Marketology

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Excerpted from article on HubSpot:

“The need to create high-quality content, however, has put many marketers in a difficult situation: high-quality content takes a long time to create, and many just don’t have the time to do it.

While it’d be nice to say, “tough noogies, find the time,” that’s neither realistic nor helpful. So instead, I’ve opted to brainstorm a list of very quick things that don’t add on much time to your content creation process, but will instantly elevate the quality of the content you create.

1) Fact Check:
While being accurate may not actively add anything to the quality of your content, inaccuracy in your content deals a mighty blow to content quality. Set yourself apart as the industry standard for unbiased, factually correct content — the stuff your readers can always rely on. That kind of reputation is how thought leaders are born, and it elevates you next to your competitors.

2) Include Data That Backs Up Your Points:
When you’re trying to convince your readers of something, data is a quick way to build instant credibility and convince your reader that — to put it bluntly — you know what the heck you’re talking about.

3) Find Examples That Illustrate Your Points:
Just like supporting data points can help you strengthen your case, using examples — whether you’re coming up with hypothetical situations or, even better, using real ones — can lend a lot of clarity to confusing concepts for your readers.

4) Use Visuals to Illustrate Points:
A picture’s worth a thousand words.

5) Get Quotes From Thought Leaders and Subject Matter Experts:
No one is an expert in everything. But the content creator’s dilemma is that they’re often asked to create content around subjects they only know only a little bit about. That poses a problem for content quality, to be sure. But the best way to get around this — and this will make your life so much easier when writing about things you don’t fully understand — is to reach out to a subject matter expert or thought leader in the space.

6) Remove Any Jargon:
High-quality content is easy to understand. Jargon, however, is decidedly not easy to understand. Remove any gobbledygook from your content before publishing it to ensure any of your readers can easily understand what you’re talking about.

7) Do Some Formatting, and Incorporate High-Quality Visuals:
Add some bullet points, some numbers, some bold headers, and some images to make your content look much more palatable, and much more high-quality. Not only does formatting and images make your content higher in quality, but it also makes it more engaging and shareable, too.

8) Have Someone Edit and Proof:
A proofreader will look through your content and correct minor errors, like misspellings, misplaced commas, that sort of thing. This is important, sure, but it’s no replacement for a good edit. An editor will actually work with you on the storyline, the phrasing, the order of your points, and help identify what’s missing. If you want to instantly increase the quality of your content, hire a freelance editor…”

Read full original article here:
http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/34104/8-Ways-to-Instantly-Improve-the-Quality-of-Your-Marketing-Content.aspx

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