One of the things that I learned from my attendance to the NAMS conference a couple of weeks ago was that:
Content Marketing IS Connection Marketing!
Let's face it. In this day and age, it is increasingly difficult to grab someone's attention, let alone keep it. So, why would you spend a lot of time, energy and resources into a post if the readers aren't going to read it? We all are distracted (or overrun...call it what you will) with messages, alerts and RSS feeds that come at us constantly. How do you make sure yours gets read?
So, let's break it down into small chunks (because that is what we want now isn't it?) to make sure our message gets shifted to the top and read:
1. You Need A Strong Opening That Gets Straight To The Point!
Whether you are a speaker or a writer, you have to be able to instantly grab people's attention in a thought provoking way! Leave out fancy/schmancy. Remember article titles and maybe the first couple of sentences are the MOST an RSS feed will pick up. Usually just titles! That is why titles to your posts or books are so important. Because that might be the only chance you have of getting read!
Remember the "F" formation!
Believe it or not, the way we read internet article posts versus printed books is different. The way most of us read information over the internet is in a "F" formation! What ends up happening is that we scan horizontally across at the top, then move down the left and then scans across looking for something that will get our attention. That's why bold captions and bullets are important to get your point across!
2. Use Emotional Keywords And Phrases!
People read your posts, watch your videos, go to your seminars, watch videos or engage in a conversation with you for a reason! (Even if it is just entertainment or the need to to be heard or connect with a like minded person. Ultimately, that is something we all (consciously or not) look for.
Give your readers the information that they want. Then facilitate what they need as the content unfolds. You can do that by leveraging emotional keywords and phrases that automatically paint a specific picture and are easy to understand.
Remember your audience, talk at their level!
When you use complex, difficult to understand phrases, your audience has to do all the work to figure out what you mean and it interrupts the flow of consuming that piece of information.
Don't talk about theoretical, conceptual, abstract and general terms in your posts! Instead, focus on messages that bring concrete, emotional and specific outcomes. In other words, if your content doesn't deliver a clear picture of what you are trying to message at the reader's skill level, you have wasted your time.
3. Leverage Powerful Stories That Creates Connection
Remember... Your Content And Conversation = Connection!
First off, you need to understand...It is NOT about you, but your audience! Don't make it your life story or biography if it doesn't contribute to the message (Actually, never a biography...UNLESS you are writing a biography)
Instead, focus on a specific area of your story that allows people to quickly learn about who you are.
Just having social proof is not enough!
Just being a likeable person is not enough! Both of those are a great foundation to build your relationship on, but ultimately people are more likely to buy what you sell if they trust you!
Stories develop relationships with people. In order to do that, people have to like you, know you and trust you (Social Media 101) And fortunately for you,yes, that is possible over the Internet!
And trust can be built via powerful stories that motivate and inspire people.
How do you tell YOUR story?
Well, one thing not to do is make is a "Whoa is me" type of piece. Your story does two things:
Your take away...
Everyone is overrun and overwhelmed with information. In order to stand out you're your competition, you should focus on the advice above!
Your job is to create content that is not only meaningful to your audience, but that also engages them emotionally! And that doesn't matter if your objective is to have them opt in to your newsletter, buy your product/service or read your book.
Content Marketing IS Connection Marketing!
Let's face it. In this day and age, it is increasingly difficult to grab someone's attention, let alone keep it. So, why would you spend a lot of time, energy and resources into a post if the readers aren't going to read it? We all are distracted (or overrun...call it what you will) with messages, alerts and RSS feeds that come at us constantly. How do you make sure yours gets read?
So, let's break it down into small chunks (because that is what we want now isn't it?) to make sure our message gets shifted to the top and read:
1. You Need A Strong Opening That Gets Straight To The Point!
Whether you are a speaker or a writer, you have to be able to instantly grab people's attention in a thought provoking way! Leave out fancy/schmancy. Remember article titles and maybe the first couple of sentences are the MOST an RSS feed will pick up. Usually just titles! That is why titles to your posts or books are so important. Because that might be the only chance you have of getting read!
Remember the "F" formation!
Believe it or not, the way we read internet article posts versus printed books is different. The way most of us read information over the internet is in a "F" formation! What ends up happening is that we scan horizontally across at the top, then move down the left and then scans across looking for something that will get our attention. That's why bold captions and bullets are important to get your point across!
2. Use Emotional Keywords And Phrases!
People read your posts, watch your videos, go to your seminars, watch videos or engage in a conversation with you for a reason! (Even if it is just entertainment or the need to to be heard or connect with a like minded person. Ultimately, that is something we all (consciously or not) look for.
Give your readers the information that they want. Then facilitate what they need as the content unfolds. You can do that by leveraging emotional keywords and phrases that automatically paint a specific picture and are easy to understand.
Remember your audience, talk at their level!
When you use complex, difficult to understand phrases, your audience has to do all the work to figure out what you mean and it interrupts the flow of consuming that piece of information.
Don't talk about theoretical, conceptual, abstract and general terms in your posts! Instead, focus on messages that bring concrete, emotional and specific outcomes. In other words, if your content doesn't deliver a clear picture of what you are trying to message at the reader's skill level, you have wasted your time.
3. Leverage Powerful Stories That Creates Connection
Remember... Your Content And Conversation = Connection!
First off, you need to understand...It is NOT about you, but your audience! Don't make it your life story or biography if it doesn't contribute to the message (Actually, never a biography...UNLESS you are writing a biography)
Instead, focus on a specific area of your story that allows people to quickly learn about who you are.
Just having social proof is not enough!
Just being a likeable person is not enough! Both of those are a great foundation to build your relationship on, but ultimately people are more likely to buy what you sell if they trust you!
Stories develop relationships with people. In order to do that, people have to like you, know you and trust you (Social Media 101) And fortunately for you,yes, that is possible over the Internet!
And trust can be built via powerful stories that motivate and inspire people.
How do you tell YOUR story?
Well, one thing not to do is make is a "Whoa is me" type of piece. Your story does two things:
- Makes you human and is something that your readers can relate to either being or experiencing
- Should provide a moral or solution of value (That is why they keep coming back you know)
Your take away...
Everyone is overrun and overwhelmed with information. In order to stand out you're your competition, you should focus on the advice above!
Your job is to create content that is not only meaningful to your audience, but that also engages them emotionally! And that doesn't matter if your objective is to have them opt in to your newsletter, buy your product/service or read your book.
Are you interested in how to use social media in your business? Don't know where to start or which sites you should be using for your business?
Believe it or not, not doing social media right can actually harm your business.
If you are looking for free tips or advice on how to approach your social media, go to Social Media Dudes and receive the F.R.E.E report on the 7 Myths of Social Media
Or follow our tweets on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/johnpanico.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Panico Believe it or not, not doing social media right can actually harm your business.
If you are looking for free tips or advice on how to approach your social media, go to Social Media Dudes and receive the F.R.E.E report on the 7 Myths of Social Media
Or follow our tweets on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/johnpanico.
