“Know the basics of Content Writing”
Welcome to this dev forum, where we update new and useful articles every now and then. Today, we shall learn about content writing and its basics.
Definition of Content Writing :
Researching and presenting information which meets the needs of a niche in an effective manner with appropriate keywords is known as content writing. The person writing it is termed a content writer. One can often find content writers who work as freelancers or full time.
What all comes under content writing? :
Content writing is more about depicting the content in a creative manner, however it also includes the following :
- Writing blogs and articles about a specific product.
- Writing content for the website (Home page, About Us, Products etc.)
- For newspapers and e-journals
- Brochures and social media posts.
- Copywriting
- Email marketing based writing
- SEO based writing (search engine optimisation)
Carrying out the process of content writing :
It can’t be predicted if the procedure of content writing is difficult or easy. It all depends on the subject being chosen.
- Analyse the subject well before beginning. Take your time and don’t rush. Study the topic and conduct research (online or offline - whichever is best suitable).
- Next crucial area is the target. Who is the audience? For example, if you are writing about the launch of a new car in the market, then stick to the specialities and specifications of automobiles in that genre, without deviating from the topic. If it’s about a luxury car, for instance, then you must write content targeting high end customers and its associated areas. Consider yourself as the audience.
- Keep the content crisp and easy to understand. Not necessary to use complex words at all times.
- You can change the tone of the content depending on the age of the audience. For MNCs and enterprises, a professional layout is appreciated while for teenagers and youth something light would do.
- Include first hand experience reports (if available) to add more weight to the article.
- While writing about a specific subject, include relevant keywords wherever possible. Keywords are a must to enhance the webpage’s visibility and ranking on search engines such as google. For example, if you are writing about a family car, then keywords can be related to car sales, comfort factor, brand showroom location, variant etc, dealer details etc.
- Wherever possible include sub-headings, that makes it easy for the reader to read and also makes it look good.
- Add a few quotes (some popular sayings related to the subject) in between, that enhance and add more life to the content.
- Add external links wherever possible.
- A powerful call to action (CTA) makes a huge impact.
Do’s :
- Maintain a diary and make notes initially, that will give you a clear picture of what all to include and vice versa.
- Make a note (on the phone or in the diary) in case something comes into mind while you are travelling, so that you don’t forget.
- Speak to your colleagues and family members, maybe they have some valid data for your subject.
- Always read the completed article twice or thrice. You will definitely come across errors that you might have missed in the first instance. Check for spellings and space too.
- Make reading a part of your daily activity. You can read a book or a newspaper while in the metro, bus or during free time.
- At the end of the article or blog, ensure to use proper hashtags or keywords that add more to the search visibility.
Don’ts :
- Avoid copying the content from other sites and sources (plagiarism).
- Avoid writing an article as a single paragraph from the start to the end. It looks tiring to the reader and loses interest.
- Repeat displaying the same message over and over.
- Don’t keep filling pages, instead aim for quality content.
- Never use an excess amount of keywords in an article. Besides, sounding annoying, the ranking of the product / page might go down.
The above were some important points associated with content writing. Hope you will find it useful and try to follow the same in your upcoming articles.
-Thank you.