONTENT so that your audience can find you and you can build your credibility online. Podcasts, The 4 main Youtube videos, Facebook CONTENT TYPES Live streams, Blog posts. you should be creating. 02 FAN CONTENT for those loyal fans to get to know you better and create a closer relationship. More personal IG posts, contests, your own Facebook groups. 03 EXCLUSIVE CONTENT to take your relationship with your exclusive audience to the next level. Webinars, optins, resource library, case studies, success stories. 04 PAID CONTENT specifically for those who pay for access. Online courses, programs, live group masterminds, masterclasses, etc. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved CREATING CONTENT Step-By-Step 01. BRAINSTORM CONTENT TOPICS The first step of creating content asked frequently, the need you see is to brainstorm content topics. from your audience, comments on Please don't sit and struggle with FB posts and Youtube videos, topics for your next 30 days of popular topics your competitors content - it's already there for are using, keyword research and you! Think of questions you get curated content. 02. MATCH TOPICS WITH MEDIUMS & TYPES Once you have a list of content changing your oil regularly, that topics, you need to match those might make a great Youtube with the best content mediums & tutorial video or a problem- types for those topics. For solution blog post. instance, if you are writing about the topic of the importance of 03. MAKE YOUR PLAN! Once you've got your list of topics producing, publishing and matched with content mediums & repurposing is vitally important types, it's time to make your plan and will ensure that this task gets and implement it. done. Blocking out time slots in your calendar to make time for content BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Mediums & Types Let's look at some of the different mediums and types of content you can create. There are many! CONTENT MEDIUMS Your Blog Video - recorded or live Guest Blogging stream Vlog Graphics & Images for Social Youtube Videos Media Posts Linkedin Pulse Slideshares Ebooks / Guides Live Streams Infographics Webinars Audio (Soundcloud, Instagram Stories Podcasts) Memes CONTENT TYPES Lists Book Reviews Surveys How-to Opinions Quizzes Q&A Personal Stories Challenges Case Studies Predictions User-generated Testimonials Successes and/or content Quotes failures Templates Interviews Company Goals Roundups Demos Income Reports Checklists Behind the scenes Guides and more! Trending Topics Worksheets BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PRIMARY CONTENT Primary content (vs repurposed Each new primary piece of content) is the primary piece of content you create should live on content you're going to create. its own page or post on your website. Generally your primary piece of content is going to be: The more pages or posts on your website, the more pages there are A blog post on your website for Google to index and serve to A pre-recorded video Google searchers, and the more A podcast or audio recording potential traffic you can drive to your website - increasing your Which you choose should be search engine rankings further! based on our audience, and how they're most likely to consume As you're planning your content content, but the primary piece of consider which medium you're content should ALWAYS live on going to use for your primary your website. content pieces. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Ideas LIST Create a list of recommended books on a subject, tools you use and recommend, resources for those in your niche, subject matter experts, Facebook groups to join for your industry, etc. HOW-TO or TUTORIAL Step by step process to achieve a specific result. “How-to get out the door on time in the morning”, “How-to conduct more efficient meetings”, or “How-to bake shortbread cookies”. Give your audience the steps to take action. CASE STUDY Case studies provide powerful social proof and mutually beneficial to you and your client or customer whose journey and results you’re documenting. Be sure to link to your client’s website, online store, or social channels within the content. PROBLEM-SOLUTION Outline the problem and present the solution. RESEARCH Use your research on a specific topic and write a blog post or film a video about it. CHECKLIST Take a series of steps to accomplish a goal or a task and write a blog post as a checklist. Add a printable checklist as a lead magnet! THE ULTIMATE GUIDE This kind of epic content can get a lot of traction. “The Ultimate Guide To _________________”. Do your research and create the ultimate guide for your audience. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Ideas DEFINITION Does your industry use specific language? Choose a few terms or words and write a blog post or film a video with the definitions. SERIES Is there a topic you’d like to write about but it’s too much for one blog post or video? Consider creating a series of blog posts or videos, one building on the next. Link together. STATISTICS Do your readers like statistics? Create content around some of your industry’s statistics. Use infographics, graphs, and charts to break up the heaviness of the statistics. FAQ Take the questions you get online and offline and create some FAQ (frequently asked questions) content. Outline the question and answer it in the blog post or video. REVIEW Your readers are always looking for personal reviews of products, services, software, restaurants, and books. Write a post or create a video reviewing a recent purchase. You can even include an “un- boxing” in it! INFOGRAPHIC An infographic is easy to digest for your audience. You can create your own infographic or add an infographic from the web with some copy you write with your opinions or thoughts on the infographic. Just make sure you give credit to the creator with a link to the original. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Ideas VIDEO If you’re already creating videos for Youtube, you can just embed the video into a blog post to create a vlog (video blog). Have the video transcribed by Temi, edit, and surround the video with the transcription for additional copy that Google will love. INTERVIEW Send a list of questions to colleagues, team members, clients, or those in your network. Use the responses to create an interview post and give credit with a link back to the interviewee. GUESTS There are always people and businesses who want to write guest posts for other blogs which gives you new content for your blog and introduces the guest blogger to your audience. You could also do this as a joint venture with another Youtuber. A win-win! HOLIDAY'S Many entrepreneurs go quiet during the holidays but your audience are still looking to consume content. Use a holiday post to deliver well-wishes to your readers and tell a story of your holiday rituals. PERSONAL EXPERIENCE Your audience wants to be able to relate to you. Publish a blog post or video about your personal experience with [choose topic]. BEHIND THE SCENES Take your readers behind the scenes of your life or business. Share snippets, your vacation story, introduce them to your team members. Show them what it’s like behind-the-scenes. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Ideas PROFILE Choose an influencer online and write a post about them. Don’t lose the opportunity to have them share your blog post with their network! Be sure to send them an email or notify them on social with a link to the blog post. EXPERT ADVICE Ask influencers, colleagues, team members, or clients, about their opinion or advice on [choose topic], then combine the responses into a crowdsourced post. Be sure to notify each when the blog post is published. PEOPLE TO FOLLOW Curate a list of people or businesses to follow in your niche. Much like a list post, these posts can get a lot of visibility. COMPARISON Take two or more products, services, software, etc. and write a post comparing the two based on your experience. SHOWCASE Choose one of your recently completed projects and showcase the project and client or business.. COMPANY UPDATE What’s the latest news in your business? Use a company update video or post to share the news or make an announcement to your audience. PREDICTION These posts are popular at the beginning of a new year and as trends change. Write about your predictions for your industry or on a specific topic. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Ideas PODCAST If you host your own podcast, or have been a guest on someone else’s podcast, you can take that audio and have it transcribed, then edit it into a blog post. REACTION Write a blog post with your reaction to someone else’s content. This could be another blog post or article you’ve read, a video you watched, or a book you’ve read. CARTOON Find a cartoon related to your industry or niche and share within your blog. Write some copy to express your opinion about the cartoon or the topic of the cartoon. Better yet - draw your own! QUOTES Pull together posts, articles, or videos from across the web focused on a single topic. Credit and link to the quote author. Include shareable Instagram images for more traction. MEME A meme is “an element of a culture or system of behavior that may be considered to be passed from one individual to another by non genetic means, especially imitation.” Generally meme’s are in the medium of an image. You can create your own meme’s or embed others into your meme. SURVEY Survey your social, email, and/or blog audience, then collate the results in a blog post. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Ideas CURRENT EVENTS What’s happening in the news right now? Write some content highlighting a specific incident and your opinions about it. TRENDS Research the trends in your industry and pull together the information, combined with your opinion, in a trend post. Q&A'S Go through questions your audience is asking on social media and write a blog post, do a live stream, or a pre-recorded video addressing the questions. CHALLENGE Give your readers a challenge! Explain the challenge in the blog post or video and the reasons for the challenge. Be sure to give your readers a way to engage and report back on the results of the challenge, then write a follow up blog post linking to your original post. INSPIRATIONAL This is your opportunity to really connect and inspire your audience. Write about a challenge you’ve faced and how you overcame it, or write about someone you know who has. TWEETS Gather a collection of tweets on a particular topic and create a blog post from them. You can clip images of the tweets and include them in the blog post. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Ideas FREEBIES Create a list of freebies across the web that your audience would be interested in and link to the freebies in your blog post. AUDIO Use an audio recorder (Audacity) to record your thoughts on a specific subject, then post to your blog as an audio file. Have the audio file transcribed, then edit the copy and add to the post. ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION Invite 3-5 others to participate in a round-table discussion. Record the video or audio discussion, transcribe, and turn it into a blog post. QUESTIONS YOU SHOULD BE ASKING This type of content can educate your readers about the questions they should be asking. These posts are often derived from the author’s own experience, “The Questions I Should Have Asked Before Buying A Car”. EVENTS Attending a networking event, trade show, speaking event, or conference, will give you new content. What was your experience like? Who did you meet? Which breakaway sessions were most valuable? Your audience will gain insight into the event from your experience. BEGINNERS GUIDE Remember what it was like before you knew what you now know? Go back in time and write a blog post on The Beginners Guide to [topic]. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  CONTENT Ideas MYTH VS FACT Write about myths in your industry vs facts. TRAVEL Going on vacation? Take your laptop! Blog or vlog about your travels and share the experience with your audience. FAILURE Share your failures with your audience. You are much more relatable when you have a failure in your life like everyone else. Share them with your followers and fans, along with how you overcame the failure. GRATITUDE There are many things to be grateful for! Spell some of them out in a blog post or video. RECYCLED Go back to the posts you wrote last year and using them as inspiration, write an updated blog post. Link back to the original post in this one, or update the original post and then promote the updated version. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PLANNING YOUR 30 Days of Content In the blocks below, or in your own notebook, brainstorm your content for the next 30 days. Example Ex. Topic - Spring Gardening Prep - list blog post of all the recommended tools - video of me doing my spring gardening prep (post to youtube and embed in blog post) - content upgrade: opt in to get my spring gardening prep checklist 01 02 03 04 BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PLANNING YOUR 30 Days of Content 05 06 07 08 09 10 BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PLANNING YOUR 30 Days of Content 11 12 13 14 15 16 BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PLANNING YOUR 30 Days of Content 17 18 19 20 21 22 BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PLANNING YOUR 30 Days of Content 23 24 25 26 27 28 BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PLANNING YOUR 30 Days of Content 29 30 BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  REPURPOSING Content Repurposing content involves creating one piece of content and repurposing it in multiple ways You can create 20, (and on multiple platforms or 30 or even 40 channels) for maximum reach and exposure. pieces of repurposed You know the time and energy that goes into writing a blog post or Youtube content for every video! From data mining and research, to the writing and editing or scripting, primary piece of filming, and editing, to creating the images, creating epic content is time content you consuming! create! So now that you’ve written an epic piece of content, how to you get the most mileage out of it? Repurposing content saves you time - a Want to know what we repurpose precious commodity in today’s world. It blog posts and videos into? also allows you to reach a wider audience, and encourages consumption of your content by offering different CLICK HERE TO mediums on different platforms. VIEW & DOWNLOAD Repurposing your content also provides backlinks from authoritative sites to your website and/or blog potentially resulting in more pages cached by Google and your website or blog climbing the Google Search Engine Results Pages (SERP's). BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved REPURPOSING CONTENT Social Media SOCIAL MEDIA Extract some quotes or one-liners from your blog post and have social media images created from them. Use free stock photography on sites like Flickr Creative Commons, Unsplash, and Librestock, for background images, and then use Canva or Pickmonkey to create the images. Picmonkey and Canva even have templates for social media channel images! From each blog post or video you could easily get at least 4 x Pins (Pinterest), and a few Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Linkedin images. Ensure that these images are branded and include your URL and/or logo. Once you’ve created the images, schedule them using a social media scheduling tool to distribute across social media channels and drive traffic to the original piece of content (on your website, hopefully!). Hint: Try scheduling at different times, keeping in mind that you’re attempting to reach a larger audience potentially in different time zones! BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved REPURPOSING CONTENT Infographics INFOGRAPHICS Infographics are “a visual image such as a chart or diagram used to represent information or data.” Infographics provide a visual overview of the topic, making it more visually consumable, without the reader needing to invest a significant amount of time in reading the content. Creating infographics in Canva or Picmonkey is a breeze. Infographics can be used on social media channels such as Pinterest or within blog posts. You can add the infographic into the blog post, giving your readers a quick visual snapshot of the information. You can tweet a link to the infographic. Good infographics that appeal to your target audience are widely shared and can increase your reach substantially. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved REPURPOSING CONTENT Podcasts & Audio PODCASTS & AUDIO Whether you have a podcast, or have thought about having a podcast, distributing your blog posts as podcasts (audio) can result in extensive reach. You could simply record as you read your blog post, you could give an overview of the blog post and add in other thoughts. How about an audio interview with another expert to discuss the topic of the blog post? Creating audio isn’t difficult. You need a decent microphone and either a smartphone or laptop. Include your audio in your blog post as another option for consuming the content. Create an iTunes account and upload. Use this checklist on the Apple site that walks you through the process. Create a SoundCloud channel and upload to distribute the podcast. Create a slide, insert the audio, export as an.mp4 and upload to Youtube. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved REPURPOSING CONTENT Live Streams LIVE STREAMS Streaming video is very interactive, and is here to stay. Live streaming video allows you to interact with your audience, and they with you, in real time. Let your current audience know when you’re going to be live online talking about the blog post topic. Talk about the topic and take questions from those on the live stream with you. When you’re live, as those on the live stream video to share with their friends to reach an even wider audience. Your Live video will appear in your followers News Feed and on your Page or profile as you’re streaming, giving your live stream (and you) even more exposure! BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved REPURPOSING CONTENT Emails EMAILS Having a hard time coming up with content to send to your email subscribers? Include blog post snippets that link back to your original post as your regular e-newsletter or broadcast! Include blog post snippets that link back to your original post. Use the social media images you created from the blog post and add to your emails. Create an email sequence of epic blog posts you’ve written. Give your email subscribers the option of getting an email each time a new blog post is published. Create a short ‘intro’ ecourse from your blog posts. BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PLAN FOR Success Are you lit up? I always get excited when I get my content ideas written out with all of that possibility in front of me, but "failing to plan is planning to fail". You need a plan for implementing the creation and publishing of this content. What do you need to do / clear from your schedule / re-prioritize in order to make time for this? WHAT BENEFITS WILL I GET FROM PRODUCING REGULAR CONTENT? BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  PLAN FOR Success WHAT DO I NEED TO RE-PRIORITIZE OR REMOVE FROM MY SCHEDULE IN ORDER TO MAKE TIME FOR THIS? WHAT WILL BE MY REWARD FOR FOLLOWING THROUGH ON THIS COMMITMENT TO CREATE 30 DAYS OF CONTENT? BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved  You can do it! Having built every business (over the last 20 years) with content marketing as the backbone and driver of traffic, leads and sales, I know the importance of creating content regularly. I jokingly say that if there was ever a lull in my business I would do 7 days of live streams and have enough business to last me the next 7 months. It's hard to believe - but it's true! Paid advertising has its place, but paid ads only work for as long as you're paying for the ads. Organic traffic - content marketing - will continue to benefit you for as long as it's online. I still get leads, customers and clients WEEKLY from Youtube videos, Pins, and blog posts I created and published YEARS ago. "I won't tell you it's going to be easy... but I'll promise you it'll be worth it!" I can't wait to connect with you again! Kim xoxo VISIT BRAINYGIRLU BrainyGirlU.com © Brainy Girl 2020. All Rights Reserved