Back in grade school, we learned to use the five W’s to comprehend basic information. Although content writing may seem inherently easy to grasp, many lose sight of the purpose and practice of content writing. So, let’s go back to the basics and develop a solid foundation by applying the five W’s to content writing.
Who?
This could actually be two questions:
1.) Who is writing the content?
2.) Who is the content for?
Well without one the other wouldn’t matter. So essentially, both need to be addressed.
Who is writing the content is an underestimated question these days that should not be taken lightly. Consideration needs to be taken in determining who will be writing content for your business. I’ve seen some companies use younger generation employees to write email and social media content only on the basis that they know how to fluently use those channels. But is that the only qualifying factor you look at? Have they any experience in writing to your audience? If you don’t have a qualified internal staff of writers, another alternative is to hire content writers. If outsourcing content creation, be sure the copywriter actually writes for the user’s experience and not just for SEO purposes. Be sure to establish guidelines and protocol to follow, since they may not understand your brand voice. Being the company messenger requires wearing a large hat, so make sure the people writing content for you understand how to narrate your message.
We all know that content is written for is your audience. Now, do you know really who your audience is? Can you break it down into further segments? It’s important that you determine your segments and create content for each one. For example, I am located in the Midwest. Would I be interested in an email campaign geared towards snowboarding? Unlikely. Understanding your audience will help you deliver something of value. And if something is valuable, you will make a connection.
What?
What kind of content do you provide? One simple word answers this question – Relevant. Relevant content is what the reader is looking for. A reader needs to gain something from it. Give them something good and they will keep coming back for more. A variety of content like emails, white papers, webinars, e-books and social media posts also keeps the reader’s interest piqued. Remember, relevant content is what consumers want to read.
Where?
Creating content is a little more challenging these days due to the multitude of marketing channels available. It’s not enough to add or update a webpage. In today’s marketing world, businesses also need specific content for landing pages, emails, mobile messaging, social media posts and blog entries. The key is making your content accessible on a variety of channels, maximizing your opportunities of being discovered by readers. A best practice is set forth a plan to determine which channels to add content to, and (in our next question) how often.
When?
Some will say “Frequently” is the answer to this question. However, the frequency of content is not best indicated by a stopwatch. It really does depend on the marketing channel. By throwing out content too often on MMS messaging and email campaigns, you risk list attrition. On the contrary, if you fail to send out frequent enough updates on Twitter, your sporadic tweets may get lost and buried forever. Although timing is important, it is not the accurate answer.
A more appropriate answer is “Fresh”. Readers want new information as it comes forward. If you are adept in delivering immediate content, it will help your company gain credibility, which in turn helps build an audience. If you have a product release, a timely insight, or trending topics on the rise, those would be the correct frequency measures on when to develop new content for the reader.
Why?
This is probably the most important and profound question. Although it plays a significant role in organic search rankings and link building, the underlying purpose of creating content is to influence readers to act. Content needs to be:
Relevant
Interesting
Accessible
Timely
Keeping those key points in mind, you will build trust with readers and keep them coming back, ultimately resulting in the ultimate goal – conversion.
