Is content king?

To me, that seems like a silly question. “Content is king” is a metaphor, but apparently not a very good one.

A good metaphor creates instant understanding. Given the amount of confusion and debate the phrase “content is king” kicks up, it’s not doing all that great a job in the instant-understanding department.

I think it’s smarter to say that content is indispensable. It’s what people go online to find, and it’s what Google loves. There are only a few online marketing models that don’t require valuable content, and those few are getting tougher by the day, and result in no long-term assets.

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It’s almost time for the 2008 BlogWorld & New Media Expo.

And yes, I will actually make it this year. Really.

BlogWorld is happening September 20-21 (Executive and Entrepreneur option on the 19th) in wholesome Las Vegas, Nevada. You can check out the entire conference schedule here.

I’ll be participating on two panels:

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I went to a restaurant that serves “breakfast at any time”. So I ordered French Toast during the Renaissance. ~Steven Wright

Comedian Steven Wright is often credited with launching an entirely new genre of stand-up comedy. His dead pan, monotone delivery of clever and kooky one-liners is always with a straight face, and no one had seen anything like that before he burst on the comedy scene in the 80s.

You might assume that Wright’s style is a concocted stage persona, but the truth is a bit more interesting. Wright delivered his jokes that way when he first started simply because (a) that’s the way he speaks, and (b) he was trying to get the words out right.

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“How to Become an SEO Ninja” is the tagline for Naomi Dunford’s ebook, SEO School. Since I’ve promised to do more book reviews around here, I figured giving you the scoop on a new ebook about search engine optimization would be of interest.

Ever since Aaron Wall joined Teaching Sells and four months later transformed his profitable SEO Book into an interactive training program, there’s been a void in the “SEO ebooks you can trust” market. While I’m sure there are others, I haven’t read those… but I have read SEO School and it’s solid.

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Content marketing and copywriting is all about crafty persuasion, right?

We’re changing people’s minds so they see things our way and buy our stuff.

Not really.

Changing people’s minds can be extremely difficult. And when core beliefs and values are involved, it’s downright impossible. Let’s face it… it can be tough enough to persuade people to act when they already agree with you.

Why make things tougher than they already are?

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It’s scorching these days, at least down here in Texas. Let’s chill out with these five cool links before we launch into any more sizzling-hot Copyblogger content.

Wow… that was cheesy, huh? Queso!

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