Authenticity is invaluable; originality is non-existent. – Jim Jarmusch

Tired of looking for the latest, greatest way to captivate your audience and turn them into customers?

Sick of striving endlessly for that new angle – that hook that no one’s ever seen before?

You aren’t the only one.

A lot of business owners make “being original” one of their guiding philosophies.

This carries over into not just how they develop products, but how they write copy and blog posts.

Entertaining and useful aren’t enough. Everything has to be original.

Except there’s a big problem with that: it’s not the best way to operate your online business.

This is something I struggled with for a long time when I first started writing. I refused to accept that I was influenced by others. I refused to accept anything that even looked like someone else’s ideas or work.

(You probably don’t have to guess how that worked out…)

But a lot of trial and error shoved me against the harsh reality: we’re all products of the people we meet, the movies we watch, and the things we read.

Those ideas are stirring around like soup broth in our minds. They flavor every product we design and every word we write.

And that’s okay!

We don’t have to fight that. We can let go of the insane burden to come up with a never-ending stream of revolutionary ideas… all on our own.

It’s a lot less stressful that way.

If you’re struggling to produce more engaging content, why not draw on the deep well of knowledge thousands of experts have already drilled?

Why not research content topics that are already performing well in your niche?

Why not reverse engineer your competitors’ best products to figure out why they’re selling so well?

Why not study direct response copywriting concepts that have been split-tested to death for decades?

You might be worried about “losing your identity” when you tap into time-tested formulas and concepts…

But you shouldn’t be.

Your influences matter, but so does your unique prospective. That’s the special seasoning that turns the chicken broth into something unforgettable.

All you have to do?

Be authentic.

Don’t put on a front to make your business sound more professional.

Don’t water down the unique quirks that makes you you.