buzzsumo - Express Writers

How to Use BuzzSumo: The Ultimate Guide on Uncovering Hot Topics to Create Content Your Audience Will Love

December 31, 2020May 5, 2020 by Adam Oakley

This was originally published in 2017 and updated in May, 2020. What if I told you about a hot content marketing tool that allows you to dig deep into your audience’s brain? ? This tool can tell you what your audience is feeling right now. Their current thoughts. What they’re looking for when they go online. The #1 topic they want to read about. Would you use it? Of course! Because the truth is, keyword research tools aren’t enough to help you generate steaming content your readers will devour, reread, and share. I’m not saying they aren’t necessary. They are. In fact, it’s almost impossible to do SEO right without these tools. But SEO by itself isn’t enough to build a brand. The ultimate recipe for success is SEO plus hot topics your audience cares about. So, how can you discover these hot topics? In this guide, I’ll show you how to do it using BuzzSumo. Let’s dive in! How to Use BuzzSumo: 5 Ways You Can Use BuzzSumo to Discover Hot Topics Your Audience Adores So, what is BuzzSumo used for? BuzzSumo is the ultimate content discovery tool. It constantly gets updated with brand new features, so you always know what kind of content your audience wants and exactly what they’re engaging with online. Here’s a list of awesome things you can do with BuzzSumo: Instantly generate tons of hot topic ideas Index over 3.5 billion articles and posts Get an updated list of the most powerful influencers in your industry Spy on your competitors Monitor everything that’s going on online [bctt tweet=”5 ways to use @buzzsumo to discover hot topics: 1️⃣ Analyze top-shared content 2️⃣ Find top niche influencers 3️⃣ Find trending topics 4️⃣ Use Topic Discovery to generate ideas 5️⃣ Analyze top YouTube content ?” username=”ExpWriters”] We at Express Writers absolutely love BuzzSumo. In fact, we use it extensively for our content strategy services. It allows us to: Put our clients ahead of their competitors by knowing what their audience really wants to learn Discover steaming hot topics in any niche Save tons of time in the brainstorming process Let’s go into detail and dive into five ways you can use BuzzSumo to discover topics your audience will love. BuzzSumo pricing guide: Pro: $99/month billed monthly or $79/month billed annually Plus: $179/month billed monthly or $139/month billed annually Large: $299/month billed monthly or $239/month billed annually Enterprise: $499/month #1: Get Ideas from the Web Content Analyzer BuzzSumo is your forensic tool for digging into your audience’s brain and finding out what they’re interested in. With the Web Content Analyzer feature, you get a list of the top content people engaged with based on a certain keyword. [bctt tweet=”.@buzzsumo is your forensic tool for digging into your audience’s brain and finding out what they’re interested in ?️‍♀️. Learn how to use it like an expert:” username=”ExpWriters”] [bctt tweet=”What if I told you about a hot content marketing tool that allows you to dig deep into your audience’s brain? ?✨ No, it’s not magic – it’s @buzzsumo! Learn how to use this mighty tool via @JuliaEMcCoy:” username=”ExpWriters”] To get started, click on Content and select Web Content Analyzer. Source: BuzzSumo Type your chosen keyword in the search bar. Click on Search. What you’ll get is a list of content pieces with the highest number of engagement from your audience. As you can see, a piece about Bill Gates and the coronavirus tops the list with 34.6K total engagements. This gives you a hint on what your audience is thinking about and the kind of content they want to read and share. Want to filter your results by time? Simply click the filter button and select an option to see results from the last 24 hours, the past week, the past month, and as much as five years ago. For example, here’s the result you’ll get when you choose the 24-hour filter. The next step is to click on the top content pieces and find out why your audience loved them. What made them special? More importantly, how can you improve on them in your own content? Here’s an example. Source: www.garyvaynerchuk.com Because this piece comes in the number two spot within the six-month filter, you now know that your audience is interested in being more productive in their content creation. Now, it’s your turn to create content with your own tips and tricks on how to be productive! Bonus: Experiment with the filters! They’re amazing. You can search for content based on type of article, word count, and even a specific domain. #2: Find Top Influencers in Your Niche Finding the top influencers in your niche will help you in three ways: You can gain inspiration from their content You can spy on them and improve on what’s missing in their content You can get networking opportunities To get started in your search for BuzzSumo influencers, hover over Influencers on the top bar and click Authors. You can also search for influencers on Twitter, YouTube, or Facebook. In the Authors search bar, you can find top authors by looking up a topic or domain. For example, here’s the results for a search on Forbes.com. On the left side, you can see the author’s name and Twitter handle. On the right, you can see how many articles each author published, plus their average and total engagement. Select View Top Content to see each author’s top pieces. For example, here are the top results for Zack Friedman. Looking for top influencers in your niche? Simply type in your desired keyword instead of a domain name in the search bar. Here are the results for “content marketing.” (I come in at #2, yay! ?) #3: Find Trending Topics with BuzzSumo’s Discover Feature Want to find content that’s creating a large amount of buzz online? Searching for trending topics within the last 24 hours (or less!) is the way to do it. To begin, go to the Discover option and click Trending. … Read more

100 Outstanding Content Marketers (Original Research Report)

June 19, 2024July 31, 2018 by Adam Oakley

In today’s report, we want to give you a list of outstanding content marketers, doing real and wonderful things in our industry. And to start, perhaps we should define what an “influencer” really means. These days, people aren’t putting their trust in one-off endorsements from celebrities or TV personalities. Instead, they’re choosing to trust people they can actually interact with, learn from, and admire: up close, and personal. And social media has made this all possible. Our favorite people are right there, within reach. Those people you follow, look up to, and know from your Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram feeds have major clout. Their sheer gravitas is enough to move people to act. That’s huge, and that’s the basis of influencer marketing. It’s more relevant than ever in 2018, as consumer preferences move farther and farther away from traditional ads (particularly Generation Z). Today’s influencer types include social media experts, popular YouTube users, bloggers, and celebrities (Sprout Social). Before we get into our official Top 100 Content Marketer influencer list, let’s discuss the concepts on which we actually built the list. (Want to save a copy of the infographic to read later? Download here.) How Did We Build the List of Top 100 Content Marketers? Our gross data points for this list were gathered on BuzzSumo, one of my favorite content intelligence tools. We combined both the Top Authors and Top Influencers for “content marketing,” cross-examined the results on both lists, and merged them into one, final list. We cleaned it up by removing accounts that had been suspended, had absolutely nothing to do with content marketing, or hadn’t tweeted about it in 5+ months. The top 100 accounts in both Authors and Influencers for “content marketing,” with a clear direct focus on content marketing and digital/inbound marketing, and an active role in the content marketing field (CEO, VP, Director, Marketer) were included. Fairness was important to us. We included teams and single marketers (a good balance of both women and men). Both teams and their team members had the opportunity to make the list. So, that’s why you’ll see both @Hubspot and a couple Hubspot writers/marketers on the list. We think that industry teams that work hard as a whole, as well as the individual people that really get behind moving content marketing inside the team, both deserve recognition. Our key goal with this year’s “The Top 100 Content Marketers” was to create a current, accurate, and real content marketing influencer list. Since the Twitter purge the week of July 9, which caused millions and millions of accounts on Twitter to be deleted and removed from the platform, it’s becoming more relevant and necessary than ever to maintain a real presence on social media. Not a presence built by bots, fake followers, and an overnight rush of success. But a real, humanly-built, humanly-connected presence. Over 2.5 months of work and 50-70 hours of team work has gone into the research and final list of 100. I worked on the final report-gathering research and work, the team at BuzzSumo helped me along the way (thanks, Susan Moeller!), and our team copywriters and editors helped me proof the list for any spam, as well as put all the bios together. Then, our editors proofread the copy while our designer put together a beautiful infographic and PDF. This was quite the project! [bctt tweet=”Fairness to both teams and individual marketers, as well as looking for leaders that have been recently active in content marketing, was important in building our #Top100ContentMarketers report. @JuliaEMcCoy” username=”ExpWriters”] How Does BuzzSumo Populate Their “Search Influencers” Feature? BuzzSumo combines and measures a lot of different data points to help you find influencers in an industry based on their Twitter profiles. Metrics that weigh into top-ranked include page authority, domain authority, total # of followers, real engagement: their retweet ratio, and more. The most important data point, however, is one BuzzSumo keeps under wraps: Relevancy. According to Susan, the relevancy factor measures how accurately a Twitter influencer matches the user search. For example, if I search for influencers using the keyword “content marketing,” BuzzSumo returns a list based on their own relevancy score for those results. We can surmise that this score depends on weighing all the factors together (total followers, domain authority, etc.) and ranking the results accordingly. However, there are other, proprietary factors involved that BuzzSumo won’t disclose. In other words, they use a “secret sauce” to return relevant influencers during a search. And, this proprietary factor is what makes their tool so special. Personally, in the last seven years of doing content marketing full time I’ve tried dozens of other content analysis-based tools, and I consistently find BuzzSumo the most accurate (accurate on share counts, followers, and minimal spam). Without further ado, we present The Top 100 Content Marketers for 2018. You can expand and scroll through the SlideShare embedded below, or download as a PDF and save for later. The Top 100 Content Marketers (Real Industry Influencers) Download as a PDF and save for later. The Top 100 Content Marketers 2018 (Express Writers & BuzzSumo) from Julia McCoy The Top 100 Content Marketers (Real Industry Influencers) Click on the @handles in the headers to open each profile in a new tab and follow on Twitter. 1. Content Marketing Institute – @CMIContent CMI is one of the top authorities in the industry. Their conferences, events, courses, and blog all highlight advice from experts, down-to-earth teaching, and a focus on advancing content marketing. 2. Ann Handley – @MarketingProfs Not only is Ann Handley the brains behind Marketing Profs – she’s also a pioneer of digital marketing, an inspiring speaker, and a best-selling author (Everybody Writes and Content Rules). 3. Joe Pulizzi – @JoePulizzi Another major name in the industry, Joe Pulizzi is the founder of CMI and a content marketing movement leader. He’s a speaker, an entrepreneur, and has authored go-to books like Epic Content Marketing, Content Inc., and Killing Marketing. 4. Lilach Bullock – @lilachbullock Lilach Bullock is a social media and lead generation machine. She shares her knowledge through … Read more

The Ultimate Guide: How to Create Headlines that Will Go Viral

June 19, 2024April 24, 2017 by Adam Oakley

We’ve all heard it: while 80% of people read headlines, only 20% read body copy. What does that mean in practice, though? In other words, how do you create headlines that entice that elusive 20% to keep reading? Or to share, comment, and convert? The truth is that viral headlines are rare, and they take time, effort, and skill to master. Fortunately, the content marketers who develop solid headline skills have a better chance of standing out from the crowd. Modern customers are attracted to quality and effort, and a great headline reflects both. The good news is that headlines like these aren’t out of reach. Here’s your complete guide to creating them. What Makes a Headline Viral? If you want to create viral headlines, you must first understand what, exactly, makes them go viral. What are the components they include, and what’s their foundational structure look like? Here are a few critical elements of every good headline, as laid out by Steve Rayson in a BuzzSumo article: Viral headlines have an emotional element Viral headlines use content elements to their advantage Viral content covers trending topics Viral headlines follow a format Viral headlines promise the reader something Here’s Rayson’s table, to illustrate: According to him, most viral headlines employ not one, not two, but three or four of these elements. This combination allows them to perform in a unique way, and to grab your readers’ attention. Which Headlines Get Shared? The good things about learning to write viral headlines is that there’s a lot of information about which headlines get shared and which don’t, and this can help guide your efforts. For example, in 2014, OkDork published a post that showcased the results of a survey that analyzed more than 1 million headlines. Here’s what they found: The Most Popular Phrases in Viral Headlines The OkDork survey found that the most popular words and phrases in headlines were: As you can see, list posts top the charts time and time again. And this makes sense – they’re easy to skim, valuable for readers, and ideal for virtually all industries. Beyond that, the survey also made it clear that people love personalization, and that content that addresses the reader personally (by using the words “you” and “your”) sat at the top of the list, as well. Readers also loved any post that promised a better situation or hinted it would teach them to do something. As you can see, using the right words in your headline is essential, and can make all the difference in your readership. Emotional Headlines As the web has become more personalized and targeted, there’s been a push toward emotional headlines. These headlines take all forms. They can be shocking, infuriating, laugh-inducing, or curiosity-inspiring. Readers just want to feel something when they read your headline. This requires the use of power words. Some power words, like free, easy, and DIY are already included in the list above. There are many others besides these, though. Terms like approved, competitive, unsurpassed, and confidential all inspire strong emotional reactions in readers, and help drive shares for your content. There’s science to back this up, too. According to CoSchedule, posts with a higher emotional value earn more shares than posts with little emotional value. Headlines That Utilize Trigrams A trigram is a three-word phrase used in a headline. While the number 3 has significance throughout nature and mythology, it’s also a powerhouse in the world of writing and, specifically, headlines. The rule of three states that things that come in packs of three are funnier, more impactful, and more satisfying than things that don’t and this holds true for a viral title. BuzzSumo reports that certain trigrams within headlines earn more shares and likes than others. Here are a few to get you started: X Pictures That X Signs You’re How Well Do Can We Guess You Should Never X Things Only The Science Of History Of The The Art Of The Future Of As you can see, these trigrams are just a skeletal structure that you can apply to any headline in any industry. Superlative-Rich Headlines If you’re like most writers, you’ve been taught not to use superlatives in your writing. It’s time to turn that on its head, though. According to BuzzSumo, superlatives can increase the share volume of your headline when used correctly. Because they boost the emotional value of a headline and make it easier for readers to get excited about them, superlatives are ideal for creating viral posts that spread widely across the web. Here are a few superlatives to get started with: Amazing Inspiring Surprising Successful Particularly useful for content designed to be shared on social, superlatives can make your headlines more impactful, promising, and exiting for your readers. Content Formats There are a few content formats that get shared more often than others, and using them is a great way to make your content more viral. These include lists of ten things, how-to guides, and quizzes. Quizzes are especially exciting since they represent a form of interactive content many marketers aren’t creating. In addition to going viral, interactive content like this also allows you to expand your reach and help you stand out as a leader in your industry. How to Write Viral Headlines: 5 Tips Now that you know which types of headlines go viral let’s talk about how to write them for yourself. 1. Evaluate The Headline’s Emotional Impact Remember: headlines with a high emotional impact get shared more frequently than minimally emotional headlines. With this in mind, use a tool like the Emotional Marketing Value Headline Analyzer from AMI. Designed to evaluate the way your headline’s word groups come together to elicit emotional responses from readers, this tool is free and easy to use. Here’s an example of what it looks like in action: 2. Follow a Formula If you’re just getting started with headlines, and you want to ensure yours perform well, look for ways to include tried-and-true methods in your headline approach. Trigrams like those mentioned by BuzzSumo are always a fantastic jumping-off point. In addition to making your … Read more

The Future of Content Marketing Is More Content, Not Less: True or False? (Buzzsumo Study)

December 31, 2020September 22, 2016 by Adam Oakley

For years, marketers, publishers, and writers have been bemoaning the density and saturation of the content sea. In a world where everything has been content-focused for as long as we can remember, it’s understandable that many people believe we’ve reached a point of content saturation. Blogs, social media, articles, podcasts, videos – it’s all too much, right? The naysayers out there believe that as the shorelines of the content sea rise, and marketers around the globe continue to pump out material at alarming rates, getting content noticed is impossible. And, we’d probably all be better off just giving up on content altogether. Right? Wrong. Contrary to what so many people believe, a recent study is making waves in suggesting that the future of content marketing lies in more content, not less. Read on to learn more. The September BuzzSumo Content Marketing Volume Study: Major Findings In response to people who claim that we’ve hit a saturation point and that the only direct content production can go is down, BuzzSumo recently conducted a major study this September that explores the present and future states of online content – and blows apart a big myth. More content isn’t a bad thing; in fact, quantity of content could just be where the future is headed. *Gasp!* Here are a few of the study’s key findings: High-volume content strategies produce real results.In the BuzzSumo study, Steve Rayson (the study’s author) found that several of the companies currently performing the best in the marketing industry could attribute a fair amount of their success to high-volume content strategies. HubSpot, for example, published 4,000 posts in the last year and received 2.8 million shares as a result, while Social Media Examiner has published 400 posts, which raked in more than 1.8 million social shares. The moral is this: when you have an audience that relies on you for quality content, you can drastically improve your leads and engagement by adopting a high-volume content strategy and publishing more content, more often. Short-form content may be ideal for social shares.When Rayson evaluated the 50 most shared posts in the marketing and IT sector, he found something shocking: 45 of them were under 1,000 words. While long-form content is still the winner in value and information, it turns out that short-form may be ideal for encouraging social shares and going viral. Video content may be more efficient than written content.By 2017, an estimated 54% of all web traffic will be dedicated to video. Because video is more cost-effective and efficient than textual content production, it stands to take over as the content method of choice for many marketers. Why More Content is the Future of the Digital Marketing Industry According to Buzzsumo’s study, The Washington Post publishes 1,200 posts each day. Does that seem excessive? For many people, the answer is “of course!” When you look at the publication’s stats, though, it all begins to make sense. In the last year alone, the Post’s readership has grown 28%, and its traffic numbers even surpassed The New York Times for a few months at the end of last year. While it’s fair to assume that this rate of success owes to several things, the foundation of it all is simple: more content. Although the drastic rise in content publication and distribution might seem like the natural consequence of increased readership, it’s a tactical, long-term strategy put in place by The Post’s owner, Jeff Bezos. By increasing the output of content, Bezos and his publication also enhance the value they can offer readers, and thus set themselves apart from other publications in the industry. The Washington Post isn’t the only place standers-by can see such a drastic increase in content, either. For another example, consider Google’s bank of indexed pages. In 2010, the search engine had indexed just over 5 trillion pages. By 2016, however, that number had soared to 30 trillion. Talk about a content increase! The truth is that content is everywhere, and while many marketers believe we have to reach a point of critical mass eventually, the current trend is leaning toward more content rather than less. Here’s why: as life becomes increasingly digital and consumers become increasingly value-focused, content is the answer to dozens of problems, ranging from relevance to the search for information. As such, companies and organizations that produce the highest amount of quality content in the least amount of time are currently the ones positioned to win the race for attention. Quality vs. Quantity: Can the Two Exist? For years, the call in the world of content marketing has been, “quality first, then quantity!” Thanks to the current stampede of content, however, it’s become necessary for marketers to learn to do both at once. In addition to turning out a lot of content, today’s marketers also need to turn out relevant and high-quality content. Without the latter component, the content that’s being produced isn’t worth anything, and has the potential to hurt a brand more than it helps it. With this in mind, it’s clear that not only can quality and quantity exist together in the current climate of content marketing, but that they must. 5 Factors Contributing to the Increase in Content While there are dozens of things contributing to the rising levels of content on the web, the following are some of the most prominent: 1. More global internet users are interested in content As the reach of the web extends around the globe, people are becoming more and more interested in content. From informative blogs to in-depth articles and funny social content, people are searching for content to fill a wide variety of needs and interests. Because of this, the concentration of content on the web must increase accordingly. Currently, the boom in content is happening across virtually all distribution channels and platforms. In addition to the fact that Google is indexing trillions of pages each year, peer-reviewed scientific journals are publishing upwards of 2.5 million new articles each year and social media is virtually exploding with new content. What’s more, this trend shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. … Read more