Write a Blog Post Pt. 3 – Still More Lingo

By now I expect you’ve checked out the article I posted on writing jobs and I’m sure you’ve seen ads for a wide assortment of different projects.

Making sense of all of that information helps when you have a firm understanding of the terminology people are using and what will be expected of you.

Types of Content

This guide is designed to give a general overview of different types of web-based content.

Quality Content

When it comes down to it quality content is writing that people will read, refer to and share for years to come.

It may not be a quick fix for a struggling website, however it is a good way to build credibility in a specific industry. Asserting yourself as an authority within that industry is an honest way to generate natural links and traffic.

This can be achieved in a number of ways

• Well researched informative articles
• How to’s
• Lists of tips
• Best of lists
• Info not already published on the web
• Instructional articles

I stress this point here because many of these writing methods and definitions are not considered good practice.

Well thought out writing that imparts an interesting and informative message is really the best way to go.

Your tools should always be a snappy title, a unique voice and even a strong opinion.

Quality content must be

• Original
• Timeless
• Unique
• A marketing tool

For more information on online copy, (I’m going to drill it into everyone’s head), read over these three articles too.

• How Good Copy Sells More Online Pt. 1
• How Good Copy Sells More Online Pt. 2
• 9 Edge Pieces of The Quality Content Puzzle

If you’d like to read more about quality content from someone else’s point of view, take a look at 25 Ways to Add Quality Content to Your Website.

Viral Content

All of those forwards in your inbox, things someone found funny so they forwarded them, those are all examples of viral content.

The ultimate idea is writing something that people will like enough to bookmark and forward to their friends who forward to their friends who forward to their friends. You get the idea.

Although I don’t advise creating the next ‘Best Girlfriends Day’ forward, creating factual, reliable and interesting copy is far better for credibility.

This is achieved by posting well-written articles with catchy titles, good research, scannable formatting and interesting information.

Linkbait is different in that it also tends to be successful when it is controversial and opinionated too.

For some more in-depth information on viral content there are two articles you should read, 5 Reasons Why Viral Content is the New King and The 7 Secrets of Viral Content from Daily Blog Tips.

SEO Content

First of all SEO means Search Engine Optimization. Ensuring your copy is well optimized should be done no matter what type of writing you are working on.

The initial idea of SEO content was developed to earn visibility in search engines based on the formula the engines used to rank sites in their results pages.

Essentially the idea of copy optimization encompasses several different factors

• Search engine friendly
• Navigation within the copy
• Formatting
• Keyword saturation

Many people throw the term around loosely, and because it is used by so many there is no strict definition of SEO copy as a rule anymore.

Make no mistake, the best way to do well on the web overall is to post good writing that is both well-researched and interesting.

SEO content is generally frowned upon as a source of traffic and rankings on search engines.

Linkbait

Like a shot of tequila, the sole purpose of linkbait is to create a buzz. The concept can be achieved in many ways, but basically you have to generate something that wows people enough to make them share it…with everybody they know.

It’s not as easy as it sounds, part of it is picking your topic, part of it is snazzy writing and part of it is knowing which audience (and social networks) to submit it to.

If done right, linkbait is great to generate interest in a website, and you don’t have to be Shakespeare to make it work for you.

Create linkbait by

• Writing definitive resources for hard to find information
• Being first to report the latest news in the industry
• Writing something opinionated about something (or someone) very popular
• Saying something really funny

Performancing breaks it down very well and my examples above are based on their article on The Art of Linkbaiting.

This is another technique that is somewhat frowned upon in the industry, although there is the possibility of stumbling across and posting something that earns popularity in its own right.

Spam

Not just for email anymore, spam is used in different applications, it’s new and improved spam. Essentially spam is an attempt to get as many keywords as possible into articles to manipulate search engine results.

A practice often used under the guise of search engine optimization.

This practice can earn web designers traffic and rankings (and money from various affiliate schemes).

Generally they are in the form of information stripped from other sites by a program and changed just enough to pass as original copy.

Their sole purpose being pages and pages of content filled with keywords.

Results-Based

Technically all of the above can be called results based writing.This term means essentially copy that gets results, whether that means better traffic, visibility in search engines or higher conversion rates.

Most websites want some form of results-based writing; corporations, small businesses, online services, all of them need marketing.

The ultimate job of a web content writer is to get results from the writing. In fact, the ultimate idea is to convince a customer to convert after they read the first 3 words, or 5 words, or sentence.

Sadly enough for us writers, the goal is to write so well that people don’t read our work because they are too busy filling out the form, buying the service or subscribing.

What You Know

If you have completed this series of articles so far (and read all of the links too) you are in a unique position. You already know more than many ‘writers’ out there.

The majority of potential clients don’t understand that content is a fundamental key to a quality website.

So our position is often overlooked and undervalued. Don’t get discouraged, your words are important and if you continue to plug away researching and writing good stuff you will continue to get work.

Plus I will continue to post helpful articles here which will educate you and help you to further your knowledge within the industry.

Be sure to read Pt. 1 The Basics and Pt. 2 Tips and Lingo if you haven’t already and stay tuned for Pt. 4, which will complete this specific series and provide new writers with tons of cool tools, resources and practice.