Here’s something important I’ve noticed over the past several months as I work on building and growing my company, JL&Co.
When I sit down to work in my cozy apartment office, I often feel two distinctly different emotions:
- Energized
- Drained
I began to pay closer attention to the type of work I was doing when I felt energized and excited. I also took note of the tasks I was completing when I felt bored, unchallenged and drained.
It wasn’t long before I came to a pretty big conclusion: I am at my very best when I am working with my content management clients.
Content management is where I thrive — it’s where I do my most focused, strategic and creative work.
And so, with this realization, I am going ALL IN on content management.
JL&Co is going all in on content management.
What is content management?
Content management is helping a brand, business or blog manage their content.
Most brands and businesses know they need powerful content to reach their audiences, but often don’t know where to start or feel overwhelmed by all of the possibilities. They might even be producing content already, but not seeing the results they’re looking for.
That’s where JL&Co fits perfectly into the puzzle.
Managing blogs and developing content strategies that actually get results is what we do best.
When someone asks me about content management, I often tell them that if they bring on JL&Co, they are gaining an in-house managing editor.
Every client has different needs, but content management can include:
- Editorial strategy
- Content planning
- Developing and managing a content calendar
- Hiring qualified and experienced writers
- Content creation (Yes, for some of our clients, my team and I write the content ourselves!) — This ranges from blog posts to journalistic pieces to case studies to ebooks!
- Editing
- Headlines
- Optimizing content for SEO
- Content promotion planning and execution
- Email marketing
- Affiliate marketing
For example, in our work with Muck Rack, my team manages all aspects of Muck Rack’s content initiatives, including running the blog and writing and producing case studies, ebooks and blog series.
Over at The Write Life, we oversee the site’s team of guest writers, edit and prepare posts, assist with email marketing and lead affiliate marketing efforts for the site.
Each client is different, but that’s where we thrive — figuring out an individual plan and strategy for every new business that comes our way.
How did JL&Co get started with content management?
Interestingly, content management found me before I found it.
Back when I was working full time in public relations and getting my feet wet in the blogging world, I dabbled in a bit of freelance writing. It was all thanks to a message from my first-ever (and longest-standing) client Greg Galant, cofounder and CEO of Muck Rack.
[Check out the full story of how I landed my first client here]
After writing a few guest blog posts for Greg, he told me Muck Rack was interested in producing regular content, and needed someone to manage the process. He asked if I thought I’d be up for the job.
I said yes, and for the last six years (!), I’ve managed Muck Rack’s blog and team of guest contributors, along with other content initiatives, including case studies, customer profiles and ebooks.
Then back in 2016, I saw that a business friend I’d long admired, Alexis Grant, was looking for a managing editor for her website The Write Life. I’d written for The Write Life pretty regularly prior to the job posting, so I was familiar with the brand, and threw my hat in the ring. I landed the gig.
It was only after adding The Write Life to my client roster, along with Muck Rack that I realized, “OH! This is a THING people look for!” I started paying attention to what I was calling ‘content management’ as a real service I could pursue.
And as the years have ticked by and I look back at my annual State of JL&Co posts, I see that content management routinely makes up more than 50% of my business, coming in at almost 60% in 2018.
That was a very telling sign that I’ve found my sweet spot.
Focused and locked in
When you first start a business, it’s easy to say yes to any opportunity that comes your way.
Been there.
When I started JL&Co, I dabbled in a bit of everything, and I loved it! Content, PR, social media, writing, consulting.
Everyone always told me that successful business owners “niched down” and picked one area to focus and excel. I didn’t want to believe that. Because I liked doing a lot of different things!
But over time, I realized I was being pulled in a thousand different directions. So I decided to try out a more niched down approach and slowly began to hone in on my core skills.
For the last year, it has been content management and PR.
But as I move forward into 2020 and beyond, JL&Co is going all in with content management.
After all, I’ve even made the big mindset and language shift when people ask about JL&Co to telling them, “JL&Co is the go-to agency for content management.”
It’s definitely a bit scary to commit to one type of service, especially when I know I have other marketable skills. This isn’t to say I’ll never dabble in other type of work or say yes to the occasional PR project, but ultimately, I know this is the right decision for right now to help JL&Co grow and thrive.
And it’s the right decision to help me personally stay energized and excited about my business!
Are you curious about content management?
If you’re a business owner or a marketing head, you’ve probably asked yourself one of these questions:
- Why should I start a blog? There are already so many out there.
- When the heck am I supposed to create all this content? My to-do list is a mile long.
- I want to hire writers to help with my content, but how do I do that?
- I’m still not totally convinced content will actually help my business. What do you have to say about that?
- Okay, so I know content is important, but I’m not a very strong writer. Help!
If this sounds like you and content is something that’s been on your mind lately, I’d love to chat!
Seriously. Even if you aren’t interested in working together, let’s talk about these topics.
Because content can be daunting and overwhelming, but it’s also incredibly important.
