3 Ways To Stop Overthinking Brand Publishing and Just Do It

Over the past two years, I have been involved in many discussions surrounding the why, the who, the where and the how of brand publishing to the water and wastewater market. We’ve discussed its importance, its relevancy, and its position as the most effective presentation tactic at your disposable. Much has been tied to the impact of the content you generate. A surprising effect is that some marketing professionals are putting TOO much thought into their content and have become so focused on perfection that the main outcomes of the mission are getting lost.

So why is overthinking the aspects of a content creation program a bad thing? 

You won’t be perfect and holding out for perfect is not healthy

You’ll never reach perfection but you can come close and here’s a good barometer.  Stop approaching content in terms of what YOU want to get out of it and start thinking more strategically.  Before you start down the path and are outlining the outcomes you hope your content will achieve, be careful not to label those outcomes YOUR outcomes.  Goals like produce content and hoping it goes “viral” or “massively shared” will lead to paralysis by analysis.  Once that occurs, the tasks become far more intimidating than they need to be to achieve your goals.  Instead, set out to create something that is “informational”, “entertaining”, “thought-provoking,” “controversial,” or even “amusing.”  In other words, think audience first.

Striving for perfection leads to never getting started

When I talk to clients about blogs there is one overwhelming reason why either they don’t have one or the one they have isn’t effective.  The common theme behind this lack of progress is usually centered around the “I don’t know what to write about.”  Perfect!  That’s a starting point and I can work with that. 

The truth is that they know what they want to write about but are worried that the topic won’t be of interest to their potential readers.  Now, I’m not advocating you lower your standards and just write about anything for the sake of writing something BUT on some level you need to start the process and take an initial leap of faith in yourself in order to actually get moving.  Trust your knowledge, trust your process, trust yourself and start.  Not starting is a losing proposition before the race even begins.

Your editing process = where smaller is better

Always have an outside pair of eyes proof your work.  It is a necessary part of the production process and without it, you’re playing a dangerous game with your own personal brand, not to mention your Company’s name.

Having said that, if you are passing your work around to more than three people you’re setting yourself up for endless edits and rewrites.  While their recommendations are helpful, too many result in a massive amount of lost time and the risk of losing your initial thoughts and message.  Instead, stick to the spelling and grammar benefits of the proofing process and perhaps share your work with the one or two trusted people whom you know will understand your key message but can also offer additional insight.

The last thing you want is to waste time on things that have minimal impact on how your audience receives the content.

Be the tomorrow, not the today

Buyers, especially those baby boomers, love brands that have a personality. It breeds trust which always has to be earned. Manufacturers that understand this are flourishing in the water and wastewater market.

Stop worrying about what’s “trending.” Followers get scraps.  Chances are that if you’re just now trying to join the “current trends in marketing,” you’re already too late to the party.