Hi Reader, Are you overthinking your newsletter? I was on a Zoom call with a small business owner the other day. They said about their list: “I started my email list. It’s all segmented, but I’m not sending a regular email to my mailing list. I email them once a month or less. Have you any suggestions on how frequently ‘nurture’ emails should go out?” I’m always surprised when I hear objections like this. “I don’t want to annoy my email list” List owners regularly complain about this. But...
1 day ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, I've geeked out on productivity apps for years. Nine out of ten are full of bloated features most people don't need. All I need? A way of seeing my work in one place and limiting the amount of tasks I work on each day. I've stuck with Trello the longest because it's ideal for this type of work. These days, I use Trello to manage my writing projects, content creation, and different parts of my business. I also use it to collaborate with other team members. I recorded this complete...
1 day ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, Using ChatGPT for content generation feels like playing a frustrating game of squash. I shoot a prompt into ChatGPT. It spits content back at me. I tell ChatGPT the content isn’t good enough and lob it back with a new prompt. And we go backwards and forwards till I finally get something I can use. That’s all changed with Canvas mode, which ChatGTP rolled out a few weeks ago. Now, I can work on content in real time with ChatGPT. It feels more like a writing assistant that adapts in...
3 days ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, The sole purpose of your 1st line is to hook people's attention. The sole purpose of 2nd line (rehook) is to keep them reading. The sole purpose of the 3rd sentence... You get the idea. Writing a good first line is difficult, so I follow a few strategies. Sometimes, I write my piece of content and then work on the first line last. So many writers and content creators get tied up with boring pre-ambles and throat-clearing. I'm no exception. So sometimes, I'll bash out a post without...
4 days ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, When Google tanked my website traffic last year, I changed my content strategy. Bye, bye SEO. Hello writing on social media, specifically LinkedIn. I used to think LinkedIn was for bragging about a job or applying for work. I have a reasonably sized account from my corporate copywriting days, but I didn’t use it much. Oddly enough, I was worried about what former colleagues would think if they read my posts about writing and content strategy. I overcame those fears when I...
5 days ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, Happy Friday! Every Friday afternoon, I review what I wrote, published and worked on during the past week. I track key stats, like my social media stats, lead magnet conversion rates, and email subscriber numbers. I will review how my last offer went and plan the next one. I’ve done this for years. This weekly review takes about 30-60 minutes. And it helps me figure out what to focus on for the next seven days. The benefits compound too. For example, in this video, I show you some...
6 days ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, My mid-life crisis is in full swing. I took part in an Ironman in Cascais, Portugal, last month. It’s an insane event. 2.4 miles of swimming. 112 miles of cycling. And a 26.2-mile run. I clocked a personal best for the race–that’s 12 hours and 15 minutes for those keeping score! The race wasn’t the hardest part, though. You see, racing is a reward for training. And to train for an Ironman, I spent upwards of 15 hours a week swimming, cycling, and running. That’s before factoring in...
7 days ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, Today is the last day you can buy a ticket for my Master Self-Editing workshop. I’ll host it tomorrow for ticket holders only. But I’ll include the recording if you can’t make it live at 1000 EST. Your invite is below. I take it down tonight. Buy your ticket today Write on,Bryan Collins
8 days ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, I chased web traffic for my blog, for years. I spent hours using SEO tools and editing my articles so they ranked in Google Search results. More traffic meant more readers. And for a while, it worked. Then, Google changed how its search algorithm worked. Unlucky Bryan! My traffic tanked. Revenue dropped. And, I was gutted. Was I going out of business? But then I realized… there’s a much easier way to connect with readers. Email. By building an email list, I can write an article,...
9 days ago • 1 min read