You may not be a Pulitzer Prize winner or even a skilled copywriter, but you can learn to create content and develop a writing style that is informative, unique and draws interest.
Successfully developing your writing skills will definitely increase your chances for getting your content read, defining you as an expert in your field and ultimately draw traffic to your business.
Here's a formula designed to help you maximize your potential with the written word.
Content Writing Musts When writing content for blogs, websites or articles you must do the following: o Provide value to the reader o Grab the reader's attention o Write for your target audience o Don't forget your call to action Provide Value Think carefully about why someone would want to read your article? If it educates, entertains or solves a problem it can be very effective.
When you craft a piece of content, your goal should be to achieve something for your reader.
That means offer your reader worthwhile information that will either help them to do something they need to do or solve a problem they are desperate to fix.
Providing the kind of value I'm referring to goes beyond offering ideas and tips that make the usual rounds.
You're going to have to step out and find information that isn't found everywhere; this could mean taking original ideas and put an interesting spin on the topic, add personal advice or tell an unusual story.
Grab the Reader's attention When writing content for the internet you have a very small window of opportunity to grab a reader's attention.
If you bore your reader or turn them off with your choice of words or dull writing style they'll simply move on to something else.
Learn to craft catchy headlines and keyword dense subheadings.
Write short paragraphs that get to the point quickly, avoid writing long continuous blocks of text.
Smaller paragraphs will make your content scannable to the eye making reading a lot easier.
Write in an active, conversational tone.
This can take practice but it's a skill that is quick and easy to develop.
This will give you a writing voice that is much more enjoyable to your reader and makes writing a lot easier for you.
Know Who You're Writing For You'll lose readers if you don't write in a manner that is directed to your specific audience.
For example, if you're writing to novices, use lay terms.
If you're writing to knowledgeable people, bring your reading level up a notch.
If you're writing to the very young instead of a more mature crowd, adapt your writing to their age group.
If you have more than one demographic, write separately for each group.
Not knowing who you are writing to will suck the essence out of your content and leave it dry and lacking lustre.
Display a Call to Action You've written your content to whet your reader's appetite so don't leave them hanging!At the close of your content offer them something that will satiate their hunger.
Don't be afraid to include a link that says, "Click here for more info!" or "Subscribe to my blog for more helpful tips!"Your readers will appreciate the information and if your content did its job, they'll be receptive to taking you up on your link suggestion.
And Finally...
Upon completing the article look it over with objective eyes.
Is it something you yourself find interesting?Of course it never hurts to ask a colleague, friend or relative to take a glance as well.
A second pair of eyes can be very enlightening.
And of course it goes without saying; check your spelling and grammar.
There's no bigger 'turn off' than misspelled words, poor grammar or sentences that the reader has to work at to make sense of.