Happy New Year!

I don't know what you did yesterday but I spent the entire day putting picture frame molding up in my living room and dining room... Not exactly rest and relaxation but it looks pretty sweet so it's all good.

2012 was the year of content marketing...

Everywhere you turned marketing gurus were telling you that creating content (blog posts, social media, video, podcasts, slideshows) was the answer to inbound marketing success.

2013 is going to be about moving beyond simply creating content to creating content that actually converts into new relationships, new subscribers and most important new revenue!

Let's make 2013 the year of conversion... the year we receive ROI.

Here are 6 questions to still your conversion juices:

1) What type of message activates your clients?

What do your clients want to hear?  Or here's a better question, what did you say that made your clients become clients?  Were talking about value proposition.  

2) Are you utilizing an RSS reader to quickly and efficiently consume content that will help you stay on top marketing strategies?

RSS or (Real Simple Syndication) is a method for easily aggregating and consuming blog content.  RSS readers like Google RSS capture all your RSS subscriptions providing an efficient platform for scanning your favorite blog content. {You can subscribe to my feed here}

3) What is your customer experience?

What are your customers experiencing?  Not what you think they are experiencing but what are the actually experiencing when they do business with you or when the contact you with questions, comments and concerns.  Do an internal audit (think mystery shopper) on your process...  You may be surprised by what you find.  This process will also help you dig out areas for new web content.

4) Are you dedicated to reinvesting profit into your inbound marketing presence in the form of pay-per-click, blogging tools, SEO tools and/or web design help?

It's time to put your big boy, big girl pants on and get off the free blog platform.  You're running a business and using the free, crappy looking blog themes and plugins makes your business look cheap and unpolished.  If you're serious about driving new business Online in 2013 hen you are going to have to open up the check book and create an Online presence that does your business justice.

5) Have you decided on a target client?

The Internet has killed the generalist.  Pick a few target clients, clients with high margin business and aggressively attack those marketing Online.  Focus all your content around solving the issues that these particular clients face.  In 2013 success Online comes from being a specialist on a topic.  Become that specialist.

6) Are you prepared to process and track inbound leads from the Internet?

There is not an exact science to tracking Online leads.  There are programs that can help and if someone fills out a web form its pretty obviously where the business came from.  But accuracy is going to come from internal processes that force questioning of every new lead as to their Online involvement with you brand and a consistent process of tracking that information.  It's very possible that you're receiving ROI from your Online activities today and you don't even know it.

The Rub

Let these questions drive your Online marketing discussion for 2013 and build a strategy, a battle plan from the answers.

Content marketing works... I promise you.

...and it my goal through this newsletter to help you get the most out of your content marketing efforts in 2013.

Just Hit Reply and tell me what you want more information on!

Lastly, I wrote an article I'm pretty proud of that I think you'll enjoy:

• Today We All Become Artists

Here's to an amazing 2013!

...and if you enjoy this newsletter I'd love for you to recommend the Content Warfare Newsletter to friends on Twitter {Tweet to Friends}