Content Marketing’s Bane: Ambiguity & Incapable Writers

by Mehul W. A digital Marketer

It has been said enough that content marketing is in a nascent stage, where not enough is known about its potential. This is the root of all troubles surrounding the field.

Every piece of content out there starts with a few words written down somewhere in a word document, a piece of paper or a notebook. The quality of the final content is highly reliant on that first piece. Therefore this conceptualisation must be done by someone who is not only capable but is also highly motivated.

The one common complaint among writers in the marketing industry is that they are underpaid. This results in them being forced to produce content in bulk. It is needless to say that this reduces the quality of their work. Thus reducing industry standards.

It is brands that realise the significance of producing engaging, soulful, meaningful, empathetic and impactful content that have created history in the field of advertising & marketing. The first step towards is hiring a capable writer or content creator. They may come at a financial cost higher than the others, but it is worth the money.

It is the love for writing that drives most content writers (or any other type of writer) to pursue the field. The lack of appropriate estimation of the potential of content marketing allows marketers to ignore or downplay the value of a good writer.

The other aspect of this choice, one that makes it much more difficult for employers to pay their writers well is that the industry is overflowing with writers. Everyone claims to be the best. While it is important to pay your writers well, it is also important to have the right man for the job.

Therefore a meticulous & rigorous applicant filtering process is necessary in order to weed out the less deserving candidates.

Here are few identifying markers of a good writer:

Grammatically sound – Grammar is the base of all solutions in the world of writing. Any form of communication is imperfect without grammar. Now, certain forms of communication may not require a perfect usage of grammar, but it certainly helps to have a writer in the team who makes the editor’s job a whole lot easier.
Creative – There is no measure of creativity. Over time I have learned that the key to finding out how creative a person is, is by seeing how they utilise their free time. The moment a person takes his/her phone out for longer than a couple of minutes while waiting for their interview, that must be it. Make a writer wait in a mini library before an interview.
Thoughtful – Being thoughtful as a writer is perhaps the best way to engage. It is what distinguishes content marketing from other forms. It takes immense effort to be thoughtful as a writer, but the results can be equally rewarding, if not more.
Perceptive – Content travels fast in this advanced media age. It is therefore important to know ‘what’ works ‘where’. Soccer references may not be as popular in the US as they are in Europe. A writer must be perceptive enough to empathise and create impactful content.
Well read – Expression comes from experience. Reading is a good way to experience things that one wouldn’t otherwise. A well-read writer is more likely to be more lucid & expressive with his/her words than the ones who aren’t.
Inspired – Writers draw inspiration from various sources. It can be from the works of another writer, from life experiences or even their own thoughts. It is the length through which they are willing to go in order to materialise their inspiration that defines them as a writer.
Defined writing style – This is not to say that a writer should not be adaptive. A defined writing style is a writer’s own guide to expression. However, a good writer will always be flexible in a manner that his/her style allows him/her to cater to different readerships & fields.
Avoids jargons – As a writer, sometimes it is difficult to avoid uncommon words in order to be descriptive. However, jargons make for a difficult read. The key to solving this conflict is knowing your audience. Most audiences bounce at the sight of heavy words, as it takes time and effort to understand them. For such readerships, it is important to be a simple and lucid read.
Wants to write – There is no substitute for ‘will’. It is the root of hard work/effort, perspective, creativity & evolution/improvement.

For the sake of a bright future of content marketing, let us assume that there will come a time when technicalities like ‘keywords’ & ‘SEO’ will no longer be a part of creating content. Until then there are a few additional skills that a content writer must possess in order to succeed.

What to look for in a content writer:

SEO-aware – Good SEO is perhaps the most critical way of being seen online. It starts with ‘on-page SEO’. A good content writer is willing to do thorough keyword research before he starts writing.
Particular about subjects – There are two aspects to this – firstly, a content writer must know what he is capable of and is interested in; secondly, the most essential part of creating content is what the audience wants to and can consume. You can’t feed a lion with salad.
Originality – Piggybacking over something that is trending is alright. Its gonna produce results. Even refurbishing content from elsewhere will get the job done. But they work in the short run. Only original content can make a brand or a name stick. It can be as simple as Budweiser’s “WAZZUP!” or as elaborate as any of GoPro’s visual content campaigns.
Observer & researcher – Information flow is more seamless now than it was ever before. This makes the job of a content writer much easier, provided that he is on a constant lookout across different platforms. Be it social media, following blogs, research papers, marketing trends or even Google trends.
Adaptive – Content writing is less about the writer and more about the brand and the audience. Reasons such as variety in the audience, crowd mood & sentiment must decide what is written and how it is presented. A content writer must also be fluid in terms of different forms of content that are suitable for different mediums. It’s a multi-disciplinary job. At times it requires the writer to do the job of a copywriter or even a scriptwriter.

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