by Sage Cohen
Writers today have access to a wide range of technology platforms that give us instant access to readers. The key to reaching them effectively and keeping them engaged is consistently delivering great content (meaning information and experiences) that provides real value in the area of our expertise. When we join the conversation and make a meaningful contribution, we can grow our audience, fortify our platform, and sustain our own interest in our work for the long term. Following are some strategies that can help you deliver content that connects—and converts one-time readers into long-term believers.
We build credibility and connection with our audience/s by having the conversations they have come to us to have. Because many of us have multiple contexts in which we write, live, and serve, we must be intentional about which of our tribes we are speaking to when we share content.
When I am posting in my Radical Divorce blog, for example, I don’t share my thoughts about the craft of poetry. And when I’m writing a post on Path of Possibility, my blog for writers, I’m not likely to discuss the challenges and opportunities of coparenting. I have separate Facebook pages for each topic. And I generally hashtag my tweets with #radicaldivorce, #lifepoetic or #productivewriter (my three literary platforms) to make it easier for people to see at a glance if the info I’m sharing is meant for them. On LinkedIn, I share only info related to my marketing communications consulting firm. And when I want to share with my personal network, I tweet without a hashtag, post on my main Facebook page, or upload to a private Vimeo page.
Not sure what kind of content you should be offering, to whom? These questions can help you clarify your approach. If you have multiple platforms, you can run through this list for each one.
With clarity about who your audience is and the value you bring to them comes the opportunity to be in conversation with them, learn with and from them, and relentlessly help and satisfy them.
Reader loyalty is established one piece of irresistible content at a time. To discover how you and your readers define irresistible content, consume as much content as you can, from the sources and people you admire in your field. Tune into your favorite podcasts, notice which tweets get you to click on the link to read more, which e-mails you stop everything to read when they arrive in your inbox, which posts on Facebook you share with your community. Through the constellation of content you consume, you can better understand your own passions and preferences—and see what gets you and others to respond.
Not sure how to begin, or sustain, a content creation practice? Following are a range of ideas for writing and sharing content that can help grow your audience over time.
What is a writer to do with this range of compelling content? Where and how should you distribute it? First, it’s important to understand the ways in which content travels:
Next, consider the most common digital channels through which writers today share content. I’ve described the advantages of each and ways to maximize each share.
| CHANNEL | ADVANTAGES |
|---|---|
| BLOG POSTS | Share content of any length, at the intervals you choose, on your chosen topic. Use any of the 15 content strategies above. |
| Arrive in the inbox of people who have opted in to hear from you. Use the content you share to inspire and invite people to join your e-mail list, where you can continue to serve them well. | |
| Easily excerpt and share your blog content and others’ content. Create specific pages for community engagement related to your platform. | |
| Tweet a compelling excerpt or insight, and link readers directly to the content you are sharing. Use hashtags to make it instantly clear what your content is about and whom it is for. | |
| Offer targeted content such as blog posts or reblogging targeted to your colleagues and professional network. | |
| Share the photos and videos that deliver your message. | |
| Offer visual inspiration that people will want to pin and display. | |
| PERISCOPE | Take them someplace and show them around with live video, if this is meaningful to what you offer. |
| YOUTUBE | Tell your story in video. |
| PODCASTS | Are you more of a talker than a writer? Then this could be a powerful channel for you. Share content of any length, at the intervals you choose, on your chosen topic, by audio. |
Plus, there are newsletters, billboards, matchbook covers, thank you notes, and endless other channels through which to reach your readers in interesting and compelling ways. I propose that you start with one or two that appeal to you most, then diversify from there over time.
Creating and sharing fresh content regularly takes discipline, creativity, and stamina. I find it far easier to face the blank page with an editorial calendar in hand that reflects my premeditated goals for reaching my audience. My plan reflects both the content I intend to create and the channels where I intend to share it.
For example, if the main place your tribe gathers is in a Facebook community, you may want your editorial plan to reflect a daily post there. If blogging is your main channel of communication, your plan should reflect how all of your social media revolves around that. If you plan to use Twitter as a channel, you can determine tweet volume and frequency goals. Eventually, when you are generating a great deal of content in multiple channels on a regular basis, you can use social media tools like Buffer or Hootsuite to organize, schedule, and automate the content you share.
Here’s an example of how you might plan to generate, share, and promote a weekly blog post.
As you see, you can even weave some of the 15 types of content into your plan, so you have a blueprint for keeping it interesting for readers. In Evernote, I have a notebook for each of my editorial categories for each of my platforms. I use these to log content ideas and save great links. Then, when it’s time to write, I usually have a long list of ideas to choose from. This makes it much easier for me to get started—and sustain my momentum.
Creating and curating content is a practice. I invite you to start small, experiment, and have fun. Over time, you will find the right rhythm for you and your readers. The more you write, read, and share content, the clearer you will be about your platform and what your audience wants and needs from you. As your confidence and expertise grow, a constellation of readers, colleagues, and collaborators will grow with you. Content can be the rich tapestry that weaves you all together in shared purpose, passion, and possibility.
SAGE COHEN is the author of the nonfiction books Writing the Life Poetic; The Productive Writer; and Fierce on the Page (forthcoming) all from Writer’s Digest Books and the poetry collection Like the Heart, the World from Queen of Wands Press. Her essays, fiction, poems and how-to articles have appeared in a wide range of publications, including: Rattle; Hip Mama; The Night, and the Rain, and the River; The Truth of Memoir; Cup of Comfort for Writers, and Writer’s Digest magazine. Sage holds an MFA from New York University and a BA from Brown University. She offers strategies and support for writers at pathofpossibility.com and for divorcing parents at radicaldivorce.com.