Bill Gates once said content is king.
And I agree.
You’ve heard countless times how important it is to produce content even a baby can understand. It all sounds great until you realize babies, don’t rule the world!
In this article, you’ll learn how to create content that makes you sell like crazy. But, before we get into the nitty-gritty, let’s start by identifying the people who make up your audience.
Become the Bartender
You’ve probably watched a movie where there is a guy sitting in a bar, narrating his misfortune to the bartender. If you pay attention to those scenes you’ll notice this bartender rarely utters a word. All he does is listen and refill his customer’s glass.
It’s not because his own life is perfect. He just happens to understands the principle behind a buyer-seller relationship.The rule is, you forget about yourself and focus and whatever story your prospect has.
To increase your sales, you must become the bartender for your prospect. Ok, I’m not talking about quitting your job to apply as a bartender in that bar you’re already thinking of.
What I mean is, you need to create a unique relationship with your prospect.
Who is he?
What are his dreams, hopes, fears, aspirations?
Why should he trust you or your product/service?
If you succeed in knowing your prospects well enough, they’ll think you can read their minds. And this brings us to the next step of this new journey of producing great copies.
Audience Segmentation
This is the key to content that sells. Have you ever seen an ad and thought to yourself, “Did they read my mind?”. This is exactly what audience segmentation does. It helps you send the right message to the right people.
There are essential points you need to look upon when carving out your audience. Based on the product or service you offer, here are some factors to consider for segmentation :
- Age
- Language
- Location
- Interest
- Demographics
- Stage of life
- Spending power
- B2B or B2C
This is close to impossible for common mortals like you and me, and that’s why we have analytics to help. Google Analytics and Bing Ads provide interesting features for online audience segmentation. They’re also great to help keep track of your audience’s interaction with your content.
Analytics provide valuable information on which content format best suits your audience.
Choosing the Right Format for Your Content
As we’ve seen above, people have different ways of interacting on the internet. Some people like blog posts, whereas, others stick to: a picture is worth a thousand words. This translates into four words. Choose. The. Right. Format.
Before picking out any format, you should make sure it aligns with your business goals. Each format portrays content in a unique way.
- Blogs: Used for both long-form and short-form written content.
- Infographics: Useful for large amounts of data and information.
- E-Books: Ideal for educational and easy-to-read guides.
- Videos: Suitable for engaging and entertaining content.
- Press releases: Perfect for product/service updates and, news-worthy information on the company.
- Webinars: Practical for business-related content that engages and educates your audience.
- Reviews: Great way for prospects to leave their experience with your product/service.
- Case studies: Helpful when it comes to presenting explanatory research.
Knowing the ideal format to use for your content helps you stand out in your niche. But, you shouldn’t stick to one content form as it may become boring for your audience.
Apply the API Formula
Content creation starts with serious brainstorming. At this stage, passion isn’t enough if you must get noticed by your audience. They are three key guidelines when it comes to producing audience-focused content.
Answer
Before writing any sales copy, you should be able to join the conversation in your prospect’s mind. I’m not talking about asking them what they think. What I mean is, you need to know them well enough to answer the questions they’ve not even voiced out. I know it sounds crazy but please, hear me out.
The brain is always working. It’s the reason you have ongoing conversations with YOU. Most of the time, you don’t even notice it. This is why when you see an answer to a question you’ve been asking yourself, it picks your interest.
This is what occurs in what we call “love at first sight”. The person you love at first sight is never a stranger. He is most of the time a product of what you designed in your mind.
So, if you’re not answering those questions, you won’t prick your prospect’s curiosity.
And, the best way to achieve this is to write to one person.
Who is your ideal prospect?
When you succeed in having a clear image of this person, writing becomes easy. It’s simpler to write to one person because your brain works best when it has a clear target. If your ideal prospect can relate to what you’re saying, other prospects will.
A great way to check the effectiveness of your copy is by analyzing your conversion rate. It will help you brainstorm the right ideas for your content.
Provide
Content creation doesn’t end at the answering phase. You must provide useful and valuable information to your audience. This isn’t always about pouring in a lot of facts and statistics. From what you know of your audience, you can predict how they will react to your content.
You need to give them content they can relate to. If you’re starting your business, you’ll want to focus on building your brand’s style and tone. Don’t make your copies too salesy. Remember, you’re not talking to giant wallets ready to cash out on the go. They need to see you as a professional they can run to at any time. In other words, provide the solution they’ve been looking for.
Use tools like Google Console, Keyword Planner, Answer the Public, or Neil Patel’s Ubersuggest to do a Keyword search. They give you useful statistics on what people are looking for and the words they use to look for your product/service. This makes your content more specific and thus attracts the right audience
Intrigue
Good content should keep the audience wanting more. The best movie plots are those in which there is a leveled amount of intrigue. Proof that your content is good is, people, interact with it. This can be through email, social media platforms, reviews, and, testimonials.
Take your audience through every word of your content. Try to be as creative and persuasive as possible. Every copy should communicate the passion you have for what you do.
Keep them updated on your latest projects and sometimes personal life. This will help you create a unique bond with your community.
Conclusion
Content creation can be quite challenging. This is why most companies now invest in audience-focused content. What makes a marketing campaign exceptional isn’t the content. It’s the knowledge you have of your audience. This is what will place you a step ahead of your competition and of course increase your sales.
