Finding Answers

I am honored that I know Shelly Kramer and that she took the time to be a guest writer on the Finding Answers Blog.  Her wit, charm, and above all unworldly eighth sense when it comes to social media are very apparent in her writing.  That leads me back to first rule and cornerstone of publishing online: content is emperor of all things Internet.  Without content, there is not a single reason for any of us to visit anything on the web.

Great content will compel anyone to understand more about you and seek your services.

As a business coach, I have had the pleasure to work with numerous organizations on how to embrace social media and the Internet.  From physicians to bar owners, all of them want to drive foot traffic to their stores using social media.  I tell them that great content will compel anyone to understand more about you and seek your services.  It sounds so easy!

All these advice posts about great content and it is amazing how many of us are so poor at it.

So Many Directions

This lesson is espoused in numerous blogs that have been typed feverishly across the world.  When you read any “how to’s” about blogs, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. everyone mentions the importance of great content.   (In fact I know that some of you are rolling your eyes at this post right now saying in you minds or perhaps out loud, “Dude! Where have you been living?!?”)  Yet with all these advice posts out there about great content it is amazing how many of us are so poor at it.

Let’s face it.  You and I have been there, on Twitter, and we have clicked on one of those links.  You know… one of those links that goes with a tweet like “Learn three ways to _________.” So we click.  We are all excited to learn some secret that no one else knows or will make us smarter or will make us sexier, whatever.  As the page loads in our browsers our glee quickly fades into disappointment, for once again we have read a post with horrible content.

I will admit that at times I want to find that person who wrote the bad content and ask for my seconds back.  Demand that they not be allowed to post for a period of time.  Then I remember that I am just as guilty of placing horrible poorly written/thought out items online.  I would have to give time back to numerous souls.  I too would be banned from the Internet.

So how can we compel readers to visit our blogs and share its information across the world?

Write compelling posts and increase readership

The answer is easy enough.  Follow all those other advice blogs about great content.

Instead of applying them like steps in a recipe or what you need to complete when upgrading a software program, use those instructions as tools to analyze some of the blogs and articles you have loved.  Like with the guest post by Ms. Kramer on this blog.   If you look at the topic of her post, her prose, her call to action, and her argument you will see all the key elements of what is needed to write great content for the Internet:

• She speaks with authority – Social media is her bread and butter.  You can tell with her word selection and paragraph structure that Shelly knows her stuff.
• There is passion in her speech – This blog is not written by a timid spirit.  She calling out all men and saying that traditional marketers don’t get it when it comes to social media.  Wake up! It is a woman’s world!
• Shelly speaks in her voice – she does not put on airs or makes an academic objective stand.  You can almost hear the mighty Mississippi in the background as you read it.
• She is open for opinions – Ms. Kramer ends her post with a call for responses.  She wants to know what you think.

We Love What You Wrote!

It all sounds so easy does it not?  It is, when you apply those tools to great content that you already know.  Using them to see what fundamentals are necessary will help you write compelling posts and increase readership of your thoughts, opinions, and tips.  Heck!  You might even get someone to take you up on whatever it is you offer!

How do you write great content?

About the author:

Erroin A. Martin is a Business Advocate with the Von Gehr Consulting Group, LLC, a coaching and consultancy provider for businesses and medical practices. He has over eleven years experience working within the pharmaceutical industry in various levels of leadership across six continents. He currently coaches business leaders and physicians in the tools needed to plan for their success. Learn more about the Von Gehr Consulting Group, LLC at www.vongehrconsulting.com or call +1 203 433 8079.  You can follow him on twitter at @Erroin