Key Content Writing Tips for Business
I would say that content writing is one of the core elements of marketing and one of the best ways to drive target audiences to your brand online. Mobile internet is a growing trend and many of us today will be heavily engrossed with our mobile phones during different times of the day from our morning travels in to work or whilst in bed when you just can’t seem to get to sleep.
During the hours per week we spend online we usually are seeking news and information that is either relevant to our interests or that grabs our attention. Once we have selected the news sources and channels we like to follow then those are the bits of content they will usually present themselves to us daily whilst we are on our mobiles, I’m sure we all check the latest football news, the latest new listings on Rightmove or the latest tweets from the celebrities we follow and will have them as saved pages or be accounts that we follow on Twitter etc.
What all businesses need to try and learn from this is that being that news source / information source by content writing that reaches out to and interests consumers / potential new clients, then we are really in a position that we can start to build our sales / brand awareness. If you can get consumers to not only read once your content, but also follow you / subscribe / like / save your pages because they feel that the content you share is worthy to be reminded of daily, then you really have mastered content writing.
So, how do you succeed with content marketing?
- Writers Block. One of the most common excuses I hear and one we really can not hide behind, as you are more or less saying ‘I can not be bothered to write anything‘. A tip here would be to make notes as you browse the internet and run through channels like social media, those topics/quotes/phrases/images you see that grab your attention you should look to jot down and refer to later in the day in order for you to write a new piece around – If you read a good piece on a website then record that URL for later!
- Study other writers content. Yes, I think most will have to agree that we all copy great marketing from other people and company’s so this does not stop you from doing similar. We of course can not copy word from word, or save and re-use another persons images, but we can allow other people’s great content to give us ideas for working on our own content.
- The best type of content writing. Keep the headline to the point or attention grabbing. Attempt to make the first few sentences the best and most engaging to entice further reading. Try not to put all the wording together, split in to paragraphs with each containing 3-6 sentences each. Avoid repeating content and lengthy explanations. Direct your content to the reader and use the word You.
- Try and stick to one subject / topic. Depending on your long term goals, try to stick with a certain subject / topic for your content. You will do far better concentrating on a single topic over a general one especially because of the amount of content available online these days, ie instead content on ‘gardening’ think about content on ‘looking after trees in your garden’.
- Think keywords. It may be obvious, but remember to place keywords in to your content and that is not only single words, but phrases also such as ‘Acer trees‘ and ‘how to plant a Acer Tree in Winter‘. If you can, link keywords and phrases with URL’s to other content you have written that may contain more information for the reader to click through to. If it is images you share then name those images correctly, think ‘Acer trees in Winter’ or what your camera may name the image ie IMG_35479909465.
- The best media outlets for your content. If you write great content then make sure you share it! If you have a blog then why not place the content you share on them on to social media, email them to your databases etc.