Creating Effective Content
As discussed in an earlier blog post, determining the purpose, goals and audience is vital before any content creation gets done. Once you have pinpointed what you want you or your content creator to achieve, moving on to the content creation is less stressful and more efficient than jumping right into copywriting.
When it finally is time to create content, the following guidelines will ensure your copy is crisp, engaging and, most importantly, will lead to conversions.
Be Concise and “to the Point”
Although you know the ins-and-outs of every aspect of your product or service and it would be easy to write for days on the topic, your prospective clients just do not want or need to know as much as you about it. Especially in the case of digital content creation, people browsing the web are quickly turned off by walls of text and will either briefly skim the first few paragraphs or skip it entirely.
Keep It Simple
Even if your target audience is educated, content should not require too much analyzing. By keeping it simple, your content is more likely to be memorable and effective. A good rule of thumb to follow when making content that will achieve your goals is whether your content can be understood by an 8th grade student.
Likewise, it may be easy to fall into the trap of overusing creativity. Although writing clever or witty content might be more satisfying to you or get you praise, it usually does not convert readers to customers. More and more, advertising is viewed as a form of artistic expression instead being created to increase sales.
Another writing aspect that you should avoid while you create content is jargon. While you may know and can use your industry’s jargon naturally, your readers most likely will not.
Be Unique!
Not only is plagiarism illegal, it can lead to harsh penalties from search engines. If a search engine spider recognizes that content on your site has been previously published on another, your standing in search results will immediately be placed at the bottom if not removed entirely.
Additionally, if a viewer or prospective client notices that the information accessed on your site or copy is similar to something they have seen before, they will be likely to disregard your message or website entirely.
Create Quality Content
You may think your services or products are the best, but poorly written or constructed content will tell prospective clients otherwise. Ensure that you or your content creator is producing only the highest quality copy and achieving your goals will come naturally. Creating content hastily leads to low quality work. Low quality content will lead to transference of the notion that what you are selling is low quality as well.
Remember your purpose, goals and audience when you are going through digital content creation and ensure your content is concise, simple, unique and high quality. Following these easy guidelines will help propel your message or product to where you know it should be.
