It’s not every day when you get to turn your attention to something other than your business. However, this is an issue that will have a direct impact on your business. Since Tuesday is election day, it seemed appropriate to write about why we all need to vote and how it affects your business.
“One person, one vote” is a guiding principle of our democratic republic. It’s incumbent upon each of us, as voting-age citizens, to cast our ballots, not just for the presidential election, but for every race that happens to be on your particular ballot. A democracy only works when people, including business owners, take the time, effort and energy to be involved. Don’t forget to vote.
Does One Vote Really Make a Difference?
While it’s not a national holiday, election day is of great importance to our country. And yes, every vote matters, so don’t forget to vote. In 1960, John F. Kennedy beat Richard Nixon by fewer than 120,000 votes nationwide. His electoral college victory was a wider 303-219 affair. But it’s not the closest race in US history.
In 1880, James Garfield beat Winfield Scott Hancock, a Civil War hero, by fewer than 7,400 votes, when most of the population hadn’t yet won the right to cast a ballot (meaning women and most minorities). But the closest electoral college race came in 2000, with George W. Bush and Al Gore. Gore won the popular vote by half a million, but lost the race 271-266. And these examples are just for president.
In state and local races, where smaller populations vote, results can get much closer. As recently as 2017, a race for the Virginia House of Delegates, a 100-seat legislative body, ended in a tie, 11,608-11,608. The name of each candidate was placed inside a small camera film canister, both of which went into a bowl. The State Board of Elections chairman drew one at random to select the winner.
How Does the Election Affect My Business?
History teaches us that the big businesses usually prosper under Republican administrations, while small businesses benefit from a Democratic president. But Ray Access doesn’t advocate one candidate or one party over another — you have to come to your own conclusions. Just don’t forget to vote. You have to weigh the benefits of all candidates on your ballot, consider the community you serve and then vote your conscience.
In 2021, a Democratic president may repeal the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), which lowered taxes mostly for big businesses and wealthy individuals. A Republican president may try to broaden the TCJA and make it permanent. A Democrat would likely lower taxes for the lower and middle class, while raising them for the very wealthy. A Republican would likely do the opposite to spur “job-creators.”
Do Businesses Shape Communities or Vice Versa?
But as a business owner, you may benefit from supporting the community that supports you, whether it’s a neighborhood, a town, a state or a nation. If your community suffers, you most definitely will. But if your community prospers, you may too. They say a rising tide lifts all boats, so do what you can to keep your community afloat.
The best way to do that is to make time to vote tomorrow, if you haven’t already. Early voting and absentee voting have topped previous highs to foreshadow a massive voter turnout. That’s good for democracy, and it doesn’t make your vote matter any less. Don’t forget to vote.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
As more and more people are forced to work from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they are discovering the pros and cons of the situation they find themselves in. On the positive side, the commute is a lot shorter, generally from one room to another. Sometimes, you may go from one side of the kitchen table, where you just finished your breakfast, to the other side, where your computer awaits.
But there are problems, too, among them: how to beat procrastination. When you work from home:
You may feel compelled to take care of chores during the work day.
Your children or pets may need attention.
You may want to make a snack for yourself.
You may feel the urge to get up to stretch or go for a walk.
You decide to check on the latest sports scores or your latest online purchase.
And of course, your email always demands that you answer correspondence promptly.
Trying to take care of everything — and everyone — eats into your productive work time. You know you can get work done at home; you’ve done it before. But lately, you find other things to do instead of the work you have to do. How do you manage a situation like that?
Admit You’re Procrastinating
The first — and maybe most important — step is to admit that you’re suffering from procrastination. When there’s work to do, that should be your priority. In fact, if you used to work in an office, you know that you’d be hard at work if you were still there. The distractions are simply getting in the way.
But that kind of rationality doesn’t always work. You can beat procrastination, but it may not be easy. At Ray Access, we’ve been working at home since Day One, back in 2014. We’ve learned a thing or two along the way to help you beat procrastination.
Tips for How to Beat Procrastination
Here are six ways to beat procrastination and get your work done on time:
Whenever possible, start early. If there’s a project you know you have to do, don’t put it off. Start on it as soon as you can. Even if you don’t make lots of progress, you’ll still be ahead of the curve and ahead of where you would be if you put it off.
Work offline as much as possible. The internet is a major distraction. There’s email, entertainment sites and even news. If you have to do research, get it done and out of the way. Then rely on your notes, offline, to finish your project. Go online in spurts, when needed, but don’t linger.
Time your work period. Buckle down and work straight for a specific period of time, such as 15 to 30 minutes. Start with a shorter time if you need to and build up. Use an egg-timer, a stopwatch or the timer on your smart phone. Work the whole time until the alarm and then stop. Take a break and then repeat, as often as is necessary.
Don’t seek perfection right away. For many types of work, perfection is the enemy when you’re in the early stages. Seeking perfection from the get-go can stop you from moving forward. Instead, develop a process that often begins with a brain dump. Put down everything that comes to mind for the project. Try it out first and then fine-tune it. Sleep on it before you continue. That’s a great way to determine if your work is genius or garbage.
Break down your project into as many tasks as you can. This gives you a feeling of accomplishment for every little thing you accomplish. This tip takes planning, but once you start attacking those mini-tasks, one at a time, you’re motivated to keep going rather than putting off additional work. It also gives you something to check off your to-do list.
Remember how good completion feels. When you’re tempted to procrastinate, recall the last time you just went ahead and finished a project ahead of schedule. It probably felt great! This is particularly important for those not be getting many atta-boys from a remote boss. Use positive feedback to keep you motivated.
When all else fails, take a mental health break. Get up from your desk. Get away from the office. Take a walk. Go someplace different. Get out into nature. Recharge the juices and release the mind. When you come back to the desk, you may find that you’re in a much different frame of mind that allows you to concentrate better.
Hire professionals when you’re really stuck. While procrastination isn’t a listed mental illness, chronic procrastination carries serious consequences. You may get fired for it or lose clients because of it. Beat procrastination. It’s serious enough to take seriously. And don’t wait until your deadline before you hire someone to help.
The best way to beat procrastination is to refocus on the task at hand. Sometimes, that takes a trip away from your work. Sometimes, it takes a trick to train your mind to focus. Don’t be afraid to admit your problem and ask for help. If you’re really stuck writing your blog or trying to word your press release, contact Ray Access. We’ve never missed a deadline yet!
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
When you’re shopping for a product or service, notice what sways you about a particular brand or company. There are many factors that go into making a decision to buy, rent or lease. Some factors are intentional, but others are instinctual. When making a purchasing decision, ask yourself if you:
Buy only from a tried-and-true, familiar brand
Make a decision based solely on price
Pick the first one that looks good enough
Devote yourself to researching different brands
Rely on a brand’s reputation and past history
Look for a try-before-you-buy offer
Go with your gut feeling
Ask a friend, relative or colleague
Listen to a trusted celebrity’s endorsement
If you agreed with the final two choices, you’re not alone. Referrals depend on human psychological factors. The theory suggests that if others are happy, satisfied or ecstatic about a product or service, there’s a good chance you’ll feel the same way. It’s the next best thing to trying something yourself before you buy it, which isn’t always possible (consider restaurants or services).
Does the Social Proof Concept Work?
If someone — even a stranger — persuades you to purchase a product or service through his or her experiences with it, you’ve fallen for a marketing concept known as social proof. The social proof concept isn’t underhanded unless the individuals you’re listening to are lying or fake. In general, this is a respected and effective technique that turns your best customers into brand ambassadors.
When your clients rave to you about their experiences with your company, that’s an ego-booster. But when you can turn those same words into a lead-generator on your website, now you’ve entered the domain of the social proof concept. It works because potential customers want to know what others say about what you do. The more specific the accolades, the better.
What Do You Need to Show Social Proof?
A website isn’t a television commercial, even if you have video elements on the page. Your website needs to do more than just sell your goods or services. The social proof concept requires real reviews, in their own words, from real former clients. To pull this together for your website, you require:
Those actual reviews, submitted by former clients
The permission of those clients to post their words and names
Photos of those real people, along with permission to publish the photos
A section on the pertinent page of your website, such as a landing page or your Home page, to publish the reviews as social proof
The description of their experience is what matters, but the photos — along with the person’s name and company name — makes the social proof real. The words alone likely won’t persuade anyone. They have to be real, verifiable even. And if they are, they form a powerful reason for your website visitors to contact you, which is how leads are generated.
Social proof isn’t a new concept, even though it may be packaged under a new name — much like the term social distancing — but it is effective. If you don’t yet have social proof on your website, do it now. If you need help, you can always turn to the content marketing experts at Ray Access.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
Reasons to Hire a Contract Writer for Your Business
You may believe that a copywriter is only good for writing those things you don’t want to write. Running your business requires a good bit of writing, from your business plan to your promotional content. Whether you enjoy writing or not, you may feel that you can accomplish most of it yourself.
But writing for business is all about clear, concise communication. Hire a contract writer who understands the process of writing, because all types of communication take:
Knowledge of your audience
Clarity of thought
Purpose and goals
Command of the language
And good communication, including writing, takes time and effort to get right. If you’re a busy business owner, carving out time to write can be as difficult as finding time to market your business. If you’re an agency owner, you have people to manage, clients to keep happy, finances to juggle and technology to stay on top of. Do you really have time to write? If not, hire a contract writer.
How Can a Writer Help You?
There are at least 10 things a writer can do for you, thereby lightening your load and improving your results. Some are obvious, but others you may not have considered. Hire a contract writer to:
Write or maintain your website content. Every time you change your website, whether you add a page or change the content, you force the search engines to re-index your site, which keeps them engaged with your site. Search engines don’t like stagnant sites.
Create and update your blog. A blog on your website provides tips and insight into your business and industry. Add value to your website and keep your audience coming back with an active blog. You can also post your blog on your social media platforms for a greater reach.
Develop and run your newsletter. Weekly or monthly, you can share news and offer deals to those insiders who’ve given you their email address. They’re your most appreciative audience. Stay top-of-mind with a regular newsletter.
Announce your news. Press releases to the local or national media can have many positive outcomes, from a link to your website to public attention for your business. But you have to ensure that your announcement is crafted to attract the kind of attention the media wants and can use.
Plan your future. If you’re active online, you need someone to create an editorial calendar to stay on top of your publication plans. That task includes planning out the topics to write about to control your narrative. Contract writers like those at Ray Access are creative types who always come up with fresh ideas.
Write your bios. Your company may change personnel from time to time. When that happens, you can keep your marketing collateral and your website up-to-date with new bios of your team. The same is true when you or someone on your team achieve new degrees or specialty training.
Record your internal procedures. Your policy documentation, procedure guides, business plans, operations manuals — basically, any documentation you need to run your business more efficiently — lies directly in the wheelhouse of a professional business writer. With a nondisclosure agreement, you can hire a contract writer to complete them, worry-free.
Develop important white papers. Whether you want to state your company’s position on an industry issue or use an informative paper to lure customers into your circle, a white paper has many uses to your business. You can also send your white papers to industry magazines; they’re always looking for interesting articles.
Write eBooks. Like white papers, eBooks have many uses. They’re a great way to attract new customers. You have to provide useful information to gain the trust of the public. eBooks present the perfect opportunity to do just that.
Edit existing documentation. You can hire a contract writer to review all your existing company papers to make them easier to read, understand and follow. Editing is a specialized skill that makes every piece of writing better — more targeted, more effective and more widely read.
If you’re writing to communicate to your customers, your team or the media, rely on a proven expert. Contract writers do more than write business letters, proposals or articles. They can shape your company and define your purpose. Don’t hesitate to hire a contract writer to help your business get to the next level.
If you’re a content writer and you’re reading this, you can check out freelance job offers on Jooble.org. Otherwise, contact Ray Access for writing services, and you can put your own name on every article as the author, since we produce work-for-hire.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
More and more people are working from home these days. Will office buildings ever get back to normal? Certainly not until a COVID-19 vaccine is available and widely distributed. In the meantime, in this new reality, those who work from home are searching for tips to stay healthy. Ray Access has you covered with some timely and relevant work-from-home tips:
1. Don’t Forget to Breathe
This one seems like a no-brainer. You can’t forget to breathe without passing out. The truth is that breathing easy and deep is the key to staying healthy. When you’re tense, your breath changes, becoming more irregular and shallower. Take time during your day to focus on your breath. And just take some deep breaths.
2. Eat Right
Tips for health always seem to return to your diet. For good reason, as what you put into your body — as well as how much you eat — makes as big a difference to your health as the exercise you get. When you work from home, it’s also easy to eat at your desk while you continue to work. Take time to eat, away from your desk. And make a nice meal that includes all the food groups, including fresh fruit and vegetables.
3. Get Up, Get Out
This is one you probably already know: get up and stretch periodically. The rule is not to sit for longer than an hour. Stand, stretch and walk around, even if it’s just around the room. If possible, get outside and walk around in the sunshine. Wear a mask if you have to, but walking outside provides a terrific break from your in-home office when you work from home.
4. Mind Your Posture
While it helps to have a proper work chair for your home office, even the best chair can’t stop you from slouching now and again. It’s on you to be mindful of your posture when you’re sitting at your desk. More than that, watch your posture all the time: when you’re standing, walking, seated at the dinner table. The more you can maintain a proper posture, the more likely you’ll avoid back and spine issues.
5. Focus Your Mind
No matter what you do, do it with intention, and you’ll accomplish more than you realized you could. Before you sit down at your desk when you work from home, decide on your goals for the day. Put off email, news and the crossword — whatever you do for fun — until after you’ve accomplished your goals for the day. Don’t allow yourself to be distracted, but also realize that this focus takes time to integrate. If you can’t stop losing focus as you first start this intentional practice, don’t be too hard on yourself.
6. Treasure and Nurture Your Relationships
Life isn’t all work and no play. As hard as you work when you work from home, you need to give yourself time off. It’s easy to keep working when your office is in your home, but it’s destructive behavior. Set your time off on your calendar if you have to, and use that time to spend with your family, your pets, your close friends —whoever’s inside your COVID-19 bubble. This will keep you healthy and sane.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
Stay True to Your Values without Insulting Potential Customers
In this day and age, it seems like everyday personal choices are being politicized. You get dirty looks from one side of the political spectrum or the other for the kind of food you buy or how much you recycle. And don’t even get us started on the politics of wearing masks. It’s become difficult to keep your business writing neutral.
But business owners small and large know that every customer counts when it comes to the bottom line. If you can refrain from insulting any current or potential customers, you’re walking a thin line. Sometimes, your decisions pit strong opinions against profits. The goal of business writing has been and should remain to be to reach everyone. And you can only do that by writing for a general audience.
How Do You Write for a General Audience?
Even though your business may cater to a more educated audience — say with at least a college degree — not everyone reads and understands in the same manner. It’s wise, therefore, to follow the journalist’s creed and write to an 8th grade education. That means avoiding big words and writing in shorter sentences.
A general audience also shares a multitude of varying political, social and cultural views. What may seem like sarcasm to you may be taken as a racial slur or political putdown by someone else. So unless your business is designed specifically to reach a biased clientele, it’s best to keep writing for a general audience that spans the globe, focusing solely on your products or services.
What Does Neutral Copy Look Like?
In addition to keeping your writing simple and easy to read, there are a few other hallmarks to hit when writing for a general audience, including:
Avoid making opinions sound like facts. Be clear when you insert an opinion. Even a general audience appreciates honesty and transparency, even if they choose not to buy from you because of your opinions.
Keep copy positive. Whether you’re writing a newsletter for your mailing list, a blog post to hit all your social media channels or a page for your website, turn any negative side effects or consequences into positive points. Aim for feel-good sentiments that can be shared by all readers.
Keep it clean. Off-color references, violent images, sexual innuendos, cussing and strong language definitely turn off some people — guaranteed.
Know your target market. If your target is the right wing of a political party affiliation, for example, then it doesn’t hurt — and may actually help — if you insult those on the other side of the aisle. But that’s not a general audience. If you’re selling your goods or services to a broad market, writing for a general audience allows you to reach both sides of any aisle.
Neutral copy is inoffensive and appeals to a wide range of socio-economic, cultural, political, educational and regional audiences. Your best friend, your grandmother and your preacher should be able read your writing and understand your message. Idealists and traditionalists alike become willing to buy what you’re selling. And they’ll gladly forward a reference to everyone they know.
When to Draw the Line
The dilemma then becomes: when and where do you set boundaries for those you attract? An even broader question may be: should you even set a boundary when it comes to business? Your answer obviously is personal. Discuss it with your partners or board members. What kinds of goods and services you sell may drive your ultimate decision about whether you want to be writing for a general audience or targeting a specific type of clientele.
If you’ve got a healthy cushion and can afford to be picky about what kind of customer you serve, then you may be able to be more outspoken in your business-related communications. On the other hand, if you can’t afford to turn away paying customers, then you may have to stick to writing for a general audience and reserve your personal opinions for the dinner table.
Business Owners Make Difficult Decisions Everyday
It’s not always easy to swallow your convictions in the name of paying the rent. And sometimes the effort isn’t worth it; your beliefs may play too big a role in your image. Deciding whether to put your profits on the line in defense of a position or keep your marketing content neutral is perhaps one of the most difficult decisions a business owner makes. But it can be done effectively. If you’re having trouble sorting out your ability to remain unbiased while marketing your business, contact Ray Access for customer–neutral writing that saves your income while maintaining your integrity.
Priorities drive your ultimate decision. But understanding the consequences of your writing style and content is vital. Stop and think about it before you post a raving rant about anti-maskers or left-wing protestors. Consider that perhaps there is a time and place for boundaries when you’re doing business. No matter how you decide to proceed in your writing, be prepared to reap the results.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
More and more Americans have started working for themselves as part of the gig economy. The actual number may be as high as 40 percent of the workforce, and it continues to expand. Check out these game-changing gig economy statistics. The gig economy doesn’t necessarily involve starting new companies or opening storefronts. It includes, for the most part, people working for an app service or web service to generate either primary or secondary income.
On the face of it, app-based gig work — working as a contractor through a service — is a great way to earn extra money. The hours are flexible, the pay is acceptable, and it’s usually easy to get started. The downside, however, applies as much as the upside:
Like all hourly jobs, you don’t get paid if you decide not to work.
Gig economy work is perfect for part-time work, since your pay depends on how much you work in a given week. If you switch to working your gig economy job as your main source of income, however, you soon learn how undependable your paycheck becomes week to week.
When you work a gig-economy job, it’s not just difficult to save money while living hand to mouth, but it’s also almost impossible to get protection for your health.
Take the Risk out of Working for Yourself
Things are starting to change. This year, 2020, gig workers were allowed to collect unemployment for lost time due to the coronavirus pandemic. That was a first. What could be next? A safety net for gig economy workers? Affordable health coverage?
As a matter of fact, yes. These things and more are starting to roll out for gig economy workers across the country. It’s a testament to the sheer number of gig workers and the economic power they’re beginning to develop. Taking the risk out of working for yourself means making your gig economy job as viable, acceptable, and safe as a job for any brick-and-mortar business.
Take the Risk out of Working for Yourself
Imagine these benefits for gig economy workers (especially if you happen to drive for an app service):
80 percent of your normal weekly pay while your car is being repaired after an accident
80 percent of your normal weekly pay if you’re hospitalized due to an accident
80 percent of your normal weekly income if you’re temporarily let go by the app business.
Legal representation in the form of a letter written on your behalf
A complementary Hurdlr Premier account to track your mileage for business
Sick leave, based on borrowing from future earnings
Access to a remote healthcare professional, anytime, for you and your immediate family
This concept feels important and new enough to hype a little. And as Ray Access works within the gig economy framework — we hire freelance writers — it made sense to get involved in making this announcement. It has the potential to help many gig economy workers. And you heard it here first, on rayaccess.com.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original. And yes, Ray Access received compensation for posting this article, but we never do something just for the money. This actually sounds like a good fit for gig economy workers.
We live in an era when memes spread faster than news, when news become fiction and fiction news, and when you can find sources to corroborate your beliefs online. The internet has become more than a library of all human knowledge; it’s now a purveyor of the most outlandish, most esoteric and most fake information ever imagined.
As a race, humans have never before encountered so much information. And it’s all just a tap away. We don’t always know what to do with it. When you consider how to read websites, you have to first consider the website you’re visiting and the search term you used.
All Websites Are Not Created Equal
The idea started with movies, where money creates illusions. The better the special effects, the more easily you buy into the vision. If you’re watching a cheaply made movie, the suspension of disbelief becomes harder. In the same way, if you come upon a website that’s cheaply made, you start reading with a bias toward disbelief already.
As the technology improved, so did the production values of even cheaply made movies. That didn’t level the playing field; it merely pushed big-budget movies (and websites) to even greater heights. So you can’t make a movie like they did in the 1950s (or build a website like they did in the 1990s) and expect to be taken seriously.
Technology today allows even small business concerns to put together beautifully designed websites with ease and speed. That’s good and bad. It’s easier for you to put up a dazzling website for your business, but it’s also easier (and cheaper) for those publishing scam sites. Those sites have become more and more believable.
How to Read Websites
Truth is in the eye of the beholder. And the responsibility for determining the truth rests there as well. In other words, caveat emptor: buyer beware. Social media platforms have begun labeling sites of questionable content or at least sharing the bias of those sites. It’s up to you to figure out whether to believe what you read or not. Further research helps, but there’s so much online about any topic.
The same holds true for business websites. A slick site may try to sell you content writing, for example, with promises of excellent quality. It’s up to you to dig deeper. Look at the portfolio, if there is one. Ask questions. It may be true or it may be a sales pitch. At Ray Access, we not only show you our past work, but share professional advice on effective content creation. Because we’re truly professionals.
Be Careful Out There
When you surf the internet or search for information, be smart by remaining skeptical. Double-check facts before you trust them — including what you read here. You may eventually be able to trust certain websites, but always remember why a website exists. Sometimes, it’s to share vital information. Sometimes, it’s just to sell advertising.
When you know how to read websites, you understand the value of truly authoritative sources. You learn which sites to visit. We hope that you come to trust Ray Access. We provide researched facts and advice. We’re in business to provide online content to businesses. So become media literate; it’s a good way to learn how to read websites. Don’t take anything for granted. And use the internet responsibly.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
Use Promotion and a Newsletter to Build Credibility
Whether you write your blog daily, weekly or monthly, you don’t want to waste your efforts. Even if you hire a service like Ray Access to write or edit your blog posts, they won’t do you any good unless they’re read. Unread blogs — especially when they’re full of interesting, engaging material — are like packets of vegetable seeds left to rot in the pantry.
So if you’re sure your blog posts are well written and relevant to your audience, the next step is to make sure your customers know about them. There are a number of strategies for doing that, while reaching potential customers, too. These plans take a little planning and a little effort, but they can pay off in new and returning customers.
Step 1: Start with Quality
Some talented salesmen claim they can sell beer to a brewer. But when you’re using content marketing, you’re using words instead of salesmen. So your content better be top-notch. It’s one thing to employ the rules of grammar correctly; it’s another to craft compelling content that your audience wants to read and share.
Before you think about getting your customers to read your blog, make sure it’s worth their time. Make sure they’ll thank you and not curse you. Spend time on the creation process and make sure you’ve got a topic your people are interested in. Don’t waste your time promoting poor content. That’s not effective content marketing.
Step 2: Promote Your Blog
Once you’ve crafted your blog post and you’re satisfied with its quality, you’re ready to send it out into the world. Publish it on your website. Make sure it’s everywhere it’s supposed to be, as some websites — like Ray Access’ new site — link to the latest blog post from the Home page, the footer and the sidebar. The more places it appears, the more likely a visitor will encounter it and be intrigued.
Don’t stop there. Place a teaser blurb and a link on your social media platforms. The purpose of these blurbs is to entice people to click the link back to your website, where they can:
Read the entire blog post
Look around your site to see what your business is all about
Bookmark your site
Become a customer
Using social media, professional organizations and other online avenues to promote your blog posts give your company an immense online presence. It costs very little, but it does take some time every time you blog. The ROI for this little bit of work is enormous, especially if you choose the most appropriate sites and your content is well targeted.
Step 3: Reuse Your Blog Content
Content marketing doesn’t have to mean writing new content all day. Once you’ve written a blog post, you can reuse those words wherever and however you can. That increases its value exponentially and allows you to focus on creating really good content. If you’re just cranking it out every time, the quality will suffer. So create something special, and then reuse the heck out of it.
That’s where a newsletter comes in. Not all of your customers are going to keep checking your website for the latest blog post. They may miss your teaser blurb on their favorite social media platform. A newsletter is the perfect vehicle for reusing content. Use a pull quote or a paragraph from the blog post and place it in the newsletter, with a link back to the entire article.
Since newsletters are delivered directly into your customers’ email inboxes, they’re bound to see it. If you package it properly, they’ll gobble it up and be glad you sent it. Between newsletters, social media and your other efforts, you can do a lot to get your blog posts in front of the people who matter to you: your customers. And that’s worth the time. Good luck and remember the content marketing experts at Ray Access if you need help.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
Ray Access — an online content development firm based in Asheville, NC, but with an international footprint — has launched an updated, mobile-friendly website. This marks the second time in its short history that Ray Access has updated its site. This time, however, there’s a purpose behind the redesign beyond making use of the latest technology.
While the design and implementation are new, the real difference in the site is its updated content. It’s meant to showcase how new website content can make a difference in visitor retention and engagement. For the first time, Ray Access has created a site similar to the ones it produces for its clients: full of useful information and light on promotional material.
A New Website? Yawn
It’s common for businesses to update their websites from time to time. Nothing says “I don’t care” like a website that looks as if it were cobbled together from spare code back in the mid-1990s. An updated site has become a business necessity, so your business will be taken seriously. The recommended period for a relaunch is about every five years because that’s about how long it takes for technology to change significantly.
But new sites need more than a pretty design and an attractive combination of colors. It needs more than fancy graphics and flashy photography. Websites have a business purpose: to attract and retain customers. Does your website do that? If not, consider an update, whether or not the design seems out-of-date.
Why New Website Content Matters
In the past, the Ray Access site provided lots of information about our services and our value proposition — i.e., why a business should hire us instead of our competition. It’s a common approach for many businesses online. After all, isn’t that the point of a website?
No, as we’re all learning. The internet is evolving with how people use it. We could write about the evolution of keyword use, but that’s boring. Instead, think about how people, regular people, use the internet. They search for information, often asking full-sentence questions into their phone. If they find your website, what value can you give them?
That’s the value of good content. The best design in the world can’t hold a visitor for long. (No offense to designers; see above for our love of modern designs.) Visitors reach your website because they want something. They may be shopping for what you provide, or they may be researching something about your industry. Either way, your site has to impart useful information without giving away the farm.
How a New Website Earns Customers
As with the new Ray Access website, it’s the new website content that makes or breaks a site. No matter what your business, no matter what your industry, seek to add value to your community and the world at large. Provide free, useful information. If it’s good enough, you’ll gain an audience. Deliver that information in a clear, easy-to-comprehend format, and you’ll gain at least one fan: Ray Access.
The internet is an inconsistent place. Search engines help, but sometimes, the site you end up on is a garbled mess. If all you want to do is find the answer to a question, you’ll move on quickly to the next website on the search engine results page.
Keep visitors on your site longer. Statistics show that the longer a visitor is on your site, the more likely he is to becoming a customer. So if your new website content is clear, to-the-point and accurate, you stand a better-than-average chance of gaining a new customer.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
