20 Sep How 5 Brands Create Content that Stands Out
My favorite bloggers and brands don’t create content just because someone told them to. They create content that stands out.
They are creating content to have a positive impact on/help people and to help their companies grow. The content is typically from a different viewpoint and teaches you something. But most importantly – it creates a connection. Content that creates connection is content that stands out.
If you’re just creating content “because”, you are just creating more noise. You know what people do with noise? They tune it out.
How 5 brands create content that stands out
I don’t want people to tune you out. Let’s look at how a handful of brands ensure their content creates a connection.
Take a stand
Penelope Trunk is a serial entrepreneur and blogger who has a very unique voice. She writes very long posts about the “intersection of life and work”. These posts include her kids, her struggles with mental illness, her failed marriages, her gay son, her failures … and her sex life (or lack thereof).
She puts it all out there – super gutsy! But what I love about her articles is that she makes you think. She is genuine, honest and vulnerable. And she always has something different to say.
Use your unique voice
I once got fired by a client because he said an email I sent (to all clients, not just him) was offensive. He didn’t like the way I talked about our new approach to billing:
Instead of billing at a flat rate, we’re going to pivot to an hourly rate effective October 1, 2016.
Don’t freak out, though! When we started working together, I estimated how long it would take to complete your project. Unless you have a ton of requests for new projects every month or decide to get all high-maintenance on us, your Jansen Communications invoices will not change much.
I’ll be reaching out to each of you to discuss this change.
When I got his response, I just shrugged my shoulders and moved on. Don’t be afraid of turning off some people if you’re just being you. If they don’t get you, you don’t want to work with them, period.
Share bits of your secret sauce
Some of my favorite brands freely share bits and pieces of their secret sauce. It’s usually three ingredients from their 10-ingredient recipe. You want that secret sauce so badly that you end up paying to get a list of all 10 ingredients plus the recipe.
I love this approach. It’s very bold and confident, thus ensuring it is content that stands out. Here are a couple of brands who do that:
Nicolas Kusmich teaches people how to create Facebook ads that convert. Read his blog, and you’ll find bits and pieces of his method. Want more? You need his training.
Denise Duffield-Thomas is a money mindset mentor for women. Between her books, videos, and blogs, you can learn a lot. But want expert guidance? You’ll need to join her bootcamp.
HubSpot blogs about every single aspect of marketing. They leave no stone unturned. But want to enjoy the kind of results they write about? You need their inbound marketing platform – and probably one of their partners.
Tell your story
Humans love stories, because they make a topic or lesson so relatable. Tell stories about your own experiences. What happened and what did you learn? How can others apply that lesson to their own lives?
One of my favorite stories ever was written by Peter Shankman. In 2011. Yes, the story is so good, it has stuck with me for that long.
You can read the whole thing here, but here’s the gist:
Peter got an email form letter from his Infiniti dealership. The letter was a hot mess. It was addressed to Mr./Mrs. Peter Shankman (ever met a woman named Peter?), filled with punctuation errors and included zero personalization.
This letter was a big lesson in shitty customer service that I have not forgotten in seven years.
Worried that you’re creating noise?
We will do a big ol’ content audit on your website, blog, email marketing and social media channels – and tell you exactly what to do to stand out. Shoot us a note here to get started.
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