Copyblogger

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Better Content, Better Websites, and a Little Inspiration

Better Content, Better Websites, and a Little Inspiration

On Monday, Brian Clark kicked off a new series of quick copy tips. These are short, powerful techniques that can make your copy more persuasive and get you to your goals faster.

This time, Brian taught us about the Proclamation Lead — a way to cut through the clutter and start your content with a bang. If you’re struggling to make your content stand out, or you just want a potent way to get your message across, give it a try …

On Tuesday, we welcomed our colleague Chris Garrett back to the blog. He wrote about 10 rather sad business website mistakes he recently saw over and over again while he conducted some site critiques — and solutions that will make things better.

And on Wednesday, I asked our editorial team to share their favorite quotes about writing. If you need a little dose of inspiration, there’s a lot to choose from there.
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Expand Your Content Marketing Toolkit

Expand Your Content Marketing Toolkit

On Monday, our friend Jon Nastor shared the top tips he’s learned from conducting more than 350 podcast interviews in two years. He has a lot of solid advice here on how to better prepare for your interviews — without making your content stiff or robotic.

On Tuesday, our editorial assistant Will DeWitt revealed how his experiences on a recent cruise shaped how he thinks about customer experience — and how you can structure your content to make your audience feel like treasured guests.

And on Wednesday, Stefanie Flaxman saved us from the humiliation of 12 different word choice errors. Because content marketing is just more fun when you’re not embarrassing yourself in public.
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The Path to Freedom, More Creativity, and … Really Good Audio Quality

The Path to Freedom, More Creativity, and ... Really Good Audio Quality

We kicked off the holiday week on Monday with your July creativity and productivity prompts.

Each month this year, we’re suggesting practical ideas to improve your content and help you get more done. In July, we’re challenging you to select two content types that are new to you and schedule an extra hour each day to work on something meaningful.

(If one of your new content types is audio, be sure to check out Wednesday’s post this week as well.)

Tuesday was U.S. Independence Day, and I shared my latest thoughts on three steps toward greater economic and time independence: growing your audience, creating a revenue stream, and committing to growth and learning.

Each of those three is a big topic, which is why it’s our privilege to help you with them throughout the year.

On Wednesday, Toby Lyles, who was instrumental to the development of our Rainmaker FM podcast network, gave some of his best tips on how to get that smooth pro sound from your audio — without killing your budget.
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Practical Tips to Move You Toward Your Content Marketing Goals

Practical Tips to Move You Toward Your Content Marketing Goals

This week is all about good, old-fashioned pragmatism. It’s about the specific tactics you can use to start getting the results you’re looking for — sooner rather than later.

On Monday, Stefanie Flaxman gave us some suggestions on timing when you want to approach that busy influencer with your killer idea or humble request.

On Tuesday, Jerod Morris let us know about the launch of Sites, a new podcast that helps you build the website you need to reach your goals.

And on Wednesday, I outlined specific steps you can take to gain momentum when no one knows who you are (yet). Your “1,000 True Fans” aren’t going to show up overnight, but there is a path you can take to get to them.
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The Balance of Creativity and Productivity

The Balance of Creativity and Productivity

If you read Copyblogger for any length of time, you’ll notice a theme that comes up again and again — the balance of creative “arty stuff” with pragmatic productivity.

Creativity makes our content worth reading. Strategic implementation gets us where we want to go. Each depends on the other.

On Monday, Stefanie Flaxman talked about cultivating a Pomeranian state of mind to expand your creativity. (Read the post to find out why you actually do want to do this.)

And on Tuesday, she outlined a plan to use that Pomeranian creativity to actually make something that other people want to read, watch, or listen to.

Finally, on Wednesday, our editorial team sent me their favorite writing books — a healthy mix of the arty, the crafty, and the strategic.
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Improve Your Writing and Last Chance for Rainmaker Platform

Improve Your Writing and Last Chance for Rainmaker Platform

Updated 6/16/17: The Rainmaker Platform is now off the market as a standalone service. Click here to learn about our new complete solutions for digital marketing that works.

Brian wrote on Monday about the big news for this week: This is your last chance to pick up the Rainmaker Platform as a standalone service. We’re transitioning to a bundled hybrid of technology with client services … and that will come with a significantly higher price tag.

If you’ve been thinking about Rainmaker, this would be a great time to jump in. To get the advantageous pricing we have today, you’ll need to start your free trial before Friday, June 16, 2017 (that’s tomorrow) at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
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