How to Become a Trusted Go-To Source for Content in Your Market
As you likely already know, creating content is one of the keys to building a thriving online business, especially an infoproduct business.
You need content to…
And of course, if you’re selling infoproducts, then you also need plenty of content in the form of ebooks, videos and more to sell to your customers.
Now here’s the thing…
None of this content is going to be all that effective if you’re not considered an expert, authority, or the “go to” source for a specific topic in your market.
Makes sense, right? If no one has ever really heard of you, then they’re not going to beat down your virtual door to get their hands on your content.So, the question is, how do you become the “go to” source for trusted content in your niche?
Hint: it’s not a “one and done” sort of thing. Instead, you need to take multiple steps on a consistent basis to build and protect your brand reputation as a trusted source. Here’s how to do it…
1: Specialize in One Topic
Don’t try to be a Jack of all trades in your niche. Instead, find one topic and specialize in it. Ideally, this should be a topic that others aren’t specializing in too, or one that you can compete in because you have some special qualifications.
This doesn’t mean you can’t write about other topics. It just means you want to develop a reputation as the “go to” source for one specialized topic.
For example, maybe you’re selling bodybuilding information. You can write about all sorts of bodybuilding topics, but perhaps you specialize in narrow topic, such symmetry, or the best leg exercises, or “peaking” at the right time for competitions.
To really make this effective, you may want to introduce some branding that emphasizes your specialization. Let’s go back to the bodybuilding example, and let’s suppose you’re the expert at helping people build symmetry with their physique before a competition. Whenever you sign your name, it might look something like this: “John Doe, Symmetry Specialist.”
Another example: “Jane Doe, the Tomato-Growing Guru.”
Next…
2: Offer Breaking News
Part of becoming a “go to” source is being the first to share news in your niche, especially with regards to how the news impacts your audience and any related advice you can give to them. In particular, focus on sharing news related to your specialty topic.
TIP: When you share news, be sure to link to quality news articles from reputable news sources, For example, the Associated Press. Avoid fringe news sites in order to protect your reputation.
Next…
3: Blow Your Own Horn
Why should your audience listen to you? Here’s where you blow your own horn by touting your credentials. This includes anything that makes you uniquely qualified to teach your specific specialty topic, and the niche topic as a whole.
Such as…
…And any other proof that you’re a trusted source of information when it comes to this topic.
For example, if you’ve won a prestigious award in your industry, then share this credential with your audience. You can share it on your site’s “About” page, in the sidebar of your blog, in your social media profiles, in the “About” section of your free and paid products, in your newsletter byline… and basically anywhere else that your audience sees it.
You can also mention your credentials in the middle of a blog article or other content. Even something as simple as one line can help answer the reader’s question about why they should listen to you.
Let’s suppose you’re writing about dog training. You can let people know you’ve been doing it a long time by sharing a story within your content. For example, “When I trained my first dog 30 years ago, I admit I made a few mistakes…”
4: Make a Great Impression
The key here is to make sure every piece of content you publish is high-quality and looks great.
This means doing the following…
If you can’t do any of these things yourself, then it’s a good idea to outsource these tasks to professionals. You can post projects on sites like Upwork.com, Guru.com and Fiverr.com.
5: Share Good Content for Free
The idea behind this strategy is to share the high-caliber content for free that others charge for. Not only does this help establish you as the “go to” source in your market, but it also makes people figure your paid content must be REALLY good since your free content is better than most.
6: Provide Something Fresh
Part of becoming the go-to source of content means that you can’t just share the same type of content that everyone else is sharing. In order to develop a reputation as an expert/authority in your niche, you need to share content that others aren’t sharing.
If you can pioneer a strategy, that’s awesome. If you can share a tip that you’ve never seen anyone else share, that’s good too.
Here are other ways to share unique content…
1. Create a case study or experiment.
While others may also do case studies or experiments, no two are the same.
2. Tell a personal story.
For example, did you have to overcome some sort of obstacle before getting results in the niche? Do you have an embarrassing story to share? While others may share stories, your story is unique to you. Not only do stories make your content more memorable, it also helps you engage readers on an emotional level.
3. Share information in a unique way.
For example, if everyone shares information in text-format in your niche, then you can stand out by sharing short videos. This also helps humanize you and builds trust in your audience.
4. Create a formula.
Still another way to stand out from your competitors is by creating a formula for achieving a step-by-step process. I like to use this strategy by creating acronyms around a process. So, even though others are sharing similar information, my formula stands out, and by creating a formula, I’m positioned as an expert.
For example, let’s suppose you have six-step formula for building a business. You may call it the “P.R.O.F.I.T.” formula, where each letter corresponds to a step of the process.
For example,
Step 1: PICK a Business Model.
Step 2: RESEARCH the Market.
…and so on with the rest of the letters in the formula all corresponding to a step of the process.
Now the next tip…
7: Interact with Readers.
In order to move past the image of you as a faceless “company,” you need to interact with your readers. That’s why you should post content to interactive platforms, such as a blog, with comments enabled, and social media. Be sure to reply to comments and/or “like” comments. This helps build relationships and rapport with readers and cements their loyalty.
8: Host Live Events
Live events – such as a webinar – tend to carry a high perceived value. As such, any time you do a live event, your audience is going to treat it as highly valuable content. This goes a long way in helping cement your reputation as an authority in the niche. Plus, a live event gives you the opportunity to interact one-on-one with your audience as you field questions and showcase your expertise with your answers.
9: Protect Your Reputation
Your reputation is one of your most valuable assets. It takes time to build a good reputation in your niche as a source of quality information, but you can destroy your reputation with just one poor post or product.
That’s why you’ll want to fiercely protect your good reputation with these tips…
1. Post high-quality content only.
Don’t push out subpar content just to meet a deadline. Better to be a few hours late than to put out something that will destroy your reputation.
2. Be careful with what you promote.
Review and use every single product that you promote and be brutally honest in your assessment. If you don’t think your audience should buy a particular product, then say so. This sort of honesty will help build your reputation as someone trustworthy in the niche.
Here’s the next tip…
10: Look for Scalable Methods.
Still another way to position yourself as the go-to source of information is by blanketing your niche with content. Whenever your prospects search for information online, you want them to encounter YOUR name and content. This repeated association will help you build your authority in the niche.
Here are some of the ways to distribute your content…
You get the idea – everywhere your prospects look in your niche should have them stumbling on your name and content.
11: Do Interviews
When you do an interview, you’re automatically viewed as an expert on the topic. That’s why you’ll want to offer yourself for interviews to people in your niche.
This includes…
Now a few parting thoughts…
Your Assignment
As you can see, becoming a “go to” source in your niche – an expert – isn’t something that comes about overnight. Instead, you need to take the above steps and keep taking them over time to build and then protect your reputation. However, it’s well worth the investment of time, as people much prefer to do business with an authority rather than some no-name person in your niche, which means higher conversions.
What’s more, experts can charge more for information versus others who aren’t well-known in the niche. That’s why you’ll want to get started on these tactics as soon as possible to start developing your good reputation in your niche.
To that end, here’s your assignment for this lesson: create a plan for becoming the go-to expert in your niche. Go through each of the steps and tips listed in this lesson, and brainstorm how you can implement that tip in your business.
