Does your written marketing content go down smoothly and easily, or does it give your target audience a case of literary heartburn? Even the most graceful language and helpful wealth of detail can prove too much for today's time-pressed consumers and business clients to handle. We're all in a hurry, and at the same time we're all overwhelmed with the sheer amount of marketing content we encounter every day. So how can you get your audience's attention without trying their patience? For a start, try these three strategies.
1. Break Up That Wall of Text
The infamous wall of text has turned countless web pages, blog articles, and other marketing pieces into an impossible obstacle for the very people that they're meant to affect. How many times have you pulled up a website or social media post only to balk at the massive amount of information on display? Did you keep reading, or did you click over to some other, less demanding offering from someone else?
Create digestible chunks, not mountains of words. Look for logical opportunities to break up your content into short paragraphs. Use bulleted or numbered lists if it makes sense to do so. Think twice before adding tons of supporting data and details. Add some breathing room in the form of surrounding white space. These changes will help your readers scan the content more quickly and easily -- instead of scaring them away from the outset.
2. Make Smart Use of Microcontent
Potential customers who have only a few seconds to scan websites or social media sites need more than just easy-to-read content. They also benefit from tiny chunks of content that make their point even when viewed out of context. Welcome to the world of microcontent. These pieces of information serve as essential guideposts and teasers that compel further attention.
Typical examples of microcontent include titles, headers, and summaries. A gripping title that clearly lays out the subject matter to follow will hook your readers from the beginning, while sensible headers help them fast-forward to the sections that interest them the most. A juicy summary sentence describing what's to come helps readers decide whether to read further.
If you really want to make your microcontent work across your entire marketing campaign, stack those chunks of digestible data. Create a chunk on one platform that links or points to another, related chunk on another platform. Now you're telling your story one easily-managed piece at a time while leading your readers on a guided tour of your various marketing channels.
3. Simplify Your Vocabulary and Structure
A huge vocabulary and elaborate way with sentence structure might impress people, but don't expect it to sell your products or services. When in doubt, cut it out. Express yourself in simple terms that make for fast, easy reading. Craft sentences with a clear beginning, middle, and end. Don't send your readers into the weeds searching for the point of what you were trying to say -- unless you want to lose them for good.
Make sure that your marketing content also provides clear directions and instructions for your readers. If you want them to click a particular link, email you, subscribe to your channel, or perform some other key action -- then say so. A clearer path keeps readers from getting lost halfway through the journey.
Do you have trouble creating those potent little bite-sized morsels of marketing content? Contact me, and let's rework your marketing feast into a lean-and-mean appetizer platter!
