This is the third installment in a series of lessons about Gary V’s message.  In email #1 we talked about branding.  In email #2 we talked about the volume of content.  And today? Well, I’ll get to that in a sec. But first…

Gary is talking about 100 pieces of digestible content, most of which you can whip up in a hurry.  How long does it take to pose a question to your Facebook group? How long does it take to share a meme? How long does it take to upload a photo of something  you’re noting on your whiteboard? Seconds. 

You must have heard of Gary Vaynerchuk, no? Love him or hate him, the guy is a content marketing beast! In this and the following couple of emails, I’m going to explore some of Gary’s secrets... and offer my opinion on them. So if you’re a fan of his work - or even if you’re not - listen up as there’s lessons to be learned!

This is what an “authentic desire” is all about. Its root lies in your own (or a loved ones) pain and desires.  It shapes your intent.  It affects your sales and marketing.  It drives YOU forward.  Especially when times get tough!

I want to share two personal stories you might find useful. Then at the end of this email there will be a huge marketing lesson for you. So wait for it… 

In my last email, I introduced my copywriting mentor, Parris. In my opinion, Parris is the greatest copywriting teacher in history. And, one of the top 2 or 3 greatest copywriters that has ever lived.  Which is why, in this email, I am going to dissect one of his pieces - in fact, it’s a piece he was paid over $1 million. 

‘In your sales promos, use demonstration proof… and the best demonstration proof is content”.  I get that this may not sound all that ground-breaking to you in this day in age of content marketing. So let me explain what I mean, because it’s as groundbreaking today as it was 10 years ago. 

Sure you have to craft content that people want to know about. That content also has to: Trigger a light bulb Be quick and easy

Here’s one of his email subject lines: ‘Cravings.’ That’s it. Like I said, the client owns a quit smoking business. This one word was enough to grab attention and make people want to read the email.

In my last email, I told you about the client who had his biggest month in 7 months.  There’s a few reasons for that.  But please know, we’re not taking credit for this client’s result! He already had some of the pillars of Content Hacking in place to begin with. You may know that these pillars are:

Don’t think of your market in abstract terms. You’ve got to imagine an actual person that your business is looking to serve.

The point is that you need to look into every cost that goes into making a sale for your business. And you need to compare that against how much profit you make per sale and how well you convert. Eventually, you’ll come to your ideal lead cost.