Category Archives: Tips and advice

Look, I get it. Investing in yourself and your business is a scary thing. But have you ever done it and regretted it? I haven’t. So, whether you’re contemplating your first or next business investment, I wanted to share some of the things I’ve invested in as a freelance content mentor and let you know how they’ve helped me develop personally and professionally.

Why should you invest in your business?

It’s a funny one, isn’t it?

You set up your business because you know you’re an expert and have so much value to offer the world.

But then you find yourself wearing ALL THE HATS.

Suddenly, you’re expected to not only do the main thing but also be your own social media manager, admin assistant, sales director, accountant, and content writer.

(OK, that last one I can do).

The truth is, if you’re going to do all of that to an acceptable standard, you’ll likely need some help to get there.

Whether it’s an investment in your mindset or more practical skills and knowledge, investing in your business is the only way you’ll see growth and success in the long term.

There are different ways to achieve this.

Maybe you’re someone who prefers to outsource everything to experts, so you hire a virtual assistant, social media team, lead gen experts, accountant, and more.

Perhaps you prefer to invest in upskilling to gift yourself the ability to excel in new areas without relying on someone else to get the job done.

Three things I invested in for my business

I’m going to share with you now three of the main things I’ve invested in in my business journey so far.

Please bear in mind, I’m three years into running my business, and I didn’t invest in all of these at once or at the same time.

But these are the investments I see tangible returns from, either financially or within my mentality and mindset.

1. Business coaching

For years, I didn’t really understand how business coaching worked and how it would be worth it for me.

Yet I look back now and it’s hard to recognise who I was and where I was at in my business before I worked with a coach.

I would take on any work I could find, undercharge, get ghosted when it came time to be paid, and I felt burned out and stretched too thinly.

I knew I wanted to move from spending all of my time writing content and help people do it themselves, because I saw the potential in so many small business owners to create their own impactful content with a little support and guidance.

But honestly, I have ZERO clue how on earth to go about doing this.

Was I good enough? Could I manage to deliver training on this? How did I go about creating an online course? And even if I created one, how would I promote it to get people signed up? What tools and strategies did I need to reposition myself and make all of the practicaltiies of this work?

These are ALL questions I had answered by working with coaches.

I’ve worked with three different coaches so far, and each of them took me leaps ahead in my business journey in different ways.

Have you ever worked with a business coach? What was your experience of it?

2. Public speaking support

This was one HUGE GIANT fear of mine which I had absolutely no plans to conquer.

I had hidden behind my MacBook screen for two years and found plenty of clients that way, so why bother?

Truthfully, I never thought about public speaking until recently. It wasn’t for me. I couldn’t do it – it was impossible – so I wasted no time or brainpower worrying about it.

Yet I had an urge to challenge myself to get out into the world of networking to grow my confidence and meet new people. I wanted to feel like I was growing personally and professionally, and after running my online content writing course live twice, I had a sneaky suspicion I was capable of a little more than I was giving myself credit for.

So, when my lovely friend and former client, Liz Boswell, told me about her Bold Voices Speaking Academy, I was intrigued. Could this be the thing to guide me into networking and give me the tools to actually get through the door and mumble an intro?

Turns out, yes.

But not just that.

After venturing out to my first networking event in 15 years (I’m going to spare you the details of my previous networking past as a 20-something PR girl with zero confidence surrounded by a sea of white dudes in suits) I was approached to deliver a 45-minute talk on content marketing at an event the following month.

Thanks to my investment of time and money into Liz’s Bold Voices Speaking Academy, I accepted before I could change my mind and used the gems I’d learned during the academy’s live Zooms and recorded masterclasses to speak with confidence, clarity, and authority.

Believe me when I say this is not something I would have EVER expected myself to do. Yet investing in myself took me down a new avenue and opened up a whole world of opportunities for me and my business. I’d consider that money very well spent.

What’s your experience of networking and public speaking? If you are a nervous Nelly like I was, I highly recommended checking out the academy and finding a super supportive and empowering community to set and achieve real goals on this front.

3. Accountancy services

OK, so this one is way less exciting than the other two (sorry, accountants) but I wanted to explain my reasoning behind adding it to the list.

This may be a limiting belief, but me and numbers DO NOT get along.

And while I’m sure I could work through this, I prefer to outsource it and devote the many, many hours I would waste trying to figure out the financial side of my business to doing something much more productive.

This is worth it for me because it takes away the anxiety, stress, and confusion of the figures and frees me up to do what I’m best at.

Hiring an accountant was one of the first business investments I made and I’ve never regretted it for a second.

Do you have an accountant or do you manage this yourself?

What support is out there to help you improve your content writing skills?

Is there any area you’d love to master when it comes to running your own business?

For my clients, it’s the challenge of feeling comfortable and confident creating great content that generates engagement, excitement, and enquiries.

I believe everyone is capable of doing this – including you.

So, what are your options if you want to develop in this area and learn new skills?

Here’s how you can work with me on becoming the master of your own content.

Join a supportive content writing community

Content Club is a monthly space for you to speak to fellow business owners, share your challenges, get tips and insights. You have your content marketing questions answered by a professional with 16 years’ commercial writing experience (it’s me, hi), and generally feel supported, seen, and empowered.

Find out more about Content Club here.

Upskill through an online content writing course

Investing in a self-paced online content writing course is the perfect way to make a lower-level investment in upskilling at your own speed.

By making a financial commitment, you’ll be more motivated to work on it and see results. Over six masterclasses, you’ll get a new perspective on what it means to create great content, learn insider secrets on how to do it, and discover the tools and proven techniques to make your content writing habit consistent and successful.

Learn more about my online content writing course here.

Get intensive and personalised 1-1 content writing support

If you’re someone who needs personalised support to stay accountable and get the job done, work with me 1-1 on switching on your content brain and discovering the joys of collaboration.

Together, we’ll create a realistic and doable strategy that excites you, give you a great feeling of partnership in content writing and access professional input to reassure you your content is primed for success.

See 1-1 content mentoring options here.

Got a question or want to find out more about any of these options? Follow me on Instagram for content writing tips and inspiration, and sign up to receive weekly musings and motivation for me directly to your inbox.

This is both the simplest and hardest thing to do as a business owner: be yourself in your content marketing. So why is it so important, and how do you actually go about doing it? Read on to find out and tap into the unreal benefits.

Why is it important to be yourself in your content?

From my three years’ experience of running my own business and putting it out into the world, the most important thing I’ve done to build my visibility and earn trust from my audience is actually showing up as myself.

I used to envy other people’s polished selfies, wistful scenery shots and succinct captions.

But then I realised we’re all different, and the only way we can attract people who share our vibe is to be fully ourselves through the content marketing we put out into our little corner of the internet.

Here’s why it matters.

If you’re a personal brand, people are buying YOU

Running a personal brand has its pros and cons, right?

There’s just you, which can be daunting and challenging at times, for sure.

But there’s also just you, you know? So you don’t have to immerse yourself in complex brand guidelines to market a huge corporate organisation, you get to do things exactly how you want to because it’s your business.

No lengthy approval processes, no dickheads in the boardroom to crush your creativity, no rigid hours that drain your time and compromise your wellbeing. When you look at it that way, it’s kind of exciting, isn’t it.

So being yourself is a great way to get people to buy into your brand and buy whatever you’re selling.

Other people do what you do

The reality is, you’re probably not offering something nobody else offers.

The difference is how you do it and how you make people feel when they work with you.

How will they understand this important difference unless you’re being yourself in your social media posts, blogs, emails, and videos?

What’s going to stand out about you to make people choose to work with you over the next person on Google or Insta? How will they develop that know, like and trust to pick you?

This is why you need to be yourself: because if you don’t, someone else will convert your customers by showing their own personality and vibe.

How to be yourself through your content

So you get that it’s important to be yourself through your content, but how do you go about it?

Define your brand voice

One crucial step is to determine your voice as a personal brand so your target customers start to notice, remember, and identify you amid the noise.

Define your voice as a business by noting down key descriptors – here are some examples:

• Friendly
• Professional
• Quirky
• Casual
• Authoritative
• Fun
• Serious
• Positive
• Inspirational
• Caring
• Warm
• Strong
• Weird
• Down-to-earth
• Cheeky
• Respectful
• Mature

Which are you?

Now, when you’ve chosen 3-5 adjectives to sum up your brand voice, write them down and keep them to hand so you can check every piece of content you write is recognisable as you.

Be inspired, not jealous

If you see something you like online, rather than being jealous, think about what you like about it and how you can apply the same sort of idea to your own content (without copying, obviously).

What do they do well that you want to try?

Is it the type of image, the style of post?

Use them as your inspiration. Hell, why not connect with them and ask for advice? Why does everyone have to be our competition? There is power to be had in teaming up and sharing expertise. Maybe there’s something you can do for them in return, or maybe they’ll help you without needing anything in return.

There’s enough business out there for everyone, so connect with people and learn from them.

For me, showing up as myself through my content means:

🧇 Filming waffley Insta stories from my messy car

🥲 Being honest when I’m feeling sh*t personally rather than putting on an act

🗣 Sharing that I’m sometimes posting on the fly and haven’t always got a perfectly mapped out plan for my content (this was big – I thought you’d think I was crap at my job, but hey, even content writers are human lol)

🦮 Posting make-up free dog walking selfies with a spontaneous caption because it sprung into my head

🧣Writing in my own style, even if it’s long-winded and features my weird witticisms and random Taylor Swift lyrics.

It took me a while to do all of that.

For months, I hid behind graphics and wrote in a much more cold, clinical tone than I do now, because I was scared I wouldn’t be liked or hired.

Is it the same for you?

If so, tell me – how is authenticity going to look for you?

Get help being yourself online

If you need help finding your voice and sharing your gorgeous personality with the world, I’ve got you!

You can get my support in the following ways:

🧡 Join Content Club – a monthly accountability community to share ideas, get feedback, have your questions answered by a professional, and connect with like-minded peeps who will cheer you on!

CONTENT CLUB – a supportive space for likeminded business owners to write better content

🧡 Binge my online course – develop lifelong content writing skills and switch on your content brain by downloading my online content writing course. You get lifetime access to all six masterclasses to binge or work through at your own pace.

Be A Content Queen – Online Content Writing Course – Words By Ali

🧡 Work with me 1-1 – book a discovery call to explore your options if you prefer personalised, intensive support to get comfortable and confident creating amazing content that grows your business your way.

Virtual Coffee – Ali King

You’re a compassionate, intuitive coach who guides your clients through life-changing growth. Yet some months you’re booked out, while others tick past without a single enquiry coming in, which leads to self-doubt, comparisonitis, and the occasional (unsuccessful) Facebook Ad. So, what are you missing here? What’s the secret to getting a constant flow of clients for your coaching business with less chasing and more attracting?

The truth is, you’re amazing at what you do, but you probably don’t love the marketing side of things. Selling on your socials feels sleazy, and you’re never quite sure what you should be doing and how.

But it doesn’t have to be like this.

I work with coaches and wellness business owners to empower them to attract dream clients into their inbox through the power of their content, so it does the work for them (no awkward selling necessary). Are you ready to make the changes you need to live that life you wanted to live when you first qualified as a coach?

Let’s go!

Niche, then niche again

You’ve probably heard the importance of niching hundreds of times, but haven’t quite felt ready – or discovered the right niche – to make it happen. But as soon as you do, you’ll wish you’d done it sooner. Because establishing a niche for your coaching business allows you to:

• Get super clear on the specific transformations you offer to demonstrate your value
• Grow your social media presence with the right kind of followers
• Raise your prices because you offer specialist expertise
• Refine your messaging to appeal directly to dream clients

When it comes to niching, the more specific you are, the easier it is to attract the right people to your business. Say you’re a business coach who wants to work with women in leadership, could you narrow this down further? What industry do they work in? What’s the specific challenge you excel in supporting them through?

For example, it’s better to be known as THE coach who helps female lawyers overcome imposter syndrome than a generic business coach trying to appeal to everyone but attracting no one. For many of us, we’re an evolved version of our target customer, so think of how you can use that to your niching – and attracting – advantage, or envisage an existing customer you love working with and make a plan to clone them (in a non-Dolly-the-sheep way).

Nail your content

You understand the power of social media to get more clients, but you struggle to generate ideas to interest your audience, and you’re not really sure how to align your messaging with your core values.

I work with a lot of coaches who feel this way, and I’m here to tell you there is a way for you to feel totally confident, inspired, and motivated to write social media posts, emails, and blog posts that send the right client hurtling into your DMs ready to book and pay in full.

Four social media tips for your coaching business:

• Picture one person – think of an existing or ideal client you know then imagine you’re talking to them every time you sit down to write a post. Would this interest them? Would it make them laugh? Would they share it? If those are all NOs, challenge yourself to turn them into YESes.
• Share your story – we want to work with people we connect with, and your dream clients are no exception. Share your story, be open about your vulnerabilities, and create opportunities to relate to the people you want to attract. One big caveat – your content should always be about your customer, and not you, so find ways to make your story relevant to their current situation (showing how you’re the best person to help them through it).
• Write how you speak – coaches often ask me how to instil personality into their content. You’re so passionate in person, yet opening your laptop transports you back to your GCSE English exam and you sound formal and bland. Write exactly how you speak to let your personality shine through – if you’re not a natural writer, use a platform like Otter to dictate and transcribe
• Mirror your audience’s language – look at enquiries and reviews to learn how your customers speak, what words they use to describe the challenges they face, and how they articulate the transformation you bring. Then, mirror it in your own content by peppering your words with theirs, and watch them slide into your DMs asking when you became a mind reader.

Be consistent

Consistency is your number one priority when promoting your coaching business if you want to have more of those discovery calls that lead to regular coaching clients.

And consistency isn’t simply about posting every day on social media (in fact, you don’t even have to do this to achieve financial freedom as a coach).

Four ways to be consistent as a coach:

• Having a consistent message and communicating it in a way that resonates with your audience
• Promoting yourself in a way that aligns with your values and passions
• Creating a content strategy that fits with your lifestyle and sticking to it
• Projecting a consistent image in your branding and marketing

Are you nailing all of these at the moment? Or could you do with some support?

Sell the dream, not the coaching

Most people don’t know they need a coach.

You want to talk about how brilliant coaching is, but if you’re targeting people outside of the coaching sphere they’ll likely to be dubious about its benefits. So, instead of telling them why they need a coach, sell the dream life you know you’ll help them achieve.

For example, instead of writing a blog post entitled: “Five reasons you need a career coach”, try: “Five steps to turning your passion project into a career” or “How to find the job that makes you love Mondays.”

Airlines don’t generally promote themselves by telling you how great their planes are – they know you don’t care about turbines and stabilisers (or even the left phalange). They know the journey is simply a means to an end.

Instead, they tend to evoke the relaxation, fun, and freedom the holiday you experience on the other side of that plane ride will bring you.

Use emotions

Everyone is driven by emotions when they make a purchase, even if they tell themselves it’s logical. So, when speaking to your customers, ask and notice how they feel before, during, and after working with you. Having this information allows you to tap into these same emotions in others who haven’t yet experienced your support.

Bear in mind, we often give an easy answer at first to mask our more vulnerable feelings, so stay curious. For example, if you’re a life coach who keeps hearing people say they don’t have the budget to retrain, or the time to implement changes to their lifestyle, dig deeper. Usually, there’s a deeper emotion beneath the surface, like fear, insecurity, shame, or nerves. Once you find the deeper emotional driver, it becomes easier to show future customers how you understand them and have the solution to their problems when you’re next writing a social media post, filming a video for your website, or attending a networking meeting.

How to write content that attracts more clients to your coaching business

Are you struggling with your content writing? You understand the importance of having a presence online, but often feel overwhelmed or lost because you have no plan for your social media, emails, or blog posts.

BE A CONTENT QUEEN is a self-paced online content writing course loved by coaches and wellness business owners. Over six masterclasses created by a professional content writer (that’s me btw) with 16 years experience writing content that prompts action, you’ll gain confidence, learn new skills, and get really clear on what’s missing right now and how to complete the jigsaw. Learn at your own pace and get ready for more clients, a reputation as the expert in your field, more financial freedom to travel and achieve a better work-life balance, and invitations to speak at industry events, webinars and podcasts.

Are you ready for all of that to become your reality? Find out how here.