25 years ago, Bill Gates published a famous essay on the Microsoft website entitled “Content is King”.
One of the biggest takeaways from the essay was this statement: “Content is where I expect much of the real money will be made on the Internet, just as it was in broadcasting.”
You weren’t wrong, Bill.
Contrary to popular belief, Gates wasn’t actually the originator of the “Content is King” phrase, one that’s often relayed by marketers.
It can be attributed to the authors, J.W. Click and Russell N. Baird, who first referenced it in a 1974 edition of Magazine Editing and Production.
47 years on and the “Content is King” expression largely remains true, and boy, is there a lot of content in the digital world for your consumption - blog posts, white papers, podcasts, email newsletters, videos, social media posts etc. etc.
But let’s be brutally honest. Much of the content created for and distributed across the World Wide Web, including the content that regularly fills our social media feeds and lands in our inboxes, is, in no uncertain terms, rubbish!
Businesses are one of the main culprits for that, those companies who falsely believe their marketing content is clever, stimulating and nailed on to encourage buyer interest in its products and services, when in actual fact it offers little or no value to recipients.
Online content like this, that completely misses the mark, can really end up hurting a company. Might it be hurting yours?
If we offer some examples of what’s widely accepted as being ‘poor content’, it should help you recognise whether the online content you generate and perceive as ‘great’ perhaps isn’t as great as you think it is and you need to re-evaluate your approach to content writing.
Recycled, regurgitated copy
Be original. Don’t just repeat, or worse than that, plagiarise what’s been written a thousand times by other businesses.
Give your customers a fresh perspective on things to educate them, getting across your knowledge and brand’s personality as best as you can. It will help single your business out from others in your field.
Error-ridden
Would you be inclined to inquire about or purchase a product or service supplied by a company whose communications are riddled with mistakes, such as a litany of spelling and grammatical errors? We suspect you wouldn’t.
Very often, mistakes can be avoided if you have an accomplished writer crafting your communications, someone who properly spell checks their work and gets other people to also proofread it for them before its final distribution.
Overly promotional
Yes, you want to sell your brand to customers, and yes, you want your content to drive sales, but just droning on about how amazing your business and product range is will hardly endear you to them.
Steer clear of too much self-indulgent talk and be insightful and informative, writing in a manner that’s relatable and makes customers want to interact.
Some self-promotion is fine and called for, but doing it to excess can be a turn-off.
Purposeless
Producing content just for the sake of it is a misguided tactic, a trap that many companies fall into, thinking ‘the more, the better’ - content without value for readers is futile.
Prior to writing any piece of content, you need to establish what you hope to achieve from it, what’s its purpose?
Your communications must impart information that provides your target market with a solution for their specific wants and needs. Think of it like this. How will what you are promoting help make a positive difference to your customers’ lives?
Customer-centric content that converts is what can legitimately be considered great. We have consummate experts who can consistently deliver great content to your customer base. Why not meet one of them to discuss it in detail? Make an appointment here.
