This one was inspired by a conversation with my good friend Mark Anderson. I was struggling with how to keep making progress in the world of content marketing. Mark told me to stop focusing on what's missing and instead focus on what I already have.
Mark encouraged me to start creating my own products or offering courses that would give my audience something to go to in lieu of me.
I took his advice to heart. As soon as I started thinking about new products or offerings, I found myself getting more creative and thinking in new directions.
I made the decision to focus on giving my audience value through imagination. This is what I mean by "value stacking".
STEP 1: Define the Value Proposition
Before you even begin your new project, make sure you have a solid value proposition in mind. What is the benefit of my product or course to your audience?
A common question is: what can you offer that someone else doesn't? The answer to this question is often the difference between an amateur and a pro.
As I wrote this post, I realized that I don't know much about the things I'm talking about. I don't know everything there is to know about creating a blog or social media accounts.
That's why I'm trying to become a better resource to my audience. That's the value I'm going to add to my readers. It's why I'm going to create a book that explains my secrets.
STEP 2: Research Your Niche and Make Some Predictions
Next, make a list of all the things you know about the industry or topic you want to focus on. This might take hours or days depending on how in depth you want to get, but it's worth the time to get right before you start thinking about new products or offerings.
Now, spend some time making predictions about what the future of the industry or topic looks like. Will the landscape change? Do things change as technology changes? What trends will shape the future?
For example, it's becoming more common for bloggers to get paid to share their knowledge. In the past, this kind of thing seemed really strange. Today, I wouldn't say that it's impossible to make money from blogging, but it's definitely much harder than in the past.
STEP 3: Identify Where You Can Add Value
Once you have your predictions mapped out, use the answers from the previous steps to come up with places where you can add value to your audience.
What can you offer that the competition doesn't? Is there a niche that is a good fit for your skills? Will your products be useful to people who are learning a certain topic?
Think about how the audience you are targeting wants to learn. How do they go about learning?
I'm guessing that you have plenty of ideas for new products or courses. But how can you add value by being different? How do you make your product or offer unique?