Writing content is hard. You think about your audience, who they are, what their reading levels are, what amuses and entertains them, and what “education” or information they need. The goal, of course, is to throw out the “bait,” get them to bite, and then reel them in with great stuff to read – stuff that they want to share with others. So how do you accomplish this? Here are 6 tips that can help.
The Headline – Nothing is More Important
You need to spend as much time coming up with a headline as you do anything else. Any journalist will tell you that, as people read newspapers, they look at headlines and then decide if they want to read the article. The title is the “bait.” It is also what is shared on social media.
Don’t wait until you finish the content piece before you create your title. Think about your content, then get the compelling title written first, because your content can then reference back to catchy words in it.
Getting a great headline is not that tough. If you are not wonderfully creative, read the really great titles of other bloggers; write them down; see if you can re-purpose them by changing out some of the words to fit your content topic. In general, numbers are good; “How to” is good. Asking a question? Not so good.
Be a Story Teller
One way to get content actually read is to tell stories throughout – we are all “wired” to tune in to stories. You can start with a funny tale that relates to your content. You can also use stories as examples of the points you are making or the ideas you are sharing. If someone used your idea successfully, tell their story. When you tell stories, you points and ideas have meaning and value to your readers.
Quote the Experts
If you want others to see you as an expert or authority, you have to associate with famous people who are experts. Every time you quote an authority, you gain credibility, so do it often. If you are giving advice to budding entrepreneurs, providing quotes from people like Richard Branson that speak to passion and motivation will make your words that much more valuable. If you are writing about finance and investing, quotes from Warren Buffett will work really well.
The other thing you can do is insert links to authoritative sources. Anything on finance and investing, for example, with a link back to an article in Forbes Magazine will increase your credibility as someone who knows who has the most authoritative advice, and, of course, it looks as if you have an intimate knowledge of the topic as well.
Lower the Language Level and Style
One really successful blogger has said that he writes every post as if he were writing an email to a friend. Think about that. Your emails are very conversational, use simple sentences, and are not filled with complex and sophisticated vocabulary. Unless you are writing a post for a highly technical and scientific audience only, lose the academic style and language. Write in an informal voice.
This is not to say, however, that you can sacrifice good grammar and punctuation. You absolutely cannot. You never know who might be reading your post and who might comment on the hideous grammar errors. Your content loses value if it is full or mistakes.
Make Your Reader the Hero
If your post is wonderfully entertaining while still solving a problem or answering a question, your readers will want to share it. They will want to be able to say to their friends, “Look what I found- isn’t this great information? Isn’t this just the best story?” This raises the stature of your reader, and s/he feels really good about that!
Make Your Content Easy to Skim
Readers don’t normally read every word of a post at first. They skim. Make it easier for them to do that with lots of sub-headings and bullet points. They can then decide if they want to read the whole post. And if your sub-headings are catchy too, and state exactly what is in that section, they will be more compelled to read the “fine print.”
Don’t Forget the Media
Pictures, infographics, and even videos will break up the text. Plus, they just provide visual attraction and keep the reader focused and present. Research shows that bounce rates go down when media is included in posts.
Some Just Need to Hire This Out
Everyone is not a creative writer, no matter how expert they may be on a subject. If this sounds like you, and you need to maintain a business blog, stop publishing content that is falling flat. Hire a creative writer, give that person the content, and let him/her re-write it for you.
Yes, content writing is hard. If you like to write, though, you can get really good at this. Read, read, read good content and start to pick up the “tricks” that are used to bait, hook and reel those readers in. You can do this too with practice.
from Darlene Milligan http://ift.tt/1MkEIr1 via transformational marketing
from Tumblr http://ift.tt/1MgIOPg
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