audience

These days, content is apparently king. But writing content that rules over your competition is not that simple. According to Time, the average reader spends only 8 seconds reading a piece of content.  (That’s probably gone down some, considering that statistic is a few years old.) So it goes without saying: creating engaging, valuable content that helps your target audience is vital. These days, in order for businesses to increase traffic and revenue, it’s essential to invest in content marketing — and therefore, expert content writing. According to CMI, higher quality content creation accounts for 78% of content marketers’ increased success in the industry, over the past 12 months (CMI’s 2018 Benchmark). What’s more, 47% of marketers today are outsourcing their content. So, we’ve established how much content creation matters today — and how nearly half of all content created is outsourced! If you’re reading this, chances are you’re one of three individuals: A writer who has heard of content writing as being one of the most profitable forms of writing. A content writer looking to brush up on your skills to get yourself ahead of the game. A marketer or business owner who is looking to step up your marketing strategy by hiring a content writer. No matter what drew you to this article, you will walk away with a clear understanding of a major factor in online business success: Successful content writing. Let’s get into the good stuff! What Is Content Writing — Rather, What’s Good Content Writing? Written content comes in a number of mediums: blogs, social media posts, web pages, articles, white papers, video and audio recordings. It is information on a specific topic focused on a targeted audience. The key here is audience. If written content fails to attract its target audience, there’s not much point to the content, to begin with. A lack of audience engagement in your content results in a low ROI. [bctt tweet=”For writers and marketers, creating engaging, valuable content that helps your target audience is vital. How do you do this? @JuliaEMcCoy shares her 8 keys to content writing success! ?” username=”ExpWriters”] So then, what makes attractive written content? Think about the best movie you’ve seen recently. Got it? Why do you like it? Was it the special effects or music score? Maybe it had a great storyline or focused on a topic of interest. Chances are, the best film you can think of was a combination of these aspects in order to make it memorable. So what’s my point? Good content writing is similar in the way that it combines several key aspects in order to engage readers and perform well in search engines. Impressionable writing requires creativity, SEO tactics, consistency and purpose. We’ll soon delve into ways on how to achieve this. But first, let’s cut to the chase: Why Is Good Content Important? Quality online content drives marketing in almost every aspect. If your content is also optimized for search engines and draws organic traffic, you’ve hit the jackpot. Leading businesses know the value in this and are looking for the talent to create it. The internet is a crowded place and it’s only becoming harder to stand out. While good content brings in audiences, great content generates higher conversion rates. This is THE trick in driving revenue. Lucky for you, we’re going to reveal that trick. We’ve laid out easy-to-follow guidelines which focus on: What content writers should strive for What employers should look for [bctt tweet=”Why is great content important? See, with good content you cannot only attract your audience, but you also encourage them to engage leading to higher conversion rates. ? – @JuliaEMcCoy” username=”ExpWriters”] 8 Keys to Successful Content Writing Successful content writers have it all. Aside from being wordsmiths, they are SEO specialists, social media gurus and expert marketers. They create the online content, which drives traffic, charms Google and turns skimmers into subscribers. Although this description seems loaded, it’s easier to grasp when broken down. So, what are we waiting for? Successful content writing in 2018 is: Amy Poehler! Just joking. 1. Audience-Focused Reel in your audience and you’ll reap the rewards. This is because Google’s main focus is keeping searchers happy. So, if you’re catering to audiences, Google will cater to you. By creating relevant and helpful content that puts your audience first, you will enjoy more success. It’s a healthy cyber relationship. To know how to help your audience, you need to understand their pain points. Research your competition and take note of what they’re providing. A competitive content audit can help you focus on WHO your competition is and HOW they’re positioning themselves in front of your shared audience. When you know your audience, you can answer their burning questions in a voice that speaks to them. Remember: healthy cyber relationships rely on communication to survive. [bctt tweet=”Good content caters to the audience, and if it is so, then the higher the chances of Google giving you the reward of bringing your search results ranking to the top. ☝️ Know more about @JuliaEMcCoy’s keys to successful content writing.” username=”ExpWriters”] 2. Dynamic The best online content writers can master a wide-range of writing styles. Why’s that? Content writing projects come in all shapes and sizes. New Media Services sums it up well. Some examples of online content forms and their individual styles are: News: Short and concise paragraphs, including the summary of the story near the top of the content piece. Blogging: Friendly, inviting and opinionated. See any of the posts on the Write Blog for examples. White papers: Long-form while providing a solution to a problem. Case studies: In-depth information providing valuable knowledge based on research of a certain scenario. Ad copy: Concise and convincing with the goal of increasing conversion rate. Scroll Facebook on any given day and you’re bound to see ads in the right panel. Here’s an example of an ad from a consultant that makes millions using ads. Ebook: A powerful marketing tool, which can be offered free … Read more