Writing quality content is no easy feat. In order for your site to perform well in today’s competitive landscape, your content needs to stand out. In other words, your website needs to be compelling enough to generate more traffic and ultimately increase conversion rates.
So, what’s the secret to writing effective content? Make it more engaging. Keep reading to find out how.
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What is the Meaning of “Engagement” in Digital Marketing?
In digital marketing, engagement refers to how consumers interact directly with the brand through different actions, such as clicks, likes, comments, and shares. Engagement not only increases reach and relevance on the internet but also helps build a solid relationship with your audience.
4 Ways to Make Your Content More Engaging
Use Compelling Headlines
Before your content can be viewed, enjoyed, and shared, it needs to be clicked on. Whether your users are searching on Google, social media, or browsing through blog posts, your headline is likely the first thing people see.
Think of your headlines like gateways. If they’re compelling enough, your user may choose to enter the gateway and onto a new page on your site. If you’re offering boring headlines, however, users have no incentive to enter or click them.
If you’re looking to grab the attention of your target audience, you need to use a headline or title that makes an impact. While your headlines need to be unique and creative, they must also be SEO-optimized to include a target keyword.
Here are a few ways you can make your headlines more compelling:
1. Use Numbers or Lists
Starting your headline with a number helps the headline stand out. A list also gives readers a better idea of what to expect in your post, as well as offers a convenient, quick, and scan-friendly read.
2. Use Numbers or Lists
You can’t leave readers hanging without a clue of what to expect from your online content. Don’t be vague. Your headline must clearly describe what is going to be covered.
Good Example: Upload a Blog in WordPress in 5 Minutes
Bad Example: Upload a Blog
3. Ask a Question
According to Backlinko, headlines with a question mark get 23.3% more social shares than non-question headlines. A question is often taken as an invitation to participate in a conversation, which is a great way to increase engagement.
Questions immediately draw the reader in. If you’re writing about topics relevant to your audience and you ask an interesting question, you’ll reach the right readers for your blog and business.
Many search queries are also framed as questions. If you answer the question well enough in your content, you may be rewarded and rank highly in the SERPs.
4. Think about the type of content your reader wants to read.
Knowing your target audience is an extremely vital part of any content strategy. You must understand your audience’s goals as well as their pain points so you can create content that speaks to them. Create strategic headlines that target things you know your audience wants to learn about.
If you own an air conditioning company, for example, your target audience may visit your site if their air conditioning is broken and they are looking for some information on how they may be able to fix it. So, a blog post titled something like “5 Common AC Problems and How to Fix Them” may be of interest to them.
Use Visuals
Visual content is a highly effective way to keep your audience engaged. By incorporating strong visual content into your marketing assets, you’ll not only reach new customers but learn about what appeals to them as well.
There are many types of visuals you can include within your content. Here are a few examples:
- Images
- GIFs
- Videos
- Infographics
- Slideshow presentations
Need some help creating these visuals? Try using these visual content creation tools to create engaging content that will connect with your customers.
Share Your Expertise
To foster more engagement, share your expertise. This is also a great way to establish trust and credibility with your readers. You can share your knowledge by writing content that demonstrates your expertise. Here are some ways you can do this:
- How-tos
- Case studies
- Industry trends
- Tips and tricks
- Statistics and data
- Knowledge from the experts
Tell a Story
Another great way to make your content more engaging is by sharing stories. Stories have a way of keeping readers hooked. Reel your audience in and keep them on your site by sharing interesting, unique, and satisfying stories.
Story-driven content helps you showcase your brand’s journey and build a relationship with the audience. An added benefit of sharing personal experiences is that they are completely unique – no one else will have the same content.
One great way to tell an engaging story is through an email marketing technique called the SOAP Sequence. Read about it here.
Give Your Content Marketing Strategy a Boost
Here’s the bottom line: If your content is interesting, informative, and engaging, people will share it, link to it, and come back for more. But they’ll quickly move on if it’s not well-written or relevant. Spend the extra time adding these engaging elements.
If your content is not getting the attention you hoped for, contact us for help. As industry experts, we will help you develop a plan fit for all of your digital marketing needs.
