How can I become a productive content marketer? 
When you’re surrounded by loving people, life can be so sweet and fulfilling.
But to accomplish tangible results in business as a content marketer, there is one step you MUST take.
I haven’t shared this productivity “secret” with any of my readers, not even my subscribers.
But it’s so powerful that if you can act on it, you’ll not only drive targeted traffic to your blog, but also start making money from the services and products you offer.
See, I’ve read about 5 books on productivity in 2012.
I can’t deny the fact that these books didn’t inspire me, but I discovered that practicable answers aren’t easy to come by.
Are you at a crossroad?
Oftentimes, content marketers are so confused about what to do first. With a lot of tasks to handle at once, it can discourage you. You’d have no other choice than to procrastinate.
And the way to be super productive can’t be found in any book. You need to look inward and ask questions.
If only there was a magical way to get things done, on time and with enthusiasm, running your blog would be much fun. Are you at a crossroad in your blogging career, whereby you don’t know what to do at the moment?
Everything seems so complicated at your end. It’s as if your blog is going nowhere. No targeted traffic, zero engagement and no money to pay your bills.
I know that feeling and trust me, it’s one of the reasons why I pray to God Almighty – I never want to see those nightmares again. It’s a terrible experience. I’ve had my own share of sad stories. But I changed it.
If you don’t know what to do or how to go about it, don’t worry so much. All you need is to increase your productive life.
Successful bloggers who are productive, despite the chains of clients and readers they attend to daily takes the productivity seriously. What’s their secret?
Identify where you’re lagging behind
Before I share the one step to help you become productive, you’ll need to first and foremost identify the area where you need to improve.
I’ve seen bloggers who complain that their business is a total failure, whereas they’ve not discovered why they’re failing.
My aim of writing this post is to help you take action, right now.
So that you can grow your website’s audience and build a portal where real business solutions can be found – your blog is your marketing tool. Don’t take it for granted.
Most people reading this either doesn’t know what being productive is, and how to get it.
While a lot other people wants to get along with their content marketing and get more results. If that describes you, I’ve good news for you and it’s actionable.
Productivity is the lifeblood of blogging
First, productivity is the ability to produce results, in relation to the tools, ideas, insights and you already have.
Did you know why productivity experts are making it BIG online? It’s because they know that using the available tools and ideas at their disposal, they can work efficiently – thereby getting more loyal leads and earning more.
One of the areas where people want to be productive in is marketing.
And there is a good reason why you want an increased life. Human beings inherited this single character from the Infinite Intelligence (God). It’s inborn.
Each time you crave for more; an increase in your business, you’re not being greedy or selfish. You’re simply exhibiting the exact character that differentiates man from stone.
Maybe you need to get more free traffic to your blog, the truth is, you already know what to do but doing it is the problem. It’d be totally childish if I start telling you ways to drive traffic to your blog.
Millions of blogs have covered that already. You can read the traffic 101 manifesto and still lag behind in that area.
It’s got nothing to do with acquiring knowledge. It’s about acting on it. Information overload is a killer – it makes people overwhelmed with the whole marketing thing.
Where to start from becomes a big challenge.
As you’ll see in just a few moments, productivity can grow your business and blog in more ways than one.
#1 Reason why 86% of content markers aren’t productive
Whether you believe it or not, the majority of bloggers out there aren’t productive. Maybe you’re one of them – you started writing a blog post but didn’t complete it because you were distracted from the main goal.
Yes, the internet is a bunch of distraction but you can make a difference. Don’t yield to those banners, links and flash animations; they can avert your thoughts.
The #1 reason why 86% of content marketers and bloggers aren’t achieving much is because they’re: DOING A LOT AT ONCE!
And funny enough, when you start to handle a lot of tasks at once, you’d burn out or start developing a negative thought pattern, even without realizing it.
Blogging is hard work, but you can make it fun and rewarding when you target ONE assignment, finish it before embarking on another.
Why focusing on ONE task at a time works?
Unlike free articles you read that promises to get you productive, but couldn’t deliver.
Or the e-book that had a catchy title that failed to make you productive, focusing on ONE specific task at a time works like magic.
For instance, I was reading Chris Guillebeau’s 279days report a while back and he did mention how he wrote hundreds of blog posts before starting his blog.
He prepared beforehand for his audience. That’s why he’s super successful online.
He might be flying across the world right now, as I write this. That’s what his blog is about. To dominate the world, doing what you love.
If I had known when before I launched my blog, I would have written 100 posts first, and schedule them when my blog launches. For it can be a great time saver for writers.
Writing is the core aspect of blogging and content marketing. It’s content first + marketing.
So, getting productive can boost the quality of content you produce. You’d also be able to write more, engage more people and build the blog you want.
There are larger blogs out there that have been using this productivity tip (Focusing on ONE task) and they’re getting significant results.
See the screenshot below – it’s a proof:
These A-list bloggers are so busy, reaping the benefits and don’t even have enough time to teach anyone their newly-found solution to productivity related issues.
Secondly, this productivity tip works because it drives home the real essence of life. Man was fashioned from creation to follow a definite purpose in life.
Truth is, no man is created to do several works at once. It’s better to be an expert in a particular niche, than trying to establish yourself in every niche.
Remember, I talked about niche marketing and niche domination a while ago, it’s fundamental to your content marketing success.
Productive step: Simplify your work
That’s right, simplify your work.
Your site may not be highly targeted like most authority blogs out there. It may not even be in any blog network and you may not have thousands of Twitter Followers, it doesn’t matter at this stage.
When you act on this single STEP, you’ll automatically be aligned to all those.
In life, everyone is trying to avoid pains and difficult situations. Celebration of success is what good life revolves around. But how do you succeed as a writer, a blogger and as marketer all at once?
Talk to me – you need to think of ways to make the tasks easy.
Your subconscious mind would go to work, if and only if the job seems simple. If you’re the type who doesn’t like to research blog topics first, because it looks difficult to your senses, find a way to make that particular task simpler.
I’m sure you’re getting my point. Of course, you can’t deny the fact that guest blogging at A-list blog is difficult for most bloggers, but that notwithstanding, it can be made simple and inspiring.
Build a bridge, don’t burn it
If an expert doesn’t know you, it’d be difficult to get him or her to consent to your pitch, no matter how informative the article looks or how catchy the title is.
Start by getting yourself known to those people you want to work with. For instance, follow them on twitter and subscribe to their email updates.
So that when they post fresh articles, you’d be notified via email. And you can quickly read the post, get insights and leave a valuable comment.
If you act fast, you could be the first commenter. Oh boy, this is the best traffic generator I’ve ever seen. It’s also the best way to announce your name to the blog owner.
Did you see how you’ve simplified guest blogging? Don’t believe guest posting lies you hear all the time that getting published at high trafficked blog is almost impossible. I did it before. I’m doing it again.
It’s a BIG lie and I’m a living witness because I’ve written over 600 well-researched guest posts and they’re published across traffic-pulling blogs. If I can do it, you too can. Just be courageous and go for it, but first, make it look simple.
Earlier, I advised you to run with one idea at a time, and see to it till the end. But sometimes, the specific idea you’ve in mind can be somewhat complicated. If that’s the case, break it into simpler forms and start working them one by one.
In a nut shell, if you want to generate traffic through blog commenting, invest quality time into it.
Actually, the screenshot above is the total number of free traffic I drove to my blog pages in 3 days. Just from comments, not guest posts or organic visits.
Filter your audience this year
To activate your blog for success, you’ll need to take a bold step. Decide who you want on your blog, and who you don’t want. This isn’t wickedness. You don’t need everybody, cowboy!
Do you drive ugly readers away or ban them from coming? Of course you can’t do that because it’s impossible. But the type of content you write would either please or displease some readers.
Write content for a select group of people – let others go if they can’t support you at least by leaving a comment, sharing your post and most importantly, reading your posts.
Blogging should be made simple or else, it’d seem like rocket science. And to make sure you enjoy doing this “thing” coupled with other content marketing strategies, you’ve to filter your audience.
I’m talking about writing for a select group of persons who desperately need your attention.
For the most part, my blog doesn’t attract generic audience, which is why I’ve achieved success that you can replicate.
I’m solely targeting content marketers; mainly blog owners who want to build a good brand through teaching others and never pushing anyone to buy a product at all costs.
I think that’s the beauty of embracing content marketing and I invite you to join us. It’s a lovely community out here – just subscribe above – on the header.
You should focus instead on building a truly, dedicated and loyal group of readers who want to hear from you at all times.
I personally, don’t like the idea of having 20,000 daily readers and only 200 persons actually visit to check out my latest post. Isn’t it better if you can have 1000 readers and have at least 90% active and supportive?
Quick reminder: In case you’ve forgotten, I need to remind you that when you eventually filter your readers and audience, you’d still have good people on your reading list, but this time, you can take good care of them.
You can study their lifestyle easily to know their pains and how best to offer help.
And because you know that whenever you send out a newsletter or write a post, there are important persons waiting to read and apply your tips, you’d be motivated to wake up early and just do it. This is productivity at work. Isn’t it?
Why you SHOULD never wait till tomorrow?
Tomorrow has its troubles and worries. All the activities you’ve for today, don’t be tempted to postpone it till tomorrow.
If you do, you’ll have a stack-load of work and this can be overwhelming at times. As a freelance writer, I’ve my clients to attend to and this comes with a deadline.
I also have guest posts to write to further promote my blog. My ultimate goal this year also is to update my blog at least once a week.
And I’ve been consistent with my writing task. Yes, sometimes I feel tired and wants to rest (which is good BTW.), but I’ve called myself to order on several occasions. Stop procrastinating, Michael!
Do it now. When you wake up in the morning with foreboding thoughts, just know that FEAR wants to cripple your day.
Every day is a plus to those who work it out. Yes, your spouse, kids, friends and especially your redheaded granny would always want your attention, but you should make out time to write, guest blog, and attend to your blogging business.
After all, when you succeed, these persons would love you more. Yes, it’s the reality.
If you have to write article today, don’t put it off for tomorrow. Do it now. Let me hear you say it loud – DO IT NOW!
Productive spice – positive affirmations
I don’t want to sound too religious right now, but did you know that building a successful blog takes more than hard work?
You’ve the right to quote me anywhere for saying that, but it’s the truth. The words you say to yourself at every moment, already had either a positive or negative impact in your life.
If you need loyal traffic on your blog, say out loud – “my blog has traffic.” Declare it out loud and over time, it’d spur up action in you to actually work towards getting the results you want.
If you lack confidence, profess it like you mean it, to yourself. Look in the mirror, beat your chest and affirm you’re as confident as the Lion. Boldness will come from somewhere – don’t ask me because I don’t know. But it can come.
It doesn’t matter the kind of business you’ve chosen to do, positive affirmations can trigger you in the right direction.
Each time I wake up in the morning, I’d say to my life, “You’re Awesome, Michael!” And when you check the meaning of being awesome, it means excellent, impressive and abundant.
This can be a great inspiration when you’re writing content either as a guest post or for your blog.
Like I told you earlier, it’s important that you filter your audience. Successful online companies like Google and Godaddy are already filtering their audiences. That’s why Google Panda was introduced to filter-off low-quality web pages.
Now, it takes more energy and creativity to rank your web pages highly in Google top 10 – you must be productive to be able to produce valuable content continually, earn or build natural links from active websites and establish a social media presence. If you’re lazy, you can never be productive.
With or without working any kind of day job, you can decide to be productive or the lazy content marketer. It’s all about setting your priorities right. Knowing what is best for you and taking action now – not tomorrow.
What do you spend your time on? 
Do you spend most of your time tweeting, commenting or writing?
To be honest with you, leaving comments could increase your web traffic, but writing evergreen and valuable content consistently is the only way to build a sustainable blog.
And you’ve to be very careful because if all your external links are from comment pages, you might be penalized when Google rolls out their Lion. Sorry, Panda!
As a content marketer myself, I spend 20% of my time on activities that can generate income for me.
I’m not so much concerned about generating huge amounts of free traffic, because I don’t need so much of it to succeed online.
I know that 75% of my readers will never buy anything from me, and that’s ok by me. What should matter to you right now is what you spend your time on.
Spend your time on activities that would bring you BUYER LEADS & MONEY. Invest eons of time writing and enhance your customer service so that satisfied clients and readers can refer loyal people to your blog.
What I’m sharing with you here is the true essence of content marketing. It’s the best form of marketing I’ve ever seen and I don’t intend to run away from it, at least, not when I’m seeing great results.
One more truth
Once you can master the productivity step in this post, you’ll no longer have issues coming up with blog post topics and ideas.
You’ll become a prolific writer and start to filter your audience gradually until you’ve built a highly engaged blog.
Let’s wrap it up: To become a productive content marketer, learn to focus on one task at a time. If the task seems too complicated, break it up into actionable pieces.
Instead of staring at the blank page, thinking of a good title for your post, don’t waste time. Jot down ideas and start writing. Later, come back and write the title. It could save a lot of time.
Make every task simple and easy. Act on it right away. Affirm positive words & statements to yourself every day and just do it. Don’t procrastinate. Don’t be afraid to fail – or better yet, fail forward and learn from it.
What is bothering your mind right now, as regards building a profitable blog? If you’re glad to be a content marketer, drop me a comment and I’d reply like a speeding bullet. You’re Awesome!
Image Credit: Corporatetraining