Nicely said. Once you experience that feeling, you’ll truly understand how careful word choice can be the difference between a piece of content that is viewed once or shared thousands of times.
Content marketing has brought content into the spotlight, but it has also brought a plethora of poorly written articles, eBooks and web pages that lack any sense of purpose or ability to drive results. Choosing your words wisely can not only make your content more interesting to read, it can make it more valuable, more likely to be shared and more likely to be found, impacting your brand positively.
Before you start writing, be sure to understand the customer need that is driving the idea behind your content. If you are writing something based on internal priorities or events, you simply won’t get the traction you’re looking for. Content marketing requires a content strategy and a plan. Without one, you’ll spend good money on ineffective content. Find out what information needs your customers have. Take the time to ask 10 customers the information they need about the product or service you are wanting to promote. Full buyer persona development works best but at least get an understanding of the information they need. Then use the results to map out a content plan for the year.
Then you can start writing.
Precise words will help you articulate your message and increase the impact you have on your audience. It will turn mediocre writing into a piece of content that is engaging and inspiring. And it will drive results. Here are some things to consider before you start writing or briefing your copywriter.
Use language that conveys knowledge
Before using a word, make sure you’re absolutely certain of the word’s meaning and how to use it. Using unfamiliar language can make you sound less authoritative if you’ve used it incorrectly. This is especially important if a copywritter is writing a piece for an industry that he or she has no knowledge of. Industry specific knowledge takes time to learn and time to undersatnd. Using it incorreclty can destroy authority. On the flip side, if you are using your language correctly and conveying information that helps your reader to learn or understand something new, you’ll be achieving what content marketing sets out to achieve.
Know your Keyword themes
Make sure you have an understanding of your keyword themes, moving beyond focussing on just one specific keyword in your content. Using keyword themes will increase your site’s relevancy and it will also increase your level of expertise in the minds of your potential buyers and the search engines. Nothing looks worse than someone using the same word over and over again. When you use related words corectly, it conveys that you know what you are talking about. It conveys that you understand your subject.
Wordstream Keyword Planner great for developing keyword themes
Let’s use this article as an example. It’s about content marketing and I’ve chosen to talk about choosing your words wisely. This involves knowledge, keyword usage, keywords themes, correct use of language. All of these words are related to content marketing. I’m focussing on the idea behind words used in your content marketing. I’m not hammering on about or over using the keyword content marketing.
If you are unfamiliar with keyword themes, here is a great article on the Moz blog. There are lots of tools that you can use to develop your keyword themes. Ubersuggest has a free tool. If you manage PPC campaigns, Wordstream offers great tools. I also like the Google Adwords Keyword Planner.
Use a thesaurus
My visual thesaurus has become one of my most utilised marketing tools. (believe me I have many tools) I use it to find synonyms that are more powerful than the ones I’ve used in my first draft. By using a visual thesaurus, I can see words that I my not have otherwise considered or even known about.
For something to be nicely said, choose your words wisely. You’ll remind readers of the value of the information you’re presenting through your content marketing efforts, which is more likely to turn visitors into buyers.
If you require any assistance developing your content marketing efforts, get in touch. We’d be happy to help you get started and support your efforts along the way. Call us on 01206 006 646.
