5 Questions That Separate Good From Great Content

Every digital marketer worth their salt will have heard of the saying, "content is king." Everyone knows that brands establish themselves today through long-form posts or articles that go beyond "buy now" or "subscribe today." Relevance rules—besides the audience's preferences, content and marketing trends shape people's opinions of what matters today. If you want to stay top-of-mind, you need to review your content and ensure that it covers these questions.

Does Your Content Address The Right Questions?

Great content provides concrete answers to the audience. Typically, when people search information online, they want a yes, a no, or answers to the five W's and one H (who, what, when, where, why, and how). Does your content respond to any of these? Use tools like SEMRush, Answer The Public, or Ahrefs to identify questions that people ask about topics related to your specialty. 

For instance, a stall selling fresh eggs and poultry at a farmer's market might be interested in searches that include keywords like "homemade chicken soup recipe," "how to make pancakes," and the like. If someone includes these phrases in their search, it is safe to assume that they're looking for a procedure. However, they might want to know more. Instead of just having a recipe, the person responsible for marketing the stall can search for questions related to these keywords. Some examples would be "how to make chicken broth" or "how to make chicken broth for dogs." Planning content involves considering and researching related topics.

Are Other Content Creators Producing Similar Things?

It is inevitable, especially in a content-dense environment like the internet, to make videos or articles similar to what your competitors produce. However, this is not an excuse for you to take shortcuts in your content writing process; it should spur you on and encourage you to think about making these topics your own.

Google rewards originality as much as relevance. Your content should signal to the search engine that your brand can provide value in ways that readers cannot get from other sources. The solution isn't to write for only the least-covered topics; the articles you make might be so niche and obscure that they might not get regular readers.

Instead, offer your brand's perspective on the topic. Your voice is inimitable; it is something that you contribute that no one else can. If you create helpful content in your brand's voice, it will naturally be compelling since people gravitate toward authenticity. A surefire way of ensuring that your brand remains true to its voice is by referencing your experiences. For example, as a provider of SEO writing services, we might draw from the techniques and tools we use as writers when discussing content marketing.

Do You Leverage Relationships With Personalities?

Consumers feel connected to brands when they can associate a face with them. It is why celebrity endorsements continue to be popular and why people gravitate towards anything influencers feature on their platforms. If you collaborate with a personality, you allow them to speak on behalf of your brand. Whether they provide makeup advice, health or fitness tips, or opinions about the news of the day, their words will resonate with a group of people. If they tell their audience to check out your offerings, you can be sure that a significant portion will do so.

Great content enables brands to leverage relationships with influencers. What's great about this arrangement is that sometimes, you don't need to develop the concept; if you partner with a content creator, they might want to shape the creative process. If you are still researching or building relationships with content creators, you can take user-generated content and build it into your marketing. Many brands have dozens of loyalists willing to promote their favorite products or services; tap into your existing base! You will be surprised by the types of insights you might get.

Is Your Content Results-Focused?

When creating articles or posts for your brand, don't just write whatever you feel like writing. Be intentional about your content and have a goal for each item you produce. When brainstorming, think of the kinds of articles that get the most reactions from your audience, what topics get the highest number of clicks, the longest views, or the most shares. Note as well which articles lead to sales or conversions.

Does Your Content Captivate From The Start?

One of the most critical things in a content marketing piece is the headline. Whether you're making a YouTube video or a blog post, your title needs to draw people in and convince them to click your link. Vague or generic headlines will make people pass on your content. Spend time on the title and construct one that will make them think they're missing out if they do not click.

Creating memorable headlines, however, does not mean embracing clickbait! You know that a title is clickbait when it promises much more than it delivers or when the hype is larger than the value. When you write "5 Content Writing Tips That Will Convert 1,000 Readers," for example, you better be sure that your tips will result in those sales! Don't over-promise and under-deliver; that is a recipe for high bounce rates and dissatisfied audiences.

Conclusion

Before hitting publish, make sure you're consistently delivering to the best of your abilities. It is hard to differentiate yourself in an increasingly competitive space like the internet. Still, as long as you stay true to your brand and deliver content in your voice, you will keep attracting and converting.

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