By Joe Simonds.
When I first began blogging back in 2010, I had no freaking idea what I was doing. There was no one in our industry teaching “How to properly blog”, and I was too thick-headed (and too cheap) to take a course or ask for help. I figured that I was smart enough to figure out the #1 blogging secret all by myself using a little trick called trial and error.
Boy, was I an idiot!
So instead of searching for help, I did what any persistent, stubborn, and driven person would do…
I blogged about anything and everything until my hands almost fell apart. And I am not joking. I was actually blogging so much that I had to go into see the famous Dr. Henry at the Houston Hand & Wrist Center. Fortunately, the damage done was not enough to have to undergo surgery, but I did have to take it easy for a while, not to mention Dr. Henry gave me some great tips on how to position my hands and wrists while I type (I will be more than happy to share his tips if you need help with this. Just send me a comment below).
So what was I blogging about so much that caused carpal tunnel in my hands?
Basically anything and everything on annuities and retirement income that I could muster up. Sometimes I would write blogs tailored to consumers, and sometimes I would go higher level to attract advisors. Sometimes I had no idea who the blog was tailored for at all because I was just trying to “get something up on the blog for that day.”
So after killing myself with trying to get a blog up everyday, and seeing little to no success in terms of converted leads from my site, I figured it was time to spend some money on learning how to blog correctly. For me, this meant reading some books on Internet Marketing, hiring out an SEO consultant, and taking a course on Internet Marketing.
And EUREKA! I found it! The #1 blogging secret in the world was finally in my hands! It was SO Simple, yet no one in our industry was doing it…
The #1 Blogging Secret that changed my business forever
What if I told you that I could show you how to decrease your web traffic by 218%, while increasing your income by 692%? Would you be interested?
Some of you might be scratching your head because you associate more traffic with more leads which equals more new clients which equals more income. But for small to mid-sized businesses, you really don’t need more traffic. You just need more targeted traffic, and less “tire-kickers” on your site.
And at the end of the day, if you are making 692% more money, who cares how many people are on your site. Just so you know, those numbers are real, and are based on actual data from Quicksprout.
So what is the secret?
It is blogging on a NICHE topic, writing to a SPECIFIC person, and turning your blog into a real CONVERSATION with your ideal prospect…EVERY SINGLE BLOG.
In other words, you really need:
- LESS Overall Traffic
- MORE Targeted Traffic
- To repel more people than you attract
- To blog on relevant topics that speak directly to your ideal prospects
- To start an actual conversation with your ideal prospect
- Pretend that you are writing a private note to just one person (your ideal client)
The Problem
The problem that I see the majority of bloggers in our industry doing is trying to write to anyone that will listen. Basically posting blogs that are very basic, that will speak to anyone who is 50 or older with a pulse and who is thinking about retirement.
But by being something to everyone, you are nothing to no one.
Don’t forget that.
The Solution
The Solution is to envision your absolute, most ideal client, and pretend that every single blog you write is a personal letter that you are mailing to him or her. Because once you make your blog a real conversation that is vying for a particular person’s interest, you magnetically start attracting those particular clients.
And just as important, you start detracting the visitors who aren’t a fit to be your client.
Once I finally understood that the goal of my blog is NOT More Traffic, and that I really needed less traffic with more ideal prospects, I was off to the races in terms of new leads. The irony is that today I get much less traffic that I did at my peak of blogging every day, yet my leads have gone up hundreds of percent (and I only blog once or twice per week now).
The BEST thing that I ever did was an exercise to define my ideal “Avatar” prospect that I learned at a GKIC event a year ago. I urge you to watch this video of me describing it and even revealing to you who my ideal prospect is.
So if you want to truly understand how to EXPLODE your blog with ideal prospects (and thus ideal prospect leads), then watch this video below.
Enjoy, and I look forward to hearing some success stories from you once you start implementing the #1 blogging secret in the world!
To read the full blog that I did associated with this video, click here.
Conclusion
Don’t be thick-headed like me and try to learn blogging the tough way. I kick myself when I think about all of the leads that I missed, all of the ideal prospects that I could have helped, and all of the pain in my wrist and fingers that I could have avoided…
The #1 blogging secret isn’t really much a secret, yet hardly anyone seems to practice it with their online marketing. And the ones that do are absolutely killing it.
Remember to find your specific NICHE, identify your specific “Avatar” client, and pretend that every blog you write is being written specifically to them. It is important to have a conversation with your prospects through your blog. Make it fun, make it real. No one likes boring, fluffy content.
Tell stories. The story above about me having so much pain that I had to go to one of the most well-known carpal tunnel doctors keeps things interesting. And it let’s you know that I had no idea what I was doing when I started either. It is good to tell your embarrassing stories just as much (if not more) as your success stories.
And then be consistent with your blogging, and watch the fun start to happen.
This guest post was provided by Joe Simonds. Joe is the Digital Marketing Maverick for financial advisors and insurance agents. He is the original founder of Annuity Think Tank, Annuity123, and Retirement Income Network, and he currently consults financial advisors on digital marketing practices with his company Advisor Internet Marketing. Joe is a published author of a book on retirement income secrets called, “Savior Retirement,” and has a new book called, “The Authority Advisor” coming out in the fall of 2014. Joe is originally a native of Florida. He moved to Atlanta to attend Georgia Tech, where he graduated with highest honors, earning a bachelor’s degree in Business Management. He also received a minor in both Finance and Economics. Joe is married to his lovely wife, Loren, and they currently reside outside of Atlanta, GA with their daughter Shauna Taylor. They enjoy traveling and any activity where a boat or water is involved.
Originally posted August, 2014 here.
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