Most content marketers use and rely on buyers’ personas to understand their customer’s needs and develop content that matches those needs. But while they may develop a template or note some characteristics of their target audience, often smaller businesses do not put forth the time and effort needed to fully develop accurate buyers’ personas for their businesses. This is unwise, so this article will explain how you can develop accurate buyer personas to inform your marketing efforts.

What Is A Buyer Persona?

A buyer persona is a semi-fictional representation of your ideal customer based on market research and real data about your existing customers. When creating a buyer persona, marketers typically include customer demographics, behavior patterns, motivations, and goals.

These buyer traits are critically important to identify who your customers are, and as Ardath Albee, B2B market strategist and author notes, companies go out of business if they ignore the questions:

Who the heck are we going to talk to?

Why will they care?

What are we going to say that is relevant to them?

So, Marketers, unless you know your customers intimately, meaning not only where they live but also where they shop, what they buy, what they eat and everything else of note, you will not know what to say to them to reach them. Consumers are only loyal to businesses that appear to understand them well.  Additionally, having buyers personas in place enables efficient communications between brand and marketing agency or staff.  Thus it is incumbent on any business owner to know their customers well, and the buyers persona accomplishes that.

Okay, I Need Buyers Personas. How Do I Make Them?

There are many tools available to  help you develop buyers’ personas, but the truth is you do not need a template, you only need to ask basic questions about your users’ habits and choose segments of your audience to direct and impact with your story.

Questions To Ask

In order to develop a comprehensive snapshot of your customer, for each, ask:

• Buyer’s age, gender, annual income
• Members of the household
• The area they live in (metropolitan, urban, suburbs, rural)
• Interests, hobbies, etc.
• Highest qualification
• Profession
• Job role or titles
• Career goals and aspirations
• Motivation and fear
• Tech-savviness and social media use

Personas Are Different Than Profiles

Many marketers mistake a persona for a buyer profile, but personas are much more than a title or demographics which are generally static, shallow representations of who a person actually is.  For example “Janet, a 45 year-old customer service associate for a swimsuit company in the Midwest,” is a profile. To find out who Mary really is and how your company can appeal to her, you must ask about her goals, needs, desires and concerns. You need to learn about Mary’s life and what matters most to her. This is much more than just her geographic location and job title. It is in the details that you will find the road map to creating content that appeals to Janet and your other customers.

Ok, I’ve Collected The Information, Now What?

Now is the tough part where you sit down with your data and put together a picture of your buyers.  Make several personas to represent the various buyers along a continuum.  For example, your target audience may be in the age range of 25-45, but you may want to break them down further by their traits and habits in the 25-35 range and 35-45 range.  Once you do this, name your Personas and then make slides for each and develop a slide show that you can then share with marketers and content creators.

Negative Personas:  Who Is Not Your Customer?

One thing you may not have considered is the importance of negative personas. A “Negative Buyers Persona” is the opposite of a regular buyer persona and it tells you who you do not want as a customer. For example, if you are targeting an SAT course to high school students, you do not want to include anyone in college or who already has a bachelor’s degree. If you wind up targeting negative personas because you did not take the time to identify who they are, you are not only losing money, but you are potentially alienating others and tarnishing your brand. Thus, it is just as important to know who you customers are not as is to know who they are.

2021 Is The Year To Create Effective Buyers Personas

As you can see, buyers’ personas should be an integral part of any marketing plan, whether you are a big brand or a small business.  Do not make the mistake of “phoning in” your buyers’ personas as doing so will result in not knowing your customer or worse, offending or alienating them with your content. Instead, take the time to ask your buyers questions and do not be afraid to dig deep with those questions.  Buyers require businesses to deliver personalized content that resonates with them, and part of the process of doing that involves creating accurate buyers’ personas.

Iris Writing International  is an all-service content agency presently working with over 40 writers, journalists, editors, and SEO professionals. We have seen trends come and go and weathered the storms of Internet content marketing. Our team has not only survived but grown and flourished. We take pride in being experts at identifying content problems our clients face and creating customized plans to resolve any issues. Our goal is to provide value with every piece of content we create and establish our clients as informative leaders in their industry.

The post 2021 Is The Year To Refine Your Buyer Personas appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.

Here is what you need to know when working with a freelance writer, all beautifully organized under six very handy questions you should know the answer to.

#1. Freelance Writing, What Is It?

Freelance content writers produce a great variety of content for numerous professional businesses. They are self-employed and typically work with several different clients. Great content writers can produce anything literally and can switch their writing style, method, and approach depending on what they are writing.

They can switch from weekly lively social media content to thorough industry reports, to specific SEO pieces, and so on. Your freelance writers may work with you for one short-term project, such as creating your Location Specific content or website core content. Alternatively, they may come on board for a longer on-going project, such as a weekly blog or social media update, or monthly newsletter. They may be technical writers who will create your white papers, or they may be copywriters or SEO writers.

The beauty in working with a freelance writer is that you can hire one who is the perfect match for one project and work with a new one for a completely different project. Costs are kept to a minimum, which means that even small businesses can enjoy the magic of a freelance writer and reap the benefits of their stunning content.

#2. Why Not Just Hire A Marketer Or An In-House Writer?

A marketer has the knowledge required to market your business, but it does not necessarily mean that he can write. A writer has the writing skills, but that does not mean she can promote your brand.

A content writer, however, is the best option of all possible worlds. He embodies the perfect blend of marketing knowledge AND writing skills all wrapped up into one. Your freelance content writer can intuitively grasp your brand’s vision and use blog posts, landing pages, web content, and social media to promote this vision to your targeted buyers. Above all, she can optimize any content to increase SEO rankings for your pages.

Sure, everyone can punch a couple of words on a keyword. But it takes the creative spark and ingenuity of a content writer to transform these words into a masterpiece. Presenting information in an engaging way to ensure that your reader stays on your page for more than the 8 seconds of your average share is a daunting task that few can pull through. And if there is one person that can do it, it is your content writer. Not your marketeer, not your ordinary writer. It is your freelance content writer. 

#3. What Type Of Content Writer Are You Looking For?

To successfully answer this question, you must know exactly what your specific needs are. Sure, you may love the nonchalant, humorous storytelling style of a blog writer, but if you are looking for someone to provide detailed information on the technical aspects and how-tos of your brand, then you are best to hire a technical writer. If, on the other hand, you are looking into connecting with your buyers and establishing trust through storytelling, then a writer with a creative writing background is your safest bet.

You may also need to hire someone who is a native English speaker. Granted, most writers are fluent in English and are well versed in grammar and spelling. But this does not equate to being a native speaker: only a native speaker can use phrases, jargon, and cultural jokes that will resonate with your audience.

Similarly, you may be looking into someone with a writing degree or someone with several years of experience. Beginning writers always pose a greater risk, and their ability to produce exactly what you are looking for is a bit touch and go. However, fledgling writers can save you some serious money since their lack of experience makes it necessary for them to work for less money in order to remain competitive. If they can’t compete in terms of experience with other writers, then they might as well compete in fiscal terms. 

Always request a portfolio when searching for writers. This allows you to understand if they are a perfect match for you and your brand and if they can deliver what you are looking for. You can also get a feel of where this writer’s expertise lies and whether he has written for big-name publishers or other competitors. If they are ghostwriters, this might be a bit trickier to assess but they can always provide you with their google documents link and the link to the site their work was posted on.

Be careful who you hire. A content writer can make or break your brand. There are a bunch of writers out there. Some of them are good, some of them are bad, and somewhere in the middle, you can find an exceptional writer who is a real gem.

#4. Where Do You Find This Gem Of A Writer?

There are several options out there if you are looking into hiring a freelance writer. Platforms like LinkedIn offer a world of opportunities for finding and hiring your writer. You can post an ad and have writers send you their bios, or you can contact writers yourself. Job Boards are easy to navigate and will definitely yield a greater pool of writers to choose from rather than google searching blindly on the web.

Alternatively, you could search around various freelance marketplaces and land on a writer that is a real gem. The beauty of freelance marketplaces is that you can browse through sites (Blogging Pro, Freelancer, Upwork, etc.) that work as a mini-portfolio and have a first look to see if you like the writer’s style.

 If you are looking for something more specifically tailored towards your needs, you can look for writing agencies and make the entire writing process flow seamlessly. Writing agencies have several in-house writers, and your chances of finding the perfect match increase exponentially. The agency owner knows his writers’ style and will assign your project to the one that will best capture your vision and promote your brand the way you want it done.

Between Job Board Platforms, Freelance Marketplaces, and Writing Agencies, you are certain to find what you are looking for. However, there is one underlying universal truth. Whatever you do, whichever way you choose to follow to find your ideal writer, you must absolutely ensure that you sign a contract before any work transactions can begin.

#5. How Should You Write Your Contract?

Always, always, always sign a contract. I can’t stress this enough. It will offer legal protection for you and your writer alike. Your contract should absolutely include these parameters:

1.   Terms of Service

You need to explicitly state the terms of service in your contract and outline exactly what it is that you want your writer to do. Whatever you expect of your writer should be included in the contract. SEO? Blog posts? Ghostwriting? White paper? Landing pages? Whatever it is, just state in the contract.

2.   Price And Payment Terms

Your contract should explicitly state how much your writer is expected to get paid and how often and in what way (refer to #6).

3.   Due Dates

Due dates must be clearly stated on the contract for each individual project. For instance, blogs must be delivered at the end of each week, newsletters at the end of each month, social updates every other day, and so on. As an added safety net, you may also include potential penalties for late delivery.

4.   Termination Clause

Even the most ideal, perfect, mellow relationships can fall out and turn sour over a dispute or disagreement. So your contract should include a termination clause. If it ever gets to that point, you are best to have it covered legally and in written format.

5.   Rights To Content

This is a bit tricky, but your contract should absolutely include this. You are paying for the content you receive, so your writer should not claim any rights to the content, nor should she resort to self-plagiarism when writing for other brands. Make sure you are explicit about rights to content before any content can be created and published online.

# 6. What About Payment?

Your contract should explicitly state payment terms. Will your freelancer be paid on a per-project basis? Will they be given a set fee for the entire month if they provide several content pieces? Will they be paid per word? Or will their payment depend on the type of work they provide? (SEO Vs. Landing pages Vs. Blog posts Vs. Social media updates). Some writers will have fixed pricing and will not be willing to negotiate. Beginning writers will be more inclined to lower their prices to get the experience needed and build their portfolio. It all depends on what exactly you are looking for and who your ideal writer is.

How should payment be made? Most freelance writers operate on a remote basis. This means that your business may be located in one part of the world and your writer in another. The good thing is that technology and the internet have no physical barriers. So payment should not be a problem, as it can be transacted online.

However, there are some fine lines and shady areas that need to be discussed ahead of time. For instance, most writers get paid via Paypal. While a very reliable and trustworthy method of wiring money, there are fees incurred. So, to avoid any misunderstandings, it is best to agree beforehand who will pay for the fees and how often payment should be made.

When it comes to business transactions, the topic of spending money or making money can turn your business liaison from fruitful to sour, real quick. You want to start with your writer on the right foot, so it is best to make sure that you and your writer see eye to eye from the get-go.

Content Writing and All that Jazz

When hiring a freelance writer, you need to understand that you are actually hiring the person that will take your brand and put it in front of your potential buyer. So, it is not enough to hire someone who writes well in flawless English. On the contrary. You need to hire someone who excels in the art of writing, engaging and riveting content that will excite your audience to turn them into buyers. You need to find and hire that gem writer who will catapult your brand and skyrocket your sales. Because, in today’s marketing and cut-throat competition, content writing really is all that Jazz.

The post Six Questions You Must Answer Before Hiring a Freelance Writer appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.

To create content that rises to the top, content marketers must differentiate in some way that is important to their consumers. In 2020, because people clung to the brands they loved and got very selective in what they consumed, in 2021 only the most attention-grabbing content will reach them.

HERE ARE 6 CONTENT MARKETING SCENARIOS THAT WILL NOT WORK IN 2021

1.Long Form Content

2020 may go down in history as the year consumers lost the last of their patience for long form content. As valuable as the content might have been for them, they did not spend time reading 10-page white papers, listening to 2-hour podcasts or even watching long movies on broadcast and cable tv.  Instead, we watched 30-minute reality shows, 1 minute TikTok videos and Instagram stories, and read short blog posts. So, in 2021 ditch the long form content and focus on digestible bites of content to reach your target users.

2.Content Without a Plan

With a captive audience quarantining at home, some brands went all in on creating content in 2020.  They put out blog post after blog post, created video after vides, social media campaign on top of social media campaign, all in throw the pasta against the wall to see if it sticks fashion. But in a market that is extremely segmented, selective, and niche-focused, this approach misses the mark. Instead, plan your content, and for every piece created, identify the purpose of it. Then every few months look back on which content achieved its purpose and which did not, and ditch what did not. Let user feedback inform your future content.  In other words, plan, evaluate and tweak as needed.    

3.Content all on one Channel

Putting all your content into one channel will typically not result in reaching your target audience. A wiser approach for 2021 is to use multiple channels to maximize customer acquisition.

consider speakers series etc. (sponsored content, partnerships) – builds integrity and reaches new customers and sense of credibility when you partner with thought leaders and experts

4.Not Having a Blog 

If you do not have a blog on your website, you are leaving money on the table.  According to the State of Content Marketing 2019 Report 86% of content marketing takes place in blogs and businesses that have blogs receive 97% more links to their websites and 434% more indexed pages for SERPs. Moreover, 77% of internet users read blogs.  This one is a no-brainer, yet many businesses still do not have blogs. Some believe they are too difficult to manage or too time consuming or they simply don’t like writing but with so many content agencies for every price point, this is no longer a smart decision this is not a smart decision.

5.Forgetting about Infographics and Checklists

Website viewers spend more time looking at visual content than reading text. If you are not using Infographics in content marketing, you are missing your market. An infographic can be a simple checklist or pictorial representation of a complicated process. This type of content is particularly well suited to businesses that are focused on financial, technical, legal, and medical. They usually combine text and graphic elements and are used to summarize, break down complicated information, and make boring data consumable.  Below is an example of an infographic related to blog engagement.

6. Not Hiring A Content Marketing Agency

Many businesses are overwhelmed by the prospect of the work and research that creating content and a multiple channel customer acquisition strategy. But many do not realize that a content marketing agency can take the reins, employing experts in paid search, social media advertising, website and landing page optimization, and email marketing campaigns, all at a price point they can afford.  Having a professional on board to develop and disseminate content as well as track campaign results will greatly increase your chances of reaching and engaging with your target audience. Most brands will agree that outsourcing marketing to an agency helps them stay abreast of the competition.  

Before you start calling or emailing random content marketing agencies, visit their websites and see what types of marketing campaigns they do. Experienced agencies have seen trends come and go and weathered the storms of internet content marketing. They leave no corner of content creation unexplored and dispose of vast data on producing content that stands out by sending a clear message.

The next year promises to be one in which only the best content is consumed and the rest sinks to the bottom. Notions of what worked in the past should be set aside and in 2021 it is more important than ever to build into your content marketing a solid planning component, a focus on short form content, a multi-channel strategy and the incorporation of blogging.  If you cannot focus on one or more of these strategies for 2021, then you should hire an agency to help.

Iris Writing International is an international agency currently working with over 40 writers, journalists, editors, and SEO professionals. We have seen trends come and go and weathered the storms of Internet content marketing. We have not only survived but grown and flourished. In our time on the market, we have left no corner of content creation unexplored, and we have learned a lot about producing content that stands out and sends a clear message.

The post Content Marketing Scenarios That Will Not Work In 2021 appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.

WHAT WAS DIFFERENT IN 2020

The pandemic changed us.  Most consumers were not necessarily drawn to the same content consumed before. With so many of us facing loss of jobs and income, adjusting to life working from home, facing illness and death in our families and communities, we sought content that provided value to us. That value could be in the form of laughter, education, inspiration, or consolation. What we were not interested in were blatant asks or in-your-face promotions, a fact even luxury brands had to accept with their consumers now working from home in sweatpants and a tee shirt. 

THE BEST 7 CONTENT MARKETING MOMENTS OF 2020

1. Content that Made Us Smile

Nabisco built an Oreo vault in Norway to protect the Oreo recipe in case an asteroid hit. What else do you need to know to understand how much this tickled our collective fancy? Adweek named it the best ad stunt of 2020 and we agree. In a year that was not 2020, news of an asteroid possibly hitting earth would have been frightening, but in 2020 we had more dire situations to worry about.

2. Content that Made Us Feel Like We Were All in This Together 

Life has been scary, and without our jobs and social engagements we cannot easily commiserate with our friends and family, an activity that would normally calm us down a bit. Brands stepped in to let us know we would be ok. And we appreciated it. One of the best examples came from Nike with the You Can’t Stop Us ad. With its soothing words and message of hope, this ad made us believe we will get through this, and we will do it together.

3. Content that Made us Laugh out Loud

In a year where there was very little to laugh about, content that did make us laugh was prized by consumers. Dating site Match.com was cracked us up with its ad Match Made in Hell featuring Satan desperately searching for his perfect match and finally finding her in a beautiful and compatible woman named…2020.  And Apple  caused us giggle fits when it created an ad poking fun at our at-home lives, complete with its zoom-filled craziness. With startling accuracy, we saw the humor of our lives and we laughed hard, then got back to work on our Macs. 

4.  Content that Helped Us in an Important Way

We needed direction and leadership in 2020. With frightening news coming out daily, supermarket shelves being emptied of essential items, and communities needing food and supplies, smart brands heard the call and responded with a calm voice of reason.  Two of the best came from Cottonelle, who created a simple 30 second piece telling us not to stockpile toilet paper and Facebook, who made its community help feature available for COVID-19 efforts.

5.  Content that Made Us Want to Change the World

2020 was a year filled with strife, political division, violence, death, and injustice. This was also the year brands took a central role in shaping consumers mindsets and creating social change. Content that was focused on truth and information, and not on products, stood out from the pack.  Procter and Gamble created a game-changing ad depicting mothers talking to their young children about the dangers of being black. The Lincoln Project launched a political ground zero approach in its Anti-Trump campaign and when the pandemic hit, incorporated this into their ads.  And women and girls, an often overlooked focus  were featured in compelling ads like this one  from Apple. Apple International Women’s Day.

6. Content that Told a Story and Made Us Cry

Stories became necessary in 2020 as people hungered to escape their daily stresses and immerse themselves in rich stories about someone else.  One of the very best examples came from Disneyland Paris which tugged at our heartstrings with “The Little Duck”. Nature, cute animals, and a touching story.  We needed that.

7.  Content We Read

As we noted, telling stories was more important than ever and often these stories came from blogs. Blogging was always a strong force in content marketing and 2020 was no exception. (and there is no sign of that slowing down in 2021)  Our favorite blogs contained beautiful photos to accompany the stories and were often immersive, multi part pieces.  Our favorites of 2020 were the Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s blog, and A Cup of Jo which regularly soothed us.

As 2020 comes to an end, it is important to take a minute to think about the best moments of 2020, and in Content Marketing, there were many.  The world changed, and content creators adapted by changing their message and tone. Astute marketers realized this was no time to think about pure profits, and instead they focused on providing value, comfort and information to consumers.  Consumers responded by devouring the content that made them laugh, cry, think, and feel empowered. And these were the best moments in Content Marketing in 2020.

Iris Writing International is passionate about helping brands find their creative voice.  As a full-service content agency, they work with brands to produce effective and persuasive copy.

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This is why you need to use multiple channels to acquire customers. We’ll discuss those with the biggest returns in this article.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Obviously, SEO is at the top of our list. It involves the rank of a website in search engine results pages (SERPs). You need to find out how people are learning about your business to improve your ranking if that’s what you want. To make sure potential customers who are looking for your product or service find you and not a competitor, you must include commonly searched terms (keywords) that are relevant to your sector or industry in the texts on your website.

The best strategy today is to use natural language keywords and key phrases. Most people search using long-tail keywords or natural language, such as “the plumber nearest me.” You’ll get a list of the three plumbing services closest to your location. You’ll always get a list of top 3 businesses regardless of your query. SEO experts call this the holy trinity. Every business vies for this coveted top 3 ranking.

2. Backlinks

Backlinks are when two websites link together, creating an incoming or inbound link. Not all backlinks are good. In fact, some can even hurt your ranking and get your site flagged by Google.

Use Google Alerts

To analyze your backlink strategy, use Google Alerts. This notification service will send you an email every time your brand is mentioned online. You might also find Check My Links helpful. This Chrome extension checks for broken links by crawling your webpage. Monitor Backlinks is a useful keyword and backlink monitoring tool.

Building good backlinks is a science in itself. Google cares most about trustworthiness. In other words, your site needs to be perceived as trustworthy and reliable. To build quality backlinks, start by listing your site in business directories. Make sure you’re in the best business directory sites and that your listing is current.

Conduct surveys – companies in your industry will link to them if they are legitimate and valuable. Build internal links to motivate people to stay on your site. Building links internally is also a good way to show Google people need to know about your content.

Finally, create data-driven reports. Consumers want to know the direction, in which their industry is headed.

3. Guest Posts

Quality guest posts are an excellent way to gain new customers. You can get a post to rank on the first page of Google by promoting it continuously and making sure its quality is higher than that of competing articles in the same niche. The higher its quality, the more visitors to your site and shares you can expect.

An Influential Platform

Look for an influential platform or site that accepts guest blogs and send them a polite email with an offer to contribute an article. Remember that the post shouldn’t be too promotional. Examples, stories, or occasional mentions are an acceptable way of drawing attention to your business, but the majority of the article should not focus on it or on your product or service.

As for popular types of posts, people share video lists most often. Smartphones are the main reason for this. More and more users are surfing the internet via a mobile device and such material is easiest to share and navigate.

Alternatively, you could write a testimonial or review. These are an important consideration in the search for a local business. Just over two-thirds of respondents in a recent survey stated they needed to read a minimum of four positive reviews to gain a sense of trust in a company or brand.

4. LinkedIn

We mentioned overreliance on popular social media like Instagram and Facebook. LinkedIn is a vastly underused, yet potential-rich social medium. It’s a great way for businesses to connect with customers. Create a profile with a nice professional photo of your company and yourself. Include as many details about your education, location, and background as you can. Those who include their location appear in up to 23 times more searches. Those who add their education appear 17 times more often.  

Sending an Invite

Your message has a better chance of being opened and read if it’s personalized. Your subject line has to be clear and specific. Identify yourself and address the person by their first name. State what you have in common with them: industry, interest, group, acquaintance, etc. Offer your service or product and don’t forget to include a clear call to action.

Benefits of Hiring a Content Marketing Agency 

Do you feel overwhelmed by the mere prospect of all the work and research multiple channel customer acquisition involves? You’re not alone. And even if you aren’t overwhelmed, you probably have a lot on your hands as a business owner already and couldn’t deal with marketing on top of that.

A content marketing agency can take the reins for you. They employ experts in paid search, social media advertising, website and landing page optimization, and email marketing campaigns. Having a professional on board to track your campaign results will guarantee you’re not wasting money because advertising is anything but cheap. Most brands will agree that outsourcing marketing to an agency helps them stay abreast of the competition.  

Before you start calling or emailing random content marketing agencies, visit their websites and see what types of marketing campaigns they do. Experienced agencies have seen trends come and go and weathered the storms of internet content marketing. They leave no corner of content creation unexplored and dispose of vast data on producing content that stands out by sending a clear message.

The post How to Use Multiple Channels to Maximize Your Customer Acquisition in 2021 appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms like TikTok have evolved, changing the way we interact and consume content online. These platforms have been playing a major role in marketing campaigns to engage potential consumers. With emerging trends, tools, and features, social media platforms have also become saturated with rising competition among businesses. Therefore, it’s important for social media marketers to plan their campaigns using the right strategies and trends.

Here are some insights into how social media content will be done in 2021:

1.     Conversational Marketing:

The challenges that 2020 brought into our lives including the pandemic, taught us the importance of connecting with each other through social media. Brands all over the world, have found this opportunity to connect with their existing and potential consumers through emotional values attached to certain social issues. Though sales are also a major priority for businesses but engaging customers through conversational marketing on social media will be one of the biggest trends in 2021. Conversational marketing involves social messaging, polls, and other interactive one-to-one content. It allows you to build a relationship with your consumers through personalized content.

2.     Short Videos:

Without any doubt, videos are the most engaging and entertaining content that you can find on social media. Whether it’s Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok, or Twitter, short-form videos have become popular especially during the pandemic as there has been an increase in the number of social media users. Short videos are easy to create and watch. To engage more people in social media campaigns for your brand, it’s crucial to level up your game by creating short videos regularly using the latest features and trends. Long videos gained popularity after the launch of IGTV. However, TikTok and Instagram reels have turned short videos into a new trend that will be dominant in the year 2021. Big brands such as MAC cosmetics, Guess, and the NBA have been frequently using TikTok, targeting vast audiences and making their products/services more accessible.

3.     Augmented Reality:

If you are new to this concept, augmented reality is a technology used to enhance user experience by creating virtual augmentations. Over the past year, AR has become prevalent and extensively used by social media platforms such as Snapchat and Instagram. Many businesses and brands have been incorporating AR filters in their social media stories. Especially during the pandemic when retail stores were shut down, marketers started to invest in AR to create interest among their users and engage them online through this emerging technology. One of the most popular examples is the diamond Instagram filter created by Vogue Australia on their 60^th birthday. AR technology is predicted by many experts to be one of the top social media content in 2021.

4.     Personalized Social Media Marketing:

With the increase in new brands on social media, people have become very selective about what content they want to consume. However, to target the right audience, many businesses have started personalizing their social media campaigns. You might be thinking about what a personalized marketing technique is. It’s simply personalizing the content according to the targeted demographics and consumers’ data. The biggest example is the ads that you see on your feed in your daily lives. The ads that show up on your social media feed is content, tailored according to your search and purchase record. According to many experts, brands will take personalization in their social media marketing campaigns to the next level in 2021.  This will make it easy for them to target the right audience and stand up against saturated businesses.

5.     Going Live:

The trend of going live became even more popular when the pandemic hit the world. Not only brands but many celebrities and influencers started using the “Live” feature to interact with their followers. The live streams by the brands and individuals is a great way of engaging followers and bringing new organic consumers to their social media accounts. No doubt, the live video stream has become one of the most popular social media content types with the highest engagement rate. If you want to level up your social media content game, live videos are going to be one of the big wins in 2021.

Summing up, social media content for your brand must be planned strategically in order to survive in the saturated market. As 2021 is going to bring even more opportunities, you can only dominate if you are planning the content using the latest trends with highly-used social media features.

The post Our Expert Predictions: How Social Media Content will be Done in 2021 appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.

How you rank for specific keywords can change quite quickly, especially if you didn’t follow the best trends for long-term SEO rankings, and you only focused on getting short-term results. However, this is your chance to get ahead of the curve and learn how you will rank in 2021, so you can prepare for the upcoming changes and improve your overall rankings.

That is why we did some research and wrote this article with the most important factors that will determine your ranking in 2021. About 200 different factors were released by Google with all the changes that are going to become relevant in the following year, and we took out the ones that were most important and can really make a difference in your rank.

The Factors That Will Determine Your Ranking

There are a few factors that will determine how you will rank in 2021, and knowing them beforehand will give you a chance to improve your ranking for the upcoming year.

HTTPS Certification and Proper Security

One of the most important factors that will determine your rank in 2021 is how secure your page is and if you have the proper certifications. It will not just improve your ranking but also make your customers feel much safer when they are on your site. Having a secure connection plays a huge role in your ranking, no matter how credible your website is. There are a few credible sites that don’t have the proper certifications and security measures, and they rank lower than they originally would because of this.

The best way to make sure this doesn’t happen to you is to acquire an SSL Certificate. It’s a certificate that is held in high regard by many search engines. It provides safe encryption for any information you share. If your website doesn’t have this certificate, Google might flag it as unsafe, which will result in lowering your rank.

Mobile-Friendly Design

Since smartphones are still taking the world in a storm and their usage continues to rise on a daily basis, having a mobile-friendly design is paramount to rank well in 2021. If your website isn’t optimized for mobile use, you will not just lose visitors who are potential customers, but you will also get ranked lower on various search engines. Building a site without a mobile-friendly design is a major mistake in the current marketing climate because there’s a huge percentage of people that are using Google search on their smartphones. It’s the equivalent of committing “career suicide,” so make sure your website is properly optimized for mobile use.

Loading Speed of Your Page

Another essential factor that Google’s algorithm considers is the loading speed of the page and the bounce rate of your page. If your page is loading slower, you’ll experience a higher bounce rate because many people won’t have the nerves to wait for your page to load, so they’ll leave in the first few seconds. Google will take this into consideration and lower your page ranking, but if you have an excellent loading speed, the bounce rate will be much lower, and your rank will not be affected at all. If anything, it will increase as your bounce rate decreases.

Social Media Visibility

Your social media visibility will also play a huge role in your ranking in 2021. It’s a factor that has constantly been rising through the years, and it’s expected to be even more relevant next year. So the more shares, likes, and comments you get of your website on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites, the better you will rank in 2021. Getting your website shared by users on social media will not just improve your rankings but also increase your credibility and help you grow your brand awareness, which also contributes to improving your SEO ranking. The algorithm of search engines, especially Google, takes this into consideration when ranking your website for specific keywords, so putting some energy and effort into getting more social media presence will help you go a long way.

Google’s Page Experience Signal

One of the newest features that Google announced for 2021 is the page experience signal. It’s scheduled to launch in a few months, and it’s going to play a key role in your rankings. The system they introduce for ranking websites will have several parameters such as speed, visual stability, and responsiveness, and topping the charts in all three of these will result in much better placements. They are calling this system the “Core Web Vitals,” and it will be centered around the user experience.

How you rank on search engines is very important for your brand and business because that way, you are attracting visitors to your site. The visitors are potential customers, and the more visitors you have, the more chances you have to get a sale. This is the main reason people are preoccupied with how they rank, and if you know what to improve for 2021 to get ahead of your competition, you’ll find yourself at the top of the ranks, which is where everyone wants to be. Improving your content to meet all the points above will certainly help you in your mission to rank better in 2021, and you shouldn’t wait for the New Year to start.

The post Iris Predictions: How Will You Rank in 2021? appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.

So, how is 2021 going to change the blogging world?

Let’s take a look.

The short answer to get blogging right in 2021 is to continue using catchy titles, engage your audience with content that offers value, adding estimated reading time to the posts, create strong CTAs, and continue to push out more content.

Immediate Changes in 2021

Blogging has always been one of the strongest pillars of marketing. It provides an opportunity to engage with your audience and provide content that supports your products and services. Blogging can also utilize SEO strategies to grow organic traffic and push your ranking higher on search engines.

Visiting a page without a current blog might give the impression that the company is inactive and disengaged from their customer base.

Companies are hassling to adapt to the new ‘pandemic normal’ and continue generating revenues and growth. Blogging is becoming even more prominent. More people spend time online and shop online than ever before.

According to the United Nations UNCTAD report titled Covid19 and E-Commerce, we see that consumers in emerging economies are shifting to online shopping. The report shows how online shopping has increased up to 10% points across most product categories. Therefore, companies need to upgrade their content marketing strategy and emphasize content marketing to compete for customers online.

Having a clear understanding of how blogging works and blogging best practices is becoming more critical every day. Companies generally rely on content agencies with dedicated years researching, learning, and adopting online trends for their content needs.

Regardless of whether you will be choosing an agency or tackling the ‘blogging adventures of 2021’ alone, it is always in your best interest to know the basics.

The good news for those who have already invested big in their blogging strategies, the results were instant in 2020, with more views, impressions, and ultimately more leads being generated.

Essential Blogging Guidelines and Tips for 2021

For those entering the blogging market now, we will cover the essentials briefly below.

What is Blogging?

For companies, a blog is a section on the website populated with articles relevant to the company’s products or services. For example, suppose the company is selling educational material. In that case, the blog is populated with articles supporting the product, the industry, and all surrounding relevant data that helps the reader trust the company and become a client.

What Can a Blog Include?

Many companies utilize their blogs to publish stories relevant to their products or services, insights, tips, opinion pieces, and general content to help with their SEO strategy. The ultimate goal is to bring traffic to the blog, build trust between the reader and the company, and eventually convert readers to clients.

Top examples of popular blog posts include:

• General information posts
• Listicles
• Infographics
• News
• Testimonials/client stories

How to Create a High-Performing Blog

There is a lot of content out there! So how can you stand out?

What is the key to writing engaging blog posts so that your clients return for more?

What would make someone want to read your posts and share them?

Although blogging is an ‘art’ and ‘science,’ there are simple, timeless, and proven steps that have worked for the most successful blogs out there.

1. Provide value to your reader. It is not about the post’s length; it is about the quality of the information you share. This is going to become ever so critical in 2021. As more blogs are being launched daily, your company will need fresh, new, and engaging content more frequently.
2. Provide actionable steps’ to help your audience move through your sales funnel. Again, 2021 will bring to the surface a challenge for many companies. As more blogs appear, your clients’ option pool on what to buy will only become bigger. As a result, you will have to compete with more companies to sell your product or service. The cleaner your CTA, the better the results.

Any reader, when they initiate a search, they are aware they are going to click through to multiple sites and links to end up where they need to go. You, as a company, need to give that ‘clickable’ option to your reader. In a sense, you need to take every reader on a walk through your online store, ending up in the digital aisle of the product they are looking to buy.

You can not set the loss in your store and hope they find their way. Guide them.

Best Practices

Blogging has been around for a while, and although we see it evolving and changing, certain aspects remain the same because they work!

Therefore there is no need to reinvent the wheel on some well know best practices:

• Continue to use ‘click-worthy’ titles.
• Always have an audience in mind (otherwise, your content is like a dart in the dark)
• Provide valuable information. Always share something new, educational, inspirational, and anything that can create an emotional reaction to the reader.
• Use SEO; without it, your efforts might go to waste.
• Use clear CTAs to help your clients move through your digital space.
• Invite people to subscribe to your blog for more news and collect leads.
• Use images to break big chunks of content and create a more pleasant reading experience.

These are the basic best practices that you need to use regardless of what year we are in!

Let’s take a peek into the 2021 trends!

2021 Trends for Blogging

1. Indicate Estimated Time

One of the primary changes, whether it is because of the pandemic or simply because people now have more content options to consume, is the time it takes to go through your post. Always indicate estimated time to read on the top.

1. Do not Forget your CTAs.

You can use CTAs during the post, but you must include the primary CTA at the end of the article to help your reader take the next action.

Best examples of CTAs to use include:

• Inviting the reader to check out your product or service
• Asking the reader to subscribe so they can receive exclusive content and discount
• Invite them to like your social media pages
• Ask them to comment and make a suggestion
• Link to a relevant post, so they continue to read

A CTA’s goal is to either convert, collect information, keep the reader longer on your page, or engage them further with your social media action!

Conclusion

The primary change we will observe in 2021 is the need for more content. Things to look out for are to add estimated read time, read more buttons, and never forget CTAs to prompt the reader to take the next step.

What do you think?

Will there be any other fundamental changes for bloggers in 2021?

Comment below and let us know! (see what we did there?)

The post How Blogging Will Change in 2021 appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.

That’s what most people say while shopping for new clothes. And it’s a different thing that they have a closet packed with many barely used outfits. But they don’t have the patience to search and reorganize their cupboards and find clothes that would still look good on them.

Often, the state of a website is no different than that of a wardrobe. Most of us treat content the way we treat clothes- we keep buying new ones and stack them above the old ones. Likewise, your website might be replete with old content that is still informative and relevant, yet you keep on hunting for brand new content ideas.

If you spare some time and go through your existing content, you will realize that a lot of it can be repurposed. But how would you know what changes you should make to the content?

This is where the role of a content audit comes into play!

Content Audit- Why it Matters?

Creating meaningful content involves a great deal of creativity and research, and that is why it comes with a hefty price tag. You should consider the possibility of using the content for a longer period to justify the amount spent.

A content audit is similar to reorganizing your closet. You go through all your garments and find many of them to be in good shape. Some of them need a few tweaks; you might have to fix a button or mend a loose seam. Or you make new outfit combinations from old pieces. The activity demands your time, but shopping for new clothes take more time, in addition to money. If you rearrange your closet frequently rather than waiting for it to be in a complete mess, the time and effort involved drastically reduces.

Similarly, if you sift through your old content at regular intervals, you will find that a lot of it is still useful. A content audit will pinpoint the changes you need. Accordingly, you can rewrite your old content to vibe with your audience or make minor updates to make it relevant in the present context.

 If the idea of auditing and recrafting content sounds too superficial to you, allow us to explain some of the costs incurred when you skip this critical process.

1.     Dip in Revenue

The number of visitors to a blog post goes down with time. And if we consider a high-performing blog post, the traffic decline would translate into a substantial loss of revenue.

Let us understand this better. The average conversion rate for landing pages across different industries is 2.35 percent.  If we talk about top-ranking posts, the conversion rate stands above 5 percent.

We assume that your blog has 200 posts, and each post gets around 400 views per month. If the average order price is $40, your blog posts are fetching you $75,200 per month.

What if the average views drop to 200 per month? You would incur a fifty percent loss in revenue. You can avoid the monetary decline by making small but frequent updates to your old posts to ensure optimum traffic.

2.     Loss of Credibility

Your audience might doubt your competence if your content is several years old, especially if they are searching for the latest information that helps them make crucial decisions. For instance, if you run a blog that gives financial or legal advice, the audience will frown at outdated content. At the same time, making a few updates to reflect changes to policies or laws will keep the content functional and cement your image as a trusted source of information.

In some industries, spreading misinformation attracts heavy penalties. Your outdated content could become a source of false information, so it’s wiser to keep your content updated and be on the right side of the law.

3.     Drop in Search Engine Rankings

Fresh content is a necessity for a high search engine ranking, and regular content audits help you maintain that. First of all, updating your existing content is an easy way to fulfill the search’s engine demand for new content.

Second, you need search engine optimization to attract the target audience. However, placing keywords at the time of content creation is not enough. Over a time period, market trends change, and so do the most searched keyphrases. You must identify and incorporate new keywords in order to draw more traffic.

Third, the rules of the SEO game change with time. Once or twice a year, Google introduces major changes to its search engine algorithm. For instance, the BERT update in 2019 had a major impact on how the search engine interprets longer search phrases. A content audit will help you modify your content to keep pace with these changes.

There are some additional and not-so-obvious benefits of digging into the content goldmine that’s already present on your website. Let’s talk about them.

Updating Your Content- How it Helps?

• Deciding new topics to write about is quite time-consuming. If you are tired of constantly wearing the thinking cap, make things easier by repurposing the old content. Even when you have to add new content, you will be aware of the ground you have already covered, and you can avoid spending on repetitive content.

• Creating brand new content requires good research and writing skills; it’s an expertise that costs you money. Many businesses want to reduce spending due to the impact of the pandemic.  If you have already paid a hefty amount to content creators for their services, why not get more value from that money by using the content for a longer time?

• Your old blogs might link to other webpages that no longer exist. It’s a bit annoying for a reader to click on a broken link and reach nowhere, but you can prevent this by keeping your content updated.

• You were a novice when you first launched your blog, and you had a limited budget. Now when you go back to your old posts and read them, you squirm at the evident grammatical errors. You can improve the quality of your old posts by updating them and removing errors- grammatical or otherwise.

Before you make changes to the existing content, it’s important to go for audit check-ups to assess the health of your website. There are three types of audits which are useful for websites.

Types of Audits

1. SEO audit– It focuses on the search performance of the content. It evaluates factors that affect the search engine ranking of the website.

2. Content audit– It aims to improve overall content quality and focuses on parameters like the accuracy of the information, formatting, CTA usage, etc. in addition to SEO factors.

3. Performance audit– It looks into the performance data of the content and facilitates strategic decision-making for content creation process.

It’s important to rope in an expert to do a content audit to identify the effective changes that you could make to your content. Even slight modifications like updating the keywords boosts your search engine ranking significantly, when done correctly.

So consider adding a content audit to the to-do list of your content plan, and reap more benefits by overhauling your existing content.

The post You Already Have a Content Goldmine- Are You Using It? appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.

She had already tried working with a couple of content writers and was not happy with how things were turning out. She felt that with so many freelance writers out there, copywriting was a thing that everyone adds to their CV, whether they have any real credentials to do so or not. After hiring and firing a few freelance writers who were not what they professed to be, she had learned this the hard way. 

My friend was right. I realized that with so many freelance content writers out there, content writing really does seem to be something everyone can do. Are content writers nothing more than a bunch of liars pretending to be all that jazz and something that they are not?

And there! Amidst coffee and nonchalant chit chat, I had an epiphany.

There are certain types of content writers that you should avoid. As a business owner trying to promote your brand, you should be extra careful of who you trust your marketing to. Because, truthfully, there are individual freelance content writers who ruin the good name of all others.

There, I’ve said it out loud. It is accurate, and it hurts, but it is time to set the record straight.

Why So Much Fuss Over Content Writing

Content Writing seems to be the new buzzword nowadays. With sales going crazy online, digital marketing is the go-to option to attract customers and increase sales. From webpage, landing page, FAQ page, About US page, Google My Business, SEO, and social media, businesses are always looking for some high-quality content. 

And voila! The rise in interest in content marketing leads to an increased demand for freelance content writers. And low and behold, content writing becomes the new hip thing.

Want extra cash? Content writing. Want a part-time job? Content writing. Studied psychology, astrology, linguistics, aerial dancing, and unemployed? Content writing. Can you write? Well, then content writing it is! Can you speak English? Look no further!  Content writing is your answer. Blahhh!

The truth is, there are so many types of incompetent and unqualified freelance content writers out there. It is so hard to distinguish the good from the bad, which is why my friend had so many unpleasant experiences with a few content writers and why she was wary of trusting another to do her copywriting.

I trust that as a business owner, you may have found yourself in my friends’ place a bunch of times. Assigning important content writing jobs to freelance writers who consistently fail to rise to your expectations can be frustrating and disheartening.

So for her sake and your sake, I have compiled a nifty list of the types of content writers you should avoid if you are looking to promote your brand via online marketing. (Types conveniently packed under the big umbrellas they fall for easy reference. You are welcome).

A.  The Overqualified Lie

#1. The “Trust Me, I Am A Native English Speaker” type

This is one of the first white lies that content writers frequently use. “Trust me! I am a native English speaker!” when they are clearly not. The reason you should avoid these types of writers only has to do with what you are looking for as a brand. Being fluent in English is not the same as being a native English speaker.

If you are looking for a writer that will understand your markets’ linguistics, your perspective brands’ clientele, and the jargon and inside jokes that only native English speakers understand and use, you should be adamant about that.

You should make it clear from the beginning that you are not looking for writers fluent in English. You are looking for native English speakers instead. Truth be told, there are some fantastic writers who can write in English perfectly, but unfortunately, most ESL writers cannot.

#2. The “I Have Worked For So Many Businesses” type

This type of freelance content writer is pretty obvious to pick out. They will proclaim to have worked for numerous businesses and credit themselves for multiple brands’ success. However, if this is true, all they have to do is show you their portfolio, and you can decide for yourself just how many businesses they have worked for so far.

If they keep insisting on their awesome experience but have no portfolio to back it up, then you have a type of freelance writer in front of you that you need to avoid at all costs.

#3. The “I have a Degree in Journalism” type

This is perhaps one of the biggest misconceptions in content writing. Having a degree in journalism does not make you a talented content writer, much like writing excellent web page content does not make you capable of covering the news in recent elections.

So, if you own a business, do not fall into the degree trap. A degree does not make you a gifted writer, nor should it be considered as a prerequisite when hiring a freelance content writer. If you keep dismissing writers looking for the one that has a journalism degree, you might actually be dismissing the one that will think of your brand’s catchphrase. I am pretty sure it was not a journalist who came up with the “I’m Lovin It” Mc Donald’s phrase.

So keep an open mind and search for talent, not a degree.

#4.  The “I Will Just Steal Someone else’s portfolio and push it as mine “ type

This type of freelancer is the absolute worst. She will steal someone else’s portfolio or edit a few pieces here and there and make it look as if it is her own work. These types of “writers” are so mischievous that they often steal from a book or a print magazine so that prospective clients will not be able to find plagiarism via Copyscape. This makes their hijacked content appear to be unique and lands them straight to a job.

Fast forward a couple of days later, and duped clients discover that this is not what they signed up for. Business owners are tragically left with a bunch of garbage content that will not help their brand the way they were promised it would.

#5.  The “ I know what I am doing, so there is no need to worry” type

I don’t know about you, but the minute someone tells me not to worry, I do the exact opposite and start panicking. Because, if there is no need to worry, why even tell me that I don’t need to worry? Add to that the arrogance of “I know what I am doing” and I am in a full panicky mode.

If you are a business owner, avoid these types of content writers. First of all, they appear to be arrogant and superficial from the get-go. If they really know what they are doing, there is no need to declare it adamantly. Instead, they will make you feel at ease, and show that you don’t need to worry, by giving you high-quality content. Show and not tell should be their method.

And if they keep insisting that you don’t need to worry, chances are they will not take well to criticism and will possibly refuse to make any changes to their content. Because after all, they know what they are doing and you don’t. 

#6. The “I have tons of offers from other Businesses, so you better hurry and hire me” type

Ermmm. NO. If they have so many tons of offers why are they pushing you to hire them? With so many brands lined up at their feet, they can wait for the offer to come and then choose accordingly. Right?

This kind of pushy attitude, should put any business owner off. You do not want this type of content writers who manipulate their way into your payroll. This borders on emotional blackmailing (sort of) and will make you rush into a decision that you may later on regret.

So, no. If a content writer is pushing you to hire them, just show them the way out.

B. The Always Something Happens Lie

#7. The “Oh, I did not get the memo” type

I always laugh when I get this type of excuse in my inbox. Then I get royally pissed off, because I am working on a calendar here and want certain types of content ready for my brand on certain dates. The “Oh, I did not get the memo” type of freelance content writer throws the entire monthly planning off course and you should definitely avoid working with one.

#8. The “I am sorry, I thought you meant next Thursday” type

This is downright silly. If you are not sure which Thursday I mean, then you could obviously ask to clarify and not simply assume that the deadline is on whichever Thursday suits you best. Also, most projects have a dated deadline, not just a day, so if this is the best excuse this content writer can come up with, you are best to cut all ties with her and hire another.

#9. The “My Computer crashed” type

This is almost as funny as the “my dog ate my homework” excuse. I swear, whenever one of my content writers gives me that excuse, I have the urge to send them straight to the principal’s office. I might even glare at them a bit, the way an exacerbated high school teacher – who is fed up with excuses – would.

I am not saying you should immediately fire this type of freelance content writers. Or that you should avoid them altogether. Because truth be told, technology may sometimes leave us hanging.

But you should definitely consider it, if such technical problems, keep getting in the way of timely delivered content.

#10. The “My Cat/Dog/ Grandma died” type

We are all humans. We have personal lives that rise above and beyond our jobs. Our daily lives and normalcy are sometimes interrupted by tragedies. We have all been there, we know, and we understand.

As a fellow human and a  business owner, you should also show understanding and empathize with your freelance writers. Nevertheless, if you happen to have a writer that is having a disproportionate share of tragedies at a high frequency, then maybe, you should consider ending your business with him.

If you have a writer that is willing to bury half of his acquaintances to ease his way out of deadlines, who knows what else he might be willing to lie about? Stay away; keep clear.

C.   The Price Charge Lie

#11. The “Oh I will Charge you Per Word” type

This is a bit iffy here. You certainly want to know how much your freelance content writer will charge you, but let’s face it. Not everything can be priced according to its length! Some of the catchiest phrases are only three words. Did McDonald’s pay 10 cents for the “I Am Loving It”?

Even though you might find such an offer tempting, it is a red flag that your freelance content writer is probably not very experienced.

Avoid the “oh I will charge you per word” types and instead opt for a writer who has clear set prices for each different service he or she offers. This makes it easier for you to budget your marketing accordingly. Moreover, if you have clear pricing from the beginning, you will avoid unpleasant surprises with unexpected costs along the way.

Professional content writers know how much time they will spend on each project. They have the experience and knowledge and can price accordingly. On the other hand, inexperienced freelance writers who are just trying to grab a piece of the copywriting market pie, will simply offer to charge per word.

#12. The “I really have no time, so you have to pay the extra fast service charge” type

This is definitely another type of freelance writer to avoid. Whenever a writer gives me that line, I simply kindly refuse to play the game and re-assign the job to someone else. Three times out of five, their schedule magically clears, or a sudden cancellation gives them the time to work on my project. Truth be told, I rarely go back to these writers. I honestly believe that if they have no time, they should not take on more projects. And if they are willing to forego other projects from other brands in lieu of extra charges to work on my brand, there is no guarantee that they won’t do the same to me along the way.

#13. The “I will make you an offer you can’t resist” type

 Ok, there, Don Corleone. Hit me with your best offer. Or not. Because truthfully, I am not really interested in offers. And neither should any self-respected business owner, like my friend or you.

Your brand should not fall into the trap of 1+1. You are not buying cookies. You are buying the content that will either make or break your brand and your success. No discounts here.

If you find a content writer whose style and passion perfectly align with your own, go for it. If that said writer is willing to give you a better price and an offer for your projects, then you are fortunate. But do not sacrifice quality to save a few bucks.

Remember, you can cut your expenses in a number of ways if your budget is limiting. But taking up offers you can’t resist, rarely is the best available option. 

So, is there no hope?

There are so many types of freelance content writers out there that you will be best to avoid. Does this mean that there is no hope? Well, not really. There is always hope, and nothing is completely black or white. There are tons of shades of grey in between.

The truth is, there are a plethora of freelance copywriters out there. Some of them are awesome and will send your marketing off the roofs, but some of them are, well, not so awesome. And that is ok. This is a free market, and as a business owner, you can hire or not hire whomever you want.

 A content writer can pretend to be anything he wants to be, and though this is immoral at best and slightly illegal at worst, nothing can prevent him from doing so. As a business owner, you have the responsibility to check out the validity and credibility of your potential content writers. It is a pain, I know, but c’est la vie. At least, you have this pretty amazing nifty, useful list to help you watch out for certain types.

But not all hope is lost. There are some fantastic writers out there who will be the perfect fit for you and your brand. It takes some searching, but trust me; they are out there. Take your list, write down your notes, and go out there and find your perfect match.

The post Types Of Freelance Content Writers You Should Avoid appeared first on Everything Content in One Place - Iris Writing International.