Chapter 80

Consistency Wins

One of the most common reactions I get from readers is that they feel overwhelmed and don't know how to incorporate all these strategies into their daily schedule. As with any process, there are two aspects to a successful implementation. The first involves all the set-up work and the second involves the ongoing maintenance work that keeps the strategies engaged. The set-up work is awful. It's frustrating. It's infuriating. “Where's my photo?” “This link doesn't work!” “Where's the text I just uploaded?” We've all been there. But once the set-up work is complete, the maintenance work is much easier.

When starting a new project, expect chaos at first. Expect disaster. Expect frustration. But also take comfort knowing that three hours later, when you've finally figured it out, you'll have one more layer of online activity—one more layer of credibility—in place. Initiate one new project each week. Maybe you can do it on Friday afternoon when you're not as busy as the rest of the week. One by one, you can endure the frustration and tackle another strategy, each one adding another layer to the mix.

Marketing reminds me of expensive sports cars. These sports cars often have ten or more layers of paint—maybe five layers of color and another five of clear gloss. Together, all those layers create an incredible finish. Marketing is similar. You have to pile layer on top of layer on top of layer. Put your content in every raging river you can find. Keep piling ...

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