If you’re a blogger, writer, or speaker, whatever your art might be, the odds are you want to attract an audience and create an avid fan base around your work.
So why don’t you? Why isn’t it working? We’re going to talk about that and how to turn it around!
You’re probably like I was, afraid to say something bold and audacious. After all, people might think you’re crazy. They might disagree with you. And worse still, they might complain about you online.
Then there’s the chance you might offend someone. How will you deal with that? Will you be able to go out in public again? Will all the doors that are open to your writing close in your face?
Maybe.
But probably not.
When you’re scared by backlash, your brain can go into overdrive imagining worst-case scenarios.
Sure, people might hate you. But if you don’t know them, what does it really matter?
Will everyone hate you?
No. In fact, when you’re bold, some will cheer for you. They’ll say, “She sure knows what I’m thinking. I’ve got to read more of her work and see what other incredible things she has to say!”
So go ahead and encourage people’s dreams. Give them hope. Agree with what they’re already thinking. You’ll connect with them in ways that are powerful and life-changing.
Now let’s look at five practical ways you can get attention for your message.
Five Surefire Ways to Get All the Attention You Want for Your Writing
Every great writer is bold.
They’re also willing to learn from the greats who have gone before them.
You don’t have to be Thomas Edison and start from scratch. The reason he took so long and tried so many times is that he was doing something innovative.
And he kept at it with a dogged determination to reach his goal no matter how long it took or how many setbacks he experienced.
What he did ultimately is find a new way to use existing facts and processes to create what he wanted.
First, let’s unlock the door that opens all the rest.
1) Touch Their Pain Points
Do you think of yourself as a copywriter?
Maybe you don’t.
Every writer is in sales. Every writer needs to persuade. The easiest way to do that is to do what copywriters do – touch a pain point.
If you’re writing nonfiction, find out what your audience struggles with the most. What bothers them so much they can’t stop thinking about it? What problem invades their sleep and keeps them from living a carefree life of abundance?
Start there.
When you can show that you understand the pain your reader is experiencing, you’ll become their new best friend.
Be sure to describe the feeling. Paint word pictures they can clearly see. Share the sounds that sing the song they’re hearing.
Once you’ve got their attention, move on to the next step.
2) Give Them Hope
What do we all crave with an insistence that won’t quit?
Hope.
It’s what the most fervent and popular evangelists sell their followers.
It’s what successful salespeople sell their clients.
It’s even what the worst dictators use to rise to power and seize control of nations.
Hope is what gets us out of bed to face a new day. It’s why we buy that shiny new car or that brand new house to impress our friends. It’s what motivates us to take a huge risk that has the potential to change everything.
You’re selling feelings with your writing. Feelings are what move people off their chairs. If you want attention, you’ve got to appeal to people’s emotions.
Does that feel manipulative?
It is.
But that’s okay. The truth is, we’re all manipulators. Kids manipulate. Parents do it. Even your dear old Grandma is a manipulator.
The key to doing it skillfully is admitting it to yourself.
There’s no more powerful tool than hope. One caveat: don’t promise hope that isn’t real. Stay on the side of truth and you’ll never have people chase you out of town.
3) Make the Pain Go Away Now
My dear grandmother had a lot of pain in her later years.
She would go to one doctor after another looking for relief. She hurt incessantly – and was willing to do nearly anything to get relief.
If you promise hope, give your reader something they can do with it right now.
Hope put into action creates happiness.
When you make someone happy, they’ll love you.
When you give them a way to get rid of their pain, they’ll love you forever.
If you can do it quickly, they’ll tell all their friends.
When Jesus came to town, he drew crowds.
Why?
Word got out that he could make pain and disease go away with a touch.
If you knew someone who could do that, would you keep it to yourself?
No, you’d tell everyone from your next door neighbor to the grocery clerk you just met. You couldn’t sit on that secret if you tried.
Fix people’s pain right away. Give them action steps to take that will move them forward.
Then you’ll be able to …
4) Invite Them to Go Deeper With You
You’ve got them to come to your website to read your blog posts.
Now what?
It’s time to take names.
What can you offer to entice someone to follow you?
Here are a few suggestions:
- A free eBook packed with actionable tips and strategies.
- A free consultation offer that leads to something more – but is still valuable on its own.
- A short video series that gives people new skills.
The possibilities are only limited by your imagination. What can you offer to give people a taste of the awesome work you do?
5) Make Your Posts Evergreen
We have a dogwood tree that blooms for a time every spring without fail.
It looks good year after year, just like the most colorful sunset always does.
How can you make your writing evergreen?
Write something that is as good today as it will be next year, the year after that, and ten years down the road.
You can’t do that covering trends.
You can if you focus on things that people struggle with year after year. If you can be the one who solves a recurring problem like writer’s block, people will come back to you for more.
Here are a few more topics that will always be popular:
- As long as books are around, people will want to know how to sell more of them.
- Fiction writers will always want tips on writing more engaging stories.
- Writerpreneurs will be searching for ways to make more sales.
Look at your own niche. What information are people consistently seeking? How can you fill the gap with what you know?
Package Your Services and Make a Living
Writers are creative people.
New ways of packaging should thrill us.
You wrote the book on your topic.
You’ve told the world about it.
You’ve gotten on the biggest blogs, the best podcasts, and even started your own Facebook group.
What’s next?
- Expand that knowledge into a course.
- Offer coaching so you can personalize your information to a client’s situation.
- Record an audiobook. Release a paperback version. Write a workbook.
- Start a podcast and partner with guests to sell their products and services.
Stuck for ideas? Join a group of marketers and start having conversations. You’ll be amazed at what you come up with!
Now Go Take on the World
You’ve just gotten a roadmap to your dream of becoming a professional writer.
When that happens, you’ll have more opportunities to help those you’re called to serve.
That’s not only a good feeling – it’s your responsibility.
Do everything you can to share your cure for the cancer your readers are facing.
Be the one that rescues them from the ordinary lives they’re living now.
Be bold. Share your message. The world will never be the same.
And neither will you.
Got questions? Drop them in the comments. Like what you just read? Use it and share it with the world.
Your tribe is waiting. If you’re like me, you’ll take the extra step to get a leg up on getting attention for your work and join the “How to Get Attention” course!
