Hey there, Solopreneurs~

How’s it going, everyone? Welcome back to K.I.S.S., the newsletter built by business owners for business owners.

(And, of course - Aspiring business owners are especially welcome!)

The purpose of this newsletter is to break down high-level business concepts into easily understandable chunks of knowledge. No need to dive into Reddit or YouTube holes anymore!

Today’s Concept: Content Creation

It doesn’t matter what the hell you do. You can have a business that tailors sweaters, a hot dog stand, or a dog salon. Every single person NEEDS to create content to have a successful business.

So, if you’re not posting online… What are you even doing?

Today, we’ll be talking about content creation—not just how to create content but also what kind of content. How frequent is too frequent to post? How can you get consistent ideas? Let’s get into it.

Here’s a quick peek at today’s docket:

• Weekly Resource Recommendation

• The Three-Pronged Approach to Content

• Is Batching Actually A Good Idea?

• 15 Quality Content Ideas ANYONE Can Use

• Sh*t People Don’t Care About

Weekly Resource Recommendation

Today’s Weekly Resource Recommendation is actually a tool created by a great friend of mine, Darion Rae! It’s his Three-Day Content Writing Challenge.

If there’s a guy who knows how to transform someone’s LinkedIn into a lead-generating machine, it’s him. This challenge walks you through the fundamentals of creating content that your audience will actually care about, and it’s a great ideation exercise even if you’re already a seasoned creator.

In all honesty, his advice is genuinely solid. If you haven’t already, I'd recommend checking him out on LinkedIn.

The Three-Pronged Approach to Content

Now, it might be tempting to post whatever you want. This can be a fine way to get into the swing of things for beginners, but if you actually want your content to go somewhere, you need to think strategically.

Successful posts have a clear goal in mind. Typically, this is one of three goals:

• Virality

• Thought Leadership

• Lead Generation

In my experience, the best method is to create content that combines all three content goals. For instance, you can post something optimized for virality on Monday, something that establishes you as a thought leader on Wednesday, and a lead generation post on Friday. Get what I’m saying?

(Keep reading for examples of each kind of post!)

It’s important to note that everyone’s strategy and priorities are different. The central idea here is that some kind of strategy is needed.

Sure, throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks is something, but it doesn’t really matter that a post did well if the element that worked isn’t clear or easily replicated.

Is Batching Actually A Good Idea?

People advocate for post-batching all the time. Some people schedule out their posts weeks in advance, others do it a few days ahead.

In my opinion, batching your posts is a very smart idea.

But, I can’t sit here and lie to you: I don’t do that.

The only times I find myself scheduling a post ahead is if it discusses something upcoming or if I get two really good post ideas on the same day.

Here’s my posting strategy as someone who’s quite chaotic:

1. Any time I get an idea for a post concept, I jot it down in my notebook or on my notes app.

2. In the mornings, I scroll through LinkedIn and think about the day ahead.

3. If something relevant has happened to me recently, and I think it would be a good topic for a certain audience reaction, I go ahead and write.

4. If I can’t think of anything, I consult the list.

This isn’t organized. It works for me because, in my experience, the posts I batch begin to sound repetitive and inauthentic. Plus (and I know how this sounds, people), I do my best work under pressure.

15 Quality Content Ideas ANYONE Can Use

Now, it’s time to put some of this advice into action.

If you plan on implementing the three-pronged approach we discussed, you actually need to understand what kinds of posts align with each goal.

Here are fifteen content ideas (applicable to all industries) that you can use:

Viral Post Ideas (Engagement & Followers):

• Anything involving a “hot take” or contrarian opinion

• “Borrowed authority,” or posts discussing well-known figures in your industry

• A relatable, cross-industry complaint (example: why is nobody hiring?)

• An image with a relatable quote, with your elaboration in the caption (bonus points if it’s one of those fake tweet image templates, LOL)

• When in doubt, make a tasteful meme!

Thought Leadership Ideas (Authority, MOFU, Competence):

• A personal story involving a transformation you’ve made

• Behind-the-scenes content showing the less glamourous side of your industry

• Actionable advice (tips, tricks, how-to guides)

• A powerful success or failure of yours and what you learned from it

• Your take on a recent trend, relevant news, or new statistic

Lead Generation Ideas (Leads, duh):

• Testimonials from clients/customers

• Case study/transformation (How I helped [person] go from X to Y!)

• Advice that directly addresses a pain point of your ICP

• An infographic that stresses the need for your specific service

• Examples of what you ICP desires, and how your services will get them there

Sh*t People Don’t Care About

If you still feel like you just can’t put yourself out there, I’d like to say a few words.

When you’re starting out on your journey, there’s going to be a lot of nothing.

Your very first post (or first twenty, or first forty) isn’t going to get 1,000 likes.

WHO CARES!

Everyone starts somewhere, so please remember that no one cares about:

• How many followers you have

• How old you are (this goes for my younger and older audience)

• How much money you make

At the end of the day, people aren’t really all that concerned with you.

The truth, like it or not, is that people are typically concerned about themselves.

When you really think about it, that’s pretty liberating!

That’s All, Folks 👋

That’s all for this week’s edition - I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Remember that content creation doesn’t have to be daunting. Sometimes, it’s as simple as sharing an opinion or stating an overlooked fact.

If you have any further questions about today’s topic, or any general insights/inquiries, don’t be afraid to shoot me a message on LinkedIn or simply reply to this email!

Until next time - Remember to keep things simple!