Content marketing is a great way to establish your knowledge and expertise within an industry. Once you've established a content hub and set up all your social media outposts, the fuel for your web presence is quality content. It goes without saying, but one of the main goals of creating content is to grow your readership and expand awareness of your brand. So, here are seven easy content secrets that can help you get more readers.
1) Snatch Catchy Headlines.
One of the most important elements of any post is its headline. Just like the subject line of an email, the headline is what helps someone determine whether it's worth their time to keep reading. But coming up with a great headline can be challenging. So, find great headlines from print publications and observe what works for them. After looking at a few month's worth of magazine headlines, you'll probably notice some patterns emerge. Try rewriting headlines around topics and themes you care about using magazine headline formulas.
2) Use Title Case.
Underscore a great headline by setting it up with authority by using title case. There's not necessarily a right or wrong way to punctuate a headline, but title case is a good way to reinforce the authority of an article. Essentially, this means capitalizing the first and last word of the headline, along with all primary words and prepositions and conjunctions with four or more letters. An added benefit of title case for headlines? It will be automatically optimized for social sharing on sites like Twitter and Facebook, helping gain more readers from social networks, too.
3) Harness the Power of Lists.
One of the most popular content types, a list is an easy, helpful way to format content. The good news is lists are also very popular and often shared socially. Popular numbers for list posts are 3, 5, 7 and 10, but large- and uncommon-numbered lists are effective as well, because they can generate attention in and of themselves.
4) Create Compelling Subheads.
One tip for great web writing is to break your copy up into short, easy-to-digest sections. You can start with the headline and then outline sections with short, compelling sub-headlines. Not only does this make your content easier to write, it also makes it more scan-able and sharable, hallmarks of great web content.
5) Use Question Marks.
How can you get people engaged with your content? Headlines and subheads phrased as questions can be a great, simple trick to draw the reader in and get them reading. Just use them sparingly so they pack as much punch as possible!
6) Find a Unique Twist on a Season or Theme.
Using themes, metaphors, and seasonal elements to create content is a great way to build readership and facilitate social sharing. Official and unofficial holidays, hot topics, internet memes, pop culture tie-ins, and other themes can help you add some life and character to your content and make it more timely and relevant. For example, in her post Green Eggs and Facebook, blogger Pam Moore used quotes from Dr. Seuss to share social media advice, adding a creative take on the subject and spurring hundreds of social shares.
7) Create Quotable Content.
Another content trick that's useful for adding new insight and ideas is to harness the power of other people's voices. You could host guest bloggers, publish subject-matter expert interviews, or quote and cite industry experts or statistics published elsewhere online. Not only does this add a fresh perspective to your site, it can also add authority and credibility. Plus, when other people are featured on your site, they'll promote your content, extending reach to new readers.
Do you have any go-to content creation tricks, tips, or ideas you use to gain readers? Share them in the comments section! If you enjoyed this article, please re-tweet, like it on Facebook, or post it to LinkedIn.
About the Author: Tiffany Monhollon writes about social media, marketing, and small business success as the lead blogger for ReachCast, a service that helps local business owners develop their web presence.
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