Are you interested in learning the 4 ingredients that make a great content recipe?

I’m definitely getting there, but first…

Here are a few facts you should know about great content…

• Make it original — create your OWN original content that is relevant and interesting to your audience. 

• It addresses your ideal client’s pain points, desires, fears, and most definitely provides the answers to the questions that keep them up at night.

• It supports a new market, concept, or way of thinking.  

• It boosts your search ranking and keeps you from being penalized by Google for unoriginal content.

Let me also add that great original content is a guaranteed way of staying relevant. Your audience is most likely to go beyond just reading it… it compels them to share and talk about it with others (that may add to your bottom line) long after the content has been published. 

so, What then are these 4 little known ingredients that make great content?

Let’s dive in:

1.Strong Headlines

 Powerful titles contribute heavily to how effective your overall content will be. Copyblogger shares these stats: 

• 80% of people will read your headline

• BUT…only 20% of people will read the rest of the content

Create an effective title to grab your reader’s attention immediately. For you to make your headline strong, consider the following:

• Keep it short- Short titles are easy to read, and search engines love them! 

  • Less than 70 characters is preferred

Any title longer than 70 characters is already too long, and search engines may cut them down, reducing your content effectiveness.

• Simplicity- Big and fancy words complicate the title. Your title should talk explicitly about what your content is about. To make the title more exciting, use command words like “Top 10 Best….”, state a fact, ask a question, make a promise, or draw a picture.

•  Relevance– Ensure that your title is relevant to the content you are about to write and to your audience. Don’t lure people into reading your content, which has nothing to do with the title. This will damage your reputation.

2. Actionable Steps

 Give your readers advice or steps to follow to apply the lessons you’ve stated in your content. Give the user instructions on how to apply the information you are offering them in their situation or to learn and become better. Tell your audience to share their thoughts in the comments section or share the content on social media. The user should understand how they will benefit from your content.

3. Provide Resources with Up to Date Information

 Anytime you feel that your content isn’t working or achieving its intended purpose, re-evaluate and update it to suit your current reader. If you have a new content marketing plan, don’t be afraid to go back and update the already published content to be in line with that plan.

Search engines favor the content sites which are regularly updated with new content, and they get many readers who will ultimately lead to new customers.

4. Aim to Leave the Readers with Something to Think About or Engage With

 Leave your readers with questions on how to implement what you have given them, ideas to reflect on, or a call to action for further learning. 

 “Remember, every element of compelling copy has just one purpose — to get the next sentence read. And then the sentence after that, and so on, all the way down to your call to action.” -copyblogger

In conclusion, creating great content is an intentional effort and should be part of your content marketing strategy. 

If you would like to learn more about how to improve your content strategy with great content, reach out to us at: hello@eandbmedia.com

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