When it comes to content marketing, there are many forms of writing. From the creation of infographics to user guides, it is imperative to set goals and understand what formats work best when running a marketing campaign.
After determining your objectives, use one of the following writing formats to attract the customers your company wants:
1. Blogs
Blog articles are the most popular form of business writing. Blog posts range from 300 to 1500 words and are both entertaining and informative. They also increase awareness of your brand. Sites with blogs have more inbound links and are more likely to end up on the first pages of popular search engines. Blogging can also help you add citations and links from other trusted sources, which leads to higher search engine rankings.
Blogging is an expository style used to drive traffic to your site through creative writing. Blogs can take the form of a personal essay, story, or creative nonfiction. They should be persuasive and use a variety of literary devices to get your message across while providing valuable content that your readers can trust.
Remember that if you do not post regularly, you can lose potential clients. Also, your narrative should present a solution to the problem while still focusing on your brand.
2. Long-Form Writing
Between 500 to 3000 words, long-form writing educates your target audience and boost search engine rankings. This style of writing provides an in-depth discussion on a topic and can take the form of a how-to-guide, survey, or case study.
When creating long-form content, you need research and scientific writing skills to provide a reader with real depth. Using an expository writing style with excellent descriptive writing, you can highlight and discuss your product or services.
With a long-form article or email, your audience is typically already familiar with your brand. This type of writing expresses why your company is an industry leader that consistently provides reliable information that can make a difference in the life of your client base. Long-form content also has the most staying power and can be evergreen to generate leads and reach audiences for years to come.
3. Case Studies
Case studies outline how a business has helped a client become more successful. These can take the form of testimonials or customer success stories and provide a way of sharing information to new audiences. With an academic writing style, case studies highlight how a brand can add value to their lives based on facts. When writing a case study, it is essential to choose customers who match your target audience best. You should also provide quotes or statistics that demonstrate success.
The best model for a case study is to write a summary, explain the problem you are evaluating, outline a solution, and review results clearly stating their impact. They should not only report results but also explain how a customer can replicate the results, demonstrating why they should want to invest money in your services.
4. White Papers
White papers are another form of long-form content that is more information-dense. They are great at generating leads by providing data-driven information that makes content marketing for businesses more accessible to clients. They also help demonstrate your expertise. White papers are typically gated, so you generate leads through the information provided in exchange for the white paper. This approach is an excellent way to get the leads you want.
White papers are generally longer than a few pages and should have a table of contents. They start with an introduction that summarizes the content of the white paper and are divided for ease of reading and referencing. When it comes to white papers, they are excellent for selling your business’s products and services. Make your white papers more visually appealing through great formatting and fonts. Focus on one key issue and back it up with research and statistics. Be sure to include charts, graphs, and quotes. It should end with a call to action. As a form of professional writing, white papers use a more technical writing approach and are not as colorful as other forms of writing.
5. eBooks
You use eBooks in content marketing to provide insight concerning a target audience’s needs. As one of the bests types of long-form content, eBooks are great for collecting lead information. It is essential to ensure that the content adds value to the reader and is not one long advertisement. Focus on building a relationship with the customer so, when the time to buy arises, the customer comes to you.
Your eBook can vary in length, but when discussing your product, you shouldn’t tout your solution as the only answer to the problem. Provide actionable solutions so that the reader comes to depend on and trust your opinion. eBooks are usually gated, with the most common form of information gleaned from a subscriber being their email address. Use eBooks to provide a wealth of information that your customer can sift through to find the best course of action.
6. Product Content and User Guides
With a length in the range of 5,000 to 15,000 words, user guides provide all the information a potential subscriber could want. If done right, they add tremendous value to your marketing campaign. They contain mostly technical writing material, and a well-written user guide is descriptive and functional. Here, simple is best, and a flowery word choice is not ideal.
You use guides to help tie your customer to your brand and build upon the relationship created. When putting together a user guide, break your guide into sections to better demonstrate the product or service that you are highlighting. They can also have frequently asked questions sections and comparison sheets that can make a customer’s decision easier through an easy-to-read format.
7. Checklists
Checklists are a worksheet that aids a client in achieving the desired outcome. Use checklists to provide value for a target audience. They are usually short and bulleted, so they are easily shared on blogs and social media. Using a strong topic sentence to summarize the checklist, you can then create a simple list of things that to do to help a client make decisions when purchasing or using a service.
When creating checklists, white space is a prominent feature. Also, key points or takeaways are used instead of a larger narrative. Examples of this type of content include worksheets, tips, and cheat sheets. Use checklists to make a tricky part of your campaign easy to understand, or tailor it to help a person decide whether they want the product or service you offer.
8. Infographics
Infographics provide a lot of information in a data-driven manner, generally through one image sharable across social media platforms. Infographics are one form of writing that can go viral. They typically have visual representations of statistics, expressed through charts and graphics.
The design should be simple, with plenty of white space, and organized into distinct sections. Embed your infographic to provide valuable backlinks. It should also be eye-catching and low cost to a marketer. The title should summarize the infographic in a few short words, and subheadings should be interesting.
9. Social Media Posts
Platforms like Facebook and Instagram help a business reach a new audience while engaging with existing customers. They can alert customers to new information and things like sales or promotions and are a great way to interact with your audience and convert them to your product or service.
Determine your business’s objectives, and choose your target audience, developing distribution tactics that best meet your goals. The posts can come from a variety of writing styles, for example, an opinion piece that backs up what your company is selling. You can use social media in so many different ways!
10. Email Newsletters
Email newsletters are a great way to highlight the content you created in other writing formats. For instance, you can share an infographic and a link to a blog article in the newsletter. These go out to people who subscribe to your email newsletter. It helps you build a bond with the subscriber by providing personalized emails that are tailored to your customer while being relevant to their interests. Newsletters are more effective than social media posts for converting people. You can also drive more traffic to your site by having clickable links in the text of the email.
The Right Writing Matters
Though blogging is typically the cornerstone of a content marketing strategy, it should not be the only format you use. If you need to increase traffic, generate leads, or drive sales, a diverse content marketing strategy is best. When you publish content in multiple formats, you reach growing audiences. Play to your strengths, provide your information through persuasive writing, and watch customers flock to your site!
References
Dodge, A. (2020, November 18). The difference between content writing types. Copypress. https://www.copypress.com/blog/difference-content-writing-types/
Gotter, A. (2017, July 5). The 8 main different types of content and how to use them. AdEspresso. https://adespresso.com/blog/main-different-types-content-use/
Hurley Hall, S. (2020, August 31). 15 content formats proven to boost audience engagement. Optinmonster. https://optinmonster.com/types-of-content-formats/
Sherman. (2019, August 16). Target your customers with these top 10 high-performing types of content marketing. LYFE. https://www.lyfemarketing.com/blog/types-of-content-marketing/
Singh, R. (2017, February 8). Everything you need to know about user guides and manuals. Biznology. https://biznology.com/2017/02/everything-you-need-to-know-about-user-guides-and-manuals/
(2018, September). 6 reasons while email marketing is important for your internet marketing. Inbound Rocket. https://inboundrocket.co/blog/6-reasons-why-email-marketing-is-important-for-internet-marketing/
