Female founder is sitting at her laptop working on her content strategy

Are you a female founder who is struggling to create content? In this blog post, we’ll walk through the 3-step formula to help you create content easier as a service-based business, plus some of the misconceptions you might be following.

Why general marketing advice doesn’t work for servicepreneurs

Are you following a marketing expert who shares content advice, but you never see the results they promise after you hit publish?

I truly believe with every fiber of my being that most people who are offering marketing advice on social media or anywhere else online get it wrong for service-based businesses, because THEY START AT THE END.

They say, “you need to be on Instagram. You need to be on LinkedIn. You need to be posting reels. You need to have an email list.”

Their entire focus is on the LAST part of the marketing puzzle or the CHANNELS you should use, without first asking: “what do you actually have to say? What does your ideal client care about, and how can you use that information to drive revenue into your business, in a way that is fun and exciting for you to stay consistent with?”

Because here’s the thing:

The problem isn’t knowing what channels are available to promote your business or even the tactics you can use on each of those channels.

The part most people struggle with is what is the actual information I should share on those channels, in those reels, those posts, emails, etc. to help me attract my ideal client, nurture them, and ultimately convert them to where they buy my services.

So if you get basic advice like “share a carousel post on LinkedIn with a quick how-to” and you’re reaction is “Cool, but what is the how-to that I’m supposed to be sharing?” then I’m so freaken glad you’re here because that’s what I built my entire corporate career doing, it’s what I do now with clients inside my Content Blueprint Course, and I’m sharing all of my trade secrets with you on this episode and those to come to help you build an effective content marketing strategy for your business.

The easy content marketing formula for servicepreneurs

So we’re going to take it all the way back to the beginning with the simple formula I use:

WHAT > HOW > WHERE.

At the highest level, it’s:

WHAT are all of the topics I can speak about to promote my business
HOW do I deliver the information in a way that resonates with my audience and is something I enjoy and will stay consistent with
And WHERE do I share that content that will connect best with my ideal client based on the way I want to deliver it

So let’s break those down:

First, the WHAT. What are the topics that you can speak to. As a servicepreneur, you’ve built your business from your experiences, your knowledge, and your skillsets. You’ve created SOMETHING from NOTHING, and now you’re getting paid to help other people because you’re an expert at your craft.

So the very first step in this formula is to translate your area of expertise into marketable topics that you can use to promote your services. It’s everything you know, everything you do in your business, everything about your industry, everything about your clients and the challenges they face, the needs they have, the results they crave. It’s your unique perspective, your hot takes, your signature framework or processes that make you stand out from your competitors.

It's all of the information that has got you to now claim that expert title and give you that credibility. I also like to say this is the stuff you can talk about until you’re blue in the face, that you absolutely love talking about.

This is the most important step – one that a lot of people will skip over or they half-ass it with Chat GPT prompts that inevitably make you sound just like everybody else, which is never the goal when you’re building your brand or promoting your company.

Once we’ve mapped out all of the topics you can speak to, we move to the HOW. This is where we’ll figure out the format you’ll create content in. The goal here, especially when you’re first starting to create content, is all about consistency.

And remember, I’m not talking about posting content. This is all about consistency in physically creating the content. And it really boils down to asking yourself: what style of content creation do I enjoy most, that comes easily to me, and that I have the time and resources to execute on a regular basis?

The goal here isn’t to “do what everyone else is doing” but to figure out what works best for you. The types of content include: written content like a blog, audio content like a podcast, video content, or even live content like speaking opportunities, interviews, etc.

So let’s walk through a couple of examples of why you need to think through what works best for you during this step in the process.

Say you love speaking, so you think a podcast could be a great opportunity for you to spread your message. But if the thought of hosting to a podcast with a lot of structure where you’re committing to a certain day each week, there’s time spent on editing and prepping the content, finding and researching guests, etc. doesn’t sound enjoyable to you or you don’t really have the time in your schedule, then how likely will you stay consistent with that content format?

Probably not very consistent. And then the thing that’s supposed to get you excited now becomes something you dread, and likely gets put to the back of the list where it’ll go to die.

BUT if you love speaking and it comes naturally to you, then you could focus on being a guest on someone else’s podcast, where all you have to do is show up to the interview and share your expertise. A lot less work to just research and pitch yourself – and probably less stress – but still allows you to do the thing that’s fun for you, while still getting great content.

Or, you might find that it’s so much easier for you to just hit record on your phone and create video content.

Say you hate video, but love writing, you can focus on creating blog content.

The HOW is all about understanding what lights you up, what you’re good at, and what doesn’t feel like a chore to create.

When you’re just getting started, the worst thing you can do is bite off more than you can chew. I’m a huge believer that you should start with one thing, perfect it, then add something else. Not only does this keep you focused, but it helps you build your confidence with repetition, so when you want to add in something new, you don’t lose the excitement to the overwhelm.

When I work with clients through this formula, without fail this is the part where I can visually see them sigh with relief. Because there’s this misconception that we have to do everything and be everywhere.

With time, you might find that’s the case with your marketing strategy because you’ve got workflows in place to help navigate the tools and channels a little easier, you’re more confident, or you have a team that can help you.

But if you need a permission slip to not create every type of content or be on every marketing channel out the gate, then this is it. Because it’s not necessary, and could do more harm than good when you’re just getting started. You need quick wins, and starting small is the way to get those wins on repeat.

Which brings us to the WHERE. These are the channels or platforms you’ll use to promote your business. AKA where everyone loves to focus on first, when it should come last.

Now, there are 3 different types of channels:

Owned channels: things like your website, blog, email, or podcast where you have 100% control over it
Earned channels: things like media outlets where you can submit articles or event speaking opportunities, where you earn the right to share your expertise
And rented channels: which are platforms like social media, that you don’t own

This is where you start to align the type of content you feel most comfortable creating consistently, with the channel that makes the most sense.

So if you love writing, naturally you could launch a blog on your site, you could share that content in an email newsletter, you could submit it to a publication, and promote it on social media.

But the channel selection process has to be strategic – meaning, you need to spend some time understanding your ideal client. Where are they hanging out online? Where are they getting their information from? Where are the best places to strategically put your brand so they find you, engage with you, and hopefully buy from you.

Again, when you’re first getting started you don’t have to be everywhere. So if you’re feeling the pressure to be on every channel but you aren’t excited about it, it’s time to listen to your gut and focus on what makes sense for you, get in a good groove, and expand only as it makes sense for your business.

Now, you might be wondering “okay Emily but we didn’t actually talk about the tactics. The how-to guides, the freebie content, the how-to’s.”

And that’s on purpose.

This formula gives you the foundation so when it comes to actually building out your marketing strategies, you have all the information you need in front of you.

You’ve got the topics you can pull from.

You know the content format that comes easiest for you to create so you don’t have to focus on the things that don’t when speed of execution is critical.

And you have the platforms in place to promote whatever it is you create.