Before you dive in, you should know that this isn’t your average shoot-how-to-content-in-your-veins edition of the newsletter. It’s more introspective and also one of the most important parts of content strategy you can tap into. Onward!
For several weeks, I’ve oooed and ahhhed at giant, merlot-colored fruit on the Prickly Pear cactus.
I want to take my tongs, pick that fruit, and turn it into jelly. And there’s a good chance I will, but first, I want to buy a kitchen blowtorch to help remove all the nasty spines that come with the delicious fruit (something that feels pretty badass for a woman who only knew how to make ramen noodles in college).
Recently, I’ve been becoming increasingly homestead-y like that.
We got chickens, and I’m obsessed with our counter's spiral egg rack.
I got a pressure canner and now love the mason jars in my pantry
I’m trying desperately to garden, but that part isn’t going quite as well
I dream of having goats and turning their milk into luscious soaps
A friend of mine told me she makes her dishwashing detergent, and I instantly begged her for the recipe so I could do the same
Back to the jelly-making. Not only am I a sucker for a good marmalade, but having homemade jelly reminds me of something else that I want to keep cozy in my kitchen — hygge.
Hygge is a word I lived by when I spent those beautiful years in Copenhagen, Denmark. It’s a feeling, not a phrase. While it technically means cozy, it feels more like a warm glow from candles, hours around the dinner table every night just talking without your cell phone, flowers in every room over the summer, time out in the garden, walks through the forest, and yes, homemade jam.
When I lived in Denmark, every Saturday morning was spent with fresh-baked bread from the bakery, sliced cheese, and a jar of homemade lingonberry jam on the table. We’d sit there sipping fresh coffee, reading the newspaper, chatting about the day, and, on extra special occasions, raising a glass of schnapps.
It was simple. It was light. It was intentional.
When did we lose sight of this way of living, especially in our marketing?
Instead, today, it’s all about using AI to create content for us (ugh).
It’s all about how many social media posts you can get done in an hour.
It’s all about how bots and automation can help you do everything faster, better, and with more profit.
While I believe in automation and the use of AI, I believe in the simplicity and ease that accompany a lifestyle designed around intentionality.
When it comes to maturing in your business (just like I’ve matured away from making ramen noodles every night for dinner in my dorm), it’s time to look at how you’re tapping into the wealth of ideas, noise, and tools available today.
Automation: Do they make sense in your business, ushering your audience into the right rooms without giving the full house tour yet?
Emails: Do they feel like they were written like a robot for the sake of churning something out fast, or do they feel like a Saturday morning around a fresh cup of coffee, bakery bread, and homemade jam?
Social Media: Do you batch and schedule using all the trending terms to get love from the algorithm, or do you post when you feel most inspired to form connections with the person on the other side of the screen, regardless of vanity metrics and follower counts?
Communities: Have you tossed up a free Facebook group and scheduled posts to drive engagement, or have you created an intentional space that drowns out the noise and helps form real connections?
Products: Do your product suite and offers to support your customers toward a goal, or are they there simply to teach what you know?
Intentionality is the difference between creating content for the sake of creating content and creating intentional spaces that add to the human experience.
Here’s how I’m working toward intentionality in my business:
Automation and Product Offers: As most entrepreneurs do, I have a swirl of ideas, digital products, and courses I want to offer you. However, I’m being intentional about which comes first, how they connect, and how I can best serve you at every point of your content creation journey.
Social Media: I’m very proud that I hardly schedule anything. I post when I feel like it. I’m the only one who manages my feed, and you see what you get in every square of my Instagram account. Worth noting: This seems to be the new rallying cry on IG! People are becoming more proud of posting intentional content than multiple reels daily—more value, less numbers-for-the-sake-of-numbers.
Emails: I’m a huge advocate for storytelling in emails. Every story you tell invites your reader around your coffee table and creates a more human connection.
Communities: I’ve kickstarted the free Content Club where you can (SOON) get a free course on adding a human touch into your marketing and unlock bonuses, plus tap into other products that put my content strategy brain on your business.
You have your coffee table to invite new customers around. You have ideas worth sharing and deserve to cut through the noise by offering them a human touch. You have a wealth of knowledge that others need and, with an intentional strategy, can show up bigger for others in a way that cultivates success for your business and your customers.
I’m glad you’re here.