Being creative is draining.

Here's my cheat sheet so you'll never run out of marketing inspiration.

12 easy ways to generate content ideas:
1/ Look at replies.

LinkedIn, Twitter, your private Slack for customers — wherever your community is most engaged.

What questions did they ask? What was most liked or shared?
2/ Talk to your personal Customer Advisory Board.

You have a few customer BFFs, right? Email or text them hello.

See how they're doing, ask what's on their mind, or get their opinion on a recent post you published.

3/ Read through customer support tickets.

Look for common and recent pain points. Write something that guides readers to the solution.
4/ Ask your sales team for FAQs.

Or skim their notes in the CRM. Uncover reasons customers don't sign on.

Let that guide your next playbook or case study.
5/ Join the next demo call.

See your product through your customer's POV.

Better yet, join 3 demos and create content that reduces time for your sales team and customers.

A refreshed deck. A punchy Loom video. A new email sequence.
6/ Listen to recordings of sales calls.

Aside from topic ideas, you'll also get to hear your customers' voice, tone and vocabulary, and maybe even get a sense of their lifestyle.

(h/t @rhythm_b)
7/ Check Google Search Console.

You'll see what readers are searching for when they stumble upon your site.

Look at the queries that garnered impressions but no clicks. Even better if it's "how to" content.

(h/t @stephiehardman)
8/ Tune into a webinar.

Maybe it's a competing brand. Or maybe it's a brand you admire.

Analyze how they structure the content, and stick around for Q&A to see if any of the questions inspire you.
9/ Hang out where your audience is.

Run a @sparktoro search for a Twitter account your audience follows.

You'll see common phrases they use, other social accounts they follow, websites they visit, and more. Get inspired.

(Shameless plug, but hey, we offer a free plan.)
10/ Have a quick conversation with a coworker.

Many of us are still WFH, so we're having fewer hallway convos. That's where great ideas come from.

Try to recreate that serendipity.

See if you can hop on a same-day call with a coworker and just catch up. Riff on ideas.
11/ Listen to a new podcast... and let your mind wander.

Step away from your computer. Put in your headphones, and play an industry podcast while you do a mindless chore. We get our best ideas when we're moving.

Listen, react, and pay attention to your "Ooh!" moments.
12/ Collect and repackage content.

Take all the content you've ever created on a given topic, and bundle it into a guide:

• 16 Ways to Do X
• The Definitive Guide to Y
• Everything You Need to Know About Z

If you have a solid SEO strategy, collecting this should be easy.
I have more ideas... probably.

You'll have to follow me to find out: @amandanat

Meantime, get more great ideas from my friends in these replies. 👇🏼

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More from @amandanat

8 Aug
Do you watch your information diet?

I get anxious when I haven't spent enough time reading good writing.

Here are some of my recent faves that have made me laugh, think harder, or feel seen:
@robotics on 2 people deciding where to eat:

"A: No, I’ll go to literally any restaurant in this town. Any neighborhood that’s more convenient for you?

B: No, every location in existence is convenient for me."
mcsweeneys.net/articles/with-…
@HEnglandWriter on what keeps us from thinking creatively:

"...it is possible to teach your brain to move away from functional fixedness and instead embrace creative thinking at work and in your personal life."
nesslabs.com/functional-fix…
Read 9 tweets
29 Jul
6 questions that will make you more likable:
"When did you realize X?"

This prompts the person to tell a story.

They'll relive the emotions. And you'll be responsible for sparking that catharsis at the end.
"What's your favorite mistake you've made?"

This will make them smile.

A reel of hard-earned lessons will zip through in their head. And they'll share their "aha!" moment.
Read 10 tweets
26 Jul
There's one piece of content that's sure to yield a positive ROI.

A case study.

Here's the secret sauce that most marketers forget: 🧵
You need these components in a truly effective case study:

1. A solid customer relationship
2. Your customer's KPIs
3. A personal story
4. A pressure test

More on each...
1/ A solid customer relationship

Because you'll refer to this case study often, it will get the most scrutiny.

Can you trust your business contact to handle tough questions? Can they speak with a reporter on short notice?

Many marketers forget about the next component...
Read 16 tweets
23 Jul
What are you feeding your brain?

Here are some great essays & creative work related to marketing, creating, and internet culture.

All of them made me laugh, cry, or think a little harder.

A short thread...
@fadeke_adegbuyi on "receipt culture"

"...despite our collective obsession with proof, we don’t appear to be moving closer to the truth."
every.to/cybernaut/is-i…
@VictoriaMMorton on personal branding

"People who embrace their everchanging multitudes create an advantage. They can authentically connect with a wider range of people... and tend to have a sense of curiosity that pushes them to never stop learning."

medium.com/in-the-trenche…
Read 7 tweets
13 Jul
I have years of marketing experience — B2B, DTC and B2C, with a focus in content, communications, events and product marketing.

But this is my second career.

Here's how I pivoted, and how others can learn too. 🧵
The truth is, I stumbled into marketing.

In my quarter-life crisis, I decided to leave tech news and enroll in culinary school. To gain credibility as food writer.
Turned out, there weren't a lot of food writing jobs at media publications. Womp womp.

But there was this new-ish thing called content marketing. Where you could run a blog somewhat like a newsroom. But for a company, publishing in their niche.
Read 29 tweets
12 Jul
Whose writing are you reading these days?

Here are some thoughtful essays — across marketing, creation and more — that I wanted to amplify.

A short thread:
ICYMI, @zoescaman's "Mad Men. Furious Women":

"When women don’t feel safe or valued, or when they are forced to endure abuse as the cost of their participation, they have no choice but to disengage."

zoescaman.substack.com/p/mad-men-furi…
@ali_montag on creating:

"This is the price of chasing the Inner Ring. The desire to be likeable... provokes the same reaction from anyone who harbors it: inescapable mediocrity. If you want to be in the Inner Ring, you’ve already lost."

every.to/divinations/th…
Read 8 tweets

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