How to create killer content

Do you ever feel as though creating online content for your business is stressful? What with blog posts, social media updates and promotional material all forming part of your digital marketing strategy, it can sometimes feel like a struggle to keep creating decent content.

This is especially true if you aren’t much of a writer and crafting engaging material doesn’t come naturally to you. However, by using a content creation checklist – like this one – you can sculpt not just content that people want to read but also be consistent in your writing.

After all, writing is actually a learnable skill and the more you do it, the better you become at it. And by following these simple guidelines you’ll start creating better content right away:

Be alluring

The internet is absolutely littered with content and to make yours stand out you need an alluring title that makes people want to click-through. You could have written the best blog post in the world but if it’s let down by a boring title then chances are people won’t even get to read it.

But what makes a good title?

• A sense of urgency – For example, a title that begins “Don’t miss out…” automatically makes people curious about the content that follows.
• Look to inform – The ‘how to’ format is used a lot on the internet because it works. People want to be given knowledge that they can use going forward.
• Use numbered lists – “Top 10”, “Five Top Tips”, or “20 Ways To…”
• Incorporate bold/strong language – Notice the word ‘killer’ in the title of this post? Can content really kill? No, but it stands out right.
• Ask a question – Questions are a fantastic way to engage your reader right off the bat. “Do you dread creating online content for your business?” will probably have most people thinking, yes! Why? Are you going to help me make it easier?

Make people want to continue reading

So you’ve managed to get someone to click-through to your blog post with your alluring title but now you need to keep them hooked. So many pieces of content fail to fully engage the reader at the start and they inevitably navigate away again – don’t let this happen to you.

By using a staggering statistic or a question at the start (like this post does) you further engage the reader and they are more likely to keep reading. Intrigue is very powerful and by triggering it in someone you will get your content read right to the end.

Be personal throughout

One of the best pieces of advice that anyone ever told me was, “Try to write like you talk.” Sounds obvious right? But it really is the best way to approach content creation. Not only does it make the whole process easier but it also gives your posts a sense of personality – people appreciate that.

Show the reader that you care by interacting with them throughout. But how do you do that you say? By asking questions like I just did. It involves the reader and shows that you are writing with them in mind.

The word ‘you’ is extremely powerful throughout an entire post and is more likely to lead to the reader becoming one of your customers in the long run. Plus, a sense of personality will see readers returning to your blog again and again.

Be consistent

Finally, it is important that you are consistent with your content. After all, building a list of regular followers is the key to success. Your audience have become your audience because they like reading what you write. The quality of past blog posts isn’t going to be enough to keep them interested if your new content isn’t up to par.

Always try to:

• Post new updates frequently – don’t post five updates in a single day and then disappear for a fortnight.
• Be recognisable – structure your posts carefully and let your audience become used to your layout. People enjoy consistent posts that look familiar every time.
• Offer real value – By doing this you’ll inevitably increase your search engine ranking as well as pleasing your readers. Just don’t focus on the former, however, too much. You should always write for people first and search engines second – always!

To attract more followers and win more customers, you need to make your content stand out from that of your competition. Stagnant, boring content will just sit there. Lively, fresh, engaging content on the other hand will entice big audiences.

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