FunTech: Make that content cray

Making tech sound complicated is easy. Just whir adjectives, buzzwords, and punctuation into a blender and you have the first boilerplate for many startups. But making unsexy topics sound fun is totally do-able, it’s just a matter of finding a creative angle.

Almost all industries require content because words travel fast. So, to effectively create articles that are more fun and engaging, try these simple tips:

Warm up with your intro

The beginning of the article has the most room for weirdness. Feel free to start off with a joke, or a topic everybody can relate to. For example, if you’re writing about your newest cloud platform, talk about the issue that it’s solving rather than getting deep into the features right away. Or pick a hot news topic to spin off of. I.e. “While we can’t take #brexit back, at least we’ll be able to…” Riding a news hook for your blog is great for SEO and will lure the reader in right away.

Quote more interesting people

As a content writer you’re not going to be an expert at everything, so get the opinion of someone who does. A quote from an expert (especially a funny one) can really bring a piece of writing to life.  If you don’t have anyone specific, quote someone who has an excellent view point on the subject.

Check your tone

Don’t be too formal. Geek speak will soak up the fun like a mouthful of Scottish Shortbread without a glass of milk in sight. Sarcasm, humour and wit can be carried across any topic. Be upbeat so it’ll be easier for your audience to read it. Happy readers means more shares.

Be concise

A super wordy post will cast your reader’s eyes from your blog to instagram memes in 30 seconds or less. If there is a word that can be taken out, remove it, if there is one word that can replace three, replace it. The fewer words the better.

Here’s a tip: Show don’t tell. Instead of saying something is ‘smart, innovative, state of the art, revolutionary’, explain how it works, why it’s different, and lead the reader to come up with his own adjectives.

Pick a picture outside of the box

Alright alright, the ol’ ‘hands on the keyboard’ photo is always a great default for online blog topics, but take your stock photo game one step further. The image should illustrate the article you write, but not imitate it. Use metaphors with your imagery and people will be able to channel more than just what meets the eye. For example, you’re writing about how a certain app can connect us all, a picture of laughing people in a crowd, skyscrapers, globes, or even traffic can still elicit the feeling of ‘ connection’. Making the reader work just a little bit will help them remember your article.

Writing is hard

 

And there you have it! Making content go a little cray just takes some imagination, creativity, and thinking outside the box. Need more advice on adding a little zing to your content? Write to us at [email protected].

 

3 easy steps to speaking fluent Instagram

The subtle difference between a double tap and a scroll-through could lie in the caption. Instagram is full of well-lit, pretty images, but it’s the caption that anchors the image to your audience’s life

Using the right voice

The voice is the personality behind the account. The trick to achieving the right pitch is by establishing who your target audience is and mixing that with the nature of your business. You need to establish your own voice and Instagram is a social platform, so be social!

Consistency in format (both photos and choice of language)

Look at big companies like @generalelectric, you’d notice that there is a strong consistency in how the photos are all professionally shot. More importantly, there is consistency in how the captions are crafted. In the case of GE, their Instagram is all about inspiring people and sharing their research work to the world.

Ask the right questions

Look at @Sharpie’s instagram. There is a lot of art, which is great because it shows what the product can do – but the captions are conversational and show a personality behind both the brand and the images.
Here’s an example:

The picture is not great, and well that filter should be reserved for a Lana Del Ray music video, but the caption opens up the creativity of the reader and it follows the most important branding lesson we learned this year: advertising is about your audience not you.

Using the right lingo and hashtags

No matter who your audience is, Instagram is about getting people talking. There is a ton of Instagram lingo out there, and we don’t know where it comes from (either Reddit or the Kardashians) but it goes viral quickly, with short life cycles. Here are a couple we came across just looking today:

  • #transformationtuesday: self-explanatory. Used for weightloss but you could get creative with it for companies if you have a new product update.
  • #smh: shake my head
  • #fam: your peoples, someone you would consider family member
  • #wyd?: what would you do? Hypotheticals used to create conversation
  • #squadgoals: aspirations with your crew
  • #af: as heck

By now you should be speaking Instagram perfectly. If you’re a business that needs help speaking this foreign language get in touch with us at [email protected].

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Are your words too serious?

We are not living in a world populated with robots (well not yet anyway), and people are becoming less and less receptive to the direct sales approach. Instead, it’s all about conversational content. Readers don’t want to be spoken to – they want to feel like they are speaking with you.

Think about the last conversation you had. How was the flow? The tone? What about the language you used? This is how you want to ‘speak’ to your readers, and your words alone should be enough for them to want to engage with your brand.

As many of us do struggle with writing in a conversational manner and actually making it sound good at the same time, here are some tips on how to sound less like a robot and more like a human:

It’s time to get real

Remember you are talking to other humans. Be real and be yourself. It’s ok to sound knowledgeable and professional, but come on, no one will understand that fancy terminology, nor will they care to be honest.

People want to get excited by what they see and read. Our attention spans are getting shorter and shorter, and so many new things constantly distract us. It’s so important to make every word count. Get to the point and remove all that fluff and technical jargon.

Tell a story

Every piece of content you write should tell a story. Let’s take a look at bios. If your personal or company bio is too serious, with too many big and important-sounding words, it’s going to drive people away.

You want to avoid intimidating people. Not everyone will have a full understanding of your trade, so if you are talking about a high tech solution without explaining it in layman’s terms, people will be interested (mainly because they won’t know what it is you actually do). Instead, they will move on and well, that there is the loss of a potential lead.

State what you do, and state it clearly. The trick to inspiring your readers is of course with great content, but equally as important is how easy it is to absorb.

Check out this great example from Google:

Screen Shot 2016-05-25 at 4.32.58 pm  Screen Shot 2016-05-25 at 4.40.11 pm

Everything on their website about Google is so easy to absorb. It has a friendly tone, is brief and to the point, and is simple and easy to understand. Yes I know, we all know what Google is and what they do, but if you had no previous knowledge of the company, this would be enough information to get you there.

Google could have easily started trying to explain the tech side and the algorithms, and…. Oh look a squirrel (that’s us getting distracted by something more interesting).

Here’s a personal bio that we love. Note the light tone and sense of humour used in this one. Yes, this is obviously a fake profile, but we really do need to appreciate the creative content.

darth-words-twitter

And finally, if Hillary Clinton can make politics sound fun, I’m sure we can make our jobs sound equally as exciting, if not more.

Screen Shot 2016-05-25 at 4.44.16 pm

Get Inspired

Ok so if by now, Google, Darth Vader and Hillary Clinton haven’t inspired you to rethink your content, then perhaps try someone that will. What do you like to read? Who or what inspires you? Why do they inspire you? Is it the language, the content, the voice – Or all three?

Read some different blogs, bios and articles, and apply what you like to read to your own content.

Read it out loud

This part is particularly important. When writing our own content – whether for yourself or for a company – you are going to be too close to the subject. Try to avoid selling and have a bit of fun when writing (we don’t always need to be so serious). Trust us – with the right tone, even serious topics can sound fun!

Once you’ve written your content, read it out loud. How does it sound? If you are bored, start again. It’s also great to ask someone that isn’t familiar with your product or service to read your work. This is the best way to know whether you’re on the right track.

Now it’s your turn – go out and inspire someone with your words!

Need help with your content? Drop a message to [email protected] 

 

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Content distribution 101

You have written all this content, but what’s next?

You may have read our recent post which talks about making the most out of your content, and stretching it that extra mile, and in this post I’m going to go a bit further and explain what content distribution is and how to develop a clear strategy.

Content is all the rage, but if you publish it on your website and leave it at that, it’s very unlikely that many people will ever see it. This subsequently becomes a waste of your time, resources and money. Any marketing activity needs to be backed up with a clear strategy that best matches your goals. Content is no different and there are many avenues that brands can take advantage of to gain their worth in words.

There are three main ways in which content can be distributed.

  • Through paid channels – when you pay for you content to be distributed (i.e. Advertorials, social ads, Google ads etc.)
  • Via your own channels – the channels that you have direct control over, such as your website social media, and newsletters. Basically, anything your have direct control over.
  • With shared opportunities– when other people share your content through PR channels, to include media coverage, social shares, reviews etc.

Below is a chart showing the activities falling under each category. Interestingly, it shows us that all three distribution channels are connected. This simply means the same piece of content can in fact run through multiple channels.

Content Distribution strategy

(Source: http://blog.bufferapp.com/content-distribution-tools)

The more visibility your content piece has, the more people are going to see it, which ultimately means you will have more success in delivering your message, and evoking a response.

However, I do need to stress that a great content distribution strategy means very little if the piece of content is not suitable for your intended audience or is poorly written – so firstly get that right. (Check out our blog to help you create quality content)

Work out a strategy that best suits your budget and goals. Incorporate as many channels as you feel are necessary in reaching YOUR target audience. Ask yourself: Where are they looking for content? How do they engage? If you are targeting a younger female audience, say 25 and under, with your latest beauty product and tips, it’s fair to say they are very active on social media, so competitions, mentions, shares and reviews will be most effective, as will engaging with influencers and running targeted social ads.

Your content strategy should ultimately help drive sales, and in-between help educate and inspire your target audience. Be smart and never compromise on quality.

Part two of this topic will show you how to set up a content plan and distribution strategy – so stay tuned.

Need help with your content? Drop a message to [email protected] 

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What is the meaning of content?

Ok, so I’ll be the first to admit words and phrases like ‘content’ and ‘content marketing’ are becoming overused. Every one claims to be doing it, but very few people really understand what all that fancy lingo means and, more importantly, how to use it properly to get the desired results.

I’m here to run you through some of the more common terms, from buyer personas to visual content.

Buyer Personas

Buyer personas are fictitious characters that represent an accurate snap shot of your target audience. Knowing your audience, and understanding their needs is key to the success of any content marketing campaign. Take the time to identify whom you are targeting and develop your content ideas from there.

Calls-to-Action

Remember this term, as this is a vital addition to your content marketing. This little button (or link, or whatever you choose to use) is the key to converting site traffic into leads. It’s generally displayed in the form of a “download now” or “click here” action button, but this little beauty doesn’t always need to be focused on lead generation. It can also be a link to social media, or an external link or an email. Whatever you choose, just make sure it’s relevant to the content piece.

E-books

What’s an e-book I hear you ask? Well, the best way to describe an e-book is an extended piece of content that explains a topic in more depth. The blog posts you write should be short snippets about different aspects of one topic. Think of your blog posts as individual chapters in a novel, and the e-book is the novel. It’s combining everything into one detailed piece of content that educates and inspires the reader.

Editorial Calendar

Every content strategy should be accompanied by en editorial calendar. This is your planner and the road map for all content creation. It will help you develop your ‘story’ and put together the topics you wish to cover – and of course which buyer personas the content is targeting.

Keywords

Basically a keyword is something a user types into a search engine to find information about a particular topic. Content marketers should understand which keywords their target audience favours, and front-load them across the content they produce. All this should also tie in with your SEO campaign to get the most bang for your buck.

Newsjacking

This is a tricky one that not many people really understand. Simply put, Newsjacking is a practice of making the most out of recent and highly popular news. I don’t’ mean report on the fact that Kim Kardashian broke the Internet with her nude photoshoot. No – that’s going to be covered a lot anyway, and really… who cares! I’m talking about putting your own spin on it. So, for example if you are a social media agency, talk about how this impacted Instagram or what that means for brands.

Remember that all your content should be useful to YOUR target audience. Oh and if you are quick enough to capitalise on popular news, Google will reward you and bump the ranking of your story.

Visual Content

With so many words and our limited attention span, visual content is fast becoming the cool kid on the block. Here, I’m referring to images, infographics and videos, which are crucial to capturing the attention of the time poor consumer, and really get them to engage with your brand.

I hope this was helpful and gave you a deeper insight into the powerful world of content marketing.

If you have more questions or need some compelling words, get in touch with us at [email protected].

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The Words Way – Sourcing quality content for your business

The content you create says a lot about your business. It provides your readers with insight into your knowledge, expertise and offering, and is a great marketing tool that helps prospective customers decide whether they want to do business with you.

Content works to:

  1. Demonstrate your expertise
  2. Solve problems or pain points
  3. Build your brand’s credibility
  4. Helps with your SEO and Google rankings
  5. Develop lead generation

Content is ubiquitous

Essentially, anything you write and share with your audience falls under the content umbrella. From the material posted on your website, to the marketing collateral you hand out, through to your social media, and company blog – that’s all content.

However, the way the content is written, presented and distributed will determine its level of penetration and ultimately success for your business. The words you write can leave a lasting impression on the reader, so make it work for your business.

Have a point of view

It always helps to have a fresh perspective on the material that is produced for your company. If you are writing the same messages over and over again, chances are it may start to become repetitive and won’t be as sharp and witty as it should be.

Keep in mind that the needs of your target audience are forever changing, and your writing style will need to adapt accordingly. If, for example, you are trying to target a new market, the content will be relevant to the local audience – a single global piece just won’t cut the mustard.

Stick with a reliable agency

That’s what we do at Words! Our team of content specialists will transform your content into something that’s sharp, to the point and appeals to your target audience – no matter where they are based or what interests they have.

Our team will write any piece of content that you need, including blogs, articles, website content, press releases, marketing copy, through to white papers, ebooks and social media content. We can even draft your next winning awards application or help create an eye-catching infographic that’s sure to turn heads and generate engagement.

Below is our easy 5-step ordering process.

Screen Shot 2016-05-05 at 10.45.26 am

 

Simply upload a brief and voila! you’re now on your way to great content.

 

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If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us on [email protected], and we look forward to writing for you soon.

 

What is content? – Part 4: How to be an engaging thought leader in 2016

It’s 2016, and the internet is hungover from the content overload of 2015. Thought leadership is still as relevant ever as a way to build your brand, but there’s too much of it floating around left unread.

As we mentioned earlier, the production of content is going up as engagement goes down. To ensure your thought leadership piece doesn’t get left behind, follow these six tips.

Look for your industry’s pain points. Before just writing what you know, do some research on and offline to find out what’s bothering people in your industry. As industries are becoming increasingly digital and offline activity goes mobile, there are lots of unanswered questions. Not sure what the future holds? Prediction pieces always make for great hits.

Take a stance. Having a strong opinion doesn’t mean pushing your ideas on other people, it means encouraging a dialogue and inspiring others. If there’s a topic dividing your industry, consider taking a side you believe in and go with it. As long as you know what you’re talking about it can be a positive to be a bit controversial, especially with the huge volume of copycat how-to blogs out there.

Give anecdotes. To make it seem like a really organic thought, give short windows of situations that taught you a lesson. You could also share a staff journey that can inspire others in their own careers.

Skip the cliches. Cliches can over simplify certain concepts and ideas. Using your own words and examples will help you establish your own voice that will be easier to remember.

Name drop. People want credibility in thought leaders. If you studied at a prestigious university, worked close with an inspirational leader, or worked at a Fortune 500, mention it.

Don’t have the time to produce your own thought leadership? Let our skilled content writers do it for you. Contact us at [email protected].

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What is content? – Part 3: LinkedIn for the entrepreneur

LinkedIn started out as an online resume site, and it’s still one of the biggest resources for recruiters. Over time, it has also evolved into a content marketing platform, serving as a place for businesses to engage with potential clients and partners. So, how can you leverage this?

Tighten that bio:

More than half of LinkedIn’s engagement is on mobile, so tailor your message to be read accordingly. A longer, more flowery summary of yourself might be passable for a resume, but for B2B keep it short and sweet. The recipe for a good bio is:

  1. Some personality
  2. Clear and concise description of your service
  3. A call to action (CTA) for people who aren’t able to send you an InMail.

Example:

Whether through written or video content marketing, I help young companies communicate their vision in the most human way possible.

Do you need more effective content? Get in touch with me directly at [email protected]

Spruce up that photo:

Nice pic from da club… but your LinkedIn profile image should be as professional as possible (avoid cheesy real estate pictures!) The photo you choose to represent yourself and your personal brand is a measure of trustworthiness and professionalism.

Tips for a good LinkedIn photo:

  1. Choose a recent photo. We know it’s not Tinder, but if you’re already misleading about what you look like, it’s not a good start for business.
  2. Forget the metaphorical mountain summit pic, make sure your face takes up at least more than half of the photograph.
  3. Over exposed, blurry, poorly cropped photos are all over LinkedIn. Taking the time to take a proper photograph will actually make you stand out from the crowd.

Beef up your profile:

Now that you have the basics, it’s time to turn your details into a resource.

  1. LinkedIn Pulse: You can’t say thought leadership’ without LinkedIn. Generously sharing your expert opinions and insights is a great way to build trust with your consumer before ultimately turning that lead into a sale. But nowadays there are a lot of opinions out there, and it’s not all being read. Make sure you have a really strong opinion on a topic that can add value to your reader’s life.
  1. Slideshares: If you’re not the most eloquent writer but have ideas to share, use Slideshare. It’s a cost-effective way to get better traffic and ranking on Google. Make sure you have a clear idea of how you want to educate the reader.
  1. Videos: In this crowded market, videos are dominating as the preferred way to consume content. LinkedIn lets you upload directly onto your profile, allowing you to showcase your work. If you don’t do video marketing, upload TV spots you’ve been featured in, your startup explainer video, and event coverage.

LinkedIn is growing as a content platform and it’s the first place clients and investors look to see a cohesive body of your work. Let us help you create content that best content for your profile. Get in touch at [email protected].

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What is content? – Part 2: 10 Steps to writing blogs that convert customers

With the intense competition for businesses that promote online, the web content you use to talk about your company has to be easily digestible. Here are some key tips for killer site content.

  1. Strong info hierarchy. Before typing your first letter, ask yourself whether the headers on your site are in the right order and easy to find. Depending on the type of company you have, do some research to determine what information people want to know first. If your concept is really complicated, make sure your “About Us” page is within easy reach (i.e. Should what you’re doing come before why you’re doing it?). Today’s app generation is also very impatient; if you’re going to boast about a feature, make sure the reader can act on it immediately by sprinkling calls to action throughout your home page.
  1. Consistency. This is your credibility. There needs to be one style and format to all of your text. If you’re switching from American to British English and the tones of each subject are different, it’s going to look like your content was farmed out to freelancers around the world. If you remember from our article “What is a content strategy”, this doesn’t mean just one blog and that’s it! A content strategy refers to how your content looks as an entire body of work.
  1. Break it up, people. Do you ever just read the first line of a paragraph and wish the rest of it never existed? That normally happens when you have a “wall of words” – an unbroken piece of text that’s normally more than five lines long. This makes people automatically want to skip to the top or bottom of the page.
  1. One sentence paragraphs. The best part about writing for online compared to print, is we’re allowed to have one-sentence paragraphs.

That’s right, you can change the rules.

We went there.

  1. Fragments. Another cool thing about writing for web is you’re occasionally allowed to have sentence fragments because the web content should be conversational. Use these wisely, otherwise your blog is at risk of reading like a tumblr account.
  1. Economy of words. “So, there was this guy who had been going over to the back of the store to get boxes” vs “This guy got boxes”. Feel the difference? Imagine every time you’re writing for the internet, you get fined $1 per word. Use your words wisely, because the more wordy, the sooner your reader will lose interest.
  1. Killer headlines with keywords. We know, balancing between a catchy title and making your content SEO friendly is tricky, but if it comes down to the two, always pick a clicky title. Think about creative ways to phrase your story. Instead of “Speedo cup sales increase in China,” how about, “China’s economy isn’t the only thing getting bigger”?
  2. Connect. Write about issues that are concerning your audience and make sure your content connects with other people. Content isn’t just content anymore – your content can actually come alive. Don’t be shy to imbed posts, share, tweet at someone, and make it easy to connect your media.
  1. Make it easy to scan. Upon first skim, can the reader figure out who’s doing what, when, where and how? With first time bloggers, there is a tendency to yammer on about your internal thought process. That’s alright, just delete it all once you’ve figured out your point and place it at the top of your paragraph.
  1. Don’t miss a Call-To-Action. Now that you’ve proved you can truly help people, it’s your chance to direct people to the next step. Don’t let your reader leave the page without signing up, subscribing, sharing, commenting, clicking, or coming back.

Need help with your content? Drop a message to [email protected] 

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What is content? – Part 1: An effective Twitter bio

The “About me” section in your professional Twitter profile is like a little digital business card. It’s one of the first things that comes up when potential customers search for you, so when writing your bio, think about your ideal client and how you can explain how you can help them.

Here are 3 key things to keep in mind with your Twitter bio. We’ve paired our tips with tech companies that nailed theirs.

  1. Have laser focus

What are you a master of and how can you help? An overly descriptive explanation of many things your company does doesn’t sound reliable. State the key skills or services you’re are really good at and say why you’re qualified to gain their business.

Likewise, if you’re an individual, listing off a bunch of professional fields you’re into will make you sound like a jack of all trades and master of nothing. i.e. “Writer, yoga instructor, DJ, singer, tech genius, ad tech expert.”

This bio from travel data analytics company, Sojern sums up what they do succinctly:

Untitled

  1. Write to attract leads, not followers

Followers you can buy, engagement you can’t. Don’t hard sell on your bio, make it conversational. If you can’t think of one, imagine how you would introduce your company to a stranger at a conference. Hammer in your key messages and keywords. Then, leave enough space for a call to action with your contact.

Check out this bio from Eyeota:

2

  1. Lay off the superlatives

Likewise, don’t over compensate. Are you really “The world’s leading…” with just 300 followers? Twitter has only been around for a decade, but it’s already riddled with cliches. It’s better to be understated than exaggerate. If you’re an individual doing a professional bio, for cliche sakes don’t be a “guru”, “junkie”, or “ninja” of anything.

Here is a perfectly understated bio by one of the world’s most successful startups:

3

The square bracket takes the smoothness out of the bio, just pretend it’s not there.

Beyond Twitter, have consistency across social media channels, but change your tone. LinkedIn is business, Twitter is engaging with strangers, and Facebook is about friends – but everyone is a potential client. Don’t have the same tone for each platform; pick a key consistent message you really want to push and repeat its in each bio.

Most of all, have fun with your Twitter bio!  Here is our personal favourite Twitter bio:

Hillary-clinton

 

Stand out from the crowd and let us help you create an amazing bio. Contact us at [email protected].

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What is a content strategy?

Writing one epic post isn’t enough anymore. In order to reap the benefits of a content marketing strategy, you need an entire body of work that serves to tell your brand story to the right audience, while adding real value to their lives. Tricky, isn’t it?

There isn’t enough word count to wax on about how disruptive your company is, so focus your message around what your company can do for its target audience.

Why is content marketing so hot right now?

The offline world has moved online – from booking a taxi or a housekeeper, to fixing a light bulb or searching for holidays – and people are receiving too much information. Ad blockers are making it harder than ever for display advertising, so smart and creative content marketing is the solution to all of this.

A strategy isn’t simply sending out a company-wide shout-out for a blog post. It starts with a goal and an overarching theme over a longer period of time.

For example, content you need to think about might include:

  • Your Twitter Bio
  • Your LinkedIn Summary
  • LinkedIn account and activity
  • LinkedIn Pulse strategy
  • Website copy and tone
  • Thought leadership articles

Over the next few articles, we will go more into depth on individual content pieces. Stay Tuned!

Need help with your content strategy? Drop a message to [email protected] 

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