All Posts by Brian Ainsley Horn

Digital Marketing Link RoundUp 7

Every week thousands of new marketing blog posts and helpful resources are published online. Some provide great insight to strategies and tactics, some help us work smarter, some help us grow...and others are just plain fun.

I'm reading and sifting through them anyway. I figured that I might as well share my favorites with you.

Over 5000 marketers get this list in their email each week.  Click the button below to join them. 

First...if you are new here, read my post on How To Create A Simple Lead Funnel For The Digital Attention Span Economy.

Next, check out my favorites discoveries from the last week:

7 Best Blog Name Generators to Help You Find Good Blog Name Ideas - These blog name generators are online tools which generate blog name ideas based on the keywords you enter. They use clever hacks to generate unique blog names that you can use.

How to Create An Impactful About Page For Your Website - The About page is arguably one of the most important pages by far. 

Landing in the Inbox vs. Falling in Gmail’s Promotions Tab -  This article explains what changed and how you can benefit from the recent update.

Income Report: 3 Ways My Podcast Makes Money (And How You Can, Too) - In this income report, Pat Flynn takes you “behind the microphone” and shares three different ways his podcast makes him more money, and exactly where it all comes from.

11 of The Best Online Custom Logo Makers to Use For Your Business - Some are free; others do have a cost. But all can be used to create a unique logo, even if you’re not a designer.


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Digital Marketing Link RoundUp 6

Every week thousands of new marketing blog posts and helpful resources are published online. Some provide great insight to strategies and tactics, some help us work smarter, some help us grow...and others are just plain fun.

I'm reading and sifting through them anyway. I figured that I might as well share my favorites with you.

Over 5000 marketers get this list in their email each week.  Click the button below to join them. 

First...if you are new here, read my post on How To Create A Simple Lead Funnel For The Digital Attention Span Economy.

Next, check out my favorites discoveries from the last week:

8 of the Best Professional Bio Examples We've Ever Seen [+ Bio Templates] - Eight real bio examples you should definitely compare yours to -- and a series of free bio templates you can use to perfect it 

5 Forgotten Ways to Improve Your Link-Building Strategy - Less obvious, but essential elements of a successful link-building strategy.

The Single Best WordPress Plugin Across Every Essential Category - This is a resource to identify the top must-have plugin for each major category.

YouTube SEO: How to Rank Your Videos From Start to Finish - Great 7-step process to get your videos ranked and watched on YouTube.


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If you came across a great piece of content you'd think our readers would enjoy, I'd love to know about it.

Just send us a message on our contact page.


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Digital Marketing Link RoundUp 5

Every week thousands of new marketing blog posts and helpful resources are published online. Some provide great insight to strategies and tactics, some help us work smarter, some help us grow...and others are just plain fun.

I'm reading and sifting through them anyway. I figured that I might as well share my favorites with you.

Over 5000 marketers get this list in their email each week.  Click the button below to join them. 

First...if you are new here, read my post on How To Create A Simple Lead Funnel For The Digital Attention Span Economy.

Next, check out my favorites discoveries from the last week:

The Kondo Method for SEO -  Six ways to leverage KonMari's basic principles to improve SEO. @grantoster

13 Website Design Best Practices For 2019 - Why does design matter? It only takes 0.05 seconds for people to form an opinion about your website. Most of that opinion is coming from the design.

The Best Time to Post on LinkedIn in 2019 [Cheat Sheet] - Sprout Social pinpointed the days and times that could generate the most engagement on LinkedIn for your brand - via @BigRedDawg16

Everything You Must Know About SEO Copywriting In 2019 - SEO copywriting could be considered an art, but there is a recipe to follow. via @lilachbullock

How Agencies Can Create 50 New Pieces of Content With Very Little Time - @DrewMcLellan shares how to start with a piece of cornerstone content, then slice it up to create more than 50 pieces of new content. via


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Digital Marketing Link RoundUp 4

Every week thousands of new marketing blog posts and helpful resources are published online. Some provide great insight to strategies and tactics, some help us work smarter, some help us grow...and others are just plain fun.

I'm reading and sifting through them anyway. I figured that I might as well share my favorites with you.

Over 5000 marketers get this list in their email each week.  Click the button below to join them. 

First...if you are new here, read my post on How To Create A Simple Lead Funnel For The Digital Attention Span Economy.

Next, check out my favorites discoveries from the last week:

Are You Ready for the Content Marketing Separation? Because Here it Comes! - There is a separation point coming in content marketing that will elevate real writers and truly helpful content. 

18 Ways to Create Scannable Content for Your Blog - People will decide whether or not to read it based on their initial scan, so you need to learn to write scannable content.

7 Outdated SEO Writing Myths That Will Not Die - Some sites are built on stupid SEO copy strategies. But unfortunately, they are like slow-moving viruses that are making the site “sick.”

12 Winning Strategies to Boost Your Click-Through Rates - Every part of your email has a role to play. Your subject line sells the open. But what you do within your email and how you present your link, is what sells the click.

Social Media Audience: Your Audience Might Not Be Where You Think They Are - Facebook is losing market share and marketing trends are continuously changing, so marketers need to continuously adapt.

10 Magazine Lessons That Will Make You A Better Content Marketer - There are core magazine factors contribute to quality content and can make you a better content marketer.

How to Increase Productivity as a Digital Business Owner - Six simple productivity hacks that can reduce downtime without too much mental angst.


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If you came across a great piece of content you'd think our readers would enjoy, I'd love to know about it.

Just send us a message on our contact page.


Connect With Me

Digital Marketing Link RoundUp 3

Every week thousands of new marketing blog posts and helpful resources are published online. Some provide great insight to strategies and tactics, some help us work smarter, some help us grow...and others are just plain fun.

I'm reading and sifting through them anyway. I figured that I might as well share my favorites with you.

Over 5000 marketers get this list in their email each week.  Click the button below to join them. 

Here are my favorites from the last week:

7 Great Instagram Scheduling Tools for 2019 -  Some of the best third-party apps allow you to schedule Instagram posts. 

12 High-Converting Landing Pages (That’ll Make You Wish You Built ‘Em) - Good-looking landing pages are awesome, but ones that convert are even better.

A Minimalist’s Guide to Visual Content Marketing (Even If You’re Not a Designer) - Design is learnable and if you’re willing to practice what you learn, you can start using visuals to give everything you publish more impact and meaning.

Cognitive Marketing: 5 Psychological Tricks to Boost Your Marketing ROI - Overview of some cognitive biases people rely on when making a decision, and a peek at which marketing ideas you can apply after discovering these biases.

How To Automate Instagram With Social Shark - Engagement growth tool focused on engaging with users within your niche and target audience. (Free 7-day trial)


Got a Suggestion?

If you came across a great piece of content you'd think our readers would enjoy, I'd love to know about it.

Just send us a message on our contact page.

Digital Marketing Link RoundUp 2

Every week thousands of new marketing blog posts and helpful resources are published online. Some provide great insight to strategies and tactics, some help us work smarter, some help us grow...and others are just plain fun.

I'm reading and sifting through them anyway. I figured that I might as well share my favorites with you.

Over 5000 marketers get this list in their email each week.  Click the button below to join them. 

Here are my favorites from the last week:

WordPress Categories vs Tags: What You Need To Know To Build A Better Site - Good walkthrough of how to use tags and categories together to build a better site.

The 6-Step Plan to Escape the Spam Folder - Even though you’re not a spammer your emails can still land in the spam folder. AWeber's Director of Deliverability shows how to avoid it (or get out of it).

The Ultimate Guide to Content Curation (With Examples!) - Tools and tactics for streamlining the content curation process.

How to Use GIFs in Your Marketing to Boost Engagement - Tips on how to get on the GIF trend to get your message across and boost engagement

Ubersuggest - Neil Patel's free keyword tool that's almost as good as paid tools that cost $50+ a month. 


Got a Suggestion?

If you came across a great piece of content you'd think our readers would enjoy, I'd love to know about it.

Just send us a message on our contact page.

Digital Marketing Link RoundUp 1

Every week thousands of new marketing blog posts and helpful resources are published online. Some provide great insight to strategies and tactics, some help us work smarter, some help us grow...and others are just plain fun.

I'm reading and sifting through them anyway. I figured that I might as well share my favorites with you.

Over 5000 marketers get this list in their email each week.  Click the button below to join them. 

Here are my favorites from the last week:

Overlooked SEO: Optimizing Images and Video For Search - Great walkthrough on how to optimize your images and videos so you can get more organic traffic.

The True Winners and Losers of 2019’s Super Bowl Ads, According to Neuroscience - A group of people were hooked up to a device that tracks neurochemicals in their brain while they watched the Super Bowl to see what ads actually had the biggest effect.

SEO Marketing Hub  - Brian Dean created this huge SEO training resource.  You need to bookmark this one for sure.

35 Blogging Ideas That Are Guaranteed to Be Popular Topics - Articles, topics, and approaches that have demonstrated massive success for bloggers in the past and will continue to do so in the future.

5 Things Successful Content Marketers Do to Make Sure Their Work Gets Read - Most content never gets read, this article breaks five specific things you can do that will actual move the needle in getting more eyeballs on your content


Got a Suggestion?

If you came across a great piece of content you'd think our readers would enjoy, I'd love to know about it.

Just send us a message on our contact page.

Quickly Turn (Even The Dumbest) Prospect Questions Into Headlines That Get Clicked

Quickly Turn (Even The Dumbest) Prospect Questions Into Headlines That Get Clicked

Detailed walkthrough of a simple headline formula that can turn any prospect question into headlines that will get more visitors to your site.

When it comes to helping your prospects and addressing their pain there probably aren't really any dumb questions, but that using that word in the headline is just an example of what this article is covering.  

People see the headline before anything else. It will do one of two things...get their attention...or it won't.   Site visitors will either stay and read or move on to something else.

In fact, according to Brian Clark of Copyblogger, as many as 80% of people will read the average headline when they come across it, but only 20% of people will actually read the entire blog post.

That’s why it's so critical you get it right. 

The most important element of a headline is that it addresses a real problem the reader is experiencing.  But you also have to make your headline as intriguing as possible.

I'm going to walk you through a simple headline formula that can turn any prospect questions into headlines that will get more visitors to your site.

FINDING THE QUESTION TO ANSWER 

I touched on this in the post on creating a simple lead funnel, and since it's such a critical piece of this puzzle, I'll include it here too.

You can use Quora and Reddit to go inside the mind of your potential customers and reveal what issues they need help with the most.

Quora is a question-and-answer website where questions are asked, answered, edited, and organized by its community of users. You can research your market here and find their most common questions.

Reddit is a massive collection of forums, where people can share news and content or comment on other people’s posts. Find your market's forums and you'll see their struggles.

If you need a detailed walkthough on using these two resources, I included it in this post's bonus section.

EXPANDED BONUS TRAINING

USE QUORA & REDDIT TO FIND PROSPECTS' QUESTIONS

Get the step-by-step process to find the best questions to answer in your content for both Quora and Reddit.

After using the above methods to find one of your prospect's questions, you're ready to build a headline around it.

The headline formula below is perfect for this process of turning questions into blog post headlines.

HOW TO BUILD CLICKABLE HEADLINE WITH
THe Easy 4-u Headline Formula

The only “trick” to getting people to click on your headlines is meeting them where they are: promising them a useful, ultra-specific, urgent, and unique answer to their problems.

Melanie Duncan’s 4U formula is ideal for turning a question into a compelling headline that will get clicks.

STEP 1. MAKE IT USEFUL IN SOLVING A PROBLEM

Step 1 of the formula is to solve a customer problem

Think about the articles you click on when you’re scrolling through Facebook or checking your emails in the morning.

​Probably it's the ones that solve a problem you are experiencing.

Understanding what will be useful to your audience is part of understanding who they are and what they want. It meets them where they’re at, identifying a problem they may be experiencing or a solution they may be looking for.

The Quora & Reddit method above is a perfect way to find what will be useful to your market.

In most cases this is a very simple step.  You just need to turn the question into a statement.

For this post, the question I was answering was, "What's the best headline formula for a post that answers questions?"

After applying this step the headline was:

"How To Turn Questions Into Headlines"

That directly addresses the problem in the question, and makes a promise to solve it.

But it's boring.  In the next steps, we'll tweak it to make it more clickable.

2. Is ULTRA SPECIFIC

Being ultra-specific like Buzzfeed headlines is step 2 of creating clickable headlines

This kind of headline is popular because it works; we as readers like the specificity of knowing exactly what we’re going to get. The best headlines also go beyond that to be even more specific.

Take the headline, "7 Common Foods You Should Never Eat"...it's not just foods you shouldn’t eat, but common foods.

Or "70 At-Home Date Night Ideas To Try Tonight"...is not just date night ideas, but at-home date night ideas.

According to an article on Hello Bar, we shouldn't be afraid of using extra words. If you keep your headline to about 77 characters or fewer, you’ll do fine.

After applying this step the headline became:

"How To Turn Prospect Questions Into Headlines That Get Clicked"

It's not just questions...but prospect questions.

And not just headlines..but headlines "that get clicked".

3. CONVEYS A SENSE OF URGENCY

fear of missing out (FOMO) is applied in step 3 of the headline formula

AdWeek's Jennifer Lux explains, "If you have ever made a purchase due to social pressure, fear of not getting a deal or discontent around possibly missing out on a shared experience, you know exactly what it feels like to be incentivized by the fear of missing out (FOMO)."

Applying this psychology in key ways will not only give you an edge over your competition but will also help your target market feel connected long-term to both your brand and its purchases.

Some words you can use in your headline to create urgency are:


  • Now
  • Fast
  • Quick
  • Hurry
  • Rapidly
  • Close
  • Approaching
  • Never
  • Seconds
  • Again
  • Over
  • Instant
In the bonus area of this post is a list of another 100+ words you can start inserting into your post headlines to create even more Urgency and boost click through rates.

EXPANDED BONUS TRAINING

100+ POWER WORDS FOR HEADLINES

After applying this step the headline became:

"How To Quickly Turn Prospect Questions Into Headlines That Get Clicked"

It's not just turn...but quickly turn.

4. Make It UNIQUE

Step 4 is doing anything you can to make your headline unique will help it stand out in an oversaturated digital world.

Whenever you Google a topic, you get a selection of articles, blog posts, or websites on the same topic.

If the title seems too familiar, some consumers will skip over your content purely because they’ve read a similar article, says research from online monitoring tool Keyhole.co.

Anything you can do to make your headline unique will help it stand out in an oversaturated digital world. 

After applying this step the headline became:

"Quickly Turn (Even The Dumbest) Prospect Questions Into Headlines That Get Clicked"

Adding (Even The Dumbest) to the headline would make it standout in a search result or a social media feed. 

Examples of Unusual Headlines:

YOUR 4-U HEADLINE IS DONE!

My headline was significantly better and the process took just a few minutes.

When you put these four elements together, you’ll find you come up with better headlines every time.

Easy 4-U Headline Formula for building clickable headlines

Let's walkthrough another example of the 4-U Headline Formula.

For example, if you have a health product and wanted to write a blog post around the question:

"What's a good macro diet plan?"

STEP 1:  MAKE IT USEFUL

Since you already have the question, you know it will be useful to your market. We just need to tweak it to give the prospect exactly what they want.   They want a good macro diet plan...so let's just give them the "best".

The Best Macro Diet Plan

STEP 2: MAKE IT ULTRA-SPECIFIC

Now, we want to make it more targeted in focus.   First, I made it focus on losing fat (versus building muscle or increasing energy).

The Best Macro Diet Plan To Lose Fat

But then I thought it needed to be even more specific, so I made it focus only on losing belly fat.

The Best Macro Diet Plan To Lose Belly Fat

STEP 3: MAKE IT URGENT

Next, we want to add a sense of urgency.   This topic leads itself perfectly to using the time element of urgency, so I added "in 30 Days".

The Best Macro Diet Plan To Lose Belly Fat in 30 Days

STEP 4: MAKE IT UNIQUE

In this final step the goal is to make it stand out.  

I thought that "in 30 Days" would be the best place to try and add some flavor.  So, I Googled "faster than sayings" and found a page full of good examples.

I loved the "faster than a toupee in a hurricane", but it did require I tweak the rest of the headline a little bit.

Ended up with this:

This Macro Diet Plan Will Make You Lose Belly Fat Faster Than a Toupee in a Hurricane

How much more engaging is that final headline above compared to the one we started with?

You can even split test blog post headlines easily if you are using WordPress.  

It can track click-throughs on your post, so you can find out the best one.

I show you how to do it in the bonus section.

EXPANDED BONUS TRAINING

SPLIT TEST HEADLINES IN WORDPRESS

CONCLUSION

It’s easy to let headlines take the back seat in your writing process. Headlines can wind up as a quick afterthought, but really should be treated with much more consideration. 

Make sure to give your headline creation process the time and attention it deserves.  Don't make it an after thought.  

The right headline can be the difference between a viral post and one that never is seen by anyone but you. 

TRY THIS...TYPE ONE OF YOUR PROSPECTS' QUESTIONS IN THE COMMENTS AND I'LL APPLY THE 4-U FORMULA FOR YOU!

BONUS SECTION

  • 1
    100+ Power Words That Get More Headline Clicks
  • 2
    Find Prospects Questions Using Quora & Reddit
  • 3
    Plugin To Split Test Blog Headlines
  • 4
    PDF Version Of This Post And Bonus Content

How You Can Copy Our Best Ebook Squeeze Page In 30 Mins

[Free Template + Step-By-Step Instructions]

The ebook squeeze page for the Ultimate List of Guest Contributor Opportunities converted at almost 60% the first time we promoted it, and averages around 20% from cold traffic to the blog.  

It's most successful landing page I've done in my 10+ year career online.

The funny thing is that it was one of the fastest pages I've ever made too.

Successful and easy?  Kinda cool.

This is what it looks like (click on the image to see a full screenshot of the entire page):

Anyway, I thought you might find it helpful to see exactly how I did it.  

To start, I used the Thrive Architect Plugin to build the page (you can grab it here if you don't have it yet).

You could use another page builder, but Thrive Architect is by far my favorite. Easiest to use, inexpensive and great conversion-focused features.  It's a no brainer if you are an online marketer.  

I'll show you how  to recreate this exact ebook squeeze page (and even where you can get the premium template we used for free).

Here we go...

STEP 1: Chose a Template

First, I looked through the near 300 templates that come with Thrive Architect to find one that would work for this page.

Here's how you choose and publish a template with Thrive Architect:

I found several that I liked and would have worked fine, but I wanted to see a few more options.

So I checked out The Landing Factory.   They have beautiful premium templates that range in price from free to $16.

I found this free one right away that I loved (and was even designed to be an ebook squeeze page):

I grabbed it and uploaded to our site. Took less than a minute.

Here's how easy it is:

Now that it is uploaded, I'm ready to get started.

STEP 2: Tweak The Layout

The first thing I do is make adjustments to the layout and backgrounds.  

The thing that caught my eye first was the top section with the book...so I didn't want to change much there.

But I thought the plain white background area with all the icons could use a little something, so I added a pattern layer with a very subtle diagonal line that looks like a really nice piece of paper.


It's very easy to change backgrounds to almost whatever you want...patterns, gradients, images or even videos:

I wanted to use that white area to highlight some of the features in the book, but I also wanted another area to show the overall benefits of being a contributing writer.

So I drug another background area in between the white and black ones.  Set the background color to the same orange.

Next, I added a third row in the black area.  My  book has three sections (Premium Media Outlets, Guaranteed Approval Sites and Industry Blogs), so it's the perfect spot to highlight each of them.

I just selected the "3rd Sequel" row, and clicked the green copy button. 

Before

After

The testimonials I wanted to use on this were short, so I needed to change the testimonial section.  So, I added another background element and set the color to a gray. 

Then, I drug in a Testimonial Element, which opens the available testimonial templates.

The Resume Clients one was perfect.  It has short copy and were all in one row that will be easy for a visitor to scan on a squeeze page.

Now that I have that testimonial section, I can delete the old testimonials on the template.  

After looking at it, I also decided I didn't want that entire white section.  So, I just deleted it, which left the blue CTA (call to action) area laid up right next to the new gray testimonial section.

Next, I used the "Decorations" option to add a slanted edge to the top and bottom of the CTA so that it subtle draws the readers eyes toward the button.   

This is one of my favorite features of Thrive Architect.  You can really make a page look like a professional designer did it for you.

Here are some of the options using the Decorations Element:

Looking good. But then I thought it'd be a good idea to include a section below the blue CTA to point out that I've used these strategies myself to be a guest contributor to many publications.

So, I drug a new background below the CTA and set the color to black.  I also added a 2-column table (one to add an image of me, and one for some copy).

Now that the layout is done, I can go back and start adding content.

STEP 3: Updated Images & Icon

The first type of content I wanted to add was the images.

I started from the top and worked my way down the squeeze page.

I swapped out the logo by clicking on it to open the image options, then clicking Replace Image:

That will open the standard WordPress image window where you can either upload a new one or select an existing one.  I already had the logo in the library, so I added it.

It came out the same width as the template's logo, which was too small for mine.   I opened the options, drug the slider until it looked the way I wanted:

I also liked the grayscale style of the default logo, so I expanded the Image Effects and drug the Grayscale slider to 100%:

Now that the logo was the way I wanted, I moved on to the main book image.

I replaced it with my book image, but it ended up being too big.  

I opened the options for it, and drug the size slider until it fit the background area.

Next, I moved down to the testimonial section and replaced the default pictures.  I didn't need to adjust anything in the settings.

The last piece I needed to do with images was to add my pic in the area below the CTA.   Since there wasn't an image already, I dragged an Image Element into the right column of the table I added earlier.

I made a video walkthrough of how to work with images using Thrive Architect:

The next thing I had to do was edit the icons.

The main icons on this page were in the white area. I loved the ones included and definitely wanted to use them.

There were 6 features in my book that I wanted to highlight, so I just had to drag-and-drop the icons around to the places I wanted them.  Easy.

The only other icons were the quotes in the testimonial element which I changed to the orange color used in other areas.

But there are other ways to customize icons I didn't use on this page:

That part was done now too. 

Next step, was to change the copy.

STEP 4: Changed Copy

This part was fast and easy because I liked the fonts, colors and layout of the template.  So there wasn't much customization needed.

I just retyped my content on top of the template.  I did make some small adjustments to font size and position in the main area at the top so it would fit properly.

The only real thing I had to do was add additional paragraphs in the black 3 part book section for each area.  No more than just dragging a paragraph element under the bold one for each section and adjusting the color of the font.

I made a video showing how to work with the font elements:

STEP 5: Added Conversion Elements

I only used one type of conversion elements on this page - a button that triggers a pop up lightbox with an optin form.

There were two of these buttons on the page (at the top and in the blue CTA area). The button could link to another page with a form, but I set it to trigger a lightbox.

I had to set up a light box first, which is in a different section of WordPress.

From the Dashboard, there is a "Thrive Lightboxes" link in the side bar.  Hover over it, and click "Add New".

Then just give the lightbox a name, and click the green "Launch Thrive Architect" button.  This opens the same Thrive Architect design screen we've been working with on the ebook optin page.

I drug in headline and paragraph elements. Then added a Lead Generation element from the same side bar.

Added my own copy and styled it a bit.

This is what it looked like:

Next, I connected it with our email service.

Click on the Lead Generation element to get the options menu. Under the Main Options area is a hyperlink to "Connect Form To Service":

The steps in this will be a little different depending on your email provider.  We use ConvertKit, and it was an easy process (I'm sure it's no different with most other services).

The Lightbox is finished and ready to go, so I saved it and went back the ebook optin page.

I clicked on the top button to open the options, then expanded the Animation & Action.

I chose "Popups" as the type of action, then connected it to the Lightbox I created.    

The orange button was done.

I went through the same quick process for the button in the blue CTA area.

This is what the Lightbox looks like when you click one of the buttons:

THAT'S IT!!!   THE PAGE IS DONE!!!

It took me about 30 minutes from start to finish.  

This is the starting template laid up next to my version:

Starting Template

Final Squeeze Page

I've been using Thrive Architect for a while, and had the vision in my head. Plus I had all the copy and images ready to go.   

So, may take you a little longer...but should still be faster than any other page builder

Review

Since I built this with Thrive Architect, I thought I should do a quick review in case you're thinking about testing it out.

Features

The thing that really separates it from every other page builder is the conversion features. Thrive Architect was designed specifically for online marketers that want to build their list. If that's you, this is a no-brainer.

Ease of Use

I've used just about every page builder out there, and Thrive Architect is by far the most intuitive and easiest to use. Anyone can edit a template like I did, and quickly create a professional landing page.

Support

They don't have phone or live chat support. But they do respond pretty fast to support questions in their forum - about an hour or so.  Thrive also has one of the best training areas of any online tool I've ever used.  Dozens of video walkthroughs that cover every feature.

Price

You can get a lifetime license for just $67, which is pretty cheap considering most competitors charge monthly or yearly fees that are about that same price. It also comes with a 30-day guarantee, so you can try it out risk free.

Thrive Architect also enhances your experience working with other Thrive products like Thrive Leads and Thrive Quiz Builder.

The Thrive team is very responsive to feedback, and what we’re seeing now with Thrive Architect is just the beginning. Over time, the product will continue to improve and get better and better.

So if you are looking to design a landing page or just want to create visually appealing blog posts, 
I highly recommend giving Thrive Architect a try. 

Click the button below to get your copy, or you watch a full video walkthrough and see details of all the features.

How To Create A Simple Lead Funnel For The Digital Attention Span Economy

Show Article Summary (TL;DR)

Have you noticed that it's getting harder to get customers to buy your digital products?

First, it's tough to even get your prospect's attention. There are over 4 million blog posts published daily and there are 317,000 Facebook status updates every 60 seconds.

But even if you do get someone to click through and read a blog post, the average email opt-in rate is only 1.95%.

For your business to survive, you need consistent leads...but how can you get those leads if you can't get noticed and the few that do won't give you their email address?

The word "frustrating" doesn't even begin to describe it.

But there is some good news.

Companies like Hubspot, Wistia and Closio are dominating their niches. Marketers like Pat Flynn and Neil Patel have cult-like followings.

What are they doing different with their lead funnel?

Much Simpler Than You Think.

Not too long ago,  I was reading a post on Hubspot, then immediately looked at one about a similar topic on Pat Flynn's blog.

It hit me like a ton of bricks. 

They were doing something very similar with the way they were converting visitors into leads.

I immediately looked at the sites of other successful marketers and companies that have also had rapid growth the last few years.  The same repeated patterns were in their lead generation funnels.  

Then, I began researching more of these successful companies and entrepreneurs, and saw many of the same patterns.

And it was nothing to do with being a prolific writer, being an SEO master or having the latest technology on your site.

So what is it that makes them so special?

They use a formulaic (but very effective) approach in their lead generation strategies that is different than what almost everyone else is doing.  Most marketers and companies use certain elements of what they are doing, or even all of them, but they are not linking them together the same.

These sharp entrepreneurs have become masters at marketing to their prospects in what we named the "Digital Attention Span Economy".

In this post, I'm going to introduce you to the concept, share my research, break down exactly what those successful marketers are doing in their simple lead funnels, and show how you can do it too.

Let's dive in.

What Is The Digital Attention Span Economy?

"The currency of business is attention."

-Gary Vaynerchuk

In a 2015 study from Microsoft Corp., we start to lose concentration after about 8 seconds. This is a drop from 12 seconds in the year 2000 when the mobile revolution began. 

Microsoft theorized that the changes were a result of the brain’s ability to adapt and change itself over time and a weaker attention span may be a side effect of evolving to a mobile Internet.

This report took the marketing world by storm...and in a panic, marketers began creating an endless supply of shorter content.

We now have one-second radio spots, six-second videos, digital billboards that change ads displayed every six seconds and infographics instead of articles.

Shorter content for shorter attention spans...makes sense, right? Well, maybe not.

So if our attention span is just eight seconds, how can we spend 12 hours watching “The Walking Dead”?

Think about it this way:

People have become much more selective of the content to that they give their limited time to consume.  

This means that people will only spend about 8-seconds figuring out what they like, they'll spend much longer with content they actually like.

That eight-second attention span appears to be more like an EIGHT-SECOND FILTER.

But this doesn’t just apply to entertainment - it's the same in business too.

The median average time spent reading a business blog post is only 37 seconds.

But…

47% of B2B buyers read 3-5 blog posts or content pieces prior to talking with a salesperson.

So...what can you to do beat that 8-second filter and get your prospects to engage with your content?

It all boils down to this...the Digital Attention Span Lead Funnel.

In a Digital Attention Span Lead Funnel, you want to focus on capturing the attention of the right person, get them to quickly trust you, keep them engaged with quality content, then make it easy for them to start working with you.

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It's pretty obvious when you think about it, but small changes in execution seem to make all the difference.

At a high level, it looks like this:

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Now it's time to get into the actual meat of this post and break down the three lead funnel stages above and give actionable tactics you can implement.

DIGITAL ATTENTION SPAN LEAD FUNNEL
Step 1: Get Past The 8-Second Filter

Embed from Getty Images

"When I was growing up, I'd buy an album and I’d listen to the album.  I didn’t have that much music so when I bought an album I’d listen to it and if I didn’t like it, I’d still listen to it."

- Trent Reznor

We have instant access to almost every song ever recorded. No one will sit and listen to a single song, much less an entire album if they don’t like it anymore.

Just like a song has to hook the listener right away, you need to quickly win your visitors over.

During this 8-Second Filter Phase the quality of the content doesn’t really matter (we’ll get to that in the next step), because if you misfire here the visitors won’t stick around to even give it a chance.

Our benchmark for success here is to get them to STOP SCANNING / SWIPING / SCROLLING. Once we’ve done that, we’ve interrupted the filtering process and they’ve opened their mind to what we have to say.

The most effective way to that is by addressing two of the biggest questions on your prospect's mind.

1. Does this person understand my problem?

2. Is this person qualified to solve my problem

For the first question, keep in mind we're not even talking about solving their problem… yet. That would be pretty tough to do in 8 seconds. We just need to address their problem to let them know we understand.  

Luckily, many of your prospects are likely experiencing the same or similar problems, and you can find out what those very easily.

So here we go...

1.1 - Let Prospects Know You Understand Their Pain Points

Some quick research on two popular sites will take you inside the mind of your potential customers and reveal what issues they need help with the most.

Quora is a question-and-answer website where questions are asked, answered, edited, and organized by its community of users. You can research your market here and find their most common questions.

Reddit is a massive collection of forums where people can share news and content or comment on other people’s posts. Find your market's forums and you'll see their struggles.

EXPANDED bonus TRAINING
USE QUORA & REDDIT TO UNCOVER PROSPECTS PAINS

Get the step-by-step process to find the best questions to answer in your content for both Quora and Reddit.

The most important thing to focus on here is finding a very specific problem, and not a generic one.

Let's say you have a social media course for business owners.  

BAD:      "How do I get more customers?"
GOOD:   "How often should I post on my business Facebook page?"

The first one is way too wide open.  But the second is a very specific question and while it obviously doesn't encompass your complete solution, it's this type of question that is on the minds of your prospects while they are in that 8-second filtering mode. 

Once you have the question, you should check out this post I wrote on how to change a prospect question into a headline that gets clicked

1.2 - Let Prospects Know You're Qualified With Trust Triggers

Without knowing it, your prospects are actively searching for the mistakes you’ve made in order to validate their feelings of mistrust.

During this quick process they are looking for “trust triggers” - something that connects with their reptilian brain instantly and say, “Okay, this is the real deal. I'm safe.”

There are many types of trust triggers, but I want to focus on 3 right now that you can easily implement on a blog post in under an hour.

3 Powerful Trust Triggers You Can Add In Under An Hour

1. PUBLISHER LOGOS IN A CREDIBILITY BAR

In the age of native advertising, the lines between journalism and sponsored promotions have blurred, but there’s still a certain mystique in being able to say that Forbes, for example, has found your company noteworthy enough to mention it in an article.

Those “as seen on” montages of publisher logos that you see on many B2B websites are great for boosting confidence at a glance.

Below we can see the power of media logos in a credibility bar on the website of sales trainer Ryan Stewman.

Why? People like knowing that other companies trust you.

It’s social proof at work. 

2. Influencers & Celebrities

Influencers have already acquired trust and loyalty in their market, so by strategically blending them in your content, visitors associate the influencer's trustworthiness with you.

Eventually, they may also become loyal to your brand if they get what they expected.

Robert Cialdini, author of the groundbreaking book, “Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion”,  explains why influencers increase trust.

Cialdini says:

"People look towards those they consider an authority when they aren’t sure how to act in a situation or what to think about a product. In other words, we tend to believe an authority or celebrity when they tell us a brand is good."

Reference influencers and show that they agree with you on the topic you're proposing.

If you want to really grab your visitors attention, you should include their picture too (like what I did above with Cialdini and earlier with Gary Vaynerchuk).

Some influencers, like Cialdini and  Vaynerchuk have photos you can download from their site to use in your articles.  Just make sure you follow proper procedures for using them, and in no way imply an endorsement.

Also, look at including celebrities in your content. People’s attention perks up when there’s a celeb involved. We recognize the name and when they’re integrated into subjects we’re interested in, we get even more interested.

You can use Getty Images embed feature to post celebrity images in your blog posts for free.  I did this with the Trent Reznor image in this post. Again, just don’t imply an endorsement. 

3. TESTIMONIALS

In 1995 Amazon introduced public product reviews and everybody thought they lost their marbles.

Possibly the best review on Amazon ever.

Today, we can't imagine buying online without knowing what others are saying.

Neil Patel from Quick Sprouts says that while the main purpose of testimonials is to increase sales, you can also use them to help establish trust and credibility - which is at the core of beating that 8-Second Filter.

A trust building testimonial should explain a specific way your service helped them and also include a profile photo, full name and their job title.

A powerful technique is Content-Based Testimonials where specific testimonials are displayed on each post that relate to its topic.  

If the content is about how to get more leads from Facebook, the testimonial should be about how you helped them with Facebook.  It should not be about getting them a top Google result or even a general "he's a great guy" testimonial. 

In this post's bonus section, I dig into the topic of Content Based Testimonials: the very specific places you want to place them, how to format them and I share a WordPress plugin that makes it managing this process push button easy.

EXPANDED bonus TRAINING
CONTENT BASED TESTIMONIALS

Learn the where and how to properly place content based testimonials , plus the way to automate getting and displaying them with a WordPress plugin.

Remember, even if you’re legit, and you’re running a real business that truly helps people, new visitors don’t necessarily know that.

You’ve got to help them “see” that you’re the real deal in just a few seconds. These trust triggers will get them to stick around longer.

Now you're ready to win them over by helping them solve a problem.

DIGITAL ATTENTION SPAN LEAD FUNNEL
STEP 2: SOLVE ONE OF THEIR PROBLEMS

Embed from Getty Images

“This whole idea of an attention span is, I think, a misnomer. People have an infinite attention span if you are entertaining them.”

 - Jerry Seinfeld

In the past, “marketing strategies” were no more that pounding out the message that your stuff was better than your competitor.  ​

But the internet changed everything.

These days, if you want attention, you need to give your prospects something that traditional marketing strategies can’t: real value.

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Real value isn’t about how good you are at promoting. It’s about how you good you are at solving a problem.

John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing said:

"It never gets easier to hear this, but at the end of the day, people don’t want or care about what you sell. All they care about are that their problems are solved, and your products or services are simply a means to an end."

Create Content That Answers The Question

After using the methods in Step 1 to find a pain your prospects are having, you're ready to help them find the solution.  

Solving a problem is the most important component to creating a trusting relationship with your audience. 

The other critical elements for content in this marketing funnel is for it to be easy to read and engaging.

These are three simple structures work perfectly for this because they can be scanned and read easily:

  • How To Guides (5 Steps to Fix X)
  • Listicle (12 Easy Ways To Achieve X)
  • Curated List (7 Types of X That Will X)

Now, you are ready to get started with creating your content.

There are many different formats that can work here, but BlogTyrant's Ramsay Taplin has a great step-by-step process for writing content that meets Digital Attention Span Marketing objectives.

A couple of other things to consider...

Hubspot analyzed their stats and found that the ideal blog post length is roughly 2,100 wordsMedium and serpIQ had similar findings.  

You should also cite quality references. Every blog post you write not only delivers content to your audience, but also shapes their perception of you, your brand, and your authority and expertise. That’s why using only high-quality, primary sources for your content is critical.

Some good places to use as references are industry articles, thought leader blog posts, research studies and main stream news articles. Make sure you cite your sources properly and follow copyright laws.

But the best content in the world means nothing to you as a business owner if your visitors don't take the next step and get on your email list.


DIGITAL ATTENTION SPAN LEAD FUNNEL
STEP 3: Make It Easy to choose you

Embed from Getty Images

"You stick out of the crowd, baby, it's a no-brainer
It ain't that hard to choose
"

- DJ Khaled

So, what happens when a potential new lead discovers and consumes your content? At least 95% of the time, they read it and move on with their day.

The "Subscribe Now" optin box you see on every blog gets less than a 1% optin rate. 

So, if you can’t get people to sign up for your emails, then how do you get their contact information? Simple. Give them what they want.

Fortunately, they’re already telling you. They want to learn more about the topic they’re currently reading.

Take advantage of this knowledge with Content Upgrades

For example, imagine you've written the post "10 Ways To Get Your Home Ready To Sell" and provided detailed examples for each item.

A Content Upgrade might be a PDF checklist the reader can print out so they can work their way through the list on their own.

VideoFruit's Bryan Harris calls it "The Grocery Store Formula".

The analogy is that shoppers love stopping by the sample booth at the grocery store for free stuff.  The grocery store loves doing it because the more samples they give away the more products they sell.

It works online too.

Give away good free content, and people will be happy to "pay" by giving you their email address.

Visitors love getting the free information, and you will love doing it because the more information you give away the more prospects will join your mailing list.


Clay Collins and the LeadPages team implemented Content Upgrades and increased their subscriber rate from 0.5% to over 10% in a 30 day span.  

Before:  For every 1,000 visitors they collected 5 email addresses.
After:     For every 1,000 visitors they collect 100 email addresses.

Wow.  Now, that's the difference between a side hustle and a 6-7 figure business.

The key to a successful Content Upgrade is for it to clearly tie into the problem you are solving in the blog post...and make it even easier to solve.

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If your content is "The 10 Highest Converting Email Headline Formulas" your bonus could be "100 Email Headline Samples Using This Formula".  

It's a clear tie-in that someone looking for help writing email headlines would find very beneficial.

Something like "How To Get 1000 Twitter Followers in a Week" would not be closely related to that content on email headlines.

Example Of A High-Performing Content Upgrade

One of my more popular posts gives the steps to become a contributor for Forbes and 8 other authority sites.

The Content Upgrade for this post is The Ultimate List of Guest Contributor Opportunities which shows how become a contributor at over 100 other places.  

This is one of the offers visitors see on that page:

Someone that wants to start writing for Forbes, would probably be interested in writing for other sites too, so this is a clear tie-in.

The most common Content Upgrades are things like:

  • Checklists
  • Templates
  • Swipe Files
  • Resource Lists
  • Case Studies
  • eBooks

Another key to getting more visitors to give you their email address is to not just offer your Content Upgrade in one spot...but in multiple places and different formats throughout your post.

Rachel Leist with Hubspot suggests, “You can increase conversions by including more CTAs on your blog if they’re several different types of CTAs, in different formats.”

She outlines 8 different types of CTAs to try - including a slide-in, sidebar, in-content optin form and a Bottom of The Post Smart CTA.

In the post you are reading right now there are: 2 in-content CTAs, a bottom of the post CTA and a ribbon CTA.

CONCLUSION

The Digital Attention Span Economy is here.

Think of this process as a lead funnel template: You need to grab your prospect's attention, build trust quickly, solve their problem, and make it easy for them to get on your email list. 

Everyone from marketing consultants to professional bloggers to corporations to mom and pop local businesses can build their content marketing strategy around this simple lead funnel. 

And once you have theses leads you can apply a typical sales funnel strategy to turn them into customers.

If you enjoyed this post, please post it on social media or email to someone that might enjoy it too.

If you hated it...well, please just keep that to yourself.

BONUS SECTION

Now, let's take this somewhere awesome.

I've included some free bonus content that dives deeper into some of strategies, plus gives you access to resources and tools that make it easier to implement.

  • 1
    Step-By-Step Guide For Finding The Problems Your Customers Need Help With The Most Using Quora & Reddit
  • 2
    The 2 Best Places For Trust Building Testimonials In Your Content 
  • 3
    How To Automate Getting And Managing Testimonials With A WordPress Plugin
  • 4
    PDF Version Of This Post And All The Bonus Content
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