How To Create Content That People Want- Part 1

You already know that getting found on the internet is important.  What a lot of us struggle with is engaging readers/clients once they get to our site.  Creating content is one thing.  Creating good content is another story altogether.

So how do we create content that readers/clients want?

Today we are going to start with how your material is presented from a look and feel standpoint.

I ran across on article from the Search Engine Blog that got me thinking about this.  The article is titled, SEO 101 – part 12: Everything You Need To Know About Page Content.

We often get so caught up into the different tricks that we can employ to get people to our site that we often forget about the most important aspect, which is having content that readers want and presenting it to them in a way that engages them.

The point of the Search Engine Guide article that I want to most talk about is just in the simple layout of your blog.  If you do nothing else, start there.

How much thought are you putting into your headlines?

Headlines are a good place to start because it’s typically the first thing that someone sees.  Headline should be something compelling that draws people in.   Without a compelling headline, many readers may not take the time to even look at your article.  There are several different approaches to writing a headline that you can use.  Copyblogger gives you some examples of different headlines that you can read about on their blog.

Beyond the headline, take a look at how your material is presented.  Is it presented in a clean, easy to process manner?  There is not one way to present your content that will please every reader (we will talk more about this in a couple of days).  You can start with utilizing pictures to enhance the readability of blogs.  The use of white space is also very important.  There are a lot of articles out there that seem to just steam roll the reader with their content and for most it’s too overwhelming and they don’t read it.

Relevant links in your article are also important in your posts.  You should try and link back to past relevant content as much as possible.  Linking to other people’s content is a great way to enhance the readability of your content as well.

Take a look at your content and ask in what ways can your content be enhanced to increase your readability.  Pay attention to what other sites are doing that you like to read as well.  Looking at your content layout is a simple place to start.