Okay, so what the hell is a content strategy?

Get it? Got it. Okay. Good. You know this, I know. We all know this at this point, but with so much information and misinformation, okay, floating around the internet regarding content strategy, I think it's easy to get overwhelmed by which approach you should take. So here's my unsolicited advice. Well, I guess it is a little solicited because you clicked this video, So here we go. All right. Now, this isn't to bash. Anyone's approach or knock anyone's hustle.

But there are a couple of things that I think you should consider and be mindful of when discerning whose framework or advice you should take when it comes to content strategy. Okay. The first thing. Ooh, I've been ready to get this off my chest. There is a big difference between a social media strategist and a content strategist. Big difference.

Most social media strategists are platform specific, which means they teach you the best practices on how to navigate and create content for the various social media platforms. you've seen it all. TikTok coaches, Instagram coaches, LinkedIn strategists. For every platform there is someone claiming to be an expert on the platform. These people have mastered, particularly these platforms, and hopefully they have. Gotten other people results too. All right. That's a social media strategist.

So if your goal is to focus on building an audience and lead generation for a specific platform, then this is probably a good fit for your business. A content strategist, however, me, I take a holistic approach. Okay? When it comes to your entire online presence, we don't just focus on one social media platform. As a content strategist, my clients create strategies everywhere they exist. That's because your business is not platform specific. At least it shouldn't be. Okay?

So it's more than about what you post to social media. Content is all inclusive of everything you're doing online to market your business. That's emails, that's messaging on your website. That's blog posts. Um, that's podcast content. Content is what you teach inside of your master classes, your webinars, the slides, the materials you put together, even the content that you put together for speaking engagements. All of that's content. All of it.

So it's important not to minimize content marketing to a specific platform. This is why I help my clients put together a comprehensive strategy that is not limited to social media. Cause y'all know we don't own these platforms anyway. So we really need to make sure that our strategies include a way to get people off of them and into platforms that we own.

Okay. So this is why it should include a plan of action that details how you show up digitally and in the online space across the board, not just platform specific. Okay. So that's the difference between a social media strategist and a content strategist. Another thing to consider when choosing which advice to take is to pay close attention to the type of content they create.

For example, people who create content that speaks solely about growth hacks, vanity metrics, things that involve numbers. You may look at their accounts and say, Wow, this person has a big following, or This person has so much engagement. Right? But it's easy to grow on these platforms when you create content about how to grow on these platforms. Okay? It's literally a buzzword. It's the shiny object. That they dangle in front of you, that attracts you to them.

Because let's be real, everyone is growth obsessed. We all desire it and it can be a good thing. I'm not knocking growth, but in my experience growing on these platforms is more controlled by the people who own the platforms. Then a particular strategy can ever control. And that's just my professional and personal. Experience. So that's why I believe we have to shift the focus from growth to sustainability. Let's not focus on how can I grow online?

Let's focus more on how can I create a strategy that keeps my messaging clear, consistent, and converting three c. Y'all know I love alliteration. How can I create a strategy that keeps my messaging clear, consistent, and converting? No matter the platform changes. Okay. A content strategy is designed to help you define your marketing goals and set priorities. So without this, you are winging it.

And we can tell it shows in every aspect of your business because your marketing should be one of the things at the foundation of your business, okay? It's also super important to know what you're focusing on in that particular season, and so content strategies change. Quarterly, sometimes as as rapid. As as a quarter, right? And so maybe in this quarter of your business, you are focusing on brand awareness, and so you need more people to know about who you are.

And so your content strategy is going to look different based on that goal. or maybe in this quarter, it's lead generation. You need more qualified potential leads and ultimately clients, right? And so what you create should look differently, or maybe it's community building, right? You wanna strengthen or develop the relationship you have with your tribe. So the content that you create in that season or in that, Will also look different. So each of these objectives have a different plan, right?

There's a different strategy. Um, there's a different approach that should be taken to accomplish them, and that's why it's important to know what your goals are so that you can know what you need to do to hit the goals. I remember when I decided to take my business public. I say public, like it's about to be a publicly traded company or something, But for those of you who know my story, I began in this digital space as a beauty and style blogger back in 2012. That was 10 years ago.

And when I started, working with brands at the time I had graduated from college, I went to Clark Atlanta University. Okay. I graduated with a degree in mass media. My focus was broadcast television. And so I really had the best of both worlds. I was producing content, producing television in corporate America. And then I was also, you know, being able to work with brands as an influencer.

And so in corporate America, I was telling the stories of others, and as an influencer, I got the opportunity to tell my own. So it was a really great time to kind of. Hone in and develop a lot of the skills that I use with my clients today. And so while building my own personal brand, I started to attract the attention of my peers. One of my sorority sisters was starting a business and she said, Hey, I want you to help me. Do my entire digital rollout. And we were sorority sisters.

I was like, I don't know. Not because we were sorority sisters, but because I knew her, right? And so I, I was kind of leaning towards it, but then kind of not. And so I'm a delta for those of you wondering. Well, let me be official. I'm a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. You know, we love being extra. Anyway, that's not the point.

The point is, is that she asked me to help her and I said, no, I didn't wanna do it because I think people take for granted what it truly takes to Create profitable content online. I think people expect it to be easy, quick, fast, et cetera. And I just didn't wanna do it. But because we had a personal relationship, um, I was like, Okay, she offered to pay me. What's the worst that could happen? I can make some extra cash. I can hate it and then never have to do it again. Right? Whatever.

So I did it and yo. It wasn't that bad, um, in fact, uh, I kind of liked it. And so before you know it, I had kind of like a referral based side hustle. I didn't take it too seriously at the time because, you know, we are wired to think, um, particularly if you were a millennial whose parent is a baby, boom.

We're wired to think that you have to go and get a good corporate job and stay there with those good benefits and work it for 40, 50 years just to retire and maybe you could go to Florida, right? That's what the American Dream allegedly is more like a nightmare to me. But you know, here we are. So I had that mindset for a while, and if I'm being. It did hold me back. I never considered that this would be my gateway to entrepreneurship.

I was honestly busy building my own personal brand and it didn't hit me until later that the reason why I got so good at building my own brand was so that I could ultimately use that gift, uh, to help other women do the. And so, um, my sorority sister, you know, she was giving me a little tug, right? That opportunity was the first tug to walk into my purpose, but of course, I ignored it. because I'm stubborn and that's what I do. and God knows this about me, and so God treats me accordingly.

Sometimes I need to be pushed. And so in 2019 I got fired from a job in corporate America in a really, really shady way, and it sent me into a deep depression. And as I was coming out, I said, Okay. Cause I don't know about y'all, but that's how I talk to God. I be like, Listen, I feel like God is in me. God knows my heart. So I be like, Okay, God. Okay. So I was like, Listen, I'm gonna put real energy into effort, into taking this business public. I'm gonna promote it.

I'm gonna create content about it. You know, I put a strategy together. And to date, that is probably one of the biggest strategies I've put together, which is the one you currently see playing out in front of you as this form of content. so since then, not only has my life changed, but I've also had the privilege of helping dozens of women change their lives as well as their businesses. And that's really what's the most reward. and I really feel like this is what I was truly called to do.

So now you know where to start and what to consider when creating your strategy, and you have a real example of what it looks like while doing so. Um, I want you to get started and I look forward to seeing you on the other side of your strategy being. So as I let you marinate on that overnight, I want you to send me a dm, right? It goes down in the dms, Yo Gotti style. Send me a DM and let me know the biggest problem you're having as it relates to your content strategy.

When you do that, I'm gonna give you a complimentary audit for consuming this content, for being a supporter. Um, and then in that audit, I'm going. Walk through some of the things that you can improve on and really give you some action steps to take to level up your marketing strategy. All right? So until next time, I want you to do the work to create the content that never leaves your audience starving. Okay?

No matter if it's 10:00 AM, 2:00 PM, 6:00 PM or midnight is always a good time for content for brunch. Now go serve it up. Bye guys.