1. Know Your Audience

Relevant, targeted copy speaks to a specific audience. Who is your dream customer and what do they do (for work and fun)? What is their likely age bracket, what’s important to them and what products and services do they use on a regular basis? More importantly, which products and services do they need? The better you know who you’re communicating with (not at), the more of an impact the copy will have.

2. Impact Those Emotions

Great copywriting compels readers via a distinctly emotional experience. Capitalize on emotions already present in a given scenario instead of attempting to create a certain feeling. For example, if you’re writing Web copy for a product that solves a problem for a niche group such as web professionals, speak to the frustrated developer who’s just run into the same issue again. Making a reader truly feel something communicates productively and on a human level.

3. Write a Killer Headline

A killer headline is what draws readers in. According to Copyblogger, an average of 8 out of 10 people will read a headline while only 2 of them will read the remaining copy. Making a great first impression improves your odds of gaining wider exposure. We’re a fan of the 4 U’s Formula; turn a good headline into a great one by making it urgent, unique, useful and ultra-specific.

To use an obvious example, compare the headlines “How to Make Good Copywriting Better” and “5 Tips to Make Good Copywriting Great.” Which are you more likely to click on? Let readers know exactly what they’re getting into when they click through to the copy and offer a time-sensitive, compelling benefit – stand out from the crowd!

4. Be Clear and Concise

Great copywriting is, at its core, persuasive. Striving for clarity in your copy is a great way to both achieve this and avoid confusing readers. Bypass the technical jargon and buzzwords in favour of simple, accessible terms and never assume the reader’s level of knowledge. Forego long sentences and paragraphs for short, punchy, easy-to-read phrases. Use verbs to stay on point and convey energy and excitement without rambling on

5. Read it Out Loud

A time-tested trick, a useful way to evaluate your writing is to read it out loud. A conversational tone is a great way to reach users through copy and hearing the words, instead of just reading them, helps to distinguish any awkward or vague phrasing. When in doubt, have a colleague or friend do the same; they might hear something you don’t.

Knowing your audience and impacting their emotions, drawing readers in with a great headline, being clear and concise and reading aloud are 5 ways to make good copywriting even better. If you’d like to learn more, check out our previous posts comparing copywriting and content marketing (hint: they work together!) and discussing brand copywriting.

Image Credits: Klenske Ink & Business 2 Community

Set Goals

What do you want to achieve through content marketing? What do you want to gain from the time and money you put into the creation, distribution and promotion of eBooks, blog posts, white papers? Common goals include increasing web traffic, leads and customers, building awareness of your brand, generating blog subscribers and becoming more active online. You should also evaluate current marketing data like conversion and bounce rates.

Research Your Target Audience

Understanding your target audience is key to creating a content strategy that works. Research the demographics and online behaviour of your audience, and consider your ideal customers’ personalities, occupations, needs and wants. Conduct surveys via email, your company website or social media to get a grasp on what potential customers are looking for and how best to connect with them. Another simple, budget-friendly research tactic is to track keyword, product and brand mentions on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. What are they doing online and how can you use your content to reach them?

Analyze Your Competition

Take a look at your competitors. Analyze what they’re saying and how they’re disseminating this information and the types of content they’re creating Are they focused on offering downloadable eBooks and white papers, or are they going the business blog route? You can gain an advantage by offering something that you know they’re not. Use a backlink analysis tool such as WooRank or MajesticSEO to see who’s linking to them and why, and search their company name on Twitter and other social media sites to see if, and how, their brand is being discussed. Are they doing something that you should be, but aren’t?

Take Stock

Next, take stock of the content your have already created and distributed and how it performed. Look at social shares, page views, downloads, comments and lead generation and identify which pieces were exceptionally well-received, if any. Next, keeping your target audience in mind, decide on the types of content you want to offer. Popular forms include eBooks, blog posts, infographics, case studies, interviews, surveys, contests, podcasts and webinars.

Schedule Your Plan

Before you go ahead and create content, develop a schedule that alongside your annual business plan. Break it down week by week, day by day if possible. Include the subject matter, content format, the date it is to be published, the distribution channel and the keyword or keyword phrase the piece will be targeting.

Refer back to Step 1 in this process and attach goals to your schedule, such as a certain number of clicks or shares. The more detail, the better. Having your strategy planned out in front of you will help you stick to it.

Setting goals, better understanding your target audience and following competitive activity will allow you to provide content that not only appeals to your target audience but fulfills their industry-specific needs. Once you complete these steps, you’re ready to begin creating and sharing informative, useful information with your audience. Tracking the reach of your content following distribution is a great way to evaluate whether your content marketing plan is getting the job done.

Image Credit: Fernando Biz