You don’t need to be perfect Now, it would be a mistake to think you have to be some kind of prize-winning author in order to create solid, interesting, highly engaging content. You may have run across delightfully written content that doesn’t seem to get the writer any closer to their goals. Solid, strong writing is important for a content marketer. Consistent quality It’s one thing to be able to produce a good piece of content. Quickly checking in on your goals before you start writing will help you build a solid, authority-boosting body of work. And you’ll do it much more quickly than if you tried to play it by ear. Structure Whether you’re talking about a screenplay, a haiku, or a numbered list post, structure is crucial if you want your writing to go the distance. Do you get to the point quickly? (By the way, if you make a living as a writer, your usage and spelling should be close to perfect. Our Content Confidence Checklist lets you check off the most important elements of good content, so you know you’re producing your best work.
OK, I’m just going to say it.
In today’s world, publishing second-rate content is a total waste of time.
There’s no point in contributing to the growing pile of mediocrity. It wastes your time, and, worse, it wastes your audience’s time.
Sometimes I’ll see a marketer complaining that:
“I spent two years doing all of that blogging and email stuff and I never saw anything out of it.”
And every time I’ve taken a closer look at their content, I’ve quickly seen why they never got traction.
So much content suffers from little professionalism “leaks.” Errors that undermine the content’s authority, squander audience interest, and detract from business goals.
It doesn’t take a very big leak to make it impossible to fill a bucket.
And most of the time, these problems are completely fixable.
You don’t need to be perfect
Now, it would be a mistake to think you have to be some kind of prize-winning author in order to create solid, interesting, highly engaging content.
Whether you’re creating text, audio, video, or any other format, there are a handful of key elements you need to hit consistently. The elements that prevent those annoying “leaks.”
Of course, as you build skill, your content will keep getting even more effective. But sometimes, even great writing misses the mark.
Ever wonder why some wonderful writers don’t see success with their content?
You may have run across delightfully written content that doesn’t seem to get the writer any closer to their goals.
Solid, strong writing is important for a content marketer.
But solid, strong strategy is even more important.
When you can put both of them together, you’ll be unstoppable.
If for some weird reason you had to pick just one to get started, choose strategy.
Smart strategy, consistently implemented, is the fastest way to get where you want to go.
And wonderful writing with weak strategy too often becomes a frustrating waste of time.
Consistent quality
It’s one thing to be able to produce a good piece of content.
It’s another to keep producing quality material, week after week and month after month.
You could try to rely on your own instincts or talent, but some days, those things are in short supply. It’s smarter to develop a simple, reliable process.
Your process shouldn’t be so complicated that you won’t do it.
(Anyone remember David Allen’s 43-folders system from Getting Things Done? The one that could be replaced by … Google calendar?)
And it can’t be so simple that you miss important parts.
Ideally, you want a…
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