How to Write a Feature Article to Attract More Resume Clients

One of the best ways to increase your visibility and credibility as a resume writer is to write. It's no surprise that most resume writers don't see writing articles as a chore. But sometimes, you can get stuck when you sit down to write an article. So here's a blog post with a 4-step process to help you get started.

Here’s how it works…

Step 1: Choose a Topic

Try to solve a question the jobseekers you want to work with have. If you're looking for ideas, check out "What Should I Write About?" It has lots of article prompts.

What Should I Write About?

Step 2: Write an Article on the Topic

Once you’ve chosen your topic, then your next step is to write a 400 to 600 word article on this topic. Your goal is to provide "useful yet incomplete information." That’s because you want your readers to solve their problems by choosing to work with you.

Step 3: Craft a Compelling Title 
Next, you need to craft a title that gets readers to click through to your article. To do this, offer a benefit to those who click through, such as the quick and easy to solution to their job search problems.

Step 4: Submit Your Articles… and Sell! 
Now you’re ready to use your article to drive traffic to your site! You can:

• Submit this article to EzineArticles.com, http://www.articlecity.com, GoArticles.com, ArticleAlley.com and Buzzle.com. 
• Use it as the basis of a HubPages.com or Squidoo.com page. 
• Post it on niche jobseeker forums (where allowed). 
• Upload it to your blog. 
• Post it on social media sites. 

Career Thought Leaders Under New Management

I received this email from Wendy Enelow today. Wendy and Louise have sold Career Thought Leaders and the Resume Writing Academy (RWA) to Marie Zimenoff!

We are delighted to introduce you to the new owner of Career Thought Leaders (CTL) and Resume Writing Academy (RWA): MARIE ZIMENOFF. Marie is the former President and Board Member of The National Resume Writers’ Association and the Colorado Career Development Association, and owner of A Strategic Advantage resume and coaching business in Fort Collins, Colorado. Her credentials include: a Master of Education in Human Resource Studies with a focus in Counseling and Career Development; Nationally Certified Counselor; Certified Personal Brand Strategist, Certified Career Management Coach, Certified Executive and Leadership Development Coach; and Nationally Certified Resume Writer. She has trained workforce development, college career services, and independent career professionals and presented at national conferences for The NRWA, NCDA, and NAWDP. Many of you already know Marie, but for those of who you don't, wait until you meet her! She is one of the brightest and most forward-thinking career thought leaders ...  someone we trust will nurture CTL and RWA ... someone we know will take these wonderful organizations and lead them to a higher level of excellence. We couldn't be more thrilled. Here are a few words that Marie wanted to share with everyone: It is my honor to join the Career Thought Leaders executive team and continue the dedicated efforts of Wendy, Louise, and the current/former advisory council members to advance the careers industry. Providing opportunities, resources, and training for my colleagues in the industry to stay abreast of rapid-changing trends and better serve their clients is my passion. I am excited to expand this joint mission of CTL and RWA. So, what does this change mean to you and to the programs already underway? Executive Resume E-Summit: New Formats, New Strategies, New Ideas  – March 20, 2015 I'll be teaching this program with Marie and am already working on the teaching guide. As always, Louise is preparing an exquisite portfolio of 30+ pages of executive resume samples and resources for all attendees. Click here to read program description and register. CTL Conference – April 17, 2015 Marie, Louise, and I are hard at work planning the CTL Conference – both the live (University of MD) and video-streaming events. We shared some conference details in an email last Thursday (February 19, 2015), so take a few minutes to read about our presenter, Gerry Crispin, and his program: "The Candidate’s Experience in 21st Century Recruiting: Data, Influencers & Experiences from 95,000 Job Seekers Worldwide." All program details and registration information will be posted on the website shortly. CTL Associates You'll continue to enjoy all of the benefits of your CTL affiliation! Watch for an email from Marie in a few days with details for your upcoming quarterly call with CTL Board Members Michelle Carroll and Ruth Winden. They'll be leading a discussion about the latest trends in career coaching. Great people, great information, and great colleague-to-colleague interaction! If you're ready to become a CTL Associate and take advantage of the brainstorming calls, program discounts, special opportunities, and more, watch for an email from Marie later this week with a special incentive as she welcomes each and every one of you into the CTL community! Click here to read about all of the benefits that CTL Associates receive. Current RWA Certification Students Louise and I will continue to work with all students currently enrolled in RWA. All new students will have the pleasure of working with Marie and her team as they make the RWA certification program even stronger. Click here to read about the certification program and what a tremendously positive difference it will make in your writing skills! Louise and I put a great deal of thought into our decision to sell CTL and RWA and finding the "right" person to assume leadership. The ideas, energy, and expertise that Marie has made her the perfect candidate, and we couldn't be more excited. Plus, we still get to be involved with great programs and events, without having to manage day-to-day operations. Perfect for everyone involved! Be sure to add (Marie's email addresses) to your address book so you'll be certain to receive her messages and opportunities. We'll be sharing a lot with you this week as we work through the transition to make CTL and RWA even better than before! We'd like to close this message by sending our deepest thanks to every one of you who reads our messages, participates in CTL and RWA training programs and opportunities, contributes your knowledge and expertise as a CTL Associate or blogger, and all of the other ways we've interacted over many years.  We're forever indebted that you've allowed us to be a part of your professional lives and hope that we can continue to be colleagues for years and years to come!

Tired of the "Feast or Famine" Cycle in Your Resume Writing Business?

One of the most frequently asked questions I get from resume writing colleagues is has to do with the "feast or famine" cycle that is common in many businesses -- but especially for career services professionals.

In my annual survey of resume writers, there is definitely a cyclical nature to when jobseekers seem to naturally seek us out (January and September are usually the two busiest months -- which is no surprise, given New Year's Resolutions and kids returning to school after the summer break). But what do you do in June … or October … or December … to keep the phone ringing?

The answer is to do a simple series of marketing activities every day -- incorporating up to 10 simple tasks into your day each day (or at least several days each week) will keep an endless stream of prospective clients coming your way. Some of these tasks may only take 5 minutes, and many of them won't cost you anything. But it's being mindful about your marketing -- instead of waiting until you have a lull -- that will keep your appointment book full.

I wrote a blog post back in December 2013 about the "feast or famine" cycle, and I talked about the GET CLIENTS NOW! book in that post. I've been using C.J. Hayden's GET CLIENTS NOW! system in my own business since I first heard her speak at a resume writing conference back in 2003. But last month, I decided to become a licensed facilitator for the course because I've seen the positive impact that it can have if you learn and implement the system. Although I've been in business for 19 years now, there are still times when I need to reactivate my referral sources or fill a couple of empty spots in my appointment book. (Although I use the program most often now to fill group programs and attract new members to my membership sites, since I'm a strong believer in the power of passive income!)

Earlier this week, I taught a teleseminar that shares some of the principles behind the program. You can listen to the recording of the "5 Secrets to Attracting All The Clients You Will Ever Need" teleseminar here:


I'm offering three upcoming sessions of the GET CLIENTS NOW! program for resume writers. The first, which starts Feb. 23, has already sold out. There are two more sessions with a limited number of spaces available. One session is on Tuesday evenings, starting March 10. The other is on Wednesday mornings, starting March 25. If you take the time to listen to the call recording (it's only 38 minutes), you'll get a special promo code to register for 50% off the regular program price. But that offer expires Feb. 19, so take the time to listen soon!

If you want to learn more about the program, check out this page:
Get Clients Now

Get Clients Now!™ is a trademark of Wings BusinessCoaching LLC and is used under license.

www.getclientsnow.com

4 Advantages of Creating Your Own Little Monthly Payments Membership Site

You know how much I believe in creating passive income and recurring revenue in your resume writing business. If you've been following my trainings and writings for any time, you may have considered creating your own membership site. 

By starting one of these services, you can sell the same item (like short reports or LinkedIn training or even a monthly teleseminar call on a job search-related topic) to hundreds or even thousands of subscribers. But that’s just one benefit of creating a subscription service/membership site. If you’d like to learn more about this business model, then read on to learn more.

Advantage #1: More timeAs a resume writer, time is one of your most valuable assets. With a subscription service, you don’t have to go out looking for new buyers in order to get paid again. You just release a new "product" each month and reap the profits. You’ll save time that you can use to deliver one-to-one resume services or to spend with loved ones.

Advantage #2: Keep costs downWhile you may have to pay for a few technical tools in the beginning, the long-term cost of running a membership site is low. This is not a business model that you’ll have to sink hundreds or thousands of dollars into every year. You pay the initial costs then just up-keep or maintenance costs for things like hosting and domain names. You can spend as little as $25 a month for Wild Apricot membership software and it's as easy to use (or easier!) than Microsoft Word. (It's what I use for BeAResumeWriter.com.)

Advantage #3: Subscriber loyaltyWhen you consistently provide good content to your subscribers, they will become loyal. This is important to growing your business because happy, loyal customers are likely to tell their friends or co-workers about your one-to-one resume services (or become one-to-one resume clients themselves!). This can put even more money into your pocket each month.

Advantage #4: Subscribers spend more
As mentioned in #3, once you’ve converted a subscriber into a loyal customer, then he is likely to look at your other services (and information products). A customer that feels like he’s receiving a lot of value for his $10 subscription will be more willing to pay for a $350 resume than a cold prospect would. This means that you shouldn’t be shy about sharing information about your one-to-one resume services with your current subscribers.

Starting a membership site can feel overwhelming. But that’s where a course like Little Monthly Payments can help you. You’ll find that the process of launching a membership site is broken down into easy-to-follow steps that you can start taking today. Check it out!



Little Monthly Payments will give you the confidence and courage to start your own micro-continuity program. Find out how here: http://bit.ly/littlemonthlypayments
If you are reading this before Feb. 28, 2015: use promo code SAVE30BUCKS

The 5 W's of Client Accomplishments

When collecting client accomplishments, keep in mind the "5 Ws" -- principles most commonly associated with journalism.

The 5 W's are Who, What, When, Where, and Why.

You want to find out:

• Who does your client work with -- both within the company, and outside the company?
• What do they do? Initially, this is about finding out what their responsibilities are, but we need to take it further.
• When -- not in the context of time, but when would they be missed?
• Where -- again, not in the context of geography, but where do they have the biggest impact? Where are their accomplishments most noticed? By their colleagues? By their boss? By their customers?
• Why -- why does your client's specific contributions matter -- in this job, and for this company?

Interested in more strategies to gather client accomplishments? Check out "Write Great Resumes Faster."