Guest post by Dave Navarro.
You know that building an authority blog is a powerful way to create a steady stream of new business. The right posts, the right content … it can all position you to have your best year ever. But what do you do when you’re not a writer at heart – or you just don’t know how you can generate compelling content on a regular basis?
You don’t have to write profound, million-dollar posts to generate business from your blog. All you have to do is what you’re already doing every day – connecting with prospective customers and helping them find solutions for their problems. Here are a few sure-fire strategies to break "blogger’s block" and create content your readers will love in a way that’s virtually effortless. (Click the links in each section to see these strategies in action.)
Strategy #1 – Write About Your Customer’s Needs
Customers pay you because you fix their problems or provide an important service – and you’ve got plenty of experience doing it. Write about how you solved a particular problem, or give your readers a little inside information that they wouldn’t know on their own. This not only helps build credibility, but increases the level of trust your reader has in you.
Strategy #2 – Write About Your Offerings
Whatever it is that your business offers, chances are your customers don’t have all the information they need to make an educated decision about a purchase or investment. By writing a post about your services, you give them an opportunity to learn more about what it is that you do without the "hard-sell" feel of a sales page. Additionally, posts like these are a good way to draw in traffic from search engines.
Strategy #3 – Write About Your Past Successes
One of the most effective ways to prove to a potential customer that you are a professional who can get the job done is to talk about times when you’ve really come through for your customers. Few things are more compelling to a reader than seeing real-life examples of you solving the same kinds of problems that they need help with. You can also use these posts as a gateway to discuss your offerings in more detail.
Strategy #4 – Write A How-To Post
Millions of people begin their web searches with "How to …" in order to figure out a way to solve a problem or meet their needs. By writing how-to posts relevant to your customers, you can draw in even more search engine traffic while establishing your blog as instantly useful in the reader’s mind. How-to posts are also a great vehicle for explaining how you do things skillfully and professionally … and why it just makes sense for your readers to give your services a try.
Strategy #5 – Write A Cautionary Post
Another reason that people search on the web is to find out what not to do when trying to get their problems solved. This may be as simple as "questions to ask before purchasing" or "common mistakes to avoid." By writing a cautionary post you can catch those web searchers and bring them to your blog, where they can begin building their trust levels because of the relevant warnings you just gave them.
Don’t Make Blogging Harder Than It Has To Be
Your blog can be the gateway to higher sales if you value your readers and provide them with the information they need to make informed decisions. Bookmark this post and come back to it the next time you’re feeling a little touch of "blogger’s block" and kick-start the idea process for your next article!
Catch more "get-me-unstuck" advice from productivity coach Dave Navarro at the Rock Your Day blog (or better yet, subscribe to the blog feed so you don’t miss a single tip).
Additional note from Michael: Dave is one of the good guys. There is a reason why his blog is called Rock Your Day. If you don’t subscribe to it, all I can say is that you’re seriously missing out. Just go there and start reading a few posts back up to the present and you’ll see.