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“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”, said Benjamin Franklin.

I’m pretty sure he wasn’t talking about your business or content marketing strategy with those wise words … but well if the shoe fits?!

That’s exactly why I was super excited to have been invited to speak at Janet Murray’s Content Live workshop in London.  Because it was not only going to help me spent time properly creating my content plan for 2019, but also helping over 80 other business owners do the same.

It never ceases to amaze me how powerful it can be when you get a group of inspired, focused & committed business owners together, who are striving towards growing themselves & their business.

I took so much away from the event from not only the fellow speakers but from every single business owner I had the pleasure of speaking to.

In today’s podcast episode, I share my highlights & key insights from each of the speakers … so you can weave these magic gems into your content plans for the year ahead.

Here’s a sneaky peek at them ….

Dan Knowlton –  ‘Stop Talking About Video & Actually Do It’!

• Yes video can be scary but it’s totally powerful – so harness it!
• Your videos will get better each time – so embrace the journey & remember you have to start somewhere.
• You need 3 categories of videos: Awareness; Consideration & Purchase focused.
• It was magic seeing everyone create 60 second videos during their session by following a simple structure & just getting out their way & doing it!
• Follow Dan: Twitter & Instagram

Phil Pallen – ‘Using Twitter to Grow your Business’ & ‘Why you should be using Pinterest in 2019’:

• Twitter is still super powerful to start & contribute to conversations.
• Your ideal customers could be very accessible via Twitter – if you put in the time & effort to connect with them in a meaningful way.
• Don’t be average on 10 platforms.  Be a rockstar on 3 & a Superstar on 1!
• Pinterest is the 2nd highest referral for traffic – next to Facebook!
• Grow your audience first on Pinterest by re-pinning other people’s work & then start to sprinkle in your own content.
• With 2 hours a week dedicated to Pinterest – you could see powerful results.
• Follow Phil: Twitter & Instagram

Liz Melville – ‘What’s working on Facebook right now?’

• It’s all about being remarkable & different in the world of Facebook, so you truly stand out.
• Focus on attracting the right people. Build deep connections, where there is an emotional resonance.  Then you can earn the right to convert them to customers. So many people want to skip the first 2 stages.
• Facebook algorithms have changed but don’t use that as an excuse to not focus on getting meaningful engagement & conversations happening on Facebook!
• Follow Liz: Twitter & Instagram

Bronte Huskinson – ‘Creative Instagram Marketing’

• Instagram is all about being consistent with your commenting & engagement.
• Build a community by focusing on being you first & not your business.
• Give & be part of a community.
• Instagram Stories help you let people into your world & create meaningful connections.
• Follow Bronte: Twitter & Instagram

Amy Wood – ‘How to Repurpose Your Content’

• It’s such a waste to spend time creating an epic piece of content, sending it out into the world & then moving onto the next piece!
• There are so many ways that you can leverage that content across different platforms & in ways that will connect with different learning styles.
• How much content could you be leaving on the table by not slicing & dicing it in different ways?
• Follow Amy: Twitter & Instagram

Ant McGinley – ‘Are you ready for audio?’

• Podcasting can be simple – so stop over complicating it.
• You often have the equipment you need in your phone or computer, so use it.
• We created a podcast in less that 25 minutes as a group – so it shows it can be done rapidly!
• Follow Ant: Twitter & Instagram

Osmaan Sharif (yep that’s me) – ‘Using Your Entrepreneurial Superpower to ace your content in 2019’

• Even before creating your plan – you need to have your Design, Mindsets & Strategies for your business rock solid!
• The way you plan & create your content is dependant on your Entrepreneurial Superpower.
• Discover your superpower by taking the Wealth Dynamics test here.
• How each of the 8 different types of entrepreneurs would create content according to the T.A.S.K model -> Timing; Approach; Style & Kryptonite.
• Give yourself permission to do it YOUR way, so that it flows much easier.
• Follow me: Twitter & Instagram

Janet Murray – ‘Creating Your Content Plan for 2019’

• This was a very practical session – where every business owner had the time to do some real planning.
• How to create your Yearly; Quarterly & Monthly plans.
• If you’re struggling to create your content plan, it could be down to more of the design & lack of goals for your business & not the content!
• Harnessing Janet’s Media Diary to help you create content that links in with key interest dates. (Buy Janet’s 2019 Media Diary here)
• Follow Janet: Twitter & Instagram

Amanda Webb – ‘How to get more eyes on your content’

• It’s all about slaying your internal gremlins that can stop you from creating epic content.
• Research & test your ideas before spending time creating them.  Use the power of your community & also Facebook groups to see what people are asking.
• Round-up posts can be powerful – when you get different people to share their input to a common article.  But less people can be way more impactful than having too many contributions.
• What’s the point in creating epic content if you don’t time creating an epic headline, that would entice people to read or consume your content?
• Share your content in multiple ways & many categories if they are one-time only or evergreen content that can be shared over & over again.
• Follow Amanda: Twitter & Instagram

Andrew & Pete – ‘How to build a content automation machine for your business’

• The more you outsource – the more money you can make … if you spend that time on income producing activities.
• Creating less content that’s more rich in content can be better than creating lots of lower quality.
• Have a publishing schedule that commits you to a set frequency of sharing that content, because consistency leads to dependability for your audience.
• Break down every step of creating your content into each element & allocate a time next to it.  You’ll be surprised at how much time it can all add up to!
• Then get help to get the right people to do the right parts – Outsource!
• You need to treat your content creation time as being sacred – otherwise it won’t get done!  Have a production schedule so that you know when you need to create different things by.
• Follow Andrew & Pete: Twitter & Instagram

Overall it was such a powerful 2 days & I left skipping back up the road to Glasgow … (well more accurately sitting on the train), feeling even more inspired & motivated to get out there even more in 2019 with my epic content for you.

I loved being able to help every person in that room to also leave feeling more confident that they can do it in a way that fits for THEM & to see many of them breathe a sigh of relief about that.

So it hopefully goes to show … without planning … you’ll make it harder on yourself & your prospective clients to see what amazing value you can add.  Do you really want that?

I’m guessing you’re shaking your head & saying NO … so get on then & take the time to plan your content strategy for the year ahead.

Best wishes as always.

Osmaan