A 30-Second Lesson in Clear Content from The Oatmeal

 BFC Blog, Content Creation, Content Marketing, Persuasion Techniques, Web Writing, Website Content  No Responses »
May 192011
 

If you haven’t heard of The Oatmeal’s comics, you have not earned your Web merit badge. Report back to me when you know how many hungry weasels your body can feed.

Anyway. One of his hilarious works is a great example of what Clear Content means (without even trying!). It’s called “How to NOT Sell Something to My Generation.” Go check it out.

How to NOT Sell Something to My Generation – The Oatmeal.com

Now, I happen to be the same generation as The Oatmeal. But even if I weren’t, I couldn’t agree more with the comic. It may be an oversimplified point–but it’s a vital one. Everyone writing web content, every business trying to sell online needs to know it.

What’s the point I’m talking about here?

Be sincere in content. Not pushy or deceptive.

That’s it.
Read it. Understand it.

When’s the last time you read sincere web content? Can you remember where you saw it?

 Posted by at 2:23 pm  Tagged with: , , , ,

Does Your B2B Website Flub Its Messaging, or Contain Desert Pages?

 BFC Blog, Content Creation, Content Marketing, Web Writing, Website Content  No Responses »
May 162011
 

I received a newsletter this morning from Diana Huff.  In it was a great new article titled, “The Three Biggest Mistakes Companies Make with Regard to B2B Websites.”

If it was any closer of a fit with my new “Clear Content” theme, I’d have to argue with her about authorship!

Two mistakes she calls out are Poor Messaging and Lack of Content.  Both of which are superb overarching points about content clarity (especially in B2B).

Take it from one of our industry’s best – flubbed messaging doesn’t help you distinguish yourselves.  And a lack of what she calls “bread and butter content” (I often use “main pages” myself) strands your site visitors in a web-based desert.

(The third mistake?  Well, you’ll have to go read the article to find out!  Click the title above.)

 Posted by at 12:20 pm  Tagged with: , , , , ,

Confusing Content: The Opposite of Clear

 BFC Blog, Content Creation, Web Writing, Website Content  No Responses »
May 122011
 

If I’m going to blog about what I term, “Clear Content,” then I should define its opposite too. Telling the difference between two sides of a coin is much easier if you know what they look like.

Henceforth I will call the opposite – Confusing Content.

Under this label I include things like:

  • Long copy that you get lost (and a headache from) reading.
  • Webpages that don’t make sense.
  • Websites without any conversion process in place.
  • Buzzword-laden BS.
  • Content which talks about 3 different subjects at once. Or 4. Or 10.
  • Sales-heavy copy.
  • Content that wasn’t properly targeted (or targeted at all!).

If Content Isn’t Clear, It’s Confusing

You’ve seen Confusing Content on websites, in white papers, in email newsletters. And you thought something like:
“What’s this about?”
“This doesn’t tell me what I need to know.”
“Gah! Back button!”

Clear Content VS. Confusing Content: DING!

The battle begins next post. More coming soon.

(If a website popped into your head reading this, please leave the URL in the comments. I’m always gathering more examples.)

 Posted by at 2:38 pm  Tagged with: , , ,

I’m Turning My Blog Into a “Clear Content How-To”

 BFC Blog, Content Creation, Web Writing, Website Content  2 Responses »
May 052011
 

I’m planning a whole new path for this blog.

Some of you will know that a core tenet of content marketing is “Be a Resource.” Be the site people go to when they have questions.

So that’s what I’ll create. A content resource. A resource on how to write clear content. (Hey, I’m a content creator. It’s what I do.)

Best Practices, Paradigms, Transparency – Where’s My Hammer…

See, I’ve noticed something missing out there.

Lots of people saying we should get rid of the buzzwords.  Jargon.  Marketing-speak.  Whatever it’s called, you know what I’m talking about.
And chances are, you hate it too. (Duct Tape Marketing had a huge conversation about buzzword hatred last month.)

But information on HOW to get rid of it? That’s harder to find.

I looked at that gap, and thought…hey! Niche!

We Humans Want Content. Content That Makes Sense.

So that’s what this blog will become. I will post on ways to avoid loading your website with jargon.
How to weed it out if it’s there.
How to replace it with something people actually WANT to read.
Experiences creating clear content, as opposed to corporate-speak.
Ways to build actual human conversations with your audience (who believe it or not, are humans too).
And so on.

(Don’t worry, I’ll still work in ferret jokes.)

What would you like to see from this “Clear Content” resource? Suggestions (especially specific ones) always appreciated!

 Posted by at 12:38 pm  Tagged with: , , ,

How Social Is Your Content? Find Out With Hubspot Grader

 BFC Blog, Content Creation, Content Marketing, Social Media, Web Writing, Website Content  No Responses »
Jan 182011
 

So you’ve finished a piece of content. Now comes the testing, right? You need to know a few things.
Is it engaging?
Is the SEO taken care of?
Eye-catching headlines/subhead?
Is the darn thing even readable?

Copywriters like me go through this all the time. We use a bunch of tests and tools to polish up our content. To make it “social-ready” (if that’s even a word yet).

Recently I started using the HubSpot Grader. The site has apps for “grading” websites, blogs, press releases, Twitter and Facebook, FourSquare…even one for books!

These Graders examine live content for marketing effectiveness. That’s great for websites, blogs, etc. But what if you want to grade a piece of content that isn’t live yet?

Here’s where you thank me. I worked out a (sneaky) way to test content before it’s posted.

Test Content Before Posting with the Press Release Grader

The secret is Hubspot’s Press Release Grader. It works by direct input. So you can paste in any copy you want – a webpage, a case study, whatever.

Just copy and paste, enter your company name and URL (or those of your client) and hit Generate Report.

NOTE: Obviously it’s geared toward elements of a press release. It wants to see an “About” section, contact information, etc. Some of the results may not apply to your content. But the rest will give you an idea of how social-ready the content is now.

How to Measure Social Readiness with Grader Results

Pay attention to these sections on the results page:

  1. General Statistics. Word count, link count and a readability grade. (If higher than 9th grade, edit.)
  2. Content Suggestions. Pay attention the “company link” subhead. It might say, “This press release does not seem to contain a link to www.yourURL.com.” That means you haven’t linked to your/the client’s website yet.
  3. Link Analysis. How many links have you added? Do they have clear link text? Will the positioning help you or hurt you?
  4. Word Cloud. My favorite. A visual representation of the most frequent words. You should see your key terms loud and clear in this cloud. If not, edit and re-grade.

Pretty decent way of checking how social-ready your next webpage is, huh? And the best part is that all the graders are free. Another tool to add to the Web writer’s ensemble!

 Posted by at 10:05 am  Tagged with: , , , , , , ,
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