AskDavidPeters

How to Use Content and Credibility to Improve Marketing Results, part 1

With the web already flooded with websites and new ones coming every day it's becoming increasingly difficult to stand out in the crowd.  Providing rich, original content builds credibility quickly and effectively.  Subsequently, SEO copy, or developing great content, has had to evolve to stay current with the many changes in social media in the past few years.

Your readers' experience is affected more by the words you write than anything else you publish. Flash animation, groovy pics and cool fonts don't hold a candle to the content.  Unlike the mantra in other marketing mediums, focus on the steak, not the sizzle.

Achieving credibility in your field is paramount to success.  More content = more credibility = more traffic and greater conversion rates if that is your end goal and your content is written to that end.

Writing sales copy?  Know your readers hot buttons.  Keep your ear to the groud and write to your readers wants and needs, not your own PR.

Write for your readers first and the robots second.  Both are necessary, but the humans come first. No use writing perfect SEO copy if no one can stay awake long enough to read it.

A word about the spiders... keep each page on a single topic containing the main keywords. These are words or phrases that your ideal customer would be typing into to a search box to find you. 

• The content should be written as an inverse pyramid, with an introduction that provides the summary of the page. 
• Use objective language, it increases credibility.
• Provide secondary and background information on separate pages which are accessible from an internal link.

Building credibility in a sometimes cynical world can be tough. Readers want facts and solid reasons to buy what you're selling, even if all you're selling is a product review or a convincing argument.  However, people in general tend to believe what they read, which is a plus, and even more of a reason to be credible, original and unique. 

With the World Wide Web already flooded with websites and new websites popping up every day it's
becoming increasingly difficult to stand out in the crowd. Anyone who is involved with an online
business knows the importance of providing rich, original content and building credibility in the web
world. Content or SEO copy writing is not new; it has existed since the birth of the internet, but with the continual changes in technology, content writing has had to evolve to stay current to the many
changes.

Research has proven that the content of your website contributes greatly to the usability and
effectiveness of a site. The overall visitors experience is affected more by the words your write than
anything else you publish; flash animation, groovy pictures and the coolest fonts don't hold a candle to
a well written article, blog post or product description. Achieving credibility in your field, which comes
as a by product of publishing well written original content, is one of the most important factors to
increasing your conversion rates.
True, behind every successful website there is unique, accurate, interesting, and reader-friendly
content. A few great articles can build your web site's credit immediately. Since your entire internet
marketing campaign is directed towards your specific audience, the language and style of the content
should be in accordance with your targeted reader.
For example, if you are writing sales copy then you should have an excellent feel for what your
reader's "hot buttons" are regarding and write to their wants and needs. A successful site grabs the
attention of the visitors within 5 to 10 seconds.
The content should be written keeping in mind the SEO requirements as well as your target audience.
In other words, you write first for the humans, you write second for the robots. Both are necessary.
But your readers come first. No use writing a paragraph of perfect keyword density copy if no one can
stay awake long enough to read it.
To please the robots, or Google spiders, each page should revolve around a single topic containing
the main keywords. Your main keywords are the words or phrases that your perfect customer would
be typing into a search engine to find your web page. The content should be written as an inverse
pyramid, with an introduction that provides the summary of the page. Remember to use of objective
language, it further builds your credibility. You can provide secondary and background information on
separate pages which can be accessible from an internal link. Oh, and a quick tip: readers dislike to
download several pages to cover one topic so put the printable versions on a single page.
Building your credibility in a skeptical world can be a tough task. Users want facts and solid reasons
to buy what you're selling, even if all you're selling is a product review or a convincing argument.
However, people in general tend to believe what they read, that's a plus, but you have to make sure
what you're saying is credible.
A few more credibility building tips:
• Always stand behind the product, service or even the opinion you're selling. Here's how:
• Offer complete money back guarantees. Leave the customer no reason not to buy now.
• Provide testimonials from other customers who have purchased your product or service. You
will never find a more persuasive sales technique than from a person who believes in your
product and has previously purchased from you.
• Give away free samples of your product or offer an initial free service to demonstrate your
quality.