Web Marketing Strategy Update

A decent piece of content can be made when the writer has a solid topic, enough knowledge on the subject and audience, and a small amount of writing skill. The problem with this formula is that you don’t want your writing to be good – you want it to be great. Paying attention to all the tiny details within your writing can help you to create a magnificent piece of copy that you can be proud of.

The following five tips are important for every writer who is looking to elevate their writing ability above and beyond the competition. Whether you are writing a video script, ad copy for paid search management, or looking to improve the onsite content on your website, these tips will help you create a great piece of content.

1. Write How You Feel, Then Edit

Your writing should portray how you feel about the subject. In order to persuade your readers to your point of view, you must first build trust with them. If your writing sounds like a boring edition of the encyclopedia, it’s going to be difficult to build trust with your readers. Combine your education about the subject with the trust you’ve built, and your readers will quickly understand your point of view.

When you start your writing piece, it’s better to include too much personality that can be edited out later, rather than trying to include more personality later on. A writer should feel passionate about a topic, and simply put that passion into words in order to provide a valuable reading experience for the reader. Don’t be self-conscious about your writing; simply tell your story.

2. Take A Break

Once you have finished your masterpiece, you shouldn’t send it off right away. Any writing piece can be improved if you give yourself the chance to sleep on the material and work on it more in the morning. When you give yourself a break in between writing and editing, it quickly becomes obvious how you can improve even your best pieces of material. Any changes made at this point will only increase the quality of your piece.

3. Have Someone Else Read It Out Loud

Reading your work aloud gives you the chance to pick up on problems with the flow that you may not have noticed when you were writing it. Having someone else read it aloud makes it better because they don’t know the topic or the writing, and aren’t prepared for any turns you make in the writing. This is a technique that is often used when an individual is learning to write, but can also be utilized by current writers to improve any piece of material that is written.

4. Perform The Breath Test

Putting too many words into one sentence may not seem like a serious problem, but if you have a hard time reading the sentence out loud, it’s probably time to trim back. Only put one idea into each sentence, and avoid adding extraneous words to your sentences. Any ideas you have should be expressed in a succinct way.

Research shows that after twenty words in one sentence, 10% of your readers will fall. You can determine if your sentences are too long by reading them aloud. If you have to pause in the middle of the sentence, then it’s probably too long. At this point, you can either cut the sentence into two different parts, or simply cut out some of the fat in the sentence.

5. Rewrite Passive Voice

Although many writers shy away at the term “passive voice”, it’s a fairly easy problem to spot, and should be fixed in any piece of writing. In order to spot passive voice in your writing, think of the action. If someone is doing something, then the voice should be active. If someone did something, then the passive voice is appropriate.

The problem with passive sentences is that they feel lifeless to the reader, while active sentences offer energy and feel tighter to the reader. Although at times it is necessary to use passive voice in your writing, the best writers keep it to a minimum, and do much of their writing in active voice.

To Sum It Up…

Whether you are just starting a hopeful online writing career, or have written for years and are looking for ways to improve your writing pieces, these simple tips can ensure that you are creating the best work you’ve got. With more personality, a little bit of time, the help of a friend, and a little bit of editing, every writer can improve a piece of material that was already good to begin with.

Dorian Travers is the Internal Marketing Strategist at digital marketing firm Wpromote, and has always had a particular interest in content marketing and creating brand development strategies.

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Copywriting is an ancient profession that, I would argue, dates back to ancient Egypt when scribes were called on to tell the stories of the Pharaohs. Then Don Draper gave us a bit of an update, and we were suddenly thrown back into the public’s conscience as creators of words that do.

That really is the bottom line of all copywriting: creating content that calls on readers to perform an action. Whether it’s to subscribe to a company blog, purchase a product, or whet a journalist’s appetite, copywriting is all about the call to action.

But is it just me or does the medium for those calls to action keep growing every year? No longer are we just writing press releases and brochures, but now we’re writing tweets and status updates! I’m certainly not complaining; I love this new age of copywriting. The only snag is that we are constantly shaking up our services to accommodate our customers that want the latest and greatest medium for getting their message out. And not only that, but tried-and-true methods, like the press release, are changing! Press releases are no longer tasty little articles to send to reporters, but they are now posted onto websites and blogs for any and all to see, including search engines that must index and rank them. So how do we stay on top of all these new changes?

First and foremost, stay up on your research. I usually spend the first hour of my day perusing my favorite copywriting and PR blogs to learn about new industry trends. Furthermore, whenever I get the chance, I’m always looking for guides and “how to” articles to stay fresh on certain topics. Whether it’s “How To Write A Headline” or “The Guide For Meeting Copywriting Deadlines,” I’m always trying to stay relevant. Some copywriters might think reading this “junk” is a waste of time, but I see it as a refresher course to keep my mind sharp and fingers furiously typing.

Second, never, ever, ever stop networking. Having a community of copywriters to try ideas out on, ask for help, or share work with is essential to being as well-rounded of a copywriter as possible. For me, LinkedIn Groups and Meetups have been a great way of meeting likeminded individuals that have not only proved helpful, but full of new resources I might not have ever found on my own. Get out there and meet some copywriters. If anything, it will help shed the hermit persona many copywriters give off!

Last but certainly not least, remember the age-old idiom, “Good artists borrow, great artists steal!” Now before you go infringe on someone’s copyright, let me explain this idiom in the context of staying relevant as a copywriter. If you’re stuck on how to approach a status update or unsure of how to begin a brochure, somebody somewhere has already found a great formula for this. When I first started out writing press releases, my first move was to read as many press releases as I could. And in this wonderful, digital day and age, Google was more than happy to offer up some “Top Ten” lists of the best press releases or the best landing pages. It’s not cheating, as long as you don’t copy them word for word; just think of it as strategic improvement.

Next time you’re faced with the daunting task of creating content for a completely new or completely changed medium, there’s no more reason to hesitate! The best resources are already here for you so you can begin cranking out content like you’ve been doing it for ages.

Gina Vinnitsky writes for the blog and Facebook page of Denver SEO team RumbleLink . Visit their website now to learn more about the wide array of services and skills they have to offer.

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The art of producing great website content has a lot to do with not just what you say but also how you say it. A decisive and clear message needs to be given the attention it deserves. Content publishers often neglect to include these extras and fail to capture the attention of the audience. Here’s a 5 step guide to make sure your copy is stimulating both visually and mentally for your readers.

1. Inviting Content Structure

The way you lay out your article plays a crucial role in enticing readers. If the content looks too heavy and thick, it’s a turn off. By making your online copy appear lighter within certain areas is the ideal way to keep people interested. Sentences should remain short and straight-forward. Paragraphs should not exceed 5 – 6 sentences. Sub-headings also play a big role in structuring your content, as well as bullet points to draw someone’s eye and to create white space – which can be a visual breather for your visitor. You can also play around with bold font to showcase certain messages too.
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How well you write a page of content determines how successful it is at improving your bottom line. You’ve got a couple of seconds at most to capture those eyeballs and keep the reader on your page, drawing them further in. Fail to do so and you’ve lost that random visitor for ever – and that lead – and that potential sale – the losses keep adding up.
To help you avoid creating pages that just take up space, I’ve noted down 20 tips to writing content that sells.

1. Write For Your Target Audience

Engineer the tone, voice, structure and content of your article towards the expectations, sensibilities, sensitivity and receptiveness of your audience.
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