“Online Community” is a critical idea when it comes to digital marketing strategy. I know this sounds weird, but I believe it is both the most over-hyped and under-hyped word in the marketing landscape. Here’s why …

Community is over-hyped because too many think they have an “online community” when they don’t. A community is not a list of customers or a group of social media followers. It’s much deeper than that, much more important than that.

Community is under-hyped because so many people believe this is the future of marketing. I’m one of them by the way. And most companies are missing out.

As many traditional marketing tactics like advertising and SEO fade away (yes, they are) one of the most powerful ideas is to help people feel like they belong to something.

This is such a HUGE subject and one I begin to explore more deeply on the new episode of The Marketing Companion podcast.

I’ve re-launched the podcast to feature six different co-hosts to expand the depth of the discussions. This week I bring back Brooke Sellas (YAY!), who of course was my regular co-host for many years. We’re both struggling to define the nature and importance of community and our conversation will make you re-think your own ideas of community and where we go from here.

And we also discuss the day Mark won a “best legs” contest. Surely, this is worthy of your attention friends?

As always, there will be new ideas and lots of laughs when Brooke is around so what are waiting for? Just click here:

Do you want to start your own business?

If so, you’ll need to do your homework beforehand, because you have a lot of competition. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately 800,000 new businesses are launching each year. That’s a lot of competition, so it is important for you to gain a competitive advantage by planning accordingly.

First things first. You need a reputable attorney and CPA to assist you with starting your own business. Ask trusted colleagues for referrals, because there are state and federal rules and regulations that can affect your business operations.

Secondly, you need to decide what type business entity works best for your business. Do you want to operate as a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation or Limited Liability Company? You will need to consider several factors when making this decision. Are you going to have employees? What kinds of risks will your business face? Are you willing to take on these risks as an individual?

Use this tool to find the best structure for your business – Free Business Structure Wizard

These are just a few of the questions you need to consider when determining the structure of your organization. However, it’s a good idea to consult both a CPA and attorney when making this decision, as this will affect how you file your taxes and how much personal risk you are willing to accept.

If you’re starting a business, you definitely need to check out CorpNet! Founded by experienced entrepreneur Nellie Akalp, who’s helped over 100,000 small business owners get their start, CorpNet can assist you with filing a DBA (“doing business as”), Forming a Corporation, or an LLC (Limited Liability Company), by completing the process quickly and affordably saving you time and money with fast reliable service. CorpNet packages start from just $79, plus state filing fees. This is SO much cheaper than what an attorney will charge. The site also offers a FREE Business Name Search Feature where you can conduct unlimited business name searches and get your results within 24 hours.

Thirdly, you need to determine how much involvement you want to have filing your taxes, or consider hiring a professional to handle this for you. If you decide to file yourself and want to simplify the process, consider filing your business as one of the following: a sole proprietorship, partnership or LLC. If you choose one of these structures, you can report your business income on your personal tax return and do not have to file a separate business return. This keeps the paperwork to a minimum.

In addition, you need to determine your work structure. As a new company, you may find yourself working from home, initially, or maybe this is your long-term plan. Lucky you. Running a business out of your home may qualify you for tax breaks. For instance, you may be able to receive a tax credit for a percentage of your internet, electricity, and other bills that are business-related. Do your homework and consult a CPA when filing, as there may be stipulations for these tax credits.

Lastly, plan for retirement. When decisions seem to be overwhelming, just remember that many of the initial decisions only have to be made once when starting your own business, so spend ample time making the right decisions.

When selecting a retirement plan, you need to take advantage of available tax incentives Also, you should choose a plan that’s beneficial to small business owners. You might consider selecting a Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees, which is appropriate for companies with less than 100 employees. You should choose this option if you want to minimize administrative costs.

Alternatively, you can offer a Simplified Employee Pension IRA, contributing up to 25%, maxing out at $53,000. Clearly there are various options, so again, network with other professionals for advice in this area.

When you start your own business, you certainly have your hands full with numerous opportunities. Be patient and allow yourself adequate time to plan, and seek out professional help with those unfamiliar issues. You don’t have to be an expert at everything – you just need to be an expert at one thing – starting and running a successful company.

Whether you’re planning a business conference, a cultural event, or a rock concert, if you want the event to sell out, preparation is pivotal.

You need to utilize management software, plan your strategies for promotion, come up with amazing content, and create the right pricing strategy.

And as long as you put in an incredible event that everyone enjoys, it will be much easier to build your reputation and sell out the event that comes after.

1. Utilize Venue Management Software

The easier you make it for people to register for events and purchase tickets, the more people you’ll get signing up.

By using an online event registration platform that includes online event registration tools, ticketing and checking-in can be streamlined and you can boost sign-ups for your next event.

And when you incorporate management software into your event preparation, you ensure that all team members can instantly access information and all payments are secure, in addition to making sure the event runs smoothly and efficiently.

2. Carefully Plan Your Marketing Strategies

In order to get people to register for your event, you need to promote the heck out of it. Spend time planning your marketing strategies so you can find the most effective promotion routes.

It’s important that your website uses the best SEO methods to rank highly on search engines. It’s also vital you utilize social media to the fullest.

Leverage social networks that your target audience uses, share updates with your followers, actively seek out new followers, post interesting content like blogs and videos, and use other social media marketing tactics to reach more people.

You can also get in touch with people who have attended your previous events and sponsors too. Both can help to promote your event if you offer the right incentives. And if your event involves speakers and panelists, get them involved with social media promotion.

While a social media explosion is needed to make your event a successful sell-out, don’t overlook offline marketing. Put up posters, hand out leaflets, and get on local radio shows in the area where your event will be held.

3. Create an Amazing Event Description

One thing that event planners often overlook is just how important an event description is.

To promote your event, whether it be a lecture or a pop concert, you need to inform people about what the event includes and make the event sound interesting and fun.

You definitely need to use attractive visuals to get your message across, but the event description is just as crucial.

Look at how other similar events word their descriptions and know which information to prioritize.

Make sure the wording is suitable for your target audience, too. If your event is for seniors, you’ll want to avoid millennial slang.

You also need to make it sharp and concise. No one wants to read masses of information.

Consider hiring a professional copywriter or content writer to help you nail the event description.

4. Come Up with the Right Pricing Strategy

Setting the price of the event can make or break whether it sells out.

You need to cover your costs and make a profit, but you also need to entice people with attractive prices.

The best way of creating the price for the event is to look at your competitors and research what people are willing to pay for the services you are providing.

Once you have done that, come up with at least two different types of pricing to entice people in early. For instance, have a less-expensive early-bird price and a regular price. By doing so, you create a sense of urgency that will encourage people to purchase tickets sooner.

One of the most cherished sayings in the content marketing world is “don’t build on rented land.”

I don’t know where this started but it has been repeated ad nauseam on Copyblogger, Content Marketing Institute, endless podcasts … well, everywhere.

But I have said for many years, that yes, you absolutely need to build on rented land because that’s where your customers are. And now, there’s data to prove I’m right. So let’s dive into the mythology of this cherished saying and why we need to shatter this outdated thinking once and for all.

In defense of the home base

First, I want to emphasize that of course, you need an archive for your content outside of the social media world. If you don’t have an “owned” home for your content, your entire web presence is at risk. I feel bad for those who bet their careers on Google Plus or, more recently, Facebook Notes, and then had the rug pulled out from under them.

But many of the anti-rented-landers argue that everything should be on your home base and that you need to own your audience and community on your own site. Their philosophy is that when you publish outside your own website you don’t have any hope of “owning” your audience.

As I’ll show today, the dynamics of the web today necessitate that we update our thinking about our content and audience.

An efficient strategy

The first reason we should establish strong content hubs on the leading social channels is efficiency.

If you publish on LinkedIn, YouTube, etc, your content becomes part of the organic user experience. It flows in the timeline. But if the content is hidden away in some private archive or community, instead of spending time creating content, you’ll be forced to focus your precious time DRAGGING people to your website every day. Unlikely.

It’s more efficient to reach people where they are hanging out instead of spending your resources convincing them that they need to visit your website.

The positive economics of rented land

The second reason to build hubs on rented land is economics.

The economic value of content that is not seen and shared is zero. So, your job as a marketer is to unleash that content. Get it in front of as many people as possible. Put it anywhere it can possibly be seen and enjoyed.

That also means removing gates that keep people from getting to your content, but that’s a story for another day.

Content does not drive the ROI of content marketing. TRANSMISSION of content drives your return. So build a competency in moving content everywhere, every day.

The new reality of rented land

Rand Fishkin, the mastermind behind Spark Toro recently wrote an interesting piece called The Incentives to Publish No Longer Reward the Web’s Creators.

It is worth the full read, but here is a snapshot of the current content publishing landscape, according to Rand:

• Google dramatically reduced the visibility of organic links in favor of paid advertisements and Alphabet-owned properties/instant answers. They now have about 95 percent monopoly control of the search landscape.
• The major social players have all either:
  • prohibited external links (TikTok)
  • reduced the reach of anything that includes an external link (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram – indirectly by reducing reach* of posts that include “link in bio” or similar)
  • encouraged user cultures skeptical of external links (Reddit, Discord, YouTube, Pinterest, Quora)
  • and killed or never allowed referral tracking so creators can see where their traffic comes from (Instagram, Discord, WhatsApp, Google Discover, and others)
• Meanwhile, no major new platform has risen to benefit creators who publish on their own sites. Google Discover is the possible exception, but since it hides referral traffic, supposedly reporting on it only in Search Console, it’s intentionally hard to determine or trust)

Ten years ago, creating amazing content that people would want to consume and share was a powerful way to build a brand on the web. But today, that same content is unlikely to get 10 percent of the reach or clicks it received just a few years ago.

In summary … Content Shock has arrived.

The data show that building a content hub on your own site alone is not going to reach an optimal audience today. Publishing “on rented land” isn’t just an efficient and economic choice, it’s an essential one.

Adjusting the world view

In essence, every social media policy, practice, and procedure enacted over the past 10 years has made it nearly impossible to drive people to your “owned” media presence. So why are we still obsessed with this idea?

If you weren’t convinced before that the efficiency and economics of publishing on rented land made sense, the fact that the world is literally built to support this strategy should push you over the top.

Set your content free. Publish everywhere and anywhere your audience could possibly see it whether that is owned land, rented land, or the dark side of the moon.