Would you believe I’ve written thousands of articles over the past decade? Each time I write a new article, I have to find a way to make the subject fresh again. I want to ensure that my readers find what I write useful and informative, so I use the following strategies to build credibility with my content. Feel free to use these tips for your own content and see if you attract more blog visitors!
1. Find statistics to back your content
I wanted to find a statistic about using statistics in your content marketing, but couldn’t find one! Until proven otherwise, your content is conjecture. It’s your opinion. That’s why adding statistics and research to your blog articles can help you validate your point of view.
Let’s say I’m writing an article arguing that content marketing can be more effective than any other type of marketing or advertising. That’s just my opinion at this point, but my reader wants proof:
Think content marketing is too big a headache to bother with? Think again, at least if you want to attract new business: content marketing gets 3x the leads per dollar spent than paid search does. Why are you still wasting money on the wrong marketing tactics?
Instantly, I’ve got backup for my argument that content marketing rocks.
Always link to the original source of the statistic. If you found it on a roundup of other statistics, click to the original data. I try to keep the stats I use within a year old so they’re not too crusty to be useful.
2. Source experts to share their perspective
Another way to make your blog content more credible is to ask industry experts to weigh in on a topic. There are actually two benefits to this approach: you get their wisdom and then you most likely get their support in sharing your article once it’s published, so your content reaches more people!
I like to have a few questions that I send select people. If I’m writing an article about content marketing, I might ask:
- Why is content marketing more effective than, say, digital advertising?
- What types of content have you seen phenomenal results with?
- How can businesses drive leads from a blog article?
I’d send a friendly email to people I already know or who I’m connected with through social media and ask them to answer the questions. I’d give a deadline so they feel a sense of urgency. The result is a nice, long post with different points of view on my topic.
3. Read what’s out there before you write
Even if you know your subject matter inside and out, you should still know what else has been written on this subject before you dive in. I simply Google my topic and read the top results. I’ll usually get ideas for my content and may wander further down the rabbit hole, searching for more specifics I want to include in my article.
Your goal here isn’t to rehash what’s already been written. It’s to find gaps in the existing content on this topic and find a way to write from a different perspective or present a new angle to the story. You can only do that if you know what’s been published.
4. Bold the good stuff
If you’re like 43% of people, you skim blog posts. (There’s your statistic!) People don’t always have time to sit down and read a 3,000-word post—a trend I’m not a fan of. Say it succinctly. They’ll scroll down the page and try to glean what’s most important in the post.