The Found Gen

Marketing That Works.

Marketing

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Why Your Website Needs a Makeover More Often Than You Think

In business, standing still is the fastest way to fall behind, and because your website is the face of your business, a site stuck in the past is a site long forgotten. 

To compete (and win) in today’s crowded marketplace, your website needs to be relevant, functional and appealing. That means giving it a refresh at least every 2–3 years, or sooner if performance or design trends demand it.

Why Fresh Web Design Matters

Think about the last time you landed on an outdated website. You probably didn’t linger. You might have even questioned the credibility of the business. Your prospects feel the same way if they see that your website isn’t keeping pace.

A clean, modern design sends a clear message: We’re current. We care. And we’re ready to help you. Updating your website not only improves your brand image but also builds trust with new visitors.

Signs Your Website Needs an Upgrade

Aside from the visual first impression your site gives off, keeping your website fresh and modern is important for performance reasons as well. Here are some clues you need to tackle your technology:

  • Your website is not mobile-friendly – With at least half of all web traffic coming from mobile devices, a clunky mobile experience is a dealbreaker for most customers. Plus, Google’s rankings favor mobile-optimized sites.
  • It loads at a snail’s pace – Slow load times frustrate visitors and tank your SEO. A redesign can speed things up while improving security and protecting against threats.
  • Your SEO has gone stagnant – Google rewards websites that stay fresh. Regular updates, new content via consistent blog posts and technical optimizations keep your site visible and competitive.
A Refresh Doesn’t Always Mean a Rebuild

It’s worth noting that not every web update requires a complete overhaul. No, you don’t have to tear your site down every year just to stay relevant, but you do need to keep up with ongoing maintenance. Here are a few benchmarks to keep in mind:

  • Every 6-12 months – Swap out outdated images, update content and refresh for current SEO best practices.
  • Annually – Review navigation, fine-tune calls-to-action (CTAs) and check for broken links or outdated pages.
  • Every 2-3 years – Consider a full design overhaul to elevate aesthetics, functionality and user experience.
Keep Moving Forward

Your website is your digital storefront, and just like a brick-and-mortar space, it needs regular care to attract customers and close sales. Small, consistent updates will keep your brand looking sharp and relevant, while a bigger redesign every few years ensures you’re not getting left behind.

If you need help designing or revamping your site, call us at The Found Gen today. We’re here to make your website work harder for your business while delivering measurable results. 

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How to Scale Your eCourse Business for Long-Term Success

Launching an eCourse is an exciting milestone, but turning it into a sustainable, long-term business requires more than just hitting “publish” and waiting for enrollments. To grow your impact (and your income), you need strategies that expand your audience, increase your offerings and create steady streams of passive income.

Here are three tips for scaling your eCourse business for long-term success.

Tip #1: Expand Your Course Offerings

One of the most effective ways to grow an eCourse is by diversifying what you offer. You can do this in a few different ways, including:

  • Creating tiered courses – For example, offer beginner, intermediate and advanced levels to meet learners at different stages (while expanding your income stream at the same time).
  • Developing complementary mini-courses – Short, niche topics can attract students who may later enroll in your flagship course.
  • Bundling your content – Packaging multiple courses together at a value price can increase sales and perceived value.

By giving your audience multiple entry points, you keep them engaged and create natural upsell opportunities.

Tip #2: Grow and Nurture Your Audience

Scaling starts with building a bigger and more engaged community. You want to consistently attract new leads while keeping your current students engaged and coming back for more. This requires you to go back to Marketing 101 – you need to be at the right place at the right time so you can connect with the right audience.

Some ways to do this include optimizing your email marketing to grow your list and nurture ongoing relationships, as well as leveraging social media marketing. For example, share free tips, behind-the-scenes content and student success stories online to build trust and attract new learners.

Tip #3: Build Passive Income Streams

Your eCourse business can generate revenue even when you’re not actively working if you set it up correctly. To be successful, you should consider:

  • Creating evergreen courses – Design content that stays relevant year-round so it can be sold continuously without constant updates.
  • Automating enrollment and delivery – Use platforms that handle payments, course access and progress tracking automatically for hands-off success.
  • Developing a membership model – Offer ongoing content, Q&A sessions or exclusive resources for a monthly subscription fee.

Passive income doesn’t mean zero effort, but it does mean building systems that allow your business to grow without demanding all your effort all the time.

Grow Smarter without Working Harder

Scaling your eCourse business is about smart growth. By expanding your offerings, audiences and passive income streams, you’ll set yourself up for long-term profitability.

Want help developing a growth plan for your eCourse? Contact our team at TFG Marketing + Design, we are here to help you strategize, market and scale successfully.

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Why a Content Strategy is Crucial for Business Growth and How to Build One

There’s wistfulness to the wandering, but if you truly want to reach your destination, you need a map – and an efficient one at that. Taking side roads and detours may still get you where you want to go, but they come at the cost of time and money. The same is true with your content plan. Your marketing strategy plays a critical role in supporting your overall business growth, and without an effective roadmap, you may never get where you want to go.

A well-defined content strategy ensures that every piece of content you create attracts, engages and converts the right audience. Here’s what you need to know about why and how to build out your content pipeline.

Why a Content Strategy Fuels Business Growth

Content is one of the most powerful tools for building brand awareness, establishing trust and driving sales. But without a strategy, even great content can miss its mark. A clear plan ensures your messaging is consistent, relevant and aligned with your business goals. Good content does the following and more:

  • It attracts the right audience – Strategic content targets your ideal customers with topics they care about and answers they’re seeking.
  • It engages and educates – Valuable content keeps prospects engaged and positions you as an industry authority.
  • It converts with purpose – A strategy ensures your content gently nudges readers toward action, whether that’s booking a call, signing up for a newsletter or making a purchase.
How to Build an Effective Content Strategy

As you work toward building out a content marketing calendar to augment your business goals, it’s useful to come at the process with a fresh perspective and consider multiple vantage points. Here are some basic steps to take: 

  • Define your goals and KPIs – Start by identifying what you want your content to achieve (i.e., more leads, increased brand awareness, stronger customer retention, etc.) and set measurable KPIs to track progress.
  • Know your audience inside out – Create detailed buyer personas that cover demographics, pain points and motivations. The better you understand your audience, the easier it is to create content that resonates.
  • Audit your existing content – Review your current blog posts, newsletters and social media content. What’s performing well? What’s falling flat? Use this data to refine your future approach.
  • Create a content calendar – Based on your research findings, plan topics, formats and publishing dates for the next 6-12 months. This keeps your team organized, maintains consistency and ensures your content supports ongoing campaigns and business goals.
  • Measure and adjust – Track your results regularly. If certain content types or topics are outperforming others, double down on what works and refine what doesn’t.
Growth is an Evolution

Business growth is an evolution, and so too is your content strategy. By being strategic and agile with how your marketing efforts support your overall goals, you can create a pipeline of trust and opportunity.

If you need help building out your content strategy or executing on goals you’ve already established, we’re here to help. Give our team a call today at TFG Marketing and Design to get started. 

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How Blogging Builds Client Trust: Why Clients Prefer to Work with Informed Experts

When it comes to winning over clients, trust is the currency that matters most. You can have the flashiest website, slickest sales pitch and most cutting-edge product or service, but if your audience doesn’t trust you, the deal is as good as gone.

Yet building trust with prospects (who are essentially strangers) is a tall order. How is someone supposed to trust you if they don’t know you? 

One way to work through the get-to-know-you phase and build trust fast is through blogging. Here are some reasons why consistent and strategic blogging makes clients more likely to choose you over the competition.

It Shows You’re an Expert (Without You Having to Say It)

Regularly publishing insightful content shows that you know your stuff and positions you as an authority in your field. Over time, your blog posts form a library of proof that demonstrates your knowledge of the industry and understanding of client challenges. Moreover, it improves your ranking on search engines, too!

It Offers Value Before the Sale

People trust those who help them without any strings attached. A blog lets you do exactly that – give, give and give some more without asking for anything in return. This allows you to build up that trust currency by sharing valuable tips, guides and insights that solve problems or spark new ideas. And then, when your reader is ready to make a move, they’re more likely to call on you. 

It Builds Reliability Through Consistency

A core tenet of trust is reliability. When you do as you say consistently, people will trust you more. A blog that’s updated regularly sends a quiet but powerful signal saying, “We’re dependable. We follow through.” If you can show up for your audience week after week, they’ll believe you’ll show up for them when it matters.

It Humanizes Your Brand

Blogging gives your business a voice. It’s where you can share your brand’s personality, values and stories. That human connection makes potential clients feel like they know you, and people prefer to work with those they know and like.

It Anticipates and Answers Questions

Clients don’t always reach out with questions. They first go searching for answers themselves. When your blog addresses common concerns or industry changes, you’re demonstrating transparency, foresight and a willingness to be helpful before they even ask. This also circles back to the point above about positioning yourself as an industry authority.

Ready to Build Stronger Connections? Call us at TFG Marketing + Design.

A good blog builds trust by offering value, connection and engagement. It’s not built overnight, but with patience and consistency, your blog gives readers a chance to get to know you before they meet you. And by the time they reach out to you, that foundation of trust is already built.If your blog is lacking the consistency you need to build trust that converts more customers, turn to us at The Found Gen.

We know how to craft content that positions you as the go-to expert in your field while keeping your audience engaged and coming back for more. Contact us today to learn more about how to make your blog work harder for your business.

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Why AI Can’t Replace the Emotional Intelligence Found in Human-Generated Content

Artificial intelligence has rapidly descended upon us, and many of us have struggled to come up for air since it first crashed over us like a wave. It really is that powerful. And the more we learn of its capabilities (like producing content in mere seconds to the hour), the more tempting it can be to believe machines can do it all, but there’s still one critical area where it falls short – and that’s emotional intelligence (EQ).

AI is an incredible tool in a marketer’s toolbox, but the human touch still reigns supreme if you’re trying to connect with your audience.

Your Voice is Your Brand

Machine-generated content is, well, machine-generated. It doesn’t have personality, spunk, spirit. Your brand does. Your content must convey your brand values authentically, and the only way to achieve this is via a human writer. 

AI is Smart, but It’s not Sentient

AI can mimic tone. It can predict what might connect with your audience based on patterns and probabilities, but it’s still a machine. It doesn’t feel joy, frustration, hope or humor. That means it can’t tap into the emotional nuance that makes storytelling truly powerful. When it comes to creating content that builds connection and trust, only humans can give life to a message that adds meaning.

EQ is Greater than IQ in Creating Content That Connects

Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand how emotions influence both ourselves and others and to be able to effectively use that intelligence to create content that resonates with our readers. It means being in tune with the situation, people’s reactions to the situation and showing empathy as appropriate for the situation. And it’s exactly what makes human-generated content so effective. For example:

  • A human writer can sense when a tone feels too salesy for a serious topic.
  • They know when to use humor and when to let a message just be a message.
  • They can anticipate the hesitations, questions and emotions of a reader and meet them with intention.
Contact Our Team of Humans for Help with Content Marketing

AI-generated content can be awfully appealing, but it’s just words filling a page. It lacks the personality and gusto that tells stories and builds connections. If you need help creating content that truly resonates with your readers, give our team a call at The Found Gen. We can help you build a following of meaningful connections. 

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How Often is Enough and How Often is Too Much for Social Posting & Strategy

Social media success hinges on consistency, but when is enough enough? Finding the sweet spot between staying top-of-mind and becoming just background noise is one of the biggest challenges in any social media strategy. So, how often should you post? And how often is too often? Here are some factors to keep in mind.

Consistency versus Frequency

Consistency means showing up regularly. Frequency refers to how often you show up. The key to effective social media marketing is balancing the two so your audience knows what to expect without feeling like they’re drowning in your content.

While every brand, audience and social platform is different, a general rule of thumb is to consider posting 3-5 times per week on social channels. Fewer is acceptable for a platform like LinkedIn, whereas more is expected on faster-paced platforms like X or TikTok. The best frequency for you is one you can maintain consistently while still putting out valuable content.

Be Cautious with Overposting

More posts do not necessarily equal more engagement. In fact, posting too often can fatigue your audience, lead to lower engagement per post, dilute your brand message and even trigger unfollows. Just think about people in your own network. You can likely call to mind the overposters, and you’ve either unfollowed them or scroll right past them without engaging.

Underposting? That’s a Problem Too

On the flip side, going dark on social media is a surefire way to lose relevance. If you post once every couple of weeks, your audience won’t remember you (and the algorithm won’t either). So even if you’re short on time or ideas, posting something regularly helps maintain your presence.

Build a Social Media Strategy Behind Your Schedule

Instead of focusing on how much to post, shift your mindset to why you’re posting. Ask yourself questions like:

  • Is this valuable or entertaining to my audience?
  • Does this align with my goals (brand awareness, lead generation, education)?
  • Am I listening to my analytics and adjusting based on performance?

A solid content strategy includes a mix of content types (educational, promotional and engaging), a posting schedule you can stick to, and time built in to engage with your audience. As you refine your strategy, follow the data. Track engagement rates, click-through, follower growth and other meaningful metrics for your goals. If you start to notice drop-offs in engagement, you might be posting too much. If engagement spikes on certain days/times, optimize around that.

It’s Not About More. It’s About Meaning

Strategic social media marketing relies on intentionality. You don’t need to post constantly (in fact, you shouldn’t!). Finding balance and keeping in mind that one great post that resonates is worth far more than five that get ignored is key to a winning strategy. 

To learn more about building a social strategy that works, reach out to our team at The Found Gen. We can help you find your sweet spot and do the heavy lifting for you.