To SEO, or not to SEO ... that is the question

I am taking a new approach to grow Stodzy Internet Marketing.

So much of my philosophy for generating business through my website has been about keyword targeting. I don’t think I’ve written a single article in the last 5 years that wasn’t planned out and didn’t try to target some specific keyword that I thought could generate traffic, clicks, and leads.

I don’t regret it at all, but the reality is that I am in a different place in my life.

Today, I am going to walk you through a new marketing strategy that I will use to get more clients and grow Stodzy as a media company.

Not taking myself too seriously

One of the most transformational moments for me as an entrepreneur came from a joke.

When I would write and publish blog posts on TimStodz.com, the part I dreaded most was the featured image. I wanted to have a featured image on my articles and so I would go to adobe stock and use a stock image. But stock images are basically the same few pictures recycled over and over again. I hate how they look. They are so unoriginal and dumb.

So randomly, one day, I had the idea to make the featured image a meme. I cut out a picture of my face, and I put it on a stock image. Here is the first one I ever made.

I can’t tell you how much these images have changed my business. Since this moment, I decided to stop taking myself so seriously. I changed my entire writing process on TimStodz.com.

Not only did I start using these lighthearted (and non professional) images, but I also stopped SEOing my content and committed myself to simply writing the best content I could. It’s that simple.

Since this moment, my personal brand has completely exploded.

I now am building a successful newsletter and product business out of this site and I’m making (on average) an extra $2400 a month from doing work that I would be doing anyway.

All because I decided to stop taking myself so seriously.

Those words were transformational.

P.S. - I made a YouTube video about this subject as well. Take a moment to watch this short video. (and subscribe to my channel so I can become an influencer.)

Now, I am using that same method to grow Stodzy

For years, I’ve been toying with the idea of creating a newsletter for “business professionals in the behavioral health field.”

I’ve never pulled the trigger because my old thinking was still in the way. In my view, the Stodzy website needs to be hyper focused on lead generation and the entire purpose of writing content is to target keywords that would bring in interested buyers.

That’s still an effective strategy, but there is a problem.

I just can’t bring myself to do it anymore.

Writing SEO based content is much different than writing creatively. The research involved is very laborious and it’s a much more grueling process than a creative process.

I’ve been SEOing websites for 10 years and I think I am finally coming to terms with the fact that I no longer have the desire to do it.

I am having so much fun writing my newsletter and the feedback I am getting is telling me that I am really onto something great.

So … here’s my plan.

I am committed to writing a weekly newsletter that helps, informs, and entertains business professionals in the behavioral healthcare space. This is a space that has a large (ish) audience size but more importantly, is very passionate about the subject matter.

I am simply going to write the stories, case studies, and white papers that I think are interesting and that will be the most useful to people in the industry.

I’m not going to take myself so seriously.

This is a brand new approach …

… and frankly, I’m anxious about it.

Logically, I know that if I focus on SEO and I stick to the tried and true methods that I’ve been using for the last 10 years, I would be able to effectively grow the Stodzy brand.

But the reality is that I haven’t done it. I haven’t executed, and that fact alone should tell you that there is a flaw in the strategy somewhere. I’ve been talking about marketing the Stodzy site since 2021, and if I haven’t done it yet, the reason is probably because I simply don’t want to.

What I want to do is write creatively about the stories and insights that interest me.

But this is a good thing, because I’m starting to gain a lot of confidence in my ability to grow a brand through newsletters.

The difference between SEO and newsletters is that SEO content (generally) doesn’t get shared. SEO content serves a specific person at a specific time to solve a specific problem.

My newsletters grow through people sharing the content with other people. The information is so intriguing and insightful that people share it with others in their circles. This is HUGE. It’s definitely an aspect of digital marketing that I didn’t appreciate enough.

My core belief is that if I enjoy doing it, others will be able to feel the passion and appreciate my voice through the content. For that reason, I believe that this new method will be extremally successful.

If you want, you can read my latest newsletter here.

Leave a comment and tell me what you think.