You’ve polished your writing skills.
You know whom you’re writing for.
Your blog posts are conversational.
But somehow things aren’t working. You’re not getting the likes, and tweets, and comments your blog posts deserve. Your blog isn’t generating the business you’re hoping for.
What’s going wrong?
The difference between blogging and copywriting
When you write copy for your website, a brochure, or direct mail, you have a clear call to action. You know exactly what you want your reader to do – buy your product online, pick up the phone to call you, or join your e-newsletter.
Even your Contact Us page should be written like sales copy. You want to “sell” the idea of contacting you and make the threshold as low as possible – no lengthy forms and no captchas, please.
Blogging isn’t hugely different from copywriting. You still want to inspire your reader to take action – whether it’s to de-clutter their home, follow their passion, or to become a better writer so they can win more business.
But when you’re writing a blog post, the action you inspire your reader to take is not directly sales-related. Your blog helps, advises, and inspires your readers.
You’re building a relationship.
You’re on a mission.
A week ago, I nearly hit a celebrity chef with my flying roti
I attended a cookery day with Malaysian chef Norman Musa.
Norman loves teaching others how to cook tantalizing dishes like Mee Goreng Mamak – the best noodle stirfry I’ve ever tasted. He doesn’t mind teaching clumsy cooks (like me!) how to prepare Roti Canai.
Do you ever watch celebrity chefs on TV and think they’d do anything to get more famous?
Norman doesn’t seem to care much about celebrity status. He wants to get more people to eat and cook Malaysian food.
He doesn’t see other Malaysian chefs as his competitors. Together they promote Malaysian cuisine at food festivals.
Norman is on a mission to promote Malaysian food. And of course, while doing so, he’s building a successful business with hugely popular restaurants, a wonderful cookbook, and his own range of spice mixes and chocolate bars.
When you’re on a mission, you attract people
Most readers don’t like spreading your sales messages, but they do like to support your mission.
And this may sound weird: when you stop trying to sell and focus on your mission instead, sales flow in naturally. You attract more inquiries, more clients, and more business.
A mission attracts, energizes, and motivates people.
Here are some signs your blog is lacking a mission or purpose:
- You’re nervous about giving away information for free because you’re afraid to lose business;
- For each post you’re writing, you wonder how it’ll generate business;
- Before you start writing your blog posts, you worry about getting it to rank in Google;
- You don’t really know the problems your readers are facing;
- Or you might know their problems, but you don’t know how you can help;
- You quickly need to find new business with your blog;
- You don’t want to link to awesome resources on the web because you’re afraid to lose business.
When you’re on a mission, you become happy to give away your best tips. You link freely to other bloggers. You look for opportunities to promote your mission and other bloggers can help. They’re not your competitors anymore.
Your mission might be vaguely or directly related to your business. You still want to use your blog to build your authority, to get others to trust your advice. You still want readers to get to know you and like you so they’ll get in touch to buy from you.
My mission is to stamp out gobbledygook. Seeing gobbledygook and other marketing drivel on websites frustrates the hell out of me. So this is a mission I feel passionate about.
Once you know your mission, blogging becomes much easier
When you use your blog to make the world a better place (even if it’s in a small way), people take notice. People start commenting, and sharing, and spreading the word about you.
When you care more about your mission than generating business, a weird thing happens: you attract more clients than ever before. I know it, because it’s exactly what happens here at Enchanting Marketing.
Before you write your next blog post – consider this: how can your knowledge, your experience, your wisdom help others? How can you make the world a better place?
You don’t need a big mission. Start small. Do something you feel passionate about.
Recommended reading on creative blog writing:
How to be original as a blogger
4 ways to add pizzazz to rehashed and dull topics
How to share personal stories (even if you feel shy)
Wow, I wish I had this information in my life earlier. I am a Math Teacher and writing is not my strong suit. I recently started a blog about personal finance because I love numbers, but I am struggling with writing. After reading your post though, I realize I am focusing on the wrong things. I need to focus on my mission to help others learn about their finances. Thanks for this and for helping me refocus my purpose!
Great that this blog post helped you refocus on your purpose. Happy blogging, Shantell!
Thank you for writing this article. I came across it when researching a topic that I plan to write about soon.
The point you make about needing a mission for your blog is an important one. It really is easy to get caught up in and even distracted by the research involved with coming up with an article topic and angle. You’re article helps point a clear path through all of that.
Yes, I’m with you. It’s easy to get caught up in research & writing articles and then forget who’s reading and how they could benefit from our writing. I’m glad you found this useful, Matthew. Happy writing!
A very interesting and informative article, it’s a real motivation and once one can adhere to these lessons success will achieve.
Thank you, Trevor. Happy blogging!
Hello Henneke,
Every time I read you, I don’t go out empty handed. Thank you for this very sincere sharing. I just learned something very useful for me. it’s been over 6 months since i quit writing articles to concentrate on really finding a reason why i was writing. Today, thanks to your article; I come to understand that you have to have a mission and write to achieve it based on knowledge, skills, wisdom and experiences to help others.
For a while now, I have only helped young graduates to be able to guide them to integrate professionally and that for free. I found myself that several young graduates finish their studies and because they do not have a help or clear orientations for the job market; they can languish in unemployment and yet there are several ways that helped me a lot to climb the stairs until I ended up in a large humanitarian organization.
How do you find this mission to help young graduates with modest means to enter the job market?
That sounds wonderful to me. Does it make you feel more excited about blogging again?
Yes, I still feel a lot of courage to resume writing to share my experence with several. As I just read one of your tips in ‘one of your articles on how to marry work and blog. I think I’ll get there with these tips along with a schedule of one article per week.
That sounds good. Happy blogging, Oscar!
Oh yes, I am not a shy person, however I do believe I am shy when it comes to writing contents.
Fantastic blog!
Thank you 🙂
You said truely Henneke, without missionary zeal it is almost impossible to go ahead.
I’m glad you agree!
This helped me! I’m just starting a blog because I like writing. Maybe I could turn that into a business?
This made me realize that my passion is relationships! I’ve found the early years of motherhood so lonely, and I’ve found ways to build life-giving relationships. I want to help other moms find each other, too.
That sounds like a wonderful mission!
Thanks for writing this article. It was exactly what I needed. I am in the process of just starting up a new blog and have been struggling with trying to find an emotional and spiritual balance between writing just for myself and writing copy. The idea of the “mission” is what I was missing. Now I know what I need to do next – write out what I truly want as my mission, and find a way to make each blog post support that mission!
I’m glad this post helped. It’s about finding that sweetspot where you write about something that excites you but that’s also helpful for your readers.
Hello everyone! I am new at this but really enjoyed reading about mission/ passion versus strictly a sales driven approach. I believe in it as well. Thanks for the input!
I can’t stop reading your entire blog article. You’re amazing.
Thank you for your compliment, Solomon. Happy reading 🙂
Dear Henneke
Thank you for sharing your “marketing and blogging wisdom” and thoughts with me and the other readers. I am fairly new to marketing and blogging and I’m trying to suck in all information I can find. I find your blog very inspiring, helpful and well…enchanting. Love reading your posts. Thank you and please keep going! ?
Dear Pascale, thank you for stopping by to leave such a lovely comment. I appreciate it 🙂
Happy writing! Let me know if you have any specific questions?
This is how internet works today. Your voice is so simple and inspirational. Thank you Henneke!
You’re welcome, Giorgos. Thank you for stopping by!
I enjoyed this very much, so revealing and exposing the mistakes. I am new to this and everything is in my head. I fear that which is trapped inside one side of my brain, will be of no interest to others. The other side knows my knowledge will be of interest. I read your articles and I feel closer to releasing that which is inside for the benefit of others
I’m sure you have knowledge that’s interesting to others. Even if you don’t feel like an expert, there are always people who know less than you do and who you can help with your knowledge.
Great post, great message. It really helps to share knowledge. And it’s great fun too! Thanks for sharing this, Henneke.
Yes, being generous with knowledge makes you feel good 🙂
What a great reminder that it’s all about serving others and not yourself!
Thank you for stopping by again, Susan 🙂
I don’t think your blog is counter-intuitive as you suggested in your email. It makes perfect sense. I think sometimes we just have to remind ourselves of some very basic principles in marketing.
My partner always says marketing is just common sense. I couldn’t disagree more. Getting the message right is ever so hard. Of course once you see the final polished result (maybe a blog) it looks like it was done effortlessly. I think that’s the other thing about writing a convincing blog, making it look effortless.
How do you do it Henneke? Do you record yourself and then type it? If I want to sound conversational it all falls apart after the first two paragraphs. 🙁
I don’t record myself and then type it. I’m not sure it’s possible to write conversational content in one go. I turn a scruffy text into conversational writing when I edit.
When I edit, I often read my copy aloud. Then I notice where I sound bombastic or corporate or just plain boring. If a drab sentence is in essence useful, then I polish until I’m happy with it. Quite often, a drab sentence is just taking up space and I can delete it.
Kerstin, I always love getting your comments, because you’re so good at giving me ideas for writing more blog posts! Thank you so much 🙂
Ah, thank you. I always love reading your blog. Your posts are ever so useful. I just wish I had the time and money to throw myself into it properly.
It’s impossible not to agree with you Henneke. A mission brings passion and passion is what we need to live life and not just survive until death. Passion also usually brings success.
We know this somehow but it’s nice and useful to be reminded from time to time. 🙂
Thank you, Andrea! Good to see you again 🙂
Henneke,
When I write my blog posts, I’m always very passionate about my mission and thinking about selling at all. Especially the recent posts, because I’m becoming more comfortable and confident to say what I think.
However, once a while, I would still think, “em… I wonder when more people will start buying my paintings or prints”.
Yes, I think that’s natural and it’s still important (to think about whether your blog contributes to sales). Writing a blog is a lot of work, so it’s still good to evaluate whether it’s worth your effort. You can live from just promoting a mission.
Do you find your blog attracts potential buyers or mainly fellow artists?
I’m not absolutely sure what my subscribers do. But the ones that we interact often on LinkedIn and Facebook, and I think those who leave comments on my blog are either artists, or aspiring artists.
The “mission” idea helps me so much in my future blogging efforts! Thanks, Henneke.
You’re most welcome, Sue. Thank you for stopping by!
Very engaging post Henneke! I particularly like your abhorrence of “gobbledegook and Marketing Drivel”.
I wonder has anybody registered GobbledeGookGeek…if not, that would be a useful launch pad to rid the Internet of the people who are (a) a waste of space and (b) a blot on the landscape!. I could go on but have a date with Enchanting Marketing to see what other nuggets lie hidden and then it’s over to Copyblogger for afternoon tea and sales muffins!
I hope you’re finding a few scrumptious blog posts to gobble up. Enjoy your date! 🙂
Great, great post, Henneke!
“Stinginess” is a strong sign of insecurity — about yourself, about your resources, about how the world is an unfriendly place that is set on taking advantage of you without reciprocation.
This puts off people. What excites and engages people is, simply, passion about your topic.
I hadn’t thought about it this way, but you’re absolutely right. When you see the world as an unfriendly place, it becomes unfriendly because you’re putting people off.
Thank you for stopping by to share your thoughts, Helene.
Your writing pulls me in so much I don’t even have a blog and I read the entire article. Plus you had me at roti.
Maybe one day I can persuade you to start a blog! 🙂
Great advice Henneke! I love the concept of mission-driven vs. sales-driven. One inspires, the other deflates. I feel like this applies to more than just blogging, but in my case, how to manage my leadership team. Thanks!
Yes, exactly. I like how you put it: “one inspires, the other deflates”.
Thank you for stopping by, Daniel 🙂
Henneke, My mission is to try to infuse it in everything I do, blog post, or not, email or not, love note to my spouse, handwritten thank-you note (rarity these days = opportunity), chance encounter on the street, and this comment to Henneke and inevitably, her (your) readers. “I don’t have a barrel of money, I may be ragged and funny, but I’ll travel along, singin a [my] song” … from song made famous by Brenda Lee http://www.metrolyrics.com/side-by-side-lyrics-brenda-lee.html sQs Delray Beach aka Village By The Sea.
Hi Stephen – good to see you again. 🙂
When you say “infuse it in everything” you do, what’s “it”? What’s your mission exactly?
Nice song text!
Nice statement: “A mission attracts, energizes, and motivates people.”
I will tweet that!
Thank you, Harry. I appreciate your support! 🙂