When it comes to content creating, much like baking, the right ingredients in the right weight usually gives success. You might be writing content, or creating video content, or perhaps you’re just preparing yourself to start doing that. If you are looking to invest time and money, and see some return, then you are ideally looking to create the best content.
But what is good content? It is usually useful to the reader, so much so that they want to share it. They share it with their friends who often have a common interest – and away it goes. SEO plays a big part here. You are writing content with a purpose. To be seen.
Original content helps you gain exposure that you might not otherwise get. The better your SEO, the higher you are going to rank on search engines. The one everyone wants to rank well on is Google. Google is transparent; they don’t like and will make a point of penalizing sites with copied content. So there are rewards to reap when it comes to putting in the time for fresh content. It is worth bearing in mind that almost all content is a rewritten item of other content. Of course, unique content isn’t easy to create or come by.
When it comes to video content, the rules aren’t too different. Expect usually you have some room when creating. You have enough time, even in a short clip – to hook your audience – direct them to your blog or product. Emotive video and excellent description services will improve the likelihood you are going to see those numbers rolling in.
But it all starts somewhere.
Generation
Of ideas, that is. You know what you want on your website, and while sometimes sitting down and writing off the top of your head gives you excellent content – that accounts for a small percent of what people are going to see. Creating content that is evergreen is much more beneficial.
Every year there are new trends that directly relate to the market you are in – no matter what that market is. But some tools and methods will relate to your business every single year.
So the best place to start is by generation topics of conversation and content. Grab a notebook and a pen, and install something like Evernote on your mobile phone. And start putting together a list of 20 or more content ideas. These ideas are the bones of your next step.
Headlines
The headlines are going to pull people in, and it is what is going to sell the post as something people want to read. If you struggle with creating headlines that grab attention, then try a few of these headline generators:
- Impact Blog Title Generator
- SEOpresser
- CoSchedule’s Headline Analyzer
- FatJoe Blog Post Title Idea Generator
Try to work with your keywords when you are working on the title. People like to read things that provoke an emotion, or they are looking for knowledge. Put time into getting this right – the hook makes the difference.
Something To Do
When you have put together your exquisite post, you are going to want to add something for people to ponder or do. Giving people the knowledge is one thing, but telling them how to use it is so much better. For example, writing a list of tools for marketing is very handy, writing one and next to each tool giving an example of where they can make an impact is better. Going even further, you can use images to complete the story.
Consider your article – no matter the topic, a jumping-off point for the reader unless you are writing fiction, of course. They are there for ideas, know-how, inspiration, and most often a guiding light to solve a problem.
Q&A
From chickenpox to free marketing stacks, if people have a question, they are going to type it into Google in the exact question form.
- How do I maximize my twitter reach?
- How do you unclog a drain?
- Free marketing ideas
Be the person that provides the answer to questions that are related to what you do. If your company makes orange juice, then when someone types in ‘Can I do X with oranges,’ you should have the solution and examples ready.
And here is the trick – people don’t want to scroll down 400 words to see the answer. They want it fast, and they want it now. Consider providing solutions like the fast-food industry. It’s fresh, hot, not hard to find a provider and satisfies a need – for a time.
Supporting Content Creation
Research matters. You don’t want to have a post with outdated links or made up numbers. So if you are saying that 70% of people do X, then have a link to a credible source. And, the more readers this post gets, the more likely it is to be shared. During that sharing, if someone disproves what you’ve said – that can backfire pretty massively. So unless you are known for writing your opinions and not facts, then steer clear. Supporting links will strengthen your credibility, and that is ideally what you are looking for.
Paying attention to what you are linking too will help search engines even further define your content. Always aim for trusted high-authority websites.
Engagement
Ah, that beautiful word. If you have sculpted a piece that has readers hanging on to every sentence gulping down more, then you know you’ve done your job. But people get bored quickly. In fact, while many people read your headline, only some will read the content.
So you have just about the first paragraph to make an impact.
Storytelling – you may notice that there is now a career in storytelling. The public love a story and content creators know this. Using anecdotes, good introductions, have real-world comparisons and examples will give people something to relate to. Something they want to see-through until the end.
Questions – Write your content in such a way that readers want to leave a comment and ask a question ‘great post, but what about…?’ is ideal. It gives you room to communicate with your readers, and other readers with the same questions or a different point of view to get involved.
Introduction – Much like when people meet in person, they make their decisions in seconds. The tone and style might put them off, your content might not be what they were looking for, or you might be precisely what they need. If the headline is clear, and not clickbait, then they will know what they are there for. And you simply must deliver.
Visuals
Images and videos make a difference to your content. Some people don’t want to read 2 thousand words on a topic when a video of three minutes will give them the information. Most of the time, a 2 thousand word post will take around 5 minutes to read, but they feel different about the delivery. Including a video where you can, and images to break up the text works well.
When you are talking specifics about how to use a tool, you might like to look at using your screenshots of the process. This will give people a better understanding of what you are saying.
For images, you can choose to take your own or use some beautiful stock photos. Many content creators see more value in using their own images, but if you don’t have the time, skill, or bank balance to hire someone. Then Pexels, Pixabay, and Unsplash are most likely to have what you need – and for free.
Update
Websites close, posts move place, and sometimes you are left with a lot of broken links. Broken links mean your website is now pointing to nothing. Which has a negative impact for your reader who is looking for information and the search engines ranking of your article.
Update your content regularly, run a broken link checker, and try out Yoast for a hand in what work needs to be done.
How often you update it is really up to you, but try not to let it get stale.
Sharing
Content is not a thing that will fly by itself unless you have thousands of invested readers (and if you do, then congratulations). You are going to need to market it. Having share buttons on the post will allow people to share with their own networks. But you need to kick that off, on your own social media channels. Set up a campaign in Buffer, MissingLettr, Social Oomph or Social Bee. To promote your content heavily in the first few weeks, then pepper through your year. If the content is topical, then go for two weeks heavily promoted schedule. If it is an evergreen, then share it often and liberally throughout the year.
Creating content will take time, but if you are creating a content delivery website, then you owe it to yourself to do the best possible job. Accept guest pieces when they make sense, share other articles on your social media so you can begin to position yourself as an expert.
Research, back up, share – rinse repeat for content success.
