As a freelance writer and editor, I’m always hyper-alert to the words, phrases, and other text that businesses use on their websites, social media pages, and other marketing materials. I can’t even pass a roadside billboard without thinking about whether I’d use the same slogan or terminology to reach their target audience.
Yet, after more than a decade in this field, there are some mistakes that I see businesses make over and over again when it comes to their written content. Mistakes that can hurt their bottom line by being a turn-off, reducing their credibility, or making them look less than professional. Here are a few of the most common.
Overselling Their Business
One of the first things we’re taught when marketing our business is to be clear about why our target client should choose us over our competition. We spend hours identifying our unique selling proposition so we can convey this in our materials. While this is still a valuable exercise, someone who is interested in your products or services wants to know more about what you can do for them than why you are so great at what you do—at least at first.
When developing your content, start by addressing your target audience’s pain points. This tells them that you understand their concerns and needs. It also gets their attention because they feel like you’re talking directly to them. Once you’ve done that, then you can talk about why they should choose you. This helps make the connection between their problems and your business being the one that can solve them.
Placing Too Much Focus on Keywords
We’ve all seen a website that uses certain keywords so much that it hardly makes sense. Or the same one or two phrases are used so often that it’s difficult to read the content, which isn’t a big deal because it is so keyword-focused that it doesn’t say anything of value anyway.
Yes, using keywords in your content helps search engines know what your text is about. This makes it easier for search engines to connect you to your target audience. But if you use these words so much that the person reading your content can’t figure out what you’re trying to say, or doesn’t derive any benefit from your content, they’re going to click off your site and likely not come back.
When creating content for your online or print materials, go for quality first. Give the reader some type of valuable information, some reason to come back to you again. If your content contains enough quality information, readers will tell their friends and review sites about you too. That’s even better for your search engine rank.
Being Too Content Heavy
This mistake may not seem very smart for me to point out since I make a living creating content. At the same time, I understand the importance of saying something in as few words as possible. People are just too busy nowadays to be spending a lot of time reading lengthy material. Instead, they want the nuts-and-bolts version. Tell them the main points and move on.
After writing your content, go over it and ask yourself whether you can say the same things in fewer words. If you can, shorten what you’ve written. It’s also helpful to break up large blocks of text with bullet points and subheadings. The more palatable you make the material, the more likely it is others will read it.
Not Proofing Their Materials
I’m just as guilty as the next person of adding a word where it doesn’t belong or inadvertently leaving a word out. That’s a normal part of the writing process. But it also underscores the importance of proofing your work before it’s set out for the rest of the world to see. One simple mistake can undermine your credibility. At the very least, it makes you look unprofessional.
Before publishing print content or making your online content live, go over it a few times to look for any spelling or grammar mistakes. Read it out loud to notice if any words need to be added in or taken out. Ask someone else to look it over too, as they’re more likely to find mistakes, since they aren’t the ones who wrote it. Online software programs such as Grammarly can assist with this as well.
Avoiding these common mistakes can help make your content more effective. It also raises your professionalism and credibility, resulting in a stronger and more resilient business.
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