Distinguishing Good Content From Great Content

content marketing
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Content is king! The content that you are posting and sharing must be of the highest quality if you are going to get anywhere with it. People don’t have the time or the patience to waste. You have three seconds.

Capturing your readers’ attention

You have no more than three seconds to capture your readers’ attention. If you don’t entice them enough in three seconds to continue reading, they will move on to someone else’s content and that will be it for you. The good news; however, is that people are a lot more flexible than they used to be when it comes to their willingness to read whatever you are sharing with them. It is critical that you have a compelling and valuable story to tell. The only way that you will be able to forge a relationship with your readers is if you relate to them on an emotional level. That is where your story comes into play. Your story will communicate concepts to them about experiences that you have had in common. In fact, not only do you need to have a compelling story but you also need to tell your story in a way that captures the attention of your readers and holds it for a long time. In other words, you need to create a lasting impression.

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Your readers will respond to your story if, and only if, they can relate to it on some level. For that reason, it is essential that you put a great deal of time and effort into the writing of your story. In fact, if you aren’t getting as much reader response as you had hoped for, it very well may be because the writing is not what it should be. It is important to present your story in an honest and genuine manner; however, it is also important to make it interesting and compelling for your readers.

Avoid the hard sell at all costs

When it comes to the quality of your content, it is very important to understand how to take good content and turn it into great content that will provide you with really positive and exciting results.

The last thing that any of your readers needs or wants (nor would you) is to be given the hard sell. You need to make them understand that your purpose in sharing your content and in interacting with them is to impart at least some of your knowledge to them in order to help them solve their problem(s). The content that you share with them should focus on your customers and not on selling your products and/or services.

Exploring new content avenues

Before you share any of your content with your target audience, you need to do some homework. You need to understand as clearly as possible what your audience is all about and what they need and want from you. You can mix it up and present your content in several different ways.

Use a talented storyteller

It is critical that your brand and your offerings have a story to tell. However, the delivery of that story is also extremely important. If you feel that your story is not coming through to your readers as effectively and as interestingly as you need it to come through, find someone who can tell your story more effectively.

Use the talent within

If you are part of an organization that has several talented people at your disposal, make full use of the talent. If you can get your staff involved in writing content, you will be at least one step ahead of the game. Using this approach will serve several purposes at the same time. It will keep your content very interesting because everyone has a different “voice.” It will also make your staff become intimately acquainted with your brand and what you represent as a business. This, in effect, causes them to become brand ambassadors. Also, from a financial perspective, this approach will save you money because you won’t have to hire outside writers to write your content.

Conclusion

Good content is nice (and necessary) to have but great content brings your business to the next level. It will make a huge difference to the success that you and your business are able to achieve. It is important to realize that, when it comes to content, your priorities lie with your target audience (who will hopefully eventually become clients). First and foremost, you need to find a way to solve their problems. If you can accomplish that, you will be creating loyal customers who will stick with you and your business for a very long time. It is essential to provide value for your target audience through your content. The better the quality, the more your readers will benefit. Make sure that your presentation of content is clear, concise and leaves a lasting impression.

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Author

  • Carolyn Cohn

    Carolyn Cohn is the Co-Founder & Chief Creative Services of CompuKol Communications. Carolyn manages CompuKol’s creative and editorial department, which consists of writers and editors. Her weekly blogs are syndicated globally. She has decades of editorial experience in online editing, and editing books, journal articles, abstracts, and promotional and educational materials. Carolyn earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo.