For any writer, trying to make a living by writing professionally, the first challenge is finding topics, coming up with catchy headlines, making the content unique and still ensuring that the blog is engaging.
That’s overwhelming – isn’t it, but if you want to be successful, you have to work hard. There is no short-cut to success. There are a few things you have to learn through experience and it’s going to take time.
From my experience as a professional writer, I can tell you a few things, if these are some of the things which are giving you sleepless night.
First, be a professional copywriter only if you love to write. Unless you love to write, you are not going to enjoy this profession.
Now, why I am saying so?
From my experience I have several reasons – the job is monotonous!
Yes, you have read it right. You might have to write a lot of content and at the same time or topic – that too, again and again. As a writer, you might be asked to write 7 articles on the same topic, so you have to be creative, you have to write it well and keep it engaging. Now, if you do not enjoy writing content, how are you going to do it?
I’ll share one example with you.
Suppose you receive an assignment where the client asks you to ‘ Write 5 articles on a specific theme – how coronavirus has affected our lives’. The client wants you to write 5 articles, each of 1000 words length, in an engaging and interesting manner, you need to come up with catchy headlines and content which is not just unique, but each one should have unique information.
So, here is your challenge!
You have to write long articles, but you have information which is almost the same. It is about the usual challenges which the world faced due to lockdowns, restricted movement and so on.
Writing catchy headlines but how to write on the same topic – 5 times in a unique way, with different information.
5 Key Steps
- Research a Lot – The topic is known to you, but to develop 5 articles on the same topic, you have to research. Don’t try to save time by cutting down your research time. It’s not going to help you.
- Plan Well – With the information in hand, you have to start planning content. Decide what you will use in each article. Decide the content structure for all 5 articles at once. Believe me, its the only way to ensure that you are not repeating information.
- Check the content structure – glance through all three to ensure, it is not repetitive.
- Think about headlines – consider the topic/content for each article when you are planning headlines. With time and study, any writer learns the tricks of writing attractive headlines.
Now, getting back to the topic – How Coronavirus has affected our lives. I’ll share a few headlines
#1. 5 Ways How Coronavirus Has Impacted the Lives of Students
#2 Coronavirus Has Changed Our Lives Permanently – Did These Changes impact your Life as well?
#3 Coronavirus Has Taught Us The Importance of Good Immunity
#4 Coronavirus Has Changed Our Mental Health – Have these impacted you?
#5 2020 – The Changes Covid-19 Brought Forever
Aren’t these quite different?
With all your research ready, it won’t be tough for you to come up with unique content.
Okay, if you thought these were pretty easy, what about topics which are difficult to break-down. Well – the trick remains the same.
- First step – Research
- Prepare the structure ( if you do the research well, you will get enough information to prepare 5 different articles)
- Once you have the structure ready, prepare the headlines. Take time to prepare headlines because it takes time.
- Write the content
Easy? Just try it once and if you are stuck anywhere, just let me know. Your problem might be different, but we can find a solution.
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Now – How to Ensure that the Content is Engaging and Interesting
So, let us understand what any reader wants when reading articles. We write content for our readers – if our readers are happy and they are able to get the answer to their questions from your article – your job is Done!
What do visitors/readers want from an article?
- They want the answer to their query/question.
- They need direct answers, short and brief mostly.
- The information which is useful to them.
- No one likes to read something which they already know. No beating about the bush
- Keywords are an essential part of writing, but stuffing them is a big NO
- No long and complex sentences
- Easy to read and understand sentences
That’s all – these are some of the things every writer can do easily.
So, here is how you can start writing engaging content:
- Start by addressing the topic directly
Eg: Your topic is ‘DIY ways to clean the bathroom’ – When you begin writing, answer the question in the first paragraph itself:
“To clean the bathroom prepare easy homemade cleaners. You will need half a cup of baking soda, half a cup of liquid soap, half a cup of warm water, and two tablespoons of vinegar”
Your audience gets the answer directly and will read your article further to know the process or for additional information. They know their problem is being addressed.
Now, how NOT to start your article ( I know many of you will agree that this is the easiest way to start )
Eg: “A bathroom is an important place in our home. However, it gets dirty quite often and you have to clean it regularly. It is necessary to keep the bathroom hygienic or else it can lead to many other problems.”
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No, please don’t write it that way. Your reader won’t spend so much time reading.
- Write Simple to Read Sentences – Please keep the sentences short and easy to read.
- Keep the paragraphs Short – Have you noticed that this article has all short paragraphs. Would you feel like reading really long paragraphs? No one likes to read long content. Besides, these days most people read content on their mobile phones. Long paragraphs are not easy to read on mobile phones. ( Read: How to structure an article)
- Proofread well – No one likes typing errors or grammatical errors. These days there are several tools available online for proofreading and checking grammar. Use them and ensure that your content is of good quality.
That’s pretty much all that you have to do!
Do you have any questions in mind?
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