Creating high-quality online content means writing for your audience, not yourself. But how well do you know your audience? Do you know what challenges they face? Or how their lifestyle shapes their thinking? What drives them to convert?
Getting to know your audience on a granular level is vital when it comes to creating content that makes an impact.
Here are a few things to remember about audience:
It can be tempting to think of your audience as one big group, but instead, try to consider the thoughts and habits of the individual. It can help to create profiles for your different audience members, and think about unique ways you can help each and every one of them.
Never assume what’s important to your audience. Instead, research them and analyse their behaviour to learn more. You can look at search trends, but more importantly, you should home in on those questions we mentioned in the intro. Work with marketing pros to find out the answers, and use the insights from your sessions to really tap into your client’s needs.
There’s a shameless plug coming up… but our brand workshops can help here. Get in touch to find out more about what’s involved.
Different devices. Different environments. Different starting points. Some of your audience already know exactly what they want when they come to a web page (trackers). Others have a rough idea of what they’re looking for, but could be swayed (hunters). Others may have a vague objective, but don’t really have a specific aim in mind (explorers).
Make sure you include content that serves all three searchers. Include plenty of information on your chosen topic, add clear CTAs for anyone who wants to buy, and make it easy for people to get in touch.
We mean this in relation to where they go for online content. There’s a sea of pages out there – if your content isn’t engaging enough to keep people’s attention, they may go elsewhere.
Remember, reading content shouldn’t feel like homework. Keep important information at the top of the page, don’t include irrelevant information, and keep the user journey intuitive.
There are several ways to optimise content for the reader. Take a look at section 3 of our Guide to Optimising for Search to learn more (although, we’d recommend reading the whole thing).
Always ask yourself this when writing something for your audience: how will this content truly benefit them? Every page on your site should serve a purpose – and keeping the answer to this question in mind will help you place a focus on what that is.
You shouldn’t have to choose between your brand language and writing for SEO. The good news is, we know exactly how to get them working in harmony. We know, style and substance.
24 Greville Street
London
EC1N 8SS
22 Montrose Street
Glasgow
G1 1RE
Registered in Scotland
SC304330
