Content marketing is all about having the right skills, and making sure your article will resonate with your readers. The more you can write to attract your readers, the increased chances of getting some solid backlinks to your content, boosting your rankings within the SERP’s. However, I’m afraid to say many people don’t have the key skills necessary to write content that will resonate with readers the right way. Even your existing readers will soon go to your competition because they find more value in their work than yours. I’m here to tell you that you can keep this from happening, but you have to start paying close attention to the following skills that will be discussed within the post.
We all know that content marketing is the new trend because search engines love it, and readers find enormous value within it. It’s no wonder companies spend thousands of dollars each month hiring a team to set up a solid content marketing strategy. With that said,
Let’s jump into some key skills content marketers need to excel online. Your feedback, and opinion, will be greatly appreciated. Let’s get started…
Eye for Data and Analyzing
I can’t believe how many people fail to pay close attention to this element. Content marketing is all about finding what works compared to what doesn’t. It’s about putting energy where you know you’ll be able to convert readers, reaching your bottom line…right? However, anyone can analyze data, but you need to be able to look for the MOST important things like CTR, opt-ins, conversions, and retention. What does this all mean? Let’s go into each a little further…
CTR – This is click-through rate, however, it’s important you know EXACTLY where it matters. For example, you’ll have different headlines, images, and videos, so you need to analyze which ones get the highest CTR, leading to further engagement down the line. Many bloggers look at CTR without paying close attention to actual engagement leading to conversions.
A solid content marketer knows CTR only matters when it leads to increased engagement.
Opt-Ins – Content marketing is about retention because this sets you up for further marketing later down the line. I believe you have to be able to retain the customer, which, to me, is increased when you can get them to opt-in. It’s time to analyze what actually leads to an opt-in, and then optimize what has been working for you. This leads into A/B split testing.
A content marketers needs to know how to split test campaigns until they reach the ultimate conversions. I’ll admit, in the beginning, this will be tough, but going forward, you’ll make up the money + increase profits 10x.
Know The Tools – You have so many tools available to you so make sure you use them. From my experience, a solid content marketer knows what’s available, and keeps up to date with the trends. No need to do everything manually when you know tools are available to streamline the entire process. If you don’t, then rest assured, your competition will be using the same tools to get a jump start.
Research Matters
No matter what people tell you, “research” is the backbone of every successful content marketing campaign. You need to make sure your content will resonate with your readers, which is why I encourage all of you to take your time researching what your readers are looking for. If you don’t solve your reader’s problems, then you’re going to have a hard time converting them into paying customers. Forget even paying customers because you’re going to have a hard time meeting your bottom line…period. How should you ensure research is done correctly?
First, make sure you compile a list of solid keywords that you know your readers are typing into search engines. Make sure they are question based, and they answer a fundamental problem within your niche.
Secondly, make sure you use the tools available to help you research your niche and relevant keywords. For example,
- Google keyword planner
- Topsy.com
- Buzzumo.com
- Your competition
All of the above will help you find relevant keywords, and help you narrow down your content idea. Next, you can start dividing your content into sections so you’ll have an easier time writing once you have your keywords ready.
Next,
It’s important you research your audience so you know who you’ll be writing content for. The more you know about your audience, the better the chances of writing something that resonates with them. If you just started, then you might have a problem coming up with a blueprint. However, you have some tools you can use to give you a jump start. For example, the best way to find out more about your readership is to look at your competition. Here’s why:
- They have been around longer, and have established themselves.
- They have enormous content that you can pull ideas out of then write something better.
- You can find what’s missing then use this to create something better that resonates with them.
- Follow the social share pattern because you’ll be able to pull a lot of information from what’s popular.
Next,
You have some other cool ways to research your audience and content. For example, forums are awesome because they have been around for years and can provide enormous value. Skim through them, finding questions that have been asked within your niche then compile a list of common questions.
Just do a quick search within Google using your main keyword and then skim through the list. You’ll find forums, blogs, and even communities to help you with your research. Always make notes because in the end, these will be great to reference quickly.
Understanding the Different Types
You’ll have an easier time writing content if you understand the different types you have available. For example, it’s going to be much harder to keep writing the same type of content over and over again. This is why you have many options available so you need to know how to make use of them. Some of the options include:
- Videos
- Images
- Infographics
- Top “” list
- How-To
- Podcasts
Some will resonate better with your readers than others so give them all a try. Once you find out which ones work the best, you can start to scale on that content type. This will help you scale, convert, and build user retention going forward. It’s amazing how some will be better on social platforms, too, so make sure you take your time and understand what types of content you have available.
Another cool approach is to visit your competition, and look at the different types they use throughout the year. You’ll notice a pattern develop, which means they’ve used some content types more than others. Learn from them, and implement what you can into your blog. Then analyze the data so you can scale at a later time, which will help increase conversions and build loyalty.
Writing Content and Skills
It’s one thing, knowing how to analyze data, but completely different being an expert writer. Content marketing involves knowing how to accurately structure your data so it makes sense to your readers. There’s no point having people arrive on your website when they can’t understand or comprehend what you’ve written. Having poorly structured content will just make it hard for them to pull out the value you provide. This is why I encourage all of you to ensure you are expert writers or have a team that knows how to put content together. I tell my clients content marketing and writing will depend on 5-6 main factors. Let’s check a few of them out…
Structure – You want to ensure your content is laid out correctly. For example, no paragraph should be longer than 5-6 sentences because too many will just make everything look way too cluttered. Make sure you have spacing throughout and the line height is set to 22-24px. This will ensure your readers can skim through, and understand at the same time.
On-page Optimization – Very important to make sure your content is indexed for the right keywords.
Introduction – This part is very important because it gives you an opportunity to introduce your topic, and what value you plan on providing. For example, you have anywhere between 500-600 words to entice your readers into continuing with your content.
Sub-headings – I like this part because you’ll have the opportunity to organize your content and add secondary keywords into your content. For example, I like to have 5-6 keywords that are related to my main keyword. I’ll use each one in a single sub-heading going forward. This is important for indexing, optimization, and building suspense with my readers.
Body – Here is where you shine because you’ll be showcasing your knowledge, adding value to your readers. I like to tell my clients to take their time, and write content as long as it has to be to get your point across. For example, you want to ensure you provide your readers with an entire solution so they don’t have to go anywhere else to find what they are looking for. By doing this, you are increasing the likelihood of a conversion, opt-in, and reaching your bottom line.
Take your time and put all the fundamentals into play. For example, remember your research so you can add as much value as possible to your content. Do the following:
- Add value
- Add images
- Take your time
- Cover everything
- Make sure you have the best content online, and no competitor beats what you have published
- Always add examples so readers understand your point
- Don’t forget to incorporate your keywords into the body
Conclusion – This part is pretty simple because you are reiterating what you have discussed throughout your introduction and body. In this section, I would like you to quickly reference your main points, and provide your readers with some action steps they can take right away. Some readers are new so they don’t know what to do when they finish reading, and I’ve found that when you guide them, it can help with overall conversion rate. In the conclusion,
- Summarize what you have discussed through the body
- Provide them all with an action plan to get started
- Ask them to leave comments that encourages debates
- Always ask them questions so they can think about other topic ideas to discuss within comment box. This can provide you with further engagement
- I like to place social buttons towards the bottom because you have a higher chance of people sharing after reading valuable content.
Knowledge is King
No matter what people tell you, knowledge is truly king because without it, you won’t be able to resonate with your readers. For example, people come to your blog because you’re able to provide insight that others can’t, and your insight comes from knowledge + experience. I always encourage people to get involved in a niche in which they have enormous knowledge because this helps attract readers going forward. With the right experience and knowledge, you’ll be able to write content that resonates well with your readers. You’ll be able to build loyalty, and will be able to build engagement quickly with very little effort. Value goes a very long way and I’m surprised how many people forget this when writing content. Anyway, with this said, there are a few ways you can ensure you have experience in your niche and continue to build it going forward.
Here are the MOST important:
- Always research your niche before getting started. When you do research, you are automatically expanding your knowledge on the topic.
- Learn from your competitors. This is very important, and MOST of the knowledge I have is from reading other blogs.
- Read books because they provide enormous information on any niche.
- Attend conferences or even events because you can hear the experts speak.
- Always keep up-to-date with the changing trends within your niche. For example, Google Trends is a great way to find out about new keyword searches, and trends taking place within your niche.
Final Thoughts
In the end, you want to ensure you possess as many of these skills as possible because they will help you get a jump start with your content marketing. For example, if you have any of the following, you can start to attract the right type of attention, and start converting with your content marketing efforts. No matter what people tell you, it’s all about meeting your bottom line, which is why I work so hard to attract as many of the skills mentioned above. I believe that for any of us
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