Content writing is one of the hottest career options. The reason is not hard to fathom. It has the ability to sway the fortunes of digital businesses.
And that is why millions of online businesses need high quality content writing – to gain a competitive edge with top rankings on Google SERPs.
High Quality Content Writing – A Product of Demand-Supply Dynamics
It is proven that content writing is one of the most searched jobs online. India is one of the leading countries that search for content writer jobs. Out of the monthly/daily search volume of 26309, roughly 74% of the searches originate in India.
Also, with 462 million users, India has emerged as the second-largest online market globally.
This shows that the demand-supply dynamics augur very well for high quality content writing.
How to Write High Quality Content Even When the Topic is Out of Your Comfort Zone?
When you begin a career as a content writer, you see one key challenge
– The ability to generate high quality content even if you are not a subject matter expert
See, when you start a career in content writing jobs, you are expected to write on various subjects. You never know which industry the next client will come from.
Hence there won’t be an option for the content writing company to reject a project just because it is outside your comfort zone.
So, what do you do in such a case?
Well, it’s not simple.
But it’s not impossible either.
This blog takes a look at you can write SEO content which is information-rich and is an asset for your client’s content marketing campaigns.
1 – Keep an ‘Open’ Mindset
Every individual has proficiency in something – which is also true for content writing efforts. Even in well-known content writing services, every writer has a specific area in which they excel.
If they are writing on that particular field, their writing is full of relevant information, and optimized for the search engine. This way well-articulated content effectively increases site traffic and revenues.
However, it is better not to be bound to a specific subject or topic field – whether tech, science, fashion, marketing, or any other vertical.
It is not a crime to have a comfort zone or, in writer parlance – a niche. But if you really want to shine in one of the many content writing companies, it is better to know about rowing in every kind of water.
The reason behind this rationale is clear.
If you limit your content projects to only those within your comfort zone, it might not translate to a good career move. You will be severely restricted in terms of the projects coming your way vs. the projects you actually end up executing.
Choosing to write only in subjects familiar to you will limit yourself from growth, experience, and an increase in earnings.
Keep an open mindset to ensure writing with unfamiliar topics. It increases your experience field and earning potential.
2 – Start Small and Then Scale Up
Writing content about an unfamiliar topic is like learning to swim. You start with a stationary paddle. Then, you gradually advance to the breaststroke.
Similarly, you should start with small pre-emptive steps when you start writing content on an unacquainted subject.
Here’s how you can do so.
– Choose projects with a manageable word count with available content
If you directly start with a long-form in-depth blog, you may get overwhelmed with the sheer depth of information. You shouldn’t risk drowning in such depth. You can start off with one or two sample blogs on the industry outside your comfort zone.
They can be short 500 to 800 word articles.
Once you feel more acclimatized with the industry, you can go for longer form content (2000+ words)
– Easy access to information online
Ensure that the information is easy to find during your online research for your blog. This will help you get more ‘meat’ on the blog.
In other words, you won’t have to beat around the bush or repeat sentences that don’t add any meaning or value to the narrative.
When you have sufficient matter available online, your content writing will be enhanced. You will provide more value to readers, and they will reward you with enquiries and sign-ups.
– It should target the general public than specialists in that field.
For example, if you are writing for the cybersecurity industry. Then a topic like “5 things to look for when choosing a cybersecurity company” would be better to start with.
Once you research and familiarize yourself with the industry, you can move to more niche/complex topics like “Beating the Bergdorfsky principle: Utilizing mutation strings to generate rotating cleartext.”
– Research smartly for maximum efficiency
Google presents a range of pages when you search for a keyword for your next blog. These include
– service page
– blog
– videos
– snippets
– images and maps
Out of these, you will get materials for a blog most likely from another blog (and not from a service page or images). So, you need to cut the noise on search results page.
Tell Google to show only blogs and not show other types of pages as listed above.
But how to do this?
You can use operators on search queries.
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- [inurl:blog] – this will show only those results that have the word ‘blog’ in the URL
For e.g., “Succeed in class 10 board exams [inurl:blog]”
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- [intitle:blog] – this will show only those results that have the word ‘blog’ in the meta title
For e.g., “Succeed in class 10 board exams [intitle:blog]”
Your search results page will now have only blog pages listed with this type of operator. And this step will make your research efficient. This is because you will spend less time sifting through the various URLs.
3 – Choose high-quality sources to ensure high-quality content writing
Your content is as good as the information resource you have chosen.
Unless you have an information repository in your brain, you will need to search for information to write and utilize the available resources.
Searching with only the keyword is not enough – if you type “digital security” in the search engine and press the button – you will get more than 20 million results.
Here are some ways you can refine your information query for high quality content writing:
– Refine the date and location context of the search
For example, if your blog takes reference sources prior to 2016 for a topic on taxation in India, you may see references to ‘Service Tax’.
On the ground level, this tax has been abolished and replaced with GST. So, your finance blog should mention ‘GST’ instead of ‘Service Tax’.
And this can happen when you refine your Google research to adhere to the latest published blogs rather than a 10-year old source.
You can use the term “after:YYYY-MM-DD” after your search query to get the latest results.
For example, if on 12th April 2022, you need a to see a blog published in the last one month for keyword “SEO content writing tips”, then you can type the search string followed by “SEO content writing tips after:2022-03-01”
– Find dependable and authoritative resources for high-quality content writing
These include respected publications, industry leaders, government agencies, and universities. Try this order for unbiased and trustworthy content sources –
1 – Newspapers and magazines
2 – Wikipedia pages
3 – Reliable industry authority pages
4 – Educational institution sites
– Verify your chosen source
Perform an in-depth check about the website or blog you are thinking about using as a resource. There are helpful ones but choose them carefully.
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- Check whether the business is still functioning?
- Does the industry have proper certifications?
- What about the customer testimonials?
Preparing your resource beforehand would be beneficial in the long run.
– Question everything you come across during the research stage
Your content writing services shouldn’t take anything at face value during the research phase.
For instance, if you find that only one resource supports a claim – it is probably the wrong one.
So, question everything.
Unless you are absolutely sure, do not put it in writing. Otherwise, you would spread misinformation. This negative trait makes you look bad and diminish your credibility.
Investigate thoroughly if you find something out of the ordinary when researching for high quality content writing.
4 – Make a Framework
You will find an immense load of information while searching for a topic. Once you have this, you need to decide what to use and how many words to dedicate to a particular section.
It would be better to outline to stay on a coherent path.
For example, an 800-word blog may have these parts.
1 – Intro – 80 words
2 – Body – 360 words
Point 1 – 90 words
Point 2 – 90 words
Point 3 – 90 words
Point 4 – 90 words
3 – Conclusion – 60 words
This way, you come to know what to cover to progress the discussion ahead. You will also know how many words to dedicate to any particular section.
Maintain the proper structure of your article and always compare multiple resources before adding a fact in your content. You should keep track of your resources also.
Read more – How to create an outline & make your blog effective
Now you have a solid research strategy even when the topic is not within your comfort zone. All that needs to be done is to roll up your sleeves and start drafting the content.
And yes! Don’t forget your QC on the blog draft. Proper QC will ensure high quality content writing.
Signing off
Making a mark as a reliable content writing agency isn’t a cakewalk. You have to step out of the comfort zone. Doing so in the research phase will help you explore various topics and niche that strengthen your mettle as a writer.
We hope these tips discussed here will surely guide you in the best way.
The post How to Research and Write Content Outside Your Comfort Zone? appeared first on Textuar.
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