How to Write Compelling Articles
By Sarah Duce
You know that when it comes to your business you know your onions. You also think you have information that will make great articles to help market your business to the world and are ready to put pen to paper and start promoting yourself.
You write, what you think, is the perfect article and then publish it to your website, your Blog and put it in your email marketing, and then... nothing.
It's a dilemma many marketers face - how to grab someone's interest in an environment where attention is hard to come by.
People's Online Habits
Put yourself in the shoes of the person at the 'other end'. The person sitting at their computer with emails to get through, news to catch up on, social network profiles to update; and they haven't even got down to do any work yet.
When people go onto the Internet for information, they tend to have one of two things in mind:
- I know exactly what I'm looking for - Get the information and go.
- I'm here for a browse - perhaps I'll stumble across something.
Already, the intentions of your potential audience are splitting. All your hard work creating a knowledgeable article to grab their attention may have been fruitless.
Search Engines
Add into the mix a search engine. These all-encompassing web indexes have billions of pages in them; each one claiming to be the authority on a specific subject (if they are well built). Try a simple search on any subject and you will see that it yields hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of results.
Mr. and Mrs. web-surfer have ultimate choice when it comes to the web and they are incredibly selfish. What's so special about your new article? What's in it for them?
Not Just The Web
The same is true for email communication. You may think that just because your message gets through to someone's email they'll read it. At best, they may skim through it as they trawl through the glut of emails in their inbox.
So, how do you write something that will make someone sit up and pay attention?
How To Grab Attention
There are no hard and fast rules on gaining attention for your business article on the web. Let's face it, people act in different ways online, they have individual habits and will not be railroaded by your demands. They may simply be having a bad day when your email arrives. They may be busy when your web page article pops up on their screen. You cannot guarantee any specific response. But concentrate on these simple principles of writing a compelling article and you will improve your chances of getting their attention.
Subject Matter
Firstly, remember that you are looking to engage your audience - it's about them, not you. What is the problem they have that your article will help with? This should form the basis of your subject matter. People buy drills because they need holes - why do people need what you have?
Headlines
Your headline needs to grab someone, just long enough for them to start reading (or scrolling) into the content. As they browse the web, or skim-read, it's important that your headline deserves attention. What is the single thing you could say - in as few words as possible - that will make them stop... and pay attention.
A good headline should be geared towards the audience, and the language they may use, rather than the language you may use. Is it about agriculture or farming? UPVC windows or double-glazing? A bit of research into the words your customers use will work wonders for your conversions.
A good example headline would cover "Here's how to solve that SPECIFIC problem you have"
...And Subheadings
If people have a tendency to skim read, what better device to allow them to do this than a sub-heading? It's like a quick indexing system to your article or email. Let them get to the one bit of information that interests them, rather than having to find it in a mass of text that all looks the same.
This means that your sub-headings also need to be descriptive. A good test is to see if your article makes sense by reading the sub-headings alone.
The Shape of Copy
In fact, it's worth mentioning that the physical shape of your copy is important to the way someone will read your article too. The size of font, line spacing, the length of paragraphs, etc. will all have an impact on how readable your article is. A good use of bullet point lists, for instance, will:
Give people another snippet of content to pause at and read.
Create variation
Allow for bit of white space to appear that highlights pertinent information.
Language
The appropriate use of language is also important. Using specific words may encourage people to become more receptive. Getting people to ask questions about their problem will get them thinking, creating personality within your writing style will also encourage engagement. Empathy is a powerful tool with copywriting.
Of course, depending on your audience, a variation in tone-of-voice can work wonders. Whether you are talking about an awesome new game, with amazing graphics and sound that will blow your eardrums - to an audience of teenagers; or the safe and secure environment of a nursing home offering piece of mind for the adult children of an elderly person.
Making Your Article Even More Personal
So, we have looked at how to craft an article for your audience, how about cranking up the relevance?
In any business, it is quite easy to create generic articles. How about making them even more specific to your audience?
- You could customize the content of your article for a specific vertical market.
- You could promote your article across a smaller, geographical territory.
- How about a time relevant piece? Summer, Christmas, etc.
These tactics work well with the way the Internet is moving. As search engines index more and more generic web pages, the user has to get more specific when they search if they want to find something of use to them. The more specific your article is, the more chance you have of being found, and of being relevant to the searcher.
The words people use throughout the year change, depending on various aspects of life. Think of weather in the summer compared to weather in the winter and notice the words that you would associate with what seemingly is the same thing.
For Existing Customers By Email
The same is also true for your email-based articles. If you can create specific articles for sections of your client-base, and send them only to the relevant people, how much more potent could the article be?
How easy is it to segment your existing email marketing database? How much could that be worth if you can convert a lead?
And Finally, What Do You Want?
Of course, if you are being altruistic with your quality intellect, there is no reason why you can't ask for something back in return. But, rather than being up-front with your request, simply point people in the right direction if they are interested. Sales leads are so much more worthwhile if they are relevant.
A nice, subtle call-to-action at the end of your article will not blow your credibility, as long as it remains relevant to the article, and, the needs of the reader.
A Good Example . . .
