What does it mean when someone says, “write good quality content”?
Essentially, it comes down to one thing – giving your audience what they want.
Simple, eh?!
Oh course, those answers beg more questions…
- how do I know what they want?
- how do I say something new and informative?
There are numerous articles every week that attempt to provide an insight into the creative process but, as Mackenzie Fogelson made clear here, the bottom line is that it takes time, effort and planning – and experience is the only way it gets easier.
“Thanks”, I hear you saying, “– it’s tough and it takes time, you say? I suppose you want me to sign up for a contract now?!”
Well, we do have experience and, if you’ve not got the time, an agency can definitely help support you. However, that doesn’t absolve you from the work. If you’re in business, these sorts of questions are exactly the ones you should be asking yourself every day. And that’s because understanding your audience and getting them to hear you is, of course, central to all business success.
So, irrespective of whether you’ve the time to write content, you still need to be able to articulate the needs, interests and questions that engage your customer base.
So how do you find out what your audience wants?
The simple solution is to ask them – social media, customer surveys and sales team dialogue can all provide you with a rich seam of information on what your audience want to know more about.
As a by-product of this, when you post something, ask for feedback so that you can refine your style and tone to match your audience. And as Julie Joyce touches on in this article, it’s important to balance between focusing on your niche whilst still being inclusive – your close followers may understand technical language but you should also be considerate of people who want to learn and don’t yet know the ropes. As the saying goes, “we were all beginners once”
Secondly, look at what’s being discussed elsewhere. As Steve Rayson mentions, the best way to engage an audience is to relate to what is on-trend and currently being bounced around amongst the industry (including your competitors) across social media, traditional media, industry blogs, etc. Build on what is being said – it’s your field of expertise so don’t be afraid to articulate your own opinions.
And if you’ve got no inspiration at all, there are always some old favourites that you can bring fresh flavour to – the crucial feature is to bring yourself into the content and reflect the lessons learned about what your audience wants in what you write.
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What are YOUR thoughts? We’re always keen on feedback so please feel free to comment below – or via our social media – and tell us if there’s anything you’d like us to discuss.
