Ericka Lewis
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that planning is easier than doing.
Congratulations, you’ve made the brilliant choice to pursue your marketing efforts, inbound style. Are you excited? You should be! You’re about to break barriers and dominate your industry.
But is your excitement getting in the way of decision-making and ultimately, actions? Don’t worry, it happens even to the best of us.
Here are four areas where you might find yourself stuck and how to push yourself to get going.
1. Choosing Platforms
Choosing the best marketing platform can be overwhelming, especially if you’re new to the inbound marketing game. With an abundance of marketing platforms out there, it’s only wise to make a thorough assessment of the options you have at hand before committing to ‘the one’. After all, the marketing platform you choose is going to be the heart of your inbound marketing efforts. Going to war without a weapon is just as much a losing battle as going to war with the wrong weapon.
But don’t let indecision stall you. Before embarking on the choosing process, list the things that matter to your business, your industry, and your target audience. Enumerate the tangible goals you want to achieve, and the features you expect from a marketing platform. Turn these items into a checklist you can easily go through as you research your options. Consider the cost, but don’t forget about the cost you might incur as a result of missing features or platform limitations.
Keep in mind that this platform is a big investment that will be your launch pad for success. Going in blind will make the decision-making process unnecessarily tougher and overwhelming, but dragging it on means you’re missing out on building a meaningful relationship with your audience to capture and convert leads. So don’t delay. Think of all the leads you could be missing out on. The longer you wait, the farther you have to catch up with your competitors.
2. Content
Here’s another pit of limbo for inbound marketers, especially those who are just dipping their foot in inbound marketing --- content.
Look at all the goodies out there in weblandia! With all the information out there, it looks easy as cake to write content worth reading. So you plan your content, and plan some more, and wow look at those really awesome topics on your list... Weeks later, nada.
Yup, we’re all guilty of this. Whether it’s procrastination or mental block, or being too consumed with careful content mapping, we find ourselves stalled in the mystery land called blank white space. But don’t fret. There are a few tricks you can do to get yourself to write a blog, even in the span of just an hour.
When you find yourself unable to let your inner bard flow out of your mighty quill, you can look into nifty content tools that can inspire you or help accomplish your task, such Hubspot’s Blog Topic Generator or Quora’s Q&As. If you’re still in a content bind and would really like to get it started with no luck, you can always ask for help from a copywriter, or a content production platform like Zerys, Writer Access or Content Launch. These platforms have a number of seasoned writers in multiple industries who are well-versed in SEO and can help you start your content writing adventures.
If you use an outside source, be sure to review each piece of content for tone, informational value, and accuracy extensively. Remember, you are the expert and they are talking on behalf of you. You are accountable for every piece of content you publish.
Sooner or later, you know you have to write that content. So don’t be a victim of procrastination. With a variety of content tools and resources available out there to help you, there should be no reason to delay. If you let unwritten content pile up unpublished, you’re going to pay the pricey consequence of dipping page rankings, poor engagement levels, stifled reach, fewer leads and ultimately miss out on conversions.
3. Social Media Postings
Every now and then we find ourselves on the inconsistent side when it comes to social postings. But don’t leave your social media accounts hanging in limbo muted by inactivity. Social signals are a vital part of inbound marketing so you should strive to have an active social media presence.
If you’re having a little difficulty publishing posts consistently on your social channels, find a day to sit down and pre-load social posts. HubSpot offers handy dandy automated social posting tools you can take advantage of. Preschedule your posts according to your content and calendar of events.
You can also use social media management tools like Hootsuite and Sprout Social to pull in RSS feeds to post on your various social accounts and send out automated posts to your social media channels. These platforms also have mobile apps that are sure to be useful for posting on the go.
If your social media presence is sporadic and inconsistent as a result of procrastination, you’re missing out on a great chance to engage with your audience and build a relationship that may lead to future conversions. Not only that, but your social signals and visibility will suffer. So plan ahead and pre-load those posts.
4. Redesigning Your Own Website
If you are a marketing agency, this one looks all too familiar to you. Managing multiple creative inbound marketing projects, especially if you’re a budding agency at the precipice of success, often means your own inbound marketing doesn’t get enough quality time. Keep in mind that your agency’s website is just as important as your clients’ websites. Your site reflects the quality of your work and your character. Don’t forget to shape it up, especially if it’s starting look a little too 90s.
Now, while it may be easy to plan an overhaul for your own site, it may also be difficult to execute thanks to the hustle and bustle of a busy agency. Once you get the planning part out of the way, you should delegate team members accordingly and set tangible deadlines. Assign a project manager to oversee the progress of the overhaul and keep everybody in check of their specific contributions. You can also rely on project management tools like Basecamp, JumpChart, and Trello to keep everyone on their toes when it comes to their part of the project.
When it comes to your redesigning your own website, you may be a bit lax with delays and execution. But if you think this won’t hurt your agency, think again. Design trends and web guidelines are constantly changing. Clients who are looking to invest in a functional and sleek website that can accomplish their marketing needs won’t give the time of day to an agency with an outdated broken website. Think about it. Your agency is being judged by potential clients every second you spend delaying on revamping your website. If it’s something you think no longer reflects your best, plan an overhaul and execute it accordingly.
Just Do It
In the brilliant words of the man responsible for Nike’s enduring tagline that says it all, “Just do it.” All too often, the problem with creative minds is that we get caught up planning and never seem find the time or the push to carry our plans out. We’re either too cautious about walking the walk, may just be really busy or far too distracted.
But don’t let the inability to execute and implement brilliant plans get in the way of success. Take advantage of inbound marketing tools and platforms that can help you walk the walk. Taking the first step is always a little challenging, but once you get the hang of it, everything will be second nature. Remember, success is always just a step away! I hope this nudge helps.
