Give your content the self-help treatment

It’s not just your chakras that need realigning. Perhaps your commitment to writing good marketing copy does too. 

You’ve already drunk your two litres of water. You’ve cleansed your timeline. You’ve taken all the Christmas presents you hate to the charity shop (such a good person). What about resolving to stop making the same old mistakes with your content? 

Reevaluate your writing and apply some self-help guru guidance. 

Stop being so passive 

“You are responsible for what you say and do. You are not responsible for whether or not people freak out about it.”
— You Are A Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life’ by Jen Sincero

Anyone would think people escape life sentences by covering their backs with “may” and “have”. So often passive voice is the go-to out of fear, helping the author (or the brand) to avoid responsibility and blame. 

Passive voice makes readers’ uneasy. What is the writer trying to hide? Rewriting passive copy calls for courage and conviction. Sure it might demand more research to substantiate, but for the better, allowing you to cut all the “can” and “could” clogging up your copy. 

How do you know if you’re writing in a passive voice? Apply Josh Bernoff’s Zombie Test: if you can add “by zombies” after the verb and it still make grammatical sense, then it’s passive voice (e.g. “Attention must be paid by zombies…”). 

Commit to scrutinising stats 

“Now that you have a clear new intention, say it aloud throughout the day. When you awake in the morning, set your intention with conviction. As you stay committed to your positive intentions, you’ll begin to experience the energy of the Universe supporting you.”
– ‘The Universe Has Your Back: How to Feel Safe and Trust Your Life No Matter What’ by Gabrielle Bernstein

It’s so easy to whack a stat into an infographic or a report when it handily supports the story we’re telling. But, do the numbers really add up? 

Content marketing loves stats. Yet, it’s important to scrutinise the methodology behind them. What is the source? Is the study sound? What’s the sample size? Is it up-to-date? 50 workers’ opinions pre-Covid do not speak for Britain’s workforce today. 

If we’re going to use data to back up our arguments, then it demands integrity. 

Clean up your act 

“Are you polluting the world or cleaning up the mess? You are responsible for your inner space; nobody else is, just as you are responsible for the planet.”
– The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment’ by Eckhart Tolle

How much of your copy could be cut? If what you’re saying is important, then keep it short. 

Front load your writing and grab your reader’s attention. You can fill in the gaps later; fail to be interesting and you won’t get the chance. 

Say what you mean, and say it boldly. And consider if you really need to say it in prose; bullets, tables or graphics could be the vehicle to best land the point. 

Be unforgettable

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(Header photo: Content Pixie on Unsplash)

“Authentic communication is the first step to transforming special relationships into holy relationships.” 
– ‘A Course in Miracles Made Easy: Mastering the Journey from Fear to Love’ by Alan Cohen

Any half-decent content writer knows they need to think of their customer and try to understand how they tick in order to write persuasively. But, what do you want your customer to think of you? 

The lasting impression is the residue that sticks. Our writing might change the reader (they know something they didn’t before) and it might make them do something (download a report), but how will our writing serve an ongoing relationship? For example, perhaps the lasting impression is one that makes them think of us as credible and trustworthy, so they’ll come back to our content the next time they’re in a bit of bother.  

By determining the kind of relationship we want to have with our reader from the outset, we can write in a style far more likely to be effective in getting there. 

Let 2022 be the year your content marketing shines. Sure, love yourself, but love your writing too—for all our sakes. Namaste. 

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(Header photo: Content Pixie on Unsplash)