You've created a website, and you're ready to add content. But where do you start, and what should you include? This is where the digital content marketing struggle begins for most small businesses and entrepreneurs. It can be a daunting and time-consuming task — but don't let that scare you. Remember, you have something unique to offer your target market. Here are 15 tips for creating content that will stand out from the competition.
15 Tips for Creating Website Content That Gets Results
1. Showcase your value proposition.
That feeling you get when you find the perfect thing: That's what your ideal customers should feel when they discover your business. But how do you make sure they do? By creating and highlighting your value proposition, or what makes your business unique and different from your competitors.
Here are a few steps to get started:
- Understand your ideal customer. What are their needs and wants? What are their pain points? Once you understand this, you can start to brainstorm what makes your business the best solution for them.
- Communicate your value proposition clearly and concisely. Make sure it's easy for your customers to understand what you offer and how it can help them.
- Put your value proposition front and center on your website and in all your marketing materials. Make it impossible for potential customers to miss.
2. Audit your website.
Your website is your virtual front door. It's how most of your customers will find you, and it's often the first impression they'll have of your business. A website audit is a great way to take a step back and look at your site with fresh eyes, so you can identify ways to improve the design and the content.
Here’s how to get started:
- Edit and refine your content. Make sure all of your text is well-written, typo-free and relevant.
- Identify technical errors on your website. This could include broken links, faulty forms or incorrect coding.
- Analyze your web content marketing strategy. Is everything in the right place? Is it easy for visitors to find what they're looking for?
- Ensure your website is easy to navigate. Check that all of your links are working and that your pages are loading quickly.
- Evaluate your content. Most importantly, are you offering something of value? This means informative blog posts, helpful product descriptions and engaging social media posts.
3. Decide what your content will be about.
What's the point of your website? What are you trying to achieve? These are the two most important questions you need to answer. Your content will determine your website's tone, style and audience, so it's worth thinking about.
Then start brainstorming ideas.
If you're unsure where to start, consider the following:
- What topics are you passionate about?
- What problems can you solve?
- What information do people need?
- What do people want to know about your product or service?
- How can you stand out from the competition?
4. Understand your audience.
Before you can give your audience what they want, you must understand who they are. Understanding your audience is key to creating unique content that resonates with them.
Here are a few steps to get to know your audience better:
- Review current data and analytics: This will give you an idea of who is visiting your site and what kind of content they're interested in.
- Monitor your audience feedback and engagements: This will help you understand what kind of content is resonating with your audience — and what isn't.
- Experiment with content to see how it performs: Try out different types of content and see which ones perform best with your audience. This will help you fine-tune your content strategy.
5. Find your voice.
You want your website to have a voice that sets it apart from the millions of other websites out there, but how do you find that unique voice?
- Take a good long look at your site. What kind of tone does it have? Is it serious and businesslike or more lighthearted and fun?
- Think about who your target audience is. What kind of voice would they respond to? A more casual voice might work well if you're targeting a young demographic. But you'll probably want to tone it down if you're aiming for a more professional crowd.
- Take a look at your competitors' sites. What do they look like? What kind of tone do they have?
- Once you've got a general idea of the kind of voice you want for your site, start brainstorming some specific ways to express it. Do you want to be funny? Witty? Sarcastic? Use those keywords as inspiration for creating original content that will give your site its distinct personality.
- Don't be afraid to experiment! Try out different voices and see what feels natural for you and your site. The most important thing is that you stay true to yourself.
6. Grab your audience’s attention.
Craft content that's both informative and engaging by:
Starting with a bang. Your opening line should be attention-grabbing and make people want to read more.
Providing background information. Give your readers the context they need to understand the rest of your article.
Getting to the heart of the matter. This is where you'll share the main points of your content.
Finishing strong. Sum up your key points and leave your readers with something to remember.
7. Make your content scannable.
When you land on a webpage and are confronted with a wall of text, it’s easy for your eyes to glaze over, and your brain to shut down. As a content creator, you never want your readers to experience that. Use headlines, subheads and bullet points to breakg up your text into smaller, easy-to-digest chunks.
8. Use media.
Adding media to your article can enhance your readers’ experience, but don’t overdo it. Make sure it is appropriate and complementary.
To hit your sweet spot, here are four steps to help you make the most of your media:
- Define your purpose. Whether trying to educate, entertain or persuade, your media use should support your greater goal.
- Consider your audience. Depending on whom you're writing for, different media types will be more or less effective.
- Keep it clean and easy to navigate. A chaotic page full of flashing GIFs is more likely to overwhelm than delight your readers.
- Use your media mindfully. Just because you can add a video doesn't always mean you should. In some cases, a few well-chosen words will serve your purpose better.
9. Follow SEO best practices.
As anyone who has ever tried to make their way around a city without a map can attest, directions are critical. The same is true when it comes to search engine optimization (SEO).
Here are some best practices to optimize your content:
- Choose your keywords carefully. Keywords should be relevant to your topic and, when combined, form a well-rounded picture of what your site is all about.
- Use backlinks. These are links from other websites to yours; they act as "votes" of confidence in the eyes of search engines and can also help potential readers find your site.
- Consider using meta tags. These tags provide additional information about your site to search engines, helping them to index and rank your site more effectively.
10. Keep it short and sweet.
The internet is full of distractions, so keep your content direct and to the point if you want people to stick around. That doesn't mean every piece of content needs to be a haiku, but you should limit yourself to one main idea per paragraph, using simple language and clear headlines to ensure your readers can quickly grasp your key points.
11. Create a content schedule.
A successful content strategy starts with a solid plan. After all, you wouldn't build a house without a blueprint, would you? Without a clear strategy and structure, your content will be scattered and ineffective.
A content schedule, or a content marketing editorial calendar, helps you organize your thoughts and ideas so that you can hit publish with confidence. It also ensures that your content is aligned with your business goals.
Here are a some tips to keep in mind:
- Make an editorial calendar: This will be your roadmap. Remember to include key dates, holidays and events you want to cover.
- Determine your key performance indicators: KPIs are metrics that measure your website’s success, but first you have to define what success looks like for you. What are you trying to achieve with your content? Maybe success is a certain amount of page views, a lower bounce rate or a longer user session. Make sure each piece of content aligns with your intended purpose.
- Create evergreen content: This type of content won’t lose its relevance quickly. Unlike content tied to an event, which may seem outdated in a week or so, evergreen content — like explainers and how-to guides — stays fresh and can often be repurposed. It’s a win-win.
- Showcase news stories and industry insights: Keep your audience informed about what's going on in your industry. They'll appreciate the informative and timely content, alongside your evergreen offerings.
- Decide when and how to publish your content: Will you be batching your content or publishing as you go? Make sure you have a system that works for you — and stick to it.
12. Offer valuable, unique content.
By offering your readers something they cannot find elsewhere, you deliver value, whether it's through insights, new perspectives or helpful information.
Here are some ideas to make your content stand out from your competitors:
- Make sure your blog posts are well-written and informative. Write with personality and offer valuable insights that your readers can use. Beware spelling errors and typos.
- Use images, infographics and videos to break up your text. People are more likely to keep reading if your content is visually appealing.
- Respond to comments. Start conversations to make your blog more interactive and engaging.
- Keep your blog fresh. People will stop reading if you don't have anything new to say.
- Outsource leadership content. There are plenty of talented writers out there who can help you create content that will set your business apart from the competition. Consider outsourcing.
13. License content.
There are numerous benefits to outsourcing content development. Your team benefits through more consistent high-quality content, offering a variety of perspectives. There are a wide variety of ways to incorporate outsourced content. Teams can work with expert publishers to license news articles or buy articles from agencies.
By incorporating journalism in your content marketing, you can leverage interesting storytelling while building trust with your audience. However, copyright law can be tricky for companies to navigate. You'll want to license third-party materials for the specific uses you need. Just because you have a license to read an article, does not mean you have a license to post it. Be sure to consult your legal team if you have a question on how content can be reused or repurposed.
14. Track performance.
As a digital creator, it's essential to know how your content is performing.
Here are some easy steps to get started:
- Monitor your KPIs. Tracking KPIs allows you to see what content is performing well — and what needs improvement.
- Use Google Analytics. Simply create a free account and add the tracking code to your website to monitor traffic and performance. Once you've done this, you'll be able to see detailed reports, including which pages are being viewed and for how long.
- Ask for feedback. One of the best ways to assess how well your web content is performing is to simply ask your audience. You can do this through surveys, polls or by asking for comments and suggestions via social media or email. You'll be able to identify areas that need improvement quickly.
15. Brainstorm across departments.
If you’re stuck in a content rut, it might be time to bring in new perspectives. Other people in your company might be facing similar challenges and can have fresh perspectives to help spark new ideas.
Here are some steps to get started:
- Schedule a meeting with representatives from different departments.
- Give everyone time to write down content ideas individually or in small groups.
- Have each person share their ideas with the group.
- Brainstorm as a group to develop new ideas or ways to improve existing ones.
- Create a plan of action for moving the best ideas forward.
- Brainstorming across departments will not only help you come up with some great new content ideas, but will help to build stronger relationships between departments.
Final Thoughts
A well-designed website is essential for any business that wants to succeed in the digital age. But what is often overlooked is the importance of content. Your website may look great, but visitors will quickly lose interest if it doesn't have anything interesting to say.
One solution is outsourcing your content needs to a trusted and reliable source like NYTLicensing. By outsourcing your content needs, you can free up your time and focus on other aspects of running your business. And with a wide range of licensed content available, you're sure to find something that fits your needs.
