“A day of bad writing is always better than a day of no writing,” is what I tell myself when my hard researched, thought provoking, and informative blog post on “The 7 Best Content Writing Tactics” has 3 viewers to date. If I’m writing solid content, why don’t people want to read it?
This could simply be because you…
- Aren’t saying anything new
- Your headlines aren’t powerful
- Your length is poor
- Your information isn’t practical
- You have no visuals
- Blah, blah, blah, etc…
Any SEO or content marketing company can tell you loads of reasons why your content isn’t reaching the people it should. Here is something they don’t tell you: it doesn’t matter if you write helpful, practical, thought provoking content because chances are…IT’S BEEN DONE ALREADY!
The Internet publishes countless pieces of content every day. So here is the number 2 way to cut through the noise and push users to click the share button.
2.1 Ignoring K.I.S.S.
Something most of us learn the hard way, “Keep It Simple Stupid.”
It isn’t easy to trim the fat and edit your message down to the bare essentials. Tell us what the facts are, use simple language to get your point across, develop your hook, and then immediately tell them what they want to hear. No fluff!
2.3 Selling Too Hard.
Take your sales pitch and bury it! Hide your sell within the content instead. Aim for credible, helpful, trustworthy information that answers the question at hand. Solve your user’s problem and think about selling second. Try using a banner creative or call to action button that can be posted at the end to eliminate the need for unworthy sales jargon.
2.6 Not Thinking “Less”
We’ve all heard the saying that “less is more,” right? This is universally true. As opposed to pumping out a blog post a day, take an old blog post and add to it. Add 200 words to an old post or keep your existing articles updated with the latest trends. Take what’s already working and build on it!
2.9 Writing Pieces That Suck
If you drop the ball in speaking to your target, they will not engage. If they don’t see the value, they’re more likely to bounce.
Create an atmosphere that allows for crowdsourcing opinion. Close the gap of communication and push for feedback in the form of posts, comments, or direct messages. Push them to talk to you, because those opportunities don’t return and they’ll likely never come back for more.
2.95 Living In A Weaker Environment
The context, in which your content lives, can do a lot to dictate its performance. In a positive sense, it can add credibility and value to the user. It is invaluable to the health of your content that your entire resource center is appealing in all digital senses of the word. Make all CTA’s and social sharing buttons easily accessible from both the environment and the content itself.
These reasons, while independently important, all depend on each other for boosting your “shareability.” At the end of the day, there’s one reason that trumps the rest, which inhibits users from sharing your content.
1.0 Being Content With Your Status As A “NOBODY”
Sharing YOUR content means that I trust you enough to spam my network of friends, family, and coworkers with your information. For this reason, users want to know WHO you are, and WHY you are a better writer than everyone else.
Sharing content is a recommendation. Those who are well known, are more likely to get their audience’s recommendations, shares, and reposts. Even if you did everything above, I am unlikely to share your content if I don’t know who you are.
Make sure you make it easy to find out information about you.
Conclusion
Writing content is hard work. It takes time to research, write, make edits, revise, and revise again until it’s perfect. In the end, you just want your content to be seen, shared, and enjoyed by many. Though these steps may not necessarily make your writing go “viral,” it will help reach your audience organically, without spending a dime on advertising.
