Give Your Brand an Upgrade with Professional Content Writing
Many business owners don’t realize how dramatically professional content writing can elevate a brand on websites, blogs, and in social media. They know that looking bad online could exert a drag on their reputation. But they just can’t find the time – or don’t know how – to take on the problem.
If you see yourself in that description, this article is for you.
Your Brand and How You Market It Online
What are the elements of your online brand? In most cases, we are talking about a website, some social media company pages, and perhaps a blog.
They started out as fun projects, but there was no plan for consistency – and the “marketing” objectives were not clear. Before long, it was a mess. Typos. Bad links. No links. Months go by in between posts.
Before you get to that point, make time to clean up your digital brand.
How Professional Content Writing Can Help Develop Your Digital Brand
Clients usually seek help from a professional copywriter when they see themselves in one of these scenarios:
- They jumped onto the web without a plan. They never heard of a content calendar — yet they started a LinkedIn account, a Facebook company page, and a Twitter feed for the company. Now it’s all just sitting there.
- The business got too busy. They got started creating awesome content, but things got behind. Now they don’t know how to catch up – or how to move forward.
- They suffer from “I can’t write” syndrome.
- Computer technology isn’t their thing. But they sell a product in the 21st century and have to be online.
- They know that today a viable business must be “Googleable” or people don’t believe it’s real. So they let somebody build them a website. Now what?
Regardless of the reason, they all have the same problem: how to keep up with the insatiable content demands of a digital brand.
We teach business owners how to turn websites and blogs into real working assets and not let them:
- just sit there, or
- become an outright embarrassment!
Create a Content Strategy and a Content Plan
In all cases, however, the road to great content will be smoother if you already have a clear sense of your brand. This is because the copywriter’s first hard deliverable will be a content plan, and a strong, confident brand makes content planning a simple, strategic process.
- Who? (Who’s your ideal customer?)
- What? (What do they need to know to do business with you?)
- Why? (Which business goal is this piece of content connected to?)
- When? (That’s the calendar part. When does this piece get posted?)
- Where? (Where does this piece get posted?)
- How? (Process: who does what?)
The “why” will tie back to your objectives, and will determine the call to action.
The “what” is where you demonstrate that you understand their challenges – and gives you the opportunity to outline the solutions your business provides.
So that’s the story you tell with your content.
The content plan is the quarterly structure on which you will build 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, or a full year’s worth of content.
The bottom line for every business: customer service! In helping you create that content plan, a professional copywriter will help you keep customer service at the forefront of all your digital properties.
Invest in great copywriting to express your brand voice.
The Copywriting Matrix: Brand, Goals, Structure
A professional SEO content writer knows how to deliver on what your customer expects: clear, cogent, and useful information across all your digital channels.
A deep dive into your goals, and the resulting content plan, let you:
- get inside the mind of your customer,
- understand exactly what they need, and
- plan your content to meet those needs
Before sitting down with the writer, try to decide what you need from your website, blogs, and social media.
The answer may depend on what kind of business you operate:
- Is all your business local? Is your marketing face-to-face? It’s possible you just need to let customers know what you do, where you are, when you’re open, and how to reach you. Basic.
- Or your primary need may be a way for clients to book appointments (for example, hourly service providers like massage therapists or nail technicians).
- But maybe you run an internet-based business. The whole world is your market. You probably need a full-service e-commerce storefront. And it has to be pristine and user-friendly – just like a real store. You need the best content possible to find your prospects and generate sales online.
- If you are a social enterprise or nonprofit, you may need to issue calls to action for diverse groups: volunteers, donors, or investors, for example. Your content will be some combination of storytelling, highlighting your impact, and inspiring like-minded people to join you.
Tidy Up Your Online Brand, and Keep It Tidy
Keeping the content on your social channels current and relevant is a job.
Whether you work with a firm or make it part of an employee’s job, the big opportunity is to sit down and create a thematic content calendar that tells a story – your story, and your customer’s story!
Content planning to achieve big online marketing goals is manageable, even for the smallest company. All it requires is intention and commitment.
And it will be a really small investment compared to almost every other category of your marketing spend.
Keep your plan simple, and scale over time. And when your budget permits a further investment in content marketing – when you let the content lead your marketing strategy – step up to the plate and hire a firm. Great copywriting and content add jet fuel to this kind of marketing.
At The Allyson Group, we are content writers and content creators who can help you choose the kind of website you need, and the design firm that’s right for your budget. Call or email today and set up a time to talk through your project. No obligation, just a conversation.
