Adding a Human Element to Your Content

Content marketing has seen a surge in the recent past and it is not letting up. However, not all content marketers get the hang of how to leverage their content. Readers are not interested in just hearing about the opinions of your brand or reading rewritten material from other industry sources. They want to relate to what you have to say. In fact, most readers are looking for solutions and that is what valuable content should provide.

Adding a human element to your content will make you more believable and that is why Google implemented the Google Hummingbird concept. Instead of writing for the search engine ranking with a bunch of keywords or phrases stuffed here and there throughout an article, why not write specifically to benefit the reader? Here are four guidelines to humanizing your content:

1.    A blog is a great way to break into your industry. It is an excellent tool for building relationships, in addition to social media. A blog is more up and personal. You have to post regular content on your blog, though, that your readers can look forward to. In other words, they will know where to come when they need answers or solutions. Make sure you keep your blog topic-specific, which means, you don’t want to have a blog about pets and you are also including articles on dating, unless your furry feline, for example, is dating another pet (just kidding!) A little humor helps too.

2.    Conduct extensive research on the topic that you are writing about. Don’t do this haphazardly. Spend some time to dig deep into the soul of the Internet. Your readers can tell if you put a lot of work into an article or not.

3.    Make sure that your content is properly edited. If you need help in this area, hire a writer and editor like myself. View my prices here. A girl has to eat, right? Once you have written a piece of content, share it with your Twitter followers and Facebook fans as well as other social media platforms such as Google+.

4.    Add infographics, videos and images to your content to make them more visually appealing.

Don’t worry about how many words you have in your article. For the most part, a 500-word article is quite acceptable, but if you end up with 400 words, so be it. Quality is more important than quantity. Remember, you are not writing for an article directory or search engine. You are writing to please your readers. Although not your entire focus, write an attention-grabbing title with keyword included. This will get your reader to pay attention, but write content that informs the reader rather than seduce them. Many copywriters would disagree, but who cares? My ethical obligation is to my readers and it should be the same with you. You want your readers to trust you. No one wants to deal with someone who has ulterior motives or bad intentions. With valuable and interesting content, readers will want to share with their friends and associates.

PAUSE: Take a look at this book written to support the victims of child abuse and view other books written and featured on AMAZON.

Leave your Ego at the Door

This is not about you! You are creating content for the reader and you must have the best of intentions – not necessarily writing to specifically sell a product or service, but writing to share your knowledge and expertise. Of course, your content will eventually sell the product because if this is your only source of income, no one expects that you are just going to be a sucker. You simply can’t, if you have mouths to feed.

Write as if you were the reader. What would you want to read and is your own content worth reading? When you create value, you build stronger connections and relationship with your reader – addressing the issues of concern to the reader. You will become the ‘go to’ person when your reader is looking for similar information.

Conclusion

When you use the appropriate techniques to relate to your readers, content writing becomes easier and is more effective in reaching your desired audience; driving traffic to your website and making you look like the expert and leader you are. Purchase one of my latest book on AMAZON and you, too can enjoy the kind of content created for readers like you.

Showcasing my talent

My name is Cheryline Lawson and I am a writer and self-published author of several books and a wide range of online content. I have an innate passion for reading and writing. My main focus is on bringing valuable information to people who are searching for it. I currently reside in Florida with my husband of almost 29 years and two sons; aged 24 and 19. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of Miami. When I am not writing or reading a good book, I like to volunteer at her local church soup kitchen and goes on travel adventures with her family.

I love to write…period. This is my life and something I get up in the mornings and look forward to. I wrote my books to inspire, encourage and motivate others and to give hope. I published my books to get the word out that – life happens and people should be inspired about their experience; whether it is good or bad. Everything happens for a reason and you can turn what seems bad into something good that will help others.

I wrote and published my first book in 2011 when I received a book I had ghostwritten for a client and didn’t see my name on it. I, then, knew that if I could do it for a client, I could do it for myself. There was no excuse. Of course, it took me a while to finish, but once I had the first book ‘under my belt,’ the other seven books were easier.

My first book, “For the Wounded Soul,” is very special to me. In fact, so much so, that I got the title tattooed on my ankle. It was such a painful experience because the ankle is such a delicate area of the body, but it exemplified the title of the book and the pain was worth it.

The Editorial Review of the book at http://tinyurl.com/woundedsoul

The book, 'For The Wounded Soul,' was released on October 26, 2011. This 352 page book contains several compelling and gripping true stories of individuals who have experienced abuse, domestic violence, addiction, rape, prostitution, infidelity, death of a loved one, serving time in prison, alcoholism, adoption and more. Every page in this book makes you want to turn the next page. You won't be able to put it down.

The author connects the dots by cleverly inserting her life story to make it more interesting and more life-like. You will feel her pain, sympathize with her and the others mentioned in the stories and finally realize at the end that we all are truly connected in more ways than we think. This is a MUST HAVE, book for your library.

The author tries to exemplify that what you go through may serve to empower you; if you look for the good in it and to always remember that you are never alone. Others go through similar things and still come out victorious and you can too! This book is enlightening, truly powerful, motivating, encouraging, and dynamic and an absolutely exceptional read.

My latest book - The Man in The Shadows - http://tinyurl.com/ManinShadows

Sarah and Emily are sisters. Regina is their cousin. The girls spend their summer vacations with their grandparents every year. As the girls grew older, strange things began to happen with their grandfather and Grandma Rose felt helpless. 

Days and nights, the girls had to play hide and go seek to escape their grandfather's grip. Sarah, the older one, got to experience his violent behavior one night when he went on his prowl, but so did Regina and Emily in other seductive ways. Read how the girls handled it after being recalled in their later years to face their grandfather on his dying bed about the truth. This novel is packed with suspense, moments of terror and a silence that no one wanted to break.

The story starts out with Regina and what her current life was like ---until the day when she got that letter. Sarah, a well-established attorney received her letter and was taken aback since she had purposefully changed her name to distance herself from the whole ordeal and family connection. Emily, the youngest one, got her letter and was ready to go to Georgia right away to face the man she knew as her grandfather. The plot thickens as other gruesome details were unfolded in the quest to divulge the truth. You have to read this book and see how child abuse can affect so many people - even the ones who keep it silent for years.

Writing these books is not just about making money for me. It is much more than that. It is about reaching people who will get something out of reading my books. Of course, I would love to be compensated for my efforts since this is my only livelihood, but even if I don’t get paid, I will still do this and that is the honest truth. 

You can support me by going to Amazon to see a list of which books you would like to purchase. Even if you don’t read my books, please bless someone with it. I need to spread hope and I need your help to do it! Thank you.

Check out my blog at: http://writerforhirenow.blogspot.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/writer4hirenow

Facebook: http://facebook.com/hireawriter

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/cheryline-lawson/2/45b/a33

The Ideal Way to Write your Press Release

When you own an online business, a press release is an important commodity, especially when you have an announcement to make. A press release helps to tell the world that you have something new, unique and worth looking at. This is the ideal way to create a buzz in the media about your new launched product or service. The world will know that you have something new to offer and something that you are proud of. Not all writers or online business owners know how to write a press release. Most turn it into an advertisement and that is something that online newspapers and magazines don’t like. If it is done as an advertisement, it will be rejected by the media and by consumers.

Tips of how to write a press release

A press release is not an article or web content. It is written in a specific way. Here are some tips:

·         Using the customary news release format is very important. This means you should include your full contact information at the end of the press release. You should include a catchy headline and then write your announcement in a journalistic fashion. If you are unsure, look at other press releases on prweb.com or hire a writer like myself to write a winning press release for you. Leave out the graphics and use basic fonts

·         Don’t make the announcement about you, which means, the only place to put your name in a press release is when you are providing a quote

·         Avoid the superlatives: A press release should be factual so leave out the descriptive text. Stick to the facts. Your press release should not express an opinion. It is just an announcement. Avoid words like “amazing,” “extraordinary,” or “revolutionary.”

Save your press release in text format and not PDF because then someone can copy and paste it easily. You want to make it easy for people to grab your information. Give permission for anyone to reprint your press release as long as you are given author credit. For example, “Cheryline Lawson supports child abuse and has written a new book titled, “The Man in The Shadows,” where she plans to give proceeds of the book to the Child Advocacy Group in her local area. You can find her book on Amazon.com.” Most people leave out the key information, which is necessary for readers to take action.

Your Goal

If you are announcing a new product, be sure to include the name of the product, the price, the product features and the benefits to the consumer. Be sure to put the press release on your website, on your blog and submit to specific media outlets.

The goal is to get the announcement out so that the right people will see it. You are creating a buzz that could go viral. Follow up the press release with a tip sheet. It is the same format, but the tip sheet includes valuable information in bullet or numbered list. Your tip sheet will allow readers to view you as an expert. If your tips prove to be helpful, everyone will want to buy your product or service.

Support a hard working writer like me by soliciting my services to write your next press release or purchasing one of my books on Amazon.com. Thanks for your readership!

Targeting the Prospect’s Emotions

When you are writing an article, book, electronic book or web content, the prospect’s emotions should be your main target. Believe it or not, people purchase from emotions. Your content has to be focused on what they are feeling at the moment and how you can solve it. People are looking for you to solve their problems. If you can write content that speaks directly to their immediate situation and give them a reason why they should consider the solution you will be providing, you will get the sale.

The Benefits

A prospect looks for benefits of a product or service. What’s in it for me? This is the question in mind when someone comes to your website or reads your blog and articles. If you list the features of the product or service instead of the benefits it will provide to the prospect, you will lose out on a long term customer. Listing the benefits means that you are going to mention the problem first and then give the prospect the solutions that could fix the problem.

Example:

Let’s say you are selling pills for migraine headaches, your copy headline could read something like this:

Have you ever had an excruciating migraine that you just cannot get rid of?

OR

Your migraine is becoming quite unbearable in your life, isn't it?

Notice, I asked a question. By now, your visitor knows that you understand how ‘unbearable’ and ‘excruciating’ a migraine can be. Those are strong words, but they evoke emotions. Your next words, then would be, “I understand what you are going through because I know someone or I have experienced the very same thing.”

Getting Attention

Now you have their attention. What? You or someone you know has gone through the same thing? That is what the visitor is thinking. So that means you more than understand what they are feeling. You have empathy for the prospect and they can sense it through your words.

Next, you would say something like, “Yes, for years I had been searching for something that would stop this pain forever, but couldn't find it until I discovered…”

This is when you put a name to your product and now you are going to list the benefits that the product provides such as:

•         Name of product helped me and my customers to get rid of the migraines once and for all.
•          It provided the relief that I was seeking and it will do the same for you
•          No longer do I suffer from migraines. In fact, I don’t even remember having them and by this time next week, you will feel the same way I do

Humanize the Content

Now, the prospect views you as an ally and not a salesperson. You have gotten their attention because you put a human component to your product in this case. You identified with the person’s feeling because you or someone you knew was feeling pain, seeking a solution and found it. Do you think you would get the sale or a subscriber sign up after this? Of course, you would.

This is how you target someone’s emotions. You let them know that you understand and that you know exactly what they need to fix it. You are now the expert and they will trust you. In addition, you should provide honest testimonials because this does help.

Conclusion

I hope you take note of what is required to reach the targeted prospects that you are seeking. They don’t care about the product features as much. They care that you care!! Go on over to Amazon to view and purchase books that I have written.