by Dr. Jeffrey Lant
It was Bill Gates, the sage with prophetic talents
and the deepest of pockets, who said it first: “Content
is king.” Per usual billionaire Bill was right.
Problem is, he omitted the directions on how to
produce the site and article content you need so much. Humbly,
I rectify his omission.
Here then are the necessary steps for producing
web site and article copy that sells.
1) Know thy audience.
The purpose of creating site content is to build
relationships and loyalty with your designated populations…
and produce content that gets them to RETURN and RESPOND.
Are you, therefore, clear on just who you are
producing content for?
Say you are running an insurance agency and
want to insure more business from people with
large and valuable art and artifact collections.
Before you write word 1 of content, you must know
and WRITE DOWN a description of the kinds of
people you want to attract. Every word you write
thereafter, all the content you produce is for –
them!
2) Write content that brings you business
In this report, I am showing you how to write site
content that sells. For details on how to write the
great American novel, you must seek other counsel.
Thus, your next step towards producing site
content that sells is to brainstorm subjects and to
craft the all-important title.
Again, consider the insurance agent aiming for
lucrative antique collection accounts. He needs a
title like this: “7 things you need to know about
insuring your antiques and collections.” Alternatively,
try this
“7 things you don’t know about insuring your
antiques that make you vulnerable.”
Or, “5 things you can do right now to
decrease the cost of your antiques insurance.”
Note: a title like this peeks reader interest…
the public designated for this content wants to
know, is desperate to know, just where there may be
holes, flaws, and omissions in their policies. Your
content (and your title) play to their need to know,
including fears and anxieties which motivate prompt
response to you.
3) Brainstorm subjects to be included in your article
or site content
The most cogent content is brainstormed and
outlined before a single word is written. First, and
most importantly, sit down at your desk and write
down the topics you want (and your reader must
have) in this content.
Personally, I take one 8 1/2 by 11 inch sheet and
(in my execrable hand writing) detail all the key
points about the subject at hand.
Then, having brainstormed all, I arrange these
points in logical order, thus: first do this, then this,
then this, etc.
Brainstorm and point prioritizing are key to
successful content.
Note: for best results, you should have no fewer
than 5 points in any individual article or not more than
10. The content may appear skimpy and inadequate
if you have too few points while having more than 10
over burdens your reader (and future customer), causing
him to postpone reading — and response!
4) Now write.
You are now ready to write the content, for you have
considered your audience and what they need to know
(and will most thank you for); you have brainstormed
the subjects to be included and arranged them in
the proper order. Yes, you are ready to write.
Sit yourself down in your writing place (you do have
one, don’t you), a place where you can write undisturbed,
inviolate to the crafting of superb content
Go there now. Determine your writing schedule. You
should be able to produce draft site content in 2-4
hours, depending on how experienced a writer you
are. Always set a date and time for the conclusion of
Draft 1. Never leave it open-ended. Things without
deadlines are things less likely to be done.
Note: Remember, what you are writing now
must be a conversation between you and your
reader (who is, let’s be clear, your future customer,
too.) The content must, therefore, be written accordingly.
The word “you” (meaning you, the reader) must
predominate. You must not write for an amorphous
audience of the unknown. You must write instead to
and for the chief benefit of each individual reader…
just as if the reader was sitting beside you and you
were explaining one thing after another of importance
to her. This is vital.
5) Read, review, revise your content.
Now hear this: the best writing is re-writing. Thus,
when you have finished Draft 1, let it sit overnight.
It is the rare, experienced, polished writer who can
write such content, review such content, and post
the finished product all in a day. Some may disagree,
but I remain convinced time and patience are necessary
ingredients in the very best content.
When ready, read your content aloud. No sentence
should be more than one breath. If your sentences
are turgid and flow slowly, awkward, break them into
shorter lines, easier to read. Your tempo should be allegro,
not andante.
6) Revise, revise, revise.
Having finished your first revisions, it is time for…
more revisions. As much time should be spent on
revising your content as writing it in the first place.
This, then, should be your schedule:
Day 1, write the content. On this same day,
do the first revisions.
Day 2, after letting the content sit overnight,
awake early (personally I do this between 5-7 am
because that is when my schedule is clear and
I have the fewest interruptions. In other words, I
can focus.) Then do at least one more content
revision.
3) On Day 3, do a final content review. There
should be few, if any, changes at this point.
Your content should be word perfect, light,
graceful, moving; content that will impact the
reader, because it impacts you!
7) The Resource Box
Now add the crucial Resource Box and About the
Author details. Having written content that helps
your reader and future customer, it is now manifestly
appropriate to include something that helps you…
and that is precisely what the Resource Box and
About the Author sections do. Treat them accordingly.
Be sure to include all the means you wish customers
to use to get in touch with you, including email, URL,
telephone, cell phone, etc. Believe me, the useful
content you have given them will inspire response.
Depend on it.
Exult. You deserve it!
You have now done a useful thing. Your content is
now available for use on blogs, ezines, site postings,
et al. Take a moment to congratulate yourself. You
deserve it.
You have taken what you know and can do and
transformed it into a focused means of generating
new customers and really helping them. You may be a
tad fatigued by your effort; that’s natural. But what
you’ve written can live for years and help thousands.
And that’s a true cause for jubilation.
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