These 10 are the key to your sales and marketing success when using content for fuel.
- Thou shalt keep it short and sweet.
The more your copy is broken down into short, digestible chunks, the easier it is on the eye. Thou shalt use headers like this one, above a paragraph or at its opening, also help break up copy and make the information you’re providing in your copy a little more easily referenced and actionable. - Thou shalt incorporate bullet points & numbers. Whenever possible break down your information into bulleted or numbered lists.
- Thou shalt be direct. Don’t beat about the bush. Make your point and explain it to your audience in a straight forward manner.
- Thou shalt remember to speak the audience’s language. Consider the audience for whom you’re writing and tailor your approach accordingly.
- Thou shalt not use industry jargon. The rule we try to observe is, write for the professional, but write in a way that his or her spouse could actually understand it, too.
- Thou shalt define acronyms. There’s nothing worse than writing something that sends the reader scrambling to an online dictionary or Google search to make sense of all those industry-specific acronyms and abbreviations that are laced throughout the document.
- Thou shalt write in an Active Voice.
Lousy content was written by the marketer. (passive…and lousy) - Honor thy old, valuable resources by referencing & linking. Your content, theoretically, is providing valuable information to your readers and customers. Sweeten the value of your resources by sharing your sources of research with them as well.
- Thou shalt remember to proofread. The most brilliant writers, including the one who won the Maryland 5th Grade spelling championship in 1968 (thanks for sticking the trophy in the garage sale, Mom!), can make the occasional typo or mistake.
Read more: The 10 Commandments of Content for B2B Sales Success
