There is no shortage of content available on the Internet. The content marketing era ushered in a wave of never ending articles and blog posts about almost any topic imaginable.
But all content isn’t created equally. There are some who fare tremendously well in content marketing efforts while others struggle just to get social media shares.
The reason behind this is because so much content is self-centered instead of audience-centered.
Sure. Your company is great. But readers don’t care about that.
It’s easy to talk about your own business in content because you know how good your solutions are. You know that you’re what your customers need. So often, content contains more than a few references to how valuable your business is – to your business’s own detriment.
It’s counterintuitive, but the best content doesn’t focus on the business or the products/services at all. The best content is all about the audience and their
- needs
- wants
- desires
- fears
- problems
- opinion
- influence
Take a walk in the buyer’s shoes.
Content should address one or more of the factors listed above. When people search for content, they aren’t asking to be bombarded with sales copy. They want answers and relief of their problems. Always thinking like the end-user is the best way to remember to keep content customer-oriented. Try to take a walk in the buyer’s shoes.
Give them content that satisfies their search for useful information. That’s the stuff viral content is made of.
Be sure that you truly know your market and have a specifically targeted audience in mind before writing blog posts, articles and webpage copy.
Readers identify more with content that offers quick and easy solutions rather than content that speaks about the best features of your best products/services.
Less you. More “you”
Another rule of thumb is to always create content that makes frequent use of the word “you.” It builds a more personal relationship with readers. They are more prone trusting content with a personable tone rather than stiff content written in third person.
As long as the content educates and relates to consumers, your marketing efforts won’t go to waste. Save self-centered content for About and Bio pages.