Word by word, or bird by bird
It can be overwhelming when you map out a marketing content plan. You know it’s important for your business and brand to be front and centre in the minds of your prospects during long buying cycles. Still, all those posts and articles and other assets look like a lot of work.
So, how do you tackle such a task?
One bite at a time
You may be familiar with the old adage “How do you eat an elephant?”. The answer – one bite at a time. It’s a great way to look at a (literally) huge and complex task and to approach it without the pressure to do it all at once.
Instead, you should aim at making gradual progress, and eventually, with enough effort and patience, you will complete what looked impossible at first glance.
Bird by bird
I’ve been reading (OK, listening to) Anne Lamott’s famous and instructive bestseller Bird by Bird, Some Instructions on Writing and Life. The title of the book was inspired by something that happened at home when Anne and her brother were kids. Faced with a school assignment that required a lengthy treatise on the subject of birds, her 10-year-old brother sat at the kitchen table in tears – he was surrounded by writing materials, binders and unopened books on birds, and utterly immobilised by the hugeness of his task.
Their father, himself a writer, sat down beside his distressed son, put a comforting arm around him and said, “Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.”
Just get going
How do you write a paper about a lot of birds? Write something about one bird. Then keep going. Simple! It’s the same with producing marketing content that educates your prospects and ensures you are top of mind when they become active buyers.
It’s easy to be overwhelmed by all you have to do. The sheer volume of output, the ideas you need to come up with, the writing of posts and articles, the publishing and scheduling process. It’s a lot.
But as soon as you get started, you are on your way. Doing one post at a time, with regular attention and effort, before you know it you have a body of work that continues to build authority and credibility for you and your business.
If you’re not sure where to start, or if you want to engage professionals to help get the words (or birds!) on the page, we’re here for you.