Why Content Is So Important to Attracting Resume Clients

From cave paintings to John Deer and even Jell-O, content marketing has been around for literally thousands of years. Anytime someone wanted to get the information out about anything, they could turn to content for the answers. Cookbooks are a great example of content marketing before the Internet. It was a list of products to buy. When combined in a particular way, it was delicious.

You could say the same is true for content marketing even today.

These days, content marketing is extra important because it's how you will get people to visit your website. It's also how you'll teach people about the issues that are important to them as a jobseeker, and hopefully turn them into a client.

• Digital Search Content. All content is fodder for search engine traffic. Search engines use the information on your blogs, websites, and social media to send your customers your way. They do this with the terms used in the content or in the "alt" descriptions.
• Social Media Content. Everything you put on social media is content. It doesn't matter if it's a meme, an image, words, a video, or something else; it is considered content. When you realize all that content encompasses, you quickly realize that yes, it is very important. It's not just a blog post or text; it is everything.

Content marketing can take on many shapes and forms. Some of these include:

• Blogs. These need to go out on a regular basis to help your visitors find your website. You can also write original guest blog posts sometimes to bring other audiences to you.
• Newsletters. These can be sent via email on a regular basis to keep your subscribers engaged and active.
• Magazines. Today, you can create an online magazine to help with marketing and informing your audience. Or seek out digital or print magazines that reach your target client.
• Podcasts. This is another way to put out information without having to type it. Instead you can record your thoughts and upload them to be listened to later. There are only a few podcasts on career topics, which is very surprising to me. There should be more. The breakthrough one will be the person who creates a call-in Q&A-type show like Dave Ramsey has for personal finance.
• Videos. YouTube is a great example of the power of video to get the word out about anything and teach others something that requires visuals.
• White Papers. These are long research documents that often compare and contrast the solutions to a problem discussed in depth. They are great for educating a wide audience without overtly advertising your solution. There's not enough independent research about career issues. Maybe you can be the person to change that.
• Ebooks. Using books to build your expertise is a great way to teach an audience about something that requires a lot of information. Today, publishing on Kindle is simple and free.
• Online Presentations. You can post PowerPoint slides on SlideShare.net and other presentation sharing sites as another way to keep your audience informed. Repurpose content by creating a short online presentation with its key points.
• Webinars. Growing in popularity due to their live nature and the way the audience can interact with the hosts, webinars are a very effective form of content. (Teleseminars are also still growing, due in large part because they don't require the user to understand technology. All they need is a phone.)
• Infographics. Often used on social media, infographics are a great way to help your audience picture important data visually.
• Games. If you can create an online game that teaches or markets some aspect of the job search to your audience, then you will have some really awesome content that gets results. (Let me know when you create this. I would love to promote it!)
• Branded Tools. Whether it's a job search app, a WordPress plugin or something else, creating a tool that your audience can use daily (even if ití' an old-fashioned planner) provides the type of content that will remind them that you're there.

As you see, content encompasses almost everything you do to market your resume writing business, inform people about your career services, and interact with people. That's why content is king. Content is the most important asset you own when it comes to digital marketing.

Teleseminar Basics for Resume Writers

As I mentioned in this month's call, "Teleseminars on Teleseminars: How Resume Writers Can Use Teleseminars for Promotion and Profit" these types of calls are a great way to build trust with an audience, make sales, and facilitate two-way communication.

Before launching your first teleseminar, you need to make sure you're prepared from both a presentation perspective and a technical perspective. Here's a brief checklist to help you do that.

Make Sure Your Line Can Handle the Volume

If you have over 100 guests, make sure you check your teleseminar provider to see if your line can handle the volume. The kinds of providers you need for a teleseminar with 100 people, 1,000 people and 10,000 people are very different services with different technical requirements.

Prepare the First 60 Seconds
The first 60 seconds of the teleseminar is the most important! This is when people will decide either to leave the teleseminar or to stay on. In the first 60 seconds, clearly spell out what's going to be covered and what they'll get by listening to the call. Practice your first 60 seconds several times before the call.

Invitation & Follow-Up Schedule
At a bare minimum, every teleseminar should have one invitation and one follow-up email before the actual call. You will want to carefully plan out your sales process around the call and you use several emails to "sell" prospective attendees on coming onto the teleseminar.

Make sure to plan out the whole process before you start promoting the teleseminar.

Get Familiar with the Technology
Whether you are doing a teleseminar or webinar, you'll want to familiarize yourself with the technology before you do a live call. This is especially important with webinar software, because it can be tricky. Try running a test seminar with just yourself and a test computer beforehand. Learn how to switch between screencasts and presentation tools. Learn how to mute and unmute visitors and how to take questions. You don't want to be trying to figure these things out while on a live call.

Test Your Recording Devices
If you want your call recorded, make sure you test that as well. Most teleseminar services offer recording as part of the service, but I also recommend a second recording as a backup. I use Audio Acrobat to record my teleseminars, because it allows me to provide the recording in numerous formats, including downloadable MP3s as well as streaming audio on my website.

Prep for Most Common Questions
Before the teleseminar begins, try to predict what kind of questions people will ask you. You can do this by going through past emails prospective or current clients have sent you or by browsing related forums on the Internet.

By having an idea of what to expect before going into the seminar, you'll be able to answer questions in a more informative, authoritative way. You'll also be able to research any questions that you might have trouble with.

These are some of the most important things to cover before you launch a teleseminar. Make sure your line can handle the volume, check your recording equipment, test the software, prepare your first 60 seconds, have a solid invitation and follow-up system, and prep your Q&A beforehand.

For more information on using teleseminars to get more clients for your career services business, purchase the "Teleseminar on Teleseminars: How Resume Writers Can Use Teleseminars for Promotion and Profit" -- just $5 for the MP3 and transcript.

Free Continuing Education

The price of gas is up; airfares are outrageous; you can't even THINK about leaving your office for more than a day ... what's a resume writer who wants to keep on learning to do?

One option is teleseminars and webinars. I list lots of those in each issue of Resume Writers' Digest -- but did you know there are FREE teleseminars out there too? In addition to the ones I've listed on here from the Reach Branding Club, if you're a member of Career Directors International, you can also take advantage of their free teleseminars. And if you're not able to attend the live call, you can download the audio from the Members Only section of their website at any time!

An e-mail from Laura DeCarlo caught my attention as a member was raving about a recent program* on "Prospering Despite a Downturn Market" So I checked out some other programs that are available in the free section. Here are just a few of the other offerings:

• Background Investigation Mega Trends
• Best Practices in Career Services Pricing
• Best Practices in Creating Resume USPs
• Media Strategies Tips Seminar
• Resume Fraud Mega Trends Report
  

If you're already a member of Career Directors International, log in to the Members Only section and click on "Audio Recordings." If you're not a member, consider joining. Go to www.careerdirectors.com and click on "Future Members" for a list of membership benefits. Click on the "Join Now" button on the right side of the page.

If you join by July 31 and mention "Resume Writers' Digest" in the "Special Instructions Field," you'll save $25 off the regular $150 membership rate! (Note: The cart will show $150, but when you type "Resume Writers Digest" in the comments box, it will be processed at the special rate of $125.)

* This quote from Laura Labovich of A & E Consulting, LLC, is what caught my attention in the e-mail:

"To think I almost missed the call! My head is spinning since the call ended. I wish I had been more prepared to take notes, because the ideas that were suggested were nothing short of brilliant. I honestly did not want the call to end. In short, I learned easy ways to increase my exposure in the marketplace during a market downturn, without spending a lot of money or dumping my last dollar into advertising. I think this could be a 10-part series, and I know that I wouldn't miss a single one. What a great class...thank you!"

Resume Writers Resource

The careers industry has professional associations. We have conferences. You even have a trade magazine (that's me!). And now resume writers have an independent company that will help facilitate success, Resume Writers Resource …

Kathy Sweeney, NCRW, CPRW, CEIC, CCM has built her company, The Write Resume into a well-recognized brand -- and now she wants to share her expertise with other resume writers. Of course, Kathy has been sharing her secrets for attracting media attention and cultivating lasting client relationships for years. Her presentation on "Enhance Your Business Visibility and Increase Your Revenue" in Scottsdale in September 2006 at the NRWA Career Conference yielded tons of ideas for me. During her time as NRWA President, she mentored countless new and "emerging" resume writers. Now she's offering her services to the industry.

"The more you put yourself out there, the more your name will become known."
-- Kathy Sweeney, 9/15/06

One of the most exciting services offered by Resume Writers Resource (from my perspective) is the Press Release Writing Service. Even if you don't want to become a household name or have your company featured on the AOL home page, you will be amazed at the amount of business a single article written about your resume writing services can offer. For about the price of 1-2 resume projects, you can attract a dozen new clients ... ones who aren't just looking for the lowest-priced provider, either.

(The next Special Report from Resume Writers' Digest will give you actionable ideas on how to generate publicity for your business. But if you want to save some time, or don't want to wait for the report, contact Kathy.)

Kathy is also bringing affordable teleseminars and webinars to the industry. Her first offering, "The Nuts and Bolts of Implementing Interview Coaching Into a Resume Writing Business" will be offered tomorrow, Thursday 2/14/08 at 3 p.m. Eastern. The cost is just $25.

Kathy's experience will be a valuable "resource" for the careers industry, so be sure to sign up for her e-mail list to be notified of upcoming events.