Content writing overhaul: It’s time to put your content first!
In these current times, there will be (and has already been) a flurry of business owners endeavouring to transform their online presence and deliver more of their services virtually.
This is the best move and there’s never been a better time … but many are getting it wrong.
One of the biggest mistakes centres around being too hasty, not having a plan and simply throwing any old thing out there hoping it will stick.
There’s been a lot of talk about “pivoting” (the internet’s newest trending word!), “changing your business” and “getting more online” these last few weeks.
To be honest – I’m over that word pivot. In some cases, you might have to pivot your whole business, but in other cases, it might just be a mere change of message and not a pivot at all.
However, if you find yourself in a position where you need to update and overhaul your content, your message and your online presence – you’re in the right place.
There has never been a better time to do this – actually, it’s always the right the time because high-quality and amazing content is not going anywhere! Boring content that has no meaning will quickly fade into the background, so I hope that’s not your content!
I’ve been running a live series called “14 Days to Overhaul your Content” in my Facebook group because so many more people are asking where to start and how to do this quickly and easily. You can get access here to the live video series.
If you need to change direction in your business and your online content, can I give you a hot tip on how to start strong?
Follow these steps. Here is Part 2 of the blog and the next 7 steps. You can read the first 7 steps here.
Step 8 – Structuring your content so it’s easy to read
Structured content – the only content that cuts through the noise. As you know I have been overhauling my own content for the past few weeks and that of our clients as well.
Structured content helps build and maintain trust, and it saves time because it gets to the point and gives only the essential information.
Is your content well-structured and easy to read, do the headlines and hooks make sense for the current climate and are your calls to action pointing people in the direction your desire?
When you are looking at structure, look at all pieces of content … current and future. So landing pages, campaigns, ads and emails. Does anything need to be updated or changed?
Also while you are doing this looks at the structures, systems and processes you have in place for your content and in your business too. Does anything need to be overhauled here?
Can you rework anything you are currently doing to save time, money and resources or just make it a better user experience?
Step 9 – Headlines and hooks
There is a saturation of online content. That’s nothing new, except that now you have to wade through the “not so very good” content as more people “go online” and throw out anything that sticks. Boo, hiss.
Content consumers today, scan more than they read and considering there is a rising trend of viewers’ click-through rates dependent on images and headlines. So my best tip here (as we have already covered amazing images) is to get really awesome at writing headlines!
What do you notice when you hit a Google search? The headline and the short description? That’s right.
“On average, five times as many people read the headline as they read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.” – David Ogilvy
Yes, every part of your content needs to be wow. Especially the headline. If you spend four hours writing the perfect article and two minutes hurriedly wrapping up the headline – your efforts will be in vain!
Here are a few tips:
- Keep them short, sweet and to the point – 10 words max
- Be creative and use power and emotive words
- Build curiosity and interest – try the how-to, why or list headlines
- Leave them hanging but not in a clickbait kind of way – try different hooks
Step 10 – Using points of difference in your content
Stringing a few sentences together, sprinkling keywords every now and then and waiting for something to happen is not the ideal way to create content. Invest your heart and soul and brainstorm new ways to make your next piece even better than the last one.
What do you do differently?
Here are some suggestions to help you get started:
– Statistics: Content should be a blend of creativity and data. A fact-filled content piece not only helps you support your views or arguments but can also help your website generate internal backlinks. Using the right statistics for the right part of your content can even help you convert readers or viewers into leads!
– Quotes: Quotes are brief, can be consumed easily, evoke an emotional response, get the message to the masses accurately and inspire almost everyone! Adding a quote or two to support your content is a great way to stand out and keep your readers intrigued. Don’t forget to credit the source while you are at it!
You can also use research, studies, news stories, influencer articles, fast facts, trivia and anything else that will help you stand out.
Step 11 – Call to action – have you got one?
Every piece of content should have a common goal – to generate and convert leads. And that means having a call to action on your content, which essentially motivates and redirects readers to take the next step.
What are your CTAs like? Are they elaborate and compelling? Do you have good click-through rates? Are they up-to-date everywhere?
Here’s what you should consider:
– CTA should be short, create a sense of urgency and communicate the message clearly
– The placement of the CTA should be ideal, logical and carefully placed where most users are likely to take action.
– If it includes any links or buttons, ensure that they work, are highlighted and visible!
Step 12 – Restyle or repurpose your content
It’s a brand new challenge every day, week and month when it comes to creating content
The ever-changing industry, audience needs and wants, how much new content you should be putting out and the pressure to do it consistently and make sure it is high-quality content that your audience will love – there is so much to do.
So here’s the hot tip… style what you’ve already got.
There is a few ways of doing this successfully:
- Look at what you have done in the past that you could rework for this current climate. For example, January is usually about planning so if you need planning content, look at what you did in January and rework it.
- Do a search in your CRM or inbox for emails you sent previously. For example, if you have sent an email on “how to motivate yourself” and you feel that would be beneficial right now, restyle it and send it again.
- Look at your social posts and use several of them as blog. It might need a little more work, but it will save a bunch of time down the track. Likewise with your blogs, can you restyle of any them into a new ebook?
Repurposing or restyling content is a great way to save time, be consistent with your content and message, and also reach new audiences who may not have come across your original post, you can reinforce the message with them, take advantage of the backlinks and save time.
Step 13 – The benefits of content upgrades
Did you know you can build an email list with every blog post that you have published? How? Content upgrades – the content blessings in disguise.
So, by now you have drawn up your new content plan, with standout content ideas and words that wow – if you thought your job is done and dusted, I have some exciting news for you. It’s now time to leverage what you have and get even better results from your content.
What’s a content upgrade? Simply the next step for people after they have read your blog/content and want more info. You would generally upgrade them with another piece of content like a download, checklist, fact sheet, webinar, and so on.
Apart from free downloads, I encourage you to think about whether you can host any free webinars, online workshops or live video series to address what is significant in your industry or any other forms of “Bonus Content” that you think could benefit your audience and serve as lead magnets at the same time.
Step 14 – Promoting your content
Creating and writing content might seem like a herculean task to many business owners. But once you hit publish and see the rewards happen you will be excited and want to do more of it!
Content promotion is usually the step that people miss! But it is one of the most important.
I would like to emphasise that your content promotion strategy is just as important as the overall content plan or the writing process.
You are in luck – the number of ways and methods available today to promote your content is not limited. It is wise to use all the traditional methods of promoting your content, such as social media and groups. Also try an email broadcast, emails to key people of influence and your clients, paid ads and other platforms like Medium.
Conclusion
And there you have it – the final seven steps to update and upgrade your content for the next three months (at least!).
You can join us in the Content Writing Tips Group to listen in to the live video series for the whole 14-day live series.
Facebook group: Content Writing Tips with Liz Campbell
And you can read Part 1 of this blog here: 14 steps to overhaul your content – Part 1
Next steps to content writing success
If your content is boring, not getting cut-through, too salesy or non-existent due to:
✔No plan or strategy
✔Lack of content writing experience or skills
✔You simply don’t know what to write about
✔You’re just not standing out in the current climate …
I’ve got a solution to help – a hub of information, templates and trainings to take you from NOW to WOW in 4 short weeks.
The Wow School Global Wow Words content planning and writing course where you will learn how to:
💥Map our your content in a strategic manner (TRAINING)
💥Plan
your social, blog and other content in just 10 mins a week (PLANNER)
💥Write posts in just 10 mins a day
(TEMPLATES)
💥Build your online presence and profile and take your business online (STRATEGIES)
💥Learn
the easiest ways to promote your content to get leads (TACTICS AND TEMPLATE
💥Learn and understand your target
market – and how to write for them (TEMPLATE)
💥Re-write
your message and reposition your business online (TEMPLATE)
💥Identify your WOW Words to really
attract your ideal clients (TEMPLATE)
💥6x LIVE writing sessions with Liz
💥Weekly Facebook live trainings
It’s time to stop and get back to basics, and it’s time to make your content really work for you.
You can register your interest on this info page.
