Any of you ever feel this way? Someone’s always yelling that we need to put content out there. Be heard. Have a voice. Be an authority on a subject.
I don’t have time for this. Family, church, Red Clay Interactive. So much to do and so little time to fit it all in. I’m frazzled already and quite frankly, I don’t know that anyone cares what I have to say. It’s scary. What if I write about something that was already out there two years ago and I’m just now discovering it? What if my grammar sucks and I look like an idiot? What will people think of me then? Admittedly I care what people think about me. I don’t want to disappoint anyone or hurt my colleagues.
And what about authenticity? That’s all I hear about today. Be authentic – everyone can see right through a sales pitch and they can sure see through someone that’s writing because they have to, not because they want to. I know I sure can.
I’ve spent this week with 19,000 wonderful people all united around expanding their knowledge of inbound marketing at INBOUND 2016. Everyone here shares openly. I haven’t met anyone that wouldn’t put their failures, doubts and fears on the table this week. We all openly recognize the uncertainty that exists today during the largest change in communication since the television was introduced. The average human, not children/millennials/baby boomers/etc., spend an average of two hours per day on a smart device consuming and contributing content. If we aren’t focusing our attention as marketers on placing ourselves where the people are, we’re cheating ourselves and the clients we serve. Come on now…that’s a big responsibility and it’s scary.
So this brings me back where I started – writing a dang blog post. Something intriguing happened yesterday and today. Two other agency owners asked if they could give me a call next week to ask my advice on a few things. What? Why do they need my advice? Then it occurred to me. They are here doing exactly what I’m doing. Listening for confirmation that our agency is headed down the right path and picking up a tip or two to continue fueling a passion that we hope is contagious. I had to participate in 14 hours of sessions to pull out five key things we as an agency need to be doing right now. Much like it is with reading or watching videos. We may read through 10 articles or watch 5 videos before we pull out that one nugget we need to teach us, inspire us, spark change and it’s worth it.
So take the next step if you haven’t already done so. Write something you’re passionate about and provide that one tip to the one person who really needs it. It’s ok to care what people think about you. If you tell me you don’t I’ll call you a liar. No I won’t – I care what you think of me. Happy writing!
