Aaron Hoos

Have you ever started researching something only to discover you already had the information in a really convenient place? Have you ever started on a project only to discover that you already had a good portion of it completed but tucked away in a dusty file? Have you ever stared blankly at a folder of ebooks and downloaded resources and wondered when you’d find the time to review this information?

This happens to me all the time and I’ve decided to do something about it, and I thought I’d share it with you.

HERE’S THE PROBLEM
Although I only noticed the problem recently, I’ve been amassing valuable information over time. I’ve got textbooks from my stockbroker days and from my MBA; I’ve got tons of downloaded materials (ebooks and podcasts mostly) that have been purchased or given to me; and I am an avid book collector with shelves of business books.

Amassing all of this information is good — in theory — except that I have reached the point where I simply have too many resources to manage. Where can I find information on this topic or on that topic? There are potential resources everywhere.

HERE’S WHAT I’VE BEEN DOING ABOUT IT
So I’ve started creating a taxonomy of resources. A taxonomy is the classification and ordering of a group of things. And I’ve decided to classify my resources according to where in the life of a business they can be most helpful.

So first I developed some life-of-a-business classifications. (Actually, I had these classifications hanging around for another purpose and I used them here).

• Find a customer problem
• Find a creative solution
• Create a business model
• Create a sales funnel
• Build a compelling brand
• Implement the business model and sales funnel
• Grow the business
• Exit the business

Next, I’ve started reviewing my resources and plugging them into the appropriate places. Sometimes an entire book fits in one category, sometimes an entire book fits into more than one category. Sometimes a single chapter from one book fits in one category and another chapter fits somewhere else.

As my list has grown, I’ve had to create sub-categories to make it even more useful. So the “Grow the business” category might include sub-categories like “Leading and Managing”, “Productivity and Efficiency”, “Tipping points”, etc.

JUST IN CASE YOU THINK I’M CRAZY
On the (hopefully) slim chance that you think I’m crazy, let me tell you why I’m doing this. It’s not because I have a ton of time on my hands I’m looking to burn it by sorting a big pile of resources. The real reasons I’m creating this taxonomy are:

• To make my business more agile: I’ll be able to respond to the changing market by quickly finding the right resources to guide me.
• To make my customers happier and my business more profitable: I spend a fair amount of time chasing down information that will help my clients. This will help me to speed up that process.
• To make better use of my investments: Like most entrepreneurs I’ve met, I have invested in a fair amount of resources and have only scratched the surface in terms of using them. I want to change that. I want to open them up and mine them for the gold that’s inside.
• To identify gaps: I’m going to find sooner or later that I’m missing something important. The categories listed above are the areas where I tend to help clients a lot, and if I find that I’m missing resources there, I can easily see it and correct it.

I’m going to keep it really easy to do and easy to access. I’m not here to create something ponderous and academic — I want it to be insanely usable.

IT DOESN’T STOP THERE
My short-term plan is to add my books, textbooks, ebooks, and podcasts to my taxonomy. Later, I might consider adding research notes, web bookmarks, and network contacts to this process… but that’s down the road.

WHAT YOU CAN DO
Give it a try. You don’t have to use the taxonomy categories I’ve used; create a list of categories that’s useful for you. (I chose my categories because they applied to my business but would also apply to my client’s businesses, so I could easily find the right resource regardless of whether I was working in my own business or a client’s business).

Start small: If you have a ton material, break it up to keep it manageable. Just do one shelf of books at time. Or plan to do one ebook per week. Don’t plan to do it all because it could become overwhelming. I’m not reading all of my resources as I “taxonomize” them, but I am finding it to be a useful exercise to be reminded what each resource contains.

Make it useful: Use the type of system that works for you: I’m using Microsoft Excel, only because I’m comfortable in spreadsheet. I was tempted to use a database but I wanted to start really fast and with no barriers, and a spreadsheet fit the bill.

Purge a little: It doesn’t hurt to discard resources as you go. I found an ebook I downloaded from 2002 about using search engines. I found it tucked into a forgotten folder within a forgotten folder within a forgotten folder… and it belonged in a museum.

Think long-term: Stick with this project. It may not be done next week or next month; in fact, it might not be done for a year. But you will finish and you will start reaping the benefits faster than you realize.

Do it because it’s profitable: This will be a profitable exercise for you: You’ll run a better business and you’ll make more effective use of existing investments.

Businesses need content to sell their products or services: They need marketing material, web content, sales scripts, instruction manuals… and sometimes they need content written which will actually be the product sold (as in the case of ebooks).

Not everyone can write or wants to write, and that’s where a ghostwriter comes in. Ghostwriters are hired by the business to create content that is attributed to the business rather than the writer. It’s a very common practice in writing.

HERE’S THE PROBLEM
When businesses look for ghostwriters, they don’t always know what to look for. Sure, they look for someone with experience as a writer — preferably with experience in a specific industry or with a specific content type — but beyond that, there are just question marks.

Over the years I’ve worked as a ghostwriter for hundreds of clients and I can tell you that each client comes to the table with a different set of ideas and expectations.

If you need to hire a ghostwriter, here’s what you need to know:

THE FIVE ROLES OF CONTENT CREATION
All written work (regardless of what kind of content you want) is put together by five different roles. These roles can be performed by one person or by more than one person. The roles (in order) are:

1. The thinker — The thinker comes up with the clever ideas and catchy elements; they perform content strategy; they consider the audience and the value the audience is seeking; and they solidify the concepts into a workable shape.
2. The researcher — The researcher looks at what the market is looking for and how it’s communicating its needs; they look at the competition and what is already on offer; and they look for opportunities (including SEO, marketing messages, etc.).
3. The scribe — The scribe takes the ideas from the thinker and the research from the researcher and they write it out; they massage the ideas, if necessary, to create a powerful and focused piece of content.
4. The editor — The editor reviews what the scribe has created and makes sure it is aligned with the thinker’s vision and the researcher’s findings; they ensure coherence within the document and between the working document and other content produced by the business.
5. The publisher — The publisher makes the content available to the target audience. It could be as simple as copying the text and pasting it into a blog publishing platform, or it could be more complex like printing and binding a book and setting up distribution.

Businesses who hire ghostwriters often bring need one or more of the roles mentioned above, but they don’t always effectively communicate that need.

If you’re a business looking to hire a ghostwriter, look at the five roles above and figure out what you already have and what you need. Then look for a ghostwriter who can perform the roles that you need. You might look for them in a single person or you might assemble a team, depending on the size of your budget and the scope of your project and the skills of your team.

EXAMPLES FROM MY EXPERIENCE
I’ve worked with several clients who have simply said, “I’m starting a business and I want to position myself as an expert. Can you create for me an ebook, sales letter, marketing material, and other sales funnel supporting content?”. These clients hired me to think, research, write, edit, and sometimes even publish their work.

I’ve worked with several clients who have said, “I’ve made a name for myself as an expert in my niche. Here is my content, research, and experience. I’ve got the system in place to take the content you write and sell it.” These clients hired me to be the scribe and editor, and they’ve taken care of the thinking, research, and publishing.

WHY THIS MATTERS
For business owners, knowing exactly what kind of roles you’re looking for in a ghostwriter will help you in the following ways:

• You’ll be able to better manage the project and your budget
• You’ll be able to find a ghostwriter faster and more easily
• You’ll be able to find a ghostwriter who fits your needs
• You’ll be able to communicate more effectively with your ghostwriter
• You’ll end up with a project that is closest to your vision and will help you to achieve your business goals

So the next time you’re looking for a ghostwriter, remember: You’re not JUST looking for a ghostwriter. Be specific about the roles you want your ghostwriter to take on.

This blog post is the sixth in a series called Sales Funnel Paygates – a strategic look at where in the sales funnel your payment transactions can be placed. (See the introductory blog post in this series for more information).

SALES FUNNEL PAYGATE: MULTIPLE PAYGATES
Today, we’ll be looking at the last type of paygate location in our series. This one is a more of a catch-all because it involves various combinations of the paygates we have looked at previously.

You can mix and match any combination and number of paygates of the ones we’ve discussed previously. For example:

• You might place a paygate at conversion and then another one before delivery. This is a good model if you deal with high credit risk customers but still want to reduce the barriers to purchasing from you.
• You might place a paygate at conversion and at delivery, which you might see in the home repair business where you put down some money up-front and some when the job is complete.
• You might place a paygate after conversion and another after delivery, which is a model where someone commits to a purchase, puts a downpayment down, then pays after delivery. (Pictured below)

• You might place multiple paygates from conversion to delivery, as in the case of a layaway purchase. (Pictured below).

• You might place multiplte paygates at and after delivery, as in the case of mortgages and rentals. (Pictured below).

There are more combinations, too.

Why would a customer prefer multiple paygates? Customers may like this paygate model because it makes larger purchases easier to afford. By breaking up a large payment into smaller payments, it allows customers to purchase something that they might not be able to afford and/or might not be able to save for. And, depending on where you place the paygates in relation to delivery, they might be able to own the product or enjoy the service before putting down a lot of money.

If you sell a higher-priced product or service, this might be a good model to use in your sales funnel. And if you can’t decide whether the paygates should be placed before or after delivery, consider your ability to perform risk analysis and credit checks, as well as the time and effort it will take for post-delivery collection. It might be worthwhile, but it might not be.

Why would a business prefer multiple paygates? Although there is slightly more administrative work, as well as the increased potential for receivables, multiple paygates offers a few benefits: Multiple paygates can reduce barriers to purchasing, which can increase sales; multiple paygates can increase a sense of value in the purchaser, because several smaller payments might be perceived as a lower overall cost than a single larger payment; multiple paygates can also be a good way to spread cashflow throughout your sales funnel (especially if you have erratic sales).