How do you get business? There are so many ways to generate leads. There is no shortage of options.
But many of us would like the leads to come to us. For many, that’s a pipedream.
Certainly, there is always a need to reach out to some to create leads. There always will be, especially when you get started.
But is it possible to, as my friend Joel says, go “fishing with dynamite”?
I think so, and there are some ways to do it.
I am going to outline three things that Web Care companies can do that will help you fish with dynamite.
Most won’t do these things because it takes effort and trouble. But, you are not like that. You are willing to do these things so that you want to differentiate yourself from other web care companies.
Podcasting
Podcasting is something that can help differentiate you from your competitors. Why? Your competitors won’t go to the trouble.
If you take a look at the WordPress community as a whole, you will see that the people who stand out more are the ones willing to put themselves out there.
They are the ones willing to do a podcast. They are the ones willing to do a presentation at a WordCamp or WordPress meetup.
In 2021 podcasting is much like blogging was in 2011. Rob Cairns has said this to me many times and I think he is right.
By the way, Rob is closing in on his 150th podcast episode. His customers listen. His competitors listen.
His potential clients listen.
And now, he is considered an expert by many people.
His podcast is a place where he can put out his thoughts about certain topics and showcase his expertise.
Podcasts can be consumed while on the go using headphones and a mobile phone.
Your podcast audience doesn’t have to be worldwide, it just has to reach those who do business with you.
Use virtual Summit or webinars.
Virtual summits have become quite the trend during the COVID Pandemic era, but they have been around for quite some time.
We know, at some point, there will be more in-person events, but live streaming has become a way to allow those who can’t attend to participate.
Locally, companies and organizations have always had in-person seminars. To me, seminars sound too formal. I like the word workshops better.
Now, if you have a client portfolio of only local people, then an in-person workshop might be the way to go.
Many web care companies have customers from various locations, so a virtual workshop or mini-summit might be the best answer.
Summits have the added advantage of building your email list. That is one of the things I have learned from Jan Koch who runs Virtual Summit Mastery.
It’s really not as difficult as you might think.
You can make it as short as you want or as long as you want. I think if you are using it for a Web Care business, you might make it shorter as most business owners will not be able to take off a whole day or week.
Of course, you can make it live or pre-recorded. The key is to deliver high-quality content in a structured setting
Certainly, if you want to know more about the advantages of running a summit, you can get a copy of Jan’s book. He has it for a low price right now.
I realize that this might be beyond the scope of what some web care businesses can do. With that being said, you will put yourself light years ahead of most web care businesses. At the very least, host one-on-one online webinars that can be distributed to multiple places.
Write a book.
I’m not kidding here. I’m not talking about a 300-page book that takes years to produce.
What I am talking about here would be 100 pages give or take about best practices for your website or something else that you could produce that would give your clients incredible value.
And, don’t give it away.
Some people will do mini ebooks and give them away as a PDF for an email address.
How many of those have you downloaded? Have you ever looked at them again?
Are they in some folder on your desktop that you never open anymore? See?
Don’t do that.
Write a book. Write a physical book, and charge for it.
Heck, you could repurpose a bunch of blog posts if you have them and can put them in a cohesive structure.
The point is to put together a book that is published and printed.
Then sell it for $10. Sell it for at least $10. Having a price gives it a perceived value.
I have received two physical books in the last year from SaaS companies. I don’t use either, but let me tell you something. I remember them.
Marketer David Gerhardt was involved in both projects. It is an idea he came up with, to create a book.
Now, you think, I don’t have time to sit down and write a book. I hear ya.
You may think you are not a good writer. I hear that too.
But, the thing about book writing is that it is mostly about assembling. So, assemble a book that you sell from your brand.
“Copy is not written. Copy is assembled.” Eugene Schwartz
— Rainmaker Digital (@rainmakerhq) September 17, 2021
Like I said previously, you can repurpose content, use podcast interviews, recruit employees or friends to write chapters, or hire someone to write the book.
No-brainer ideas.
These are a couple of “no brainer” ideas. That means you should be doing these things already.
Email newsletter
Start an email newsletter if you haven’t already. Like, yesterday. Make sure you get all of your customers on that list.
This is your direct line to your customers and future customers. All of the things mentioned above will get you lots of new subscribers.
Now that you have them on your list, you can tell them what they need to know about you, your business, and the care of their website.
Repurposing content
Repurposing content is an effective strategy. Take the time to write a good article, one that is high quality. Once you have that, you can spend time repurposing (or remixing) the content for various content platforms.
Take a look at what marketer Ross Simmonds says about distribution,
“And I’m a firm believer that the act of content distribution is STILL one of the most underrated & under-invested areas of digital marketing.
“Many marketers will spend 20 hours to create a masterpiece and spend 20 minutes to promote it. Then they’re left wondering:
“Hmm… Why didn’t that take off?
“Distribution folks. Embrace it…”
Podcast, video, article? Repurpose and remix it. Remix your content for your social media channels.
Training videos
Customers look at you for information. You are the expert, so act like it. One of the best ways to do this is through training videos or tutorials.
One I think would be huge is a training video for Google My Business (GMB) pages. GMB pages are one of the most important things to the regular, every day, brick-and-mortar business. You may do a video like this one.
Of course, there are probably dozens of videos on setting up a GMB but do your own.
Why? Because you are showcasing your expertise to your customers and potential customers.
There are a whole host of topics to do training videos for. Take note of mistakes some of your customers make or questions they ask and create the video.
It doesn’t have to be movie quality. Just get some quality equipment and get it done. Add some graphics for branding and share.
Wrapping it up
The things I talk about in this article are not easy. I understand that. It takes some courage and energy to execute these ideas.
You may not need an edge in your web care business. You may not be scaling your web care business.
But, if you are, you might consider doing some of the ideas I mention in this article.
Imagine being the one your customers refer to because of the high-impact content you have created. Imagine your customers telling their colleagues about you because of these high-impact content ideas.
Think about it.
What do you think? Tell us in the MainWP Users Facebook Group.
