The fact that you’re involved in article writing and have a content strategy is fabulous.
It means you understand the need for regular content in today’s digital age.
But, why are you writing articles?
You see, the success of your strategy comes down to your mindset.
There are two mindsets so let’s look at each in turn.
Article writing for your business
If the most important driver for your article writing is your business, the chances are your strategy is failing.
This is the way you think:
- Fresh content drives the internet and search results
- By writing articles I’ll get more traffic to my website
- As a result, I’ll get more inward links, better rankings, and more hits
- I can use the articles to tell everyone how great my products and services are
The problem with that is the only thing you’re thinking about is your business. That means your content will be entirely focused on you, which is why your strategy is failing.
It’s true that high-quality, fresh content will help with your search engine rankings, it may even attract some good inward links to help your online authority. But, if you’re only writing about stuff that interests you and massages your ego, you’re not going to achieve any of those factors listed above.
The reason you have a content strategy is to attract more people to your website.
That’s right. People. Which is why writing for the good of your business won’t work.
Article writing for your customers
When your main priority is your customers and readers, then your strategy begins to show results.
Your articles aren’t there to promote your goods and services; they are there to give your customers valuable information that will help them. That means writing about the topics that they want to read about (which aren’t necessarily the things you want to shout about).
If you can create a library of high-quality articles that address the issues your customers are facing, and that offer a solution (without overtly selling your stuff), you’ll attract potential customers who will see you as a company that cares enough to offer excellent free advice. And if you give them something for free, they’re more likely to do business with you.
The best way to do this is to write in the second person (lots of you and your) so that your words ‘speak’ directly to each reader. Using a natural voice will strengthen your articles and make them easily accessible for everyone.
Therefore, the moral of this story is always write for your reader first and the search engines second.
What to think about when writing your articles
Before you even touch your keyboard, think about your reader.
- Who are they?
- What’s important to them?
- How much do they know about your subject matter?
- What issues do they have that they’re looking for solutions to?
- What do they need to know?
Only when you’ve answered those questions can you start creating informative and interesting articles that people will want to read.
But what about your keywords?
Just because you’re writing for your reader doesn’t mean you have to forget your keywords all together.
- Make sure they are in your eye-catching headline containing your keywords
- Break your article up into short paragraphs so it’s easy to read
- Create informative, meaningful, keyword-rich sub-headings to help your reader scan your article
- Don’t fill it with links
Before you get carried away, forget about keyword density. Writing natural will make sure you automatically use your keywords, their synonyms, and other words related to your subject.
At the end of the day, if you write with your readers in mind and not the search engines you can’t go far wrong.
Remember – when it comes to article marketing, your reader is king.
Sally Ormond is a freelance copywriter and article writing whizz. Call her on +44(0)1449 779605 and ask her to take care of your content needs.