Writing Style for Online Content: Tips and Advice
Writing a lot of content that just isn’t getting traction? You might want to check your writing style for online content before your next post.
You may have some great ideas for content for your blog or website, but sometimes those ideas may not materialize into words on a page quite so easily.
Interesting and original content can be supported and amplified by a solid grasp of words and writing style. This can seem intimidating, and the difficulty of putting the ideas in your head onto a page can put many people off creating content. The good news is you don’t need a degree or years of experience to start to master this process. Here are a couple of pieces of advice on how to find your voice, develop and utilize writing styles and other methods to maximize the potential of your content, and share your ideas with the world.
Courses and Resources
Investing in a marketing agency that provides SEO services is a brilliant way to make sure your writing is accurate and will bring in as many readers as possible. By using keywords, targeting audiences and optimizing your website, an agency will boost your overall online presence and push your website to the top of search engine results lists. In turn, this will increase the traffic to your website, therefore increasing your readership and making the most of the internet’s reach.
The internet is also home to a wealth of writing courses, which you can choose to fit your lifestyle, budget and commitments. Online education has become incredibly popular and important, allows you to work from home and fit in lessons around your job or family life. You can also learn at your own pace, and use methods that you will benefit from, which can take the intimidation out of a traditional school or lecture setting.
Target Audience
Knowing to whom you’re talking is incredibly important when writing anything, but especially online content. This is an age of distraction and temptation, so your words need to grab the reader’s attention and make them keep reading, instead to scrolling to the next article or clicking away. Tailoring your writing to fit your audience will mean that the right people will read the correct information. There is no use in writing a children’s activity article and using an academic vocabulary. It will make the content hard to understand, and kids will switch off and be unlikely to return or read any of your other work.
Reading other work that is aimed at a similar target audience can help give you inspiration and encouragement and nudge you in the correct direction regarding writing techniques such as vocabulary, length and structure. Depending on what you are writing, it can be great to add your own influence on your work, to make sure people know you write it. Writing for your own blog is a good example of this, as the content is all your own and inspired by you; you run the blog and are not necessarily following a brief. People will want to read your blog precisely because it’s about you; your readers want to hear your voice and tone through your words and be taken on a journey in your online diary.
Subject Matter
Understanding your subject matter is vital to keep your writing correct and accurate. You may find yourself doing extra research to develop your knowledge on a subject or fact-checking things you thought you knew. Educating yourself and gaining experience is never a bad idea, but it can take a lot of extra time and effort. Planning your work and writing can help break down the task, and make it seem less overwhelming. However, you like to plan; lists, bullet points or diagrams, keep clear and detailed notes on your subjects to ensure that your writing is as informative as possible.
Following a brief correctly is essential if you are writing for a client, and it is best to ask questions for clarification, rather than assuming and making mistakes. The internet is a wonderful resource, but make sure your sources are good and credited, and always avoid plagiarism. If you can choose your own subject matter, writing about something you are knowledgeable about or passionate about can be incredibly rewarding. You may be able to share personal insights and stories, give experience-based advice and connect with your readers on a more personal level.
Practice
It takes 10,000 hours to become an expert at something, so practice is essential. Even if you don’t have the desire to be an expert, perseverance and repetition will help develop skills and behaviors, whilst cementing information in your brain until it becomes second nature. There are many ways to practice, whether you like structured writing exercises, following tutorials or reading books on writing. One of the best ways to learn and practice writing is by reading. Read anything you can; fiction, non-fiction, advertisements, all of it will help inform and broaden your understanding of the different styles and tones of the written word.
Helping Hands
There are some failsafe items and methods you can use to help boost and develop your writing skills. One of these is a thesaurus; whether it is online or a physical book, this will keep your writing fresh and prevent repetition of words. There are plenty of software options that will check your writing for spelling and grammar errors, and even plagiarism, so have a look and see if you would benefit from using these. Furthermore, learn from the experts by picking up some books on writing, like reading and implementing what you have learned are great ways to practice new skills, and will allow you a safe place to make mistakes.
Speaking of mistakes, don’t be afraid to make them or ask for help when you need it. No one can become an expert in anything without hard work, and that inevitably includes doing things wrong. Using the help and resources available to help you become a better writer will give you the guidance and confidence you need, and there is always more to learn. The great thing about creative work is that it is always changing and adapting, so you will never get bored or short of new techniques, styles and mediums!
