Have you ever hit the wall when ideas simply do not flow, and the deadline is near? In the era of fast-paced content creation in which multiple platforms must be reached on a weekly or even daily basis, graphic designers not only are assigned to build digital art, but also must support the visuals with copy, creatives are consistently being challenged with writing captivating stories to tell. Now more than ever, in the digital world we live in, companies of all trades, and single individuals must be up to part with the times to reach out potential customers, and the competition is fierce. Luckily, guess what? Yes, we all have something to talk about, so let’s break content creation in three bite size pieces. In order to stay consistent, and to improve the flow of content creation, one must clearly: 1.- Define what is the outcome desired out of a post, 2.- Identify who it is you are reaching out to, and 3.- Have a purpose for the audience to engage. In short, what do you want? from whom? what is in it for them?
The challenge is real…
Designing a strategy for content creation is key in today’s online ecommerce practices, as well as for individuals marketable presence. Nowadays there are even companies that offer the mastery of AI to produce quality of copy to keep that content coming at a fast pace, but knowing the abc’s of what a post must have and in what order is still the task of a human.
Defining the specifics of what the post is supposed to deliver keeps the conversation on topic, and helps the content creator narrow down the structure of the copy, it provides direction, for example, do we want to promote an item? Display new arrivals? Share testimonials? Gain followers? Ask for participation on a survey? Educate? Regardless of the objective defined; one thing to consider of value is the importance of keeping that conversation going, because the company or person will maintain a brand presence, will have an outlet to tell their story (the benefits the audience get), will build community, and ultimately increase the so much needed following or loyalty that translates into conversion, more transactions, in profits at the end of the day, now one thing is clear, in order to secure that loyalty, we must know who we are talking to.
Much is talked about the target audience as the ultimate group one wants to capture as a whole, but a better strategy is to break that group down to one and up to three personas, I personally stick to one, she even has a name (yes I’m talking to you Sarah Ferranti) it’s fictitious of course, but makes it easy to speak/write to one person, in other cases two or three personas from very different group ages and backgrounds might be needed, it all depends on the type of industry, it is a very different need a hospital has from that of a golf club. Once the personas are created, speaking at a personal level, and setting the tone of the “conversation” brings a more natural approach to the scene. One more element of importance is to always bring value to the table. Consequently, a clear purpose for the audience to engage must be established.
Self-promotion in a straightforward fashion is not always the best idea, and why? because it does not show a purpose for the audience to stay, it doesn’t bring up the “what’s in here for me”, so make it about them. The strategy here for the content creator is rather straightforward and proven to work, it goes as follows: make your audience aware of a need, agitate, then offer a solution. The most important part in this step is to share honesty, bring value, appeal to the audience’s intelligence, present the benefits they are getting, and always remember it is about them, capture attention at an emotional level, be real.
These three starting points will save time and will stop you as a creative from wandering around for hours or days trying to hit a home run, we all can certainly talk about anything and make it interesting, but breaking things down in small pieces within a structured manner, is gold for storytelling. We all know that companies and our own online presence is not going anywhere, and the future will certainly bring more outlets and systems to engage and transact, this is a big reason to accelerate these processes and maximize time use, after all it is not one outlet but multiple, maybe too many to fulfill, but that’s the only way to stay relevant in today’s market environment.
Defining outcomes wanted, identifying a target, and having a purpose for the audience to stay tuned, are three easy tips to get the ball rolling, anyone can talk about anything and make it interesting, give it a shot, practice talking about a rock, it could be a funny story. After all, content is–for the most part–ALL about entertainment.
Happy writing, Cheers!