Tips For Creating Content

You’ve probably heard the phrase, ‘Content is King’.

It’s the long-serving mantra of online marketing professionals alluding to Bill Gates’ celebrated 1996 essay where he refers to content being the place money will be made on the internet. A prediction not as overtly monumental as Nostradamus’ but actually, very significant in how we now live our lives and how businesses function today.

Content is king

Needless to say Gates’ prediction has come to fruition and content has become the lynchpin of the internet. Content consumes our everyday lives and we can’t get enough of it.

So what is content? Content is a Snapchat streak, a meme, a 30 second ad on YouTube, a landing page, a press release and it’s a 1600 word white paper, to name a few. So how do businesses wade through the colossal amount of content channels available to satisfy an often impulsive and fickle online audience?

Here’s a few basics.

Be discerning

It’s always good to embrace new digital marketing channels but choose carefully. Is your audience going to see the latest How-To Vlog you posted on YouTube or are they more likely to be impressed with your latest client win article in an industry publication? Are they going to have time to read your 2000 word feature on new ways to sell bionic mouse catching devices or would time be better spent creating a YouTube channel to demonstrate the features of your new product?

Be timely

Get deep into the psyche of your customer, where are they going? What drives them to engage? If they need an incentive, give them one. A competition on Twitter will drive engagement better than the rebrand on your website you had planned. Conversely, time spent rebranding a website is valuable if it ties in with a launch and maximum leverage can be gained.

Be consistent

If you are distributing or uploading engaging content then you must be consistent, don’t let your hard work be in vain. If you’ve created something interesting and relevant then capitalise on this and use it to build trust. You’ve created expectation from your audience so it’s important to keep up the momentum to keep them coming back and encouraging further interaction.

Use keywords

Amongst other factors, search engines rank content largely on how well your article or information is written. It’s worth taking time to produce a list of key words relevant to your target audience and incorporate these into your content too. Well produced content not only helps improve search results but it is also more sharable and authoritative, meaning wider reach is gained. When creating titles for your copy, include words most relevant to the topic you are discussing and include your keywords as high up in the opening paragraph as possible.

Don’t forget, for businesses, the intent behind the content is to convince, persuade and/or influence. Brands and companies are increasingly becoming media organisations and with customers hungry for knowledge, it’s crucial to be talking to your ‘readership’ in terms they understand, appreciate and want to hear more of. Failure to do so and you will lose them at ‘hello’.

Pelican Communications are specialists in the environmentfood and drinkoutdoor and leisure and packaging sectors and offer a range of services such as media relations, brand management, event management and people developmentContact us for marketing and communications expertise.

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Content is king