While the landscape of marketing continues to change as you read this blog, one component of marketing holds its throne and isn’t likely to leave the high rank. Yes, I am talking about Content Marketing. Today, content is a ubiquitous part of our lives. From the morning news updates on our phones to searching answers on Google to learning a recipe from a YouTube video – we are constantly consuming content. But not all content is engaging enough to hold our thinning attention spans. Moreover, the dynamics of content writing are not as simple as college essay writing help. People are always on the lookout for better content – something that offers the closest solution to their problem engagingly. This is precisely why your content may fail to hit all the right notes if it isn’t all-rounded. But how do you write great content? What are the ingredients that make for perfect content? Read on to find the answer to all your queries.
10 Ingredients to Craft the Perfect Content
1. Address your audience
You may come up with the quirkiest headlines for your blogs, add the most detailed videos into your content and yet fail to engage with readers if you don’t address your niche audience. So, how do you write audience-centric content?
- Research about the demographic your brand caters to, and study their habits and preferences.
- For example, include memes, GIFs and pop-culture references if your reader base is mostly Gen Z.
- Similarly, address the pain points of boomers or older generations if they are your targeted audience.
If you are still unsure who your audience is, use this guide to find all the answers.
2. Always use an outline
Readability is a significant factor when it comes to getting clicks on your posts. Unless your content is well-structured, readers will not waste much time on it trying to figure out the data they want. This is where the necessity of an outline becomes undebatable. An outline lets you:
- Find valuable sources to validate your writing and provide additional context.
- Break the content into subsections using subheadings to enhance the readability score
- Drive organic traffic and more conversions
You can use this guide to outline your next content writing commitments.
3. Use headlines to create a hook
What catches your attention first when you read the morning news? The headlines, of course! Content with catchy titles and click-baits get more visits. So, cash on into the affinity of readers towards quirky and mysterious headlines. Here are things to keep in mind:
- Make sure your content starts with an engaging hook.
- Keep it to build an air of mystery that tempts readers to click and read.
- Try to use keywords in the headlines for SEO targeting.
- Make the right choice of words to meet the limited word space.
Here are some excellent tricks from BuzzFeed on creating click-baits to get more readers hooked to your content.
4. Keep your story lean
Irrespective of what your content is about, make storytelling a quintessential of content writing. When you create a background story to offer information about your brand or provide a solution, you strike a chord with the reader. But that does not mean you go all out and indulge in verbosity.
- Since readers are impatient, trim the excess and keep to the lean.
- Use images and videos to make your content vivid without the word count.
- Trust the marketing pundit Neil Patel and keep your blogs and other forms of written content within 1000 words.
If needed, hire a professional editor who knows how to cut down content by determining what’s essential and what isn’t.
5. Show what you are sharing Perfect Content
As mentioned earlier, the more vivid your content is, the better the chances for readers to engage with it. Here’s how you can make your writing more lucid without using words:
- Create relevant videos that show the message you are trying to convey via your writing.
- For example, if it’s about a product, add a demonstration video to make things more transparent.
- Use high quality customised pictures and infographics to share information.
- You can also go the Gen Z way and infuse humour into your writing with funny GIF files.
Visual aesthetics make your content more engaging, and give your readers a clear idea of what you are talking about.
6. Kiss and tell
K.I.S.S. is an abbreviation for the concept in content writing, which is “Keep it short &simple”.
- Complex words do not make you sound smarter. The fancier the words, the faster you lose blog traffic.
- Steer clear from using jargon in your writing.
- As Arianna Huffington of HuffPost puts it, write your content such that middle schoolers can understand what you mean.
Use simple sentences so that your readers don’t have to Google the meaning of every alternate word while reading your content.
7. Provide information that readers want
How would you feel if you land on a video that promises something but fails to deliver? You don’t want your readers to feel that your content was a colossal waste of their valuable time. So, provide information that your targeted audience is looking for.
- Figure out what your audience wants from your brand by studying the keywords they use.
- You can also research the commonly asked questions about the kind of products or services you offer.
- You can then create a Q&A section to answer such queries.
Here is a complete guide to identifying and optimising frequently asked questions to boost the SEO value of your content.
8. Don’t forget to mention actionable tips
Your content should teach something valuable to your readers – something they were unaware of all this time. Only then will your readers come back to your content, subscribe and sign up for the newsletters, and share the posts with others. But you cannot assume that they know what to do. So, spell out actionable tips to help them learn something new.
Some call-to-action messages that you can use are:
- Click to know more
- Activate “XYZ” today
- Add to Wishlist now
- Add to cart right away
- Click to connect with us
Know how to use the right CTAs in the right place.
9. Add trust factors in your writing Perfect Content
Why should your audience choose your content when there are thousands of similar articles elaborating on the same topic on the internet? If you let your readers know that your articles are well-researched, they will trust you more.
- Link the points you use in your content to authoritative sources.
- The most reliable sources are government sites and official websites of prominent brands in your niche.
- You can also use e-paper and online journal links in your content.
The more credible links in your content, the better your rank in organic search, thus making you trustworthy.
Good Read: The approaches of Improving and Maintaining Google Rankings
10. Read pieces of other writers
To know what works better and what doesn’t click, read extensively. Read content published by leading brands to figure out the mantra that is working in their favour. Read your contenders’ content to know what they are doing. Reading more will also let you:
- Create awareness with your writing
- hone your content writing skills
- Get a collective idea of what others are doing, so you don’t repeat the approach
Here are some of the best content writers and creators you can follow.
Parting thoughts,
You cannot expect to achieve the perfect content on the first go. Take time to figure out everything related to content writing before you start writing your next piece. With the right planning and regular practice, you will achieve content writing skills that take your brand to new heights. Here’s wishing you success and a barrage of readers. Break a leg!
Author Bio: Anne Gill is a content writer by profession and an online tutor by passion associated with the brand MyAssignmenthelp.com. You can contact her via the website for essay writing help and to buy essay online from her.