Mr. Shiao gives a masterclass on getting meta, your politics are clear from your word choice, and Hubspot is hiring a writer
The Beat: A Newsletter For People Who Write At Work View in browser
Fly Your Meta Flag
I have long wondered: How does an SEO agency that ranks poorly on Google ever get business?
Shouldn't their rank be their business card?
Same for designers with bad sites and writers with cloying cover letters.
Yet many of them do, and what I've come to is this: People don't hire the best, they hire the available.
But if you want to build something great, you need someone who's really good at what they do. The signs for that are everywhere, you just need to be patient and look.
I call them meta flags.
Take Dennis.
Dennis got laid off last year from his role as a content marketer. He decided he'd try his hand at freelance, and he got super meta: He content marketed himself.
He created a newsletter called Content Corner targeted at potential partners and employers that's now read by hundreds. He used it to feature people and draw them into his orbit so they can help each other out.
I signed up. I found it useful. I went to one of Dennis' events. I got featured. I'm now in Dennis' circle.
When I think of a content strategist, I think of Dennis.
Dennis has never said, "I'm a great content marketer." He didn't add "Guru" to his LinkedIn or cold email strangers asking for introductions to their CEO. When we met for coffee, we mostly talked about life in the Bay Area.
All he did was do what he does — write and market really well — in an unabashedly public way.
She's a Find A Way Media Co-founder, and our Chief Strategy Officer. Eve makes tech products more human so buyers can actually relate. (Especially in B2B.)
She uncovers the emotional undertones of your offerings and distills them into a position, promise, and brand persona that makes clear not just what you do, but why you do it.
For the next few months, Eve owns this section. She'll share her wisdom as well as observations on when branding helps or hurts a company's content efforts.
And if you have questions, or need help positioning your brand or content, connect with Eve.
Writing Jobs
Dream job alert: HubSpot, the progenitor of inbound marketing, needs a junior staff writer. No better place to learn, really.
