Started as a simple way to make private checklists; Checkli recently added a new publishing feature that could prove useful for Web professionals wanting to publish checklists publicly.
Website Magazine caught up with Marvin Russell (we covered his
MySiteAuditor platform last year before it was successfully acquired) to learn more about
Checkli, which is compared to Medium or SlideShare but strictly for checklists.
What are some common checklists that people create?
Marvin Russell, Checkli: The digital marketing community is really taking advantage of publishing. They're constantly looking for new ways to share faster and more valuable content. We're seeing checklists for top startup podcasts you should listen to, interesting stats you should remember, and social media marketing tips.
We're also seeing people publish fitness programs, recipes, travel itineraries, and wedding tips.
Millennials are creating private checklists like crazy on Checkli. We see students organizing research projects and remembering homework assignments. They're making lists of books they want to read, TV show they want watch, and movies they want to see.
In terms of creating content for an enterprise, why are checklists so effective?
Russell: Checklists get right to the point. They focus on the important pieces of the story and exclude all the fluff. Plus they are actionable. A checklist is something you can accomplish and feel good about. Marketers love this type of interactive content marketing. They can actually see how many people save and use their checklists. Very informative!
In terms of creating checklists for one's personal organization/productivity, why are checklists so effective?
Russell: Between school, work, personal goals, and our social lives, we are so inundated with tasks and goals, it is impossible to remember everything. This is a huge problem because our brains simply aren't built to remember more than a few items at once. That's why we forget milk at the grocery store.
The checklist is the solution to this problem. It's like a plugin for the brain.
According to Dr. Gail Matthews, a psychology professor at the Dominican University in California, you are
42 percent more likely to complete a goal or task if you simply write it down.
What are some current problems companies face when trying to get their lists published and distributed to a wider audience?
Russell:
A. People typically only share their checklists on their own website. Checkli lets you reach global audience of people who are on Checkli and only want to read simple lists because they're faster and easier to understand.
B. Most checklists that people share aren't interactive. They're either PDFs or written right into a blog post. Checkli lets you share checklists that people can save and use. They can actually check off tasks and complete your checklist. Best of all, you get notifications when they do.
How does Checkli.com help both enterprises and individuals?
Russell: Checkli helps your business create faster and more valuable content. Imagine creating a valuable and interactive piece of content in just 20 or 30 minutes that thousands of people share on social media.
Individuals love Checkli because we don't want to read the fluff any more, and we want actionable tasks. If you're sharing information, give us the bullet points. If you're telling me how to do something interesting like travel, recipes, or fitness workouts, then give us a list of actionable items. Leave the fluff out.
When it comes to user experience, what goals did you have in mind for Checkli?
Russell: We want to be the easiest and fastest way to make a checklist online. Simplicity is the goal. I get excited when we remove features, not add them. Less options = Less confusion.
For our publishers, we want to give them a way to quickly share valuable and interactive content from our website or your mobile phone.
Where do you see Checkli going?
Russell: We want to keep Checkli a free online resource for individuals and marketers. But we do want to make money. Next month we're releasing lead generation option giving marketers the ability to offer a checklist they made on Checkli in exchange for an email address.
We're also updating our iOS app to better help publishers use Checkli. This fall we're releasing an android app for Checkli as well.
Our future goal is to make it super easy to share informative and interesting content right from our mobile app. Whether you're sitting on a bus, walking in the park, or lying in your bed. Sharing awesome, valuable content should be that easy!
Anything else you'd like to add?
Russell: A checklist is the ultimate tool for organizing and understanding information, and Checkli is the ultimate tool for making checklists.