Category: Marketing

how to get leads for my business

How to Get Leads for Your Business

Posted on | by Shannon Sullivan
Advertising, Marketing

While a few niche industries seem to bring in leads with ease, most businesses struggle with how to bring in new customers. You have a great business plan that you’ve worked really hard on. You have passion. But the leads aren’t there. There’s no need to panic! Here are some tips for bringing in new leads for your business and a few for getting them to stay. 

How to Bring in New Leads

Think of the Buyer Journey 

You’re excited about your business and want to get it in front of as many eyes as possible. That’s great, but not everyone is going to be in the position to buy or schedule with you as soon as they see you. This is especially true if your product or service has a higher price point. If someone is ready to make a purchase decision, they don’t need introductory content. It’s imperative to be mindful of where people are in the buyer journey. 

Know Your Audience 

Knowing who you’re targeting on the surface is crucial, but you need to take it a step further to ensure that you target your content and ads to the right people. What is their persona? What news are they reading or sports are they watching? You need to make sure you’re aiming your content where they are. 

Quality vs. Quantity 

People generally don’t care about how often they see something; they care about their experience. You can post 20 times on social media in a given week, but is it quality content that’s solving a problem for them? Always aim to provide a quality experience for a viewer. 

Keeping the Clients You Have

Returning Customer or Referral Deals

Most people like to feel special. One great way to do this is by reaching out periodically with exclusive deals for returning customers or offering a percentage off or bonus product for referring new clients. 

Share Updates

You already have their contact information, but what are you doing with it? A quarterly, or even monthly, email providing updates on the goings-on of your company is a great way to keep your business at the forefront of your past client’s minds. When it’s time for them to buy again or schedule a new service, they’ll immediately know where to go. 

Be Timely

They’ve already used your company. Like bringing in new clients, you need to be mindful of what you’re presenting to your hopeful returning clients. Information can be provided with the best intentions, but if it feels off the mark, your audience can feel like you’re insulting their knowledge. 

Let Us Help

The lead generation process is complicated, with a lot of moving parts. Focus on building your business from the inside, and we’ll focus on bringing in quality leads to help take you to the next level. Sound like a deal? Call us at (321) 255-0900, email info@theadleaf.com, or complete our contact form.

We look forward to growing with you! 

 

Marketing for Tourism

Marketing for Tourism and Vacation Excursions

Posted on | by Shannon Sullivan
Advertising, Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Social Media

Between larger companies trying to scoop up tourists to visitors trying to plan their trips themselves, the vacation tour excursion industry has never been more competitive! Let’s talk about how you can market your company to bring you more leads on top of word-of-mouth business. 

Social Media 

The concept of social media is certainly nothing new, but many still underestimate its power. This is especially true for the tourism and tour excursion industry. Most social media platforms are very visual-based. This means that you can have the most fantastic captions and graphics in the world, but if people aren’t drawn to it, they’ll quickly scroll on by. According to recent statistics, 36.5% of people start their vacation searches on social media, and another 17.1% consult friends on social media before making vacation plans. Not having a solid social media presence alone can make for an uphill battle against competition. 

Tourism Ads 

From social media to Google, the internet is becoming more and more “pay to play” by the day, which means only a tiny percent of your social media and site traffic will come organically. Ads don’t always have to be a significant financial investment! It’s easy to reel people in with discount codes or other similar offers. This is especially true if your competition isn’t offering any. 

Optimizing SEO for Tourism 

A lot of traffic can and should come with paid ads, but pairing them with a proper SEO plan is essential. SEO involves knowing and working with search engine algorithms to make your website come up first when searched. The good thing about tourism and excursions is that people are searching for them in all sorts of different ways. There are a lot of great keyword selections to make that will keep you competitive against bigger players. 

Start Your Journey 

Marketing for tourism doesn’t have to be hard! You enjoy guiding people through new adventures while on vacation. Similarly, we enjoy the adventure of figuring out the best ways to get visitors to you in the first place! The AD Leaf has extensive experience in marketing for the tourism industry. We’re ready and waiting to start on a journey with you to market your tour and vacation excursion. Sail on over to our contact page, call at (321) 255-0900, or email at info@theadleaf.com. 

 

Google My Business App Replacement

Google My Business App Replacement: What Does It Mean?

Posted on | by Shannon Sullivan
Google Guaranteed, Marketing, Search Engine Optimization

They’ve teased it for months now, but it looks like Google is finally starting to make the big shift to replace the Google My Business app! What does this mean for your business? Let’s talk about it. 

What is the Google My Business App? 

Up until now, this app is where business owners can go to check in on and manage their business listings. This includes updating contact information, ensuring the appearance on Google is set up correctly, appearing in Google searches, etc. 

Why Is Google Replacing It?

They’re getting rid of the Google My Business app because they want business owners to shift to managing their listings in Search, Maps, and their respective apps. In their eyes, this is making everything more concise, rather than having a whole other app to manage listings. 

How Do I Make the Change?

Google is emailing small business owners with visual instructions on what the change will entail and what they need to do to make the switch. They’re also posting these instructions on their social media. 

How Do I Keep Up?

Google changes a lot. Like, every day. Whether it’s app interfaces, their algorithm, or countless other ways Google is involved in everyday life of your business, it’s a lot to keep up with! In fact, it’s nearly impossible to do so all while keeping the focus on the management of your company. 

The good news is, you’re not alone! The AD Leaf is here to help guide you through this change and any other ones Google rolls out, allowing you to concentrate on growing your business in different ways. 

Google Whizzes 

We offer an array of Google services and would be happy to help you with yours! Get on the path to keeping up with search engines by calling us at (321) 255-0900, emailing at info@theadleaf.com, or reaching out via our contact form. 

 

Why Do I Need Digital Marketing?

Posted on | by The AD Leaf Studio Central FL
Advertising, Marketing

Why Central Florida Businesses Need Digital Marketing

Still Asking, “Why Do I Need Marketing?”

We hear this question regularly from local businesses throughout Orlando. Whether you’re a family-owned restaurant in Winter Park or a boutique near the tourist corridors of International Drive, many assume their established customer base is enough to sustain them. However, digital marketing is the new frontier of business success in 2025.

Your competitors are already leveraging it. Are you?

Digital marketing is no longer just for big brands with massive budgets. It’s a critical tool for every business looking to stand out in a city like Orlando, where competition and customer expectations are higher than ever. The sooner you embrace it, the sooner you can outpace your competition.

What Is Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing uses online platforms and tools to increase your brand visibility and connect with potential customers. It includes:

With Orlando’s mix of locals, students, tourists, and business travelers, you need a strategy that speaks to the right audience at the right time.

Over 63 percent of the world’s population is now online, according to DataReportal, offering unprecedented access to new customers who are searching for businesses just like yours. source

How Digital Marketing Benefits Orlando Brands

The benefits of digital marketing go far beyond basic exposure. Whether you’re in hospitality, healthcare, retail, or home services, these strategies allow you to:

  • Rank higher in local search results
  • Reach tourists planning trips
  • Retarget website visitors who didn’t convert
  • Use analytics to continuously improve results

Your business needs to meet people where they are—on their phones, laptops, and tablets. With digital marketing, you can reach them before they ever set foot in your store or restaurant.

Understanding Digital Marketing Costs

You don’t have to start big to make an impact. A small campaign can drive real results if implemented strategically. We offer flexible packages based on your business size, goals, and industry. Whether it’s a single Google Ads campaign or a full-scale digital overhaul, we’re here to grow with you.

To see what might be right for your business, explore our Digital Marketing Services and reach out for a personalized consultation.

Your Next Step

If you’re in Orlando and want to rise above the competition in 2025, now is the time to act. Digital marketing is no longer optional—it’s essential.

Let’s build your brand the smart way. Call The AD Leaf Studio Orlando and let’s craft a strategy that drives real growth.

branding design

Properly Brand Your Business

Posted on | by Brian J Wallace
Marketing, Public Relations

Branding your business successfully is to perpetual be in the process of identifying, creating, and managing the cumulative assets and actions that shape the perception of your brand in all stakeholders’ minds. Branding is a perpetual process because it never stops. People, markets, and businesses are constantly changing and your brand must evolve in order to keep pace. There is a structured process to branding, one where you must first identify who and what you want to be to your stakeholders (internal and external customers), create your brand strategy to position yourself accordingly, and then constantly manage everything that influences your positioning.

Your positioning must be translated into assets (e.g., visual identity, content, products, ads) and actions (e.g., services, customer support, human relations, experiences) that project it into your stakeholders’ minds, slowly building up that perception.

“Brands are essentially patterns of familiarity, meaning, fondness, and reassurance that exists in the minds of people.” – Tom Goodwin.

When it comes to branding your business, there are a few key things you need to keep in mind if you want to be successful. First and foremost, your brand needs to be unique. It should stand out from the competition and be immediately recognizable. Secondly, your brand needs to be consistent. You need to use the same colors, fonts, and logos across all of your marketing materials. And lastly, your brand needs to be relevant. It should appeal to your target audience and reflect the values of your company.

Perception of a Brand

Also known as reputation. This is the association that an individual (customer or not) has in their mind regarding your brand. This perception is the result of the branding process or lack thereof. Branding is absolutely critical to a business because of the overall impact it makes on your company. Branding can change how people perceive your brand, it can drive new business, and increase brand value – but it can also do the opposite if done wrongly or not at all.

Creating a Brand

The first step is to create a brand strategy. This will be your foundation and will guide all of your branding decisions moving forward. Once you have your strategy in place, you can begin to create your visual identity. This includes things like your logo, color palette, and typography.

Your visual identity should be unique and reflect your brand’s personality. It should be consistent across all of your channels, from your website to your social media accounts.

Building Brand Awareness

Now that you have a strong foundation and visual identity, it’s time to start building brand awareness. There are a number of factors to keep in mind.

First and foremost, your content must be high-quality and informative. It should be shareable and relevant to your target audience. You also need to make sure you’re using the right keywords so that people can actually find your content.

Another important factor is SEO. This stands for “search engine optimization” and heavily influences how your business is found and displayed on Search Engines. Make sure to do your research and utilize relevant keywords in your titles and descriptions.

Once you have all of that taken care of, you can start promoting your content across different channels. This could include social media, email marketing, or even paid advertising. The important thing is to be consistent with your branding across all channels.

Tips and Tricks

Email

  • Create your signature.
  • Find your font.
  • Find your color.
  • Add your social branding/handles.
  • Spelling, always double-check your words. Add a quote that helps people remember you.
  • DO NOT leave “sent from my iPhone” !
  • Or “excuse errors”. Don’t make them.

Phone & Voice Settings

  • Setup your voicemail.
  • Keep your voice mail concise and consistent across your organization.
  • Don’t have a full mailbox.

Social Media

  • Create a social media policy.
  • Make sure everyone in your company is on the same page when it comes to social media.
  • Be consistent with your branding across all platforms.
  • Use hashtags, but don’t overdo it.
  • Engage with your audience.

Final Thoughts

To successfully brand your business you need to keep consistency as the foundation. You also should have a strategic communication standard, with all internal stakeholders (including employees) understanding and projecting your message to all who interact with your business, ultimately managing your company’s customer-facing communication. And wherever you choose to market or be visible, be sure that customers and potential customers know it’s YOU, whatever the format, platform, or medium.

Now that you’ve learned a little about how to brand your business, put these tips into action and see the success for yourself! With a little effort, you can create a strong and recognizable brand that will help your business grow.

The AD Leaf Marketing Firm Can Help!

Need some help to help develop and implement a successful branding effort, contact us today! Talk to one of our experts here at The AD Leaf Marketing Firm LLC.! To schedule a free consultation with our marketing teams, call us today at 321-255-0900.

how to beat the summer slump

Beat the Summer Slump Before It Starts

Posted on | by Shannon Sullivan
Advertising, Marketing

While some businesses boom when the temperatures rise and the sunglasses come out, many find summer their slowest season. Leads lag, and calendars look empty. It may feel like April is too soon to start worrying about summer, but if you can get ahead of the summer slump before it even starts, you’ll be set for a successful season! How do you beat the summer slump? Here are a few tips to keep the season hot!

Seasonal Deals

Consider creating a seasonal coupon code or discount to entice new and returning customers. These are great for ads!

Join In

People like it when brands feel real on social media, rather than just standing behind the image of a corporation. Post updates on what summer looks like for your and/or your employees. This could be vacation pictures, employee spotlights, or other fun bits of adjacent content. 

Test New Offerings 

Your slower season is a great time to try out new service lines or products you’re looking to promote. You can use the smaller sample size to gauge whether or not you’d like to continue during your busy season. 

Reintroduce Yourself 

Reach out to past clients with an update on your business and your employees! While this can have a sales aspect, it should mainly stay informational. 

Go Where the People Are

If you know your key demographic will be spending a lot of time at the beach and less time on their phones and computers this summer, meet them there! Sponsor a beach party or set up an information table on the boardwalk, though you’ll need to check your city’s regulations. 

Don’t Pull Back

One of the biggest mistakes a business owner can make during their slower season is to pull back on advertising. By keeping up brand awareness, potential leads will be further down the sales funnel, which will allow you to finish reeling them in once they’re ready to make a purchase or signing decision. 

Marketing isn’t easy! It’s time-consuming and requires a lot of everyday work to ensure you’re keeping up with best practices. If you don’t have the time to focus on your marketing plan or simply don’t want to, The AD Leaf is happy to help with all of your digital and traditional marketing efforts. Give us a call at (321) 255-0900, complete our contact form, or go ahead and book an appointment with our Growth Team!

We’re looking forward to working with you. 

 

How to Identify & Solve Customer Pain Points

Posted on | by The AD Leaf Studio Central FL
Marketing

Social media is an essential tool for thriving businesses in today’s world. You have already proved you are open to business and reachable by having active social media accounts. To help your business continue learning and growing, you will want to build genuine relationships with your clients/customers organically. Having these relationships will help you target your customer pain points. 

You might be wondering what a customer pain point is. A pain point is a specific problem that future and current customers of your business experience. By successfully targeting your customer’s pain points, you solve their problem. You must show them why they need you. General pain points include:

  • financial
  • productivity
  • process
  • support

and more.

Key Steps to Finding Customer Pain Points

  1. Utilize your social media platform – You can use your social media to ask for customer feedback. This strategy can be as simple as putting a poll on your Instagram story or creating a post that asks for feedback. Being open and honest with your audience opens the door to engagement and feedback. . Ensure that you are responding quickly to these responses to help build those relationships and keep the engagement flowing! Opening the door to more engagement from your target audience can include posting links to your blogs or posts with questions. If someone comments saying, “Thank you for this info! I just don’t know how to ___.” That is your sign to create a post, blog, or internal fix centered around the concern of your audience. 
  2. Conduct surveys- Conduct surveys with open-ended questions to get detailed answers from your customers. Send these emails to lists built through social media marketing, and let your audience know how you will use their feedback to improve your product or business. They will feel valued to give their responses! 
  3. Research– Put on your investigator hat to search your customers’ social media for pain points. This strategy can include checking their Facebook, LinkedIn, or other platforms to find their likes, dislikes, and discussions. This research can lead you to uncover a hidden pain point. 
  4. Know Your Industry– If you do not feel like digging into your customers’ social media, you can use other tools to aid your research. Regular industry-related keyword searches can be highly beneficial. Explore the “People also ask” box to see what is relevant to your search. You can also utilize “Answer The Public” to find what people recently asked about in your industry. 
  5. Utilize Technology– Live chats are a great way to connect with your customers. This helps you build rapport, gain information and insight, as well as build trust and answer any questions your customers might have.

To take the process even further, you can take a deep dive into your future customer’s path with the following steps:. 

    1. Awareness: The customer must become aware of your business through your company’s efforts to reach your target audience. 
    2. Interest: You spark your customer’s interest by pointing out you can solve their pain points such as doing their taxes, lawn care, roofing, hunger, etc. They will conduct their research about your brand by exploring your socials, website, etc. 
    3. Consideration: This could be a lead or someone inquiring about a service. Free consultations, free trials, etc., are great tools for your potential customers during this phase.  
    4. Intent: Imagine this phase is when your lead is sitting with your product or service in their shopping cart, almost to the checkout but not quite yet.
    5. Evaluation: Leads will weigh their opinions one more time before choosing your company. This step can include comparing your company with another company or service. What can you do to seal the deal?  
    6. Purchase: Your lead has decided they want your company and is now a customer! How can you get a referral? 

Here are a few questions to consider: 

  • What is your customer’s path to purchase?
  • How long is their path to buy? 
  • Can you improve their path to purchase?
  • What motivates your customer? 

Once you have taken this deep dive to learn more about your current and future customer pain points, you will see your business from a buyer’s perspective. Imagine you go to a website to submit a form, and it does not go through on their first two attempts. You would most likely look somewhere else, right? Leads and future customers must still decide for themselves, but if their path to purchase is smooth while you address solving their pain points, they will be interested throughout the journey. 

 

For more information on how you can target and improve your audiences’ pain points or better target your audience in general, please schedule a consultation with our marketing professionals at 321.255.0900, or feel free to email us at  info@theadleaf.com. 

 

Website Design

Website Design For The Best Lead and Customer Conversion

Posted on | by The AD Leaf Studio Central FL | Leave a Comment on Website Design For The Best Lead and Customer Conversion
Advertising, Marketing, Website Design

Currently, in 2022 there are over 1.92 billion active websites being hosted throughout the world today. But not all are converting website traffic into leads. It is now more important than ever, to build your website correctly, strategically, and in the mindset of achieving the mission, you expect with each webpage of your website. The Marketing and Advertising industries have conducted extensive A/B Testing with respect to website traffic and website customer lead conversion metrics. Through this discovery process, we have identified 5 components that websites need to show the consumer or business customer within 10 seconds of them viewing the web page in order to realize the best possible lead conversion for their website. Listed below are the 5 components of optimal lead conversion you need to implement within your website design for the best lead and customer conversion.  Remember, the ultimate objective with our website is converting website traffic into leads:

  1. Who are you? Your business logo needs to be strategically placed at the top left-hand corner of the website. Throughout the English language, we read from left to right, top to bottom. This is also standard across most websites and so the reader is programmed to look for it in that spot.
  2. What do you do? The reader(not you, but if you can’t decipher what you do from seeing your website, that’s worse) needs to be able to easily identify in 10 seconds of seeing your website, what it is that your business does, what service that it provides to your consumer?  In order to receive the credit for this, it needs to also be identifiable BEFORE the fold, or before you scroll your webpage down to the bottom.  The area that you see when you type a website URL(website address) into your website browser immediately when it loads, is called the “HERO” area.  Your website is going to be a Hero or a Zero and the customer will make that determination within 10 seconds.
  3. What makes you different from your competitors? Does the consumer need to understand what makes YOU different from your competitors?  The website home page needs to contain U.S.P’s (Unique selling points) and C.T.A’s(Calls to Action) that show the reader why they should call YOU instead of your competitors.  Great calls to action should be featured in strategic places above the fold, utilizing your branding and style color scheme.
  4. How do I contact you?  Your phone number needs to be placed at the top right corner of the website, and your email address prominently displayed so the consumer can easily contact you.  Also, the home page of the website must contain the standard “Form box” or side pop-out contact form.  These form boxes are standard across many websites.  They typically contain three lines:   Line1 is for the customers’ Name, Line 2 is for the customers’ email address, and Line 3 is for the customer to ask a question of you, or request additional information regarding your service and they then submit the form.  The form comes to YOU in an email.  These form boxes represent about 30-60% of total website communication from potential customers. Additionally, it is very important because it allows YOU to capture the potential clients’ email information as a lead so you can follow up with them.  If a contact form box is not feasible add the pop-out contact form plugin that floats along the right-hand side of your hero area within your banner images.  Installing a chat feature will also be a very important component to improve your lead conversion and lead flow.  At the end of the day, with nearly 1 Trillion active websites, you need to shout from the mountain tops, that you are open for business, you are welcoming to your customers, and that you are not forcing your customers to dig through your website just to contact you.  If you do not make it easy for your customers to reach you, you will lose your customers in 2022. The days of customers waiting with bated breath hoping and praying you will answer your phone to speak with the customer are long gone.  They do not have to be committed to you.  There are 9 other organic businesses on page 1 of Google, 3-10 Ad words businesses listed on page 1 of Google, and countless social media businesses listed for them to chose from.  Surely, one of your competitors will make things easy for your customer if you don’t and you won’t be converting website traffic into leads!
  5. Are you communicating effectively to your target audience?  This is where most of you completely miss the mark and target with your online business card or website.   When you developed your website, did you design its look, feel, content, layout, and structure with your target audience in mind?  Most business owners design their website with themselves in mind(based on your likes, your color pallet, your design pallet, what you wanted), and in most cases, the business owner isn’t their own target audience or target customer. As an example:  If your target customer is under age 35, do you have a chat feature installed?  Do you have a contact form box displayed on your home page?  Have you moved away from copy(written content) on the home page?  If you do have any content, is it written in 3-4 call to action bullet points?  If your target audience is an older consumer, do you have your phone number prominently displayed in the upper right-hand corner?  Is your website easy to navigate, is there a proper flow through starting from your home page to your about us page, to your services or products pages, and then to contact you?  If there are inconsistencies with the journey, the potential lead will just leave your page, it’s simple.  There are over 1.2 billion websites active online currently throughout the world right now.  If you do not communicate effectively to your target audience, you will lose your leads.  Remember, the main objective is converting website traffic into leads!

For more information on how you can improve your website by converting website traffic into leads, or how you can make a bigger impact within your business market please schedule a consultation. E: info@theadleaf.com | P: 321.255.0900

TikTok for your business

Why Your Business Should Be On TikTok in 2022

Posted on | by Spencer Monteiro
Marketing

After TikTok hit the market in 2017, it quickly became one of the most popular social networking sites in the world. Fast forward to 2022, TikTok has accumulated a remarkable one billion average monthly users. The level of exposure that TikTok offers is truly unbelievable, and business owners are taking notice and making the switch to an innovative video-sharing app.

How is TikTok Different Than Other Platforms?

For those of you that are not aware, TikTok is a video-sharing app that allows you (the user) to create short videos up to three minutes long. What makes TikTok stand out is, unlike other social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram that focus on image and text-based sharing apps, TikTok has cornered the market when it comes to sharing videos. Since its inception, TikTok has become one of the most engaging social media apps currently out. A recent study has shown that on average, TikTok users usually spend around 10.85 minutes on the app (doubling Pinterest’s 5.06 minutes that are currently ranked #2 for engagement) and will open the app roughly eight times per day.

Exposure

What separates TikTok from its competition is the incredible algorithm and exposure that it offers if you are looking to expand your brand awareness. As a business owner, one of the most vital aspects to your success is, “are people aware of my brand?”.

TikTok is home to one of the most personalized algorithms in the social media industry at the moment. Like the Instagram algorithm, TikTok bases its recommendations on a user’s interactions with content within the app. TikTok takes into account: which accounts you follow, videos you’ve liked or shared, videos you’ve watched all the way through (aka completion rate), and even the content you create on your own, among many others. Aside from user interaction, TikTok also takes into account the content that users seek through their Discover tab, which includes captions, sounds, hashtags, video effects, and trending topics. This content is then used to piece together the most optimal user experience to keep their audience coming back.

Trends

TikTok first started as a music and video sharing platform but has transformed into a groundbreaking app that features millions of trends that inspire endless creativity amongst its users. TikTok trends are ever-changing, meaning there are never-ending trends for your marketing team to explore and apply to your industry. The best way to tell when a video style is trending is to begin to see multiple videos using the same sound and video structure. The best way to think of a TikTok trend is to think of it as a live-action meme – applicable across various scenarios or industries and easily understood.

Tips – TikTok Best Practices

Determine Your Goals

The first step to getting started in any endeavor is to establish the goals and objectives of your project. Your plan doesn’t need to be set in stone right away because it’s likely that your goals will change over time. However, it’s great to have an initial direction that you would like to move forward with. Here are some potential “goals” to help outline your TikTok business strategy:

Brand Awareness
Educate Your Audience
Target Future Customers or Employees
Increase Sales
Increase Clicks to Website
Increase Audience Reach

Share Valuable Information

Now that you’ve established some goals for your business, the next important thing is to ensure that you’re giving valuable content to your audience. Think of your business goals as a growing plant, and each piece of content you publish is watering that plant—the more valuable the content, the larger drink of water that grows your overall goal.

Be Consistent

It may seem cliche, but consistency truly is vital. If possible, keep posts on a regular schedule. You may not see the results you want immediately but stick with it. TikTok is a never-ending learning cycle, but you are sure to be rewarded with consistent effort.

How We Can Help

If you are a business owner looking to break into a new and exciting social media platform, TikTok may be the right option for you. Our innovative team of social media specialists has the tools, knowledge, and drive to develop a personalized TikTok strategy for your business. Our team is expertly trained to tailor a strategy to help you achieve your goals.

Ready to elevate your business? Head over to the “Contact” tab to get started and schedule a consultation today!

4 Tips for Writing Better Content

4 Tips for Writing Better Content

Posted on | by The AD Leaf Studio Central FL
Content Writing, Marketing

How can you write better copy? Business professionals from every industry struggle with their writing, so you’re far from the only one asking. Even marketers struggle to write focused, compelling copy from time to time. So what is it about putting ideas to paper that trips so many people up? Let’s dig into 4 tips for writing better content.

1. Start With a Plan

If you don’t have a plan, your writing will lack focus. Without knowing what the end goal is, it’s difficult to determine what steps need to take to reach that destination. When you sit down to write, start by outlining your main points and then filling in the supporting details.

This strategy benefits user experience in the end, especially for pages on a website. When a writer starts with a main idea and breaks it down into smaller digestible parts, the writing will also be easier to read. Great online content starts with a title (main idea) and breaks that down into smaller digestible parts (subheadings). This way, when someone goes to read that page, they can quickly navigate to the section of the page they’re looking for.

2. Focus on the Reader’s Perspective

This tip may seem obvious, but when it comes to putting our ideas down for someone else to read, we all too often write from our point of view instead of theirs. Practicing empathy in your writing and trying to put yourself in the reader’s shoes can go a long way. Here’s a mental exercise that may help. Think about your ideal reader, consumer, or audience member and not just your target audience. If you could only get the result you want if they experience the fullest extent of your product or service, what would you tell them?

Considering your audience’s pain points will not only make you a better writer by making your content more relatable, but it will also show that you can solve their problems and alleviate their concerns. And that’s what great marketing boils down to in the end.

3. Be Direct and Be Clear

Have you ever thought, “I’m not sure how to phrase this”? If you’re like most, this thought has surely crossed your mind at least once or twice. The tried and true solution to this dilemma is:

  • Challenge yourself with another question, “What is it that you’re trying to say?”
  • Say it out loud, detach yourself from the writing process for a moment and verbally summarize to yourself what the message is.
  • Next, write that down. It sounds simple enough, but we can get so sucked into typing out the next sentence that we give ourselves “analysis paralysis” and freeze up. Explain it to yourself or someone else, and then write that.

A common trap many writers fall into is that they try to sound “smart” by using uncommon words and phrases or some roundabout way of conveying their message. No one likes to feel confused when they’re reading; if anything, confusion will encourage them to put it down or read something else. The best writers can take complex topics and make it so anyone can understand them.

This strategy doubles as a filter for industry jargon, cliches, and passive voice, which hurt your writing and usually waste the reader’s time.

4. Proofread!

The quickest way to lose credibility with your audience is to make careless errors that make it to the final draft. The great Stephen King said, “To write is human, to edit is divine.” It can be easy to cut corners and skip the proofreading/editorial process, but the writing will always suffer for it. If you’re coming up on a deadline and are pressed for time, save time at the end for proofreading and editing.

  • Read your text and reread it
  • Read your writing out loud or ask someone else to read it over
  • Check for typos, grammatical errors, and inconsistencies (if you’re not sure about a grammatical rule or how to spell something, look it up)

Professional Content Marketing With The AD Leaf Marketing Firm

Writing compelling, conversion-focused content is a time investment. Research, planning, writing, and proofreading not only takes practice and years of experience to do well, but it also takes time away from you running your business and spending time with your family. Save yourself the hassle of having to do yet another thing and call 321-255-0900 or email info@theadleaf.com and ask about our Content Marketing services.