6 Reasons Your Brand’s Copy (Actually) Matters
Lil Key Takeaways: This Blog at a Glance
Good copywriting is a huge part of content marketing (you need good words to make good content, right?)
High-quality copy is a non-negotiable standard–it should be clear, credible, & engaging for your people.
Google (and other search engines, too, of course) prioritize valuable, informative content, which makes high-quality copy critical for SEO success.
Quality content fosters trust, drives traffic, and supports brand authority through social proof.
Dang good copy has pretty high ROI–those words can live on a page forever and inspire your dream people to take action with you over and over
Copywriting. It’s a big buzzword in the marketing community that’s become a hot topic of conversation for businesses of all sizes, niches, and industries. Copywriting is part of content marketing–and content marketing is one of those things that your brand should be familiar with.
Why?
Because understanding it and applying it can make an enormous difference in your business.
To put it simply, content marketing is a more bang-for-your-buck kind of marketing strategy that’s affordable, relatively easy to break into, and offers you a hefty return on investment (ROI).
In other words, it’s a must for marketing strategies.
If content marketing just seems like an overwhelming term that you don’t quite know how to approach, don’t sweat it.
This blog will dive into some basics to help you better understand content marketing as a practical strategy for your brand.
Your Brand's Copywriting Matters: Here's Why
If you’ve spent any time at all around a copywriter or marketing pro, you’ve probably heard this sentiment before.
Content is king.
Is it cliché? Sure. Is it obnoxious to hear over and over again? You better believe it. But–importantly– is it correct? Absolutely. Obviously, this is a repetitive buzzword in the marketing world for a reason. So, what does it mean, exactly?
Whether you love the idea of this type of digital strategy or not, content marketing continues to be the overwhelmingly dominating method for productive, impactful marketing.
The word content can be a little all-encompassing. Content is part of every aspect of your marketing already–from social media and PPC to SEO and inbound marketing strategy. So, if content is already a part of all those factors, then what does it mean to designate content marketing as its own thing?
What is Content Marketing (& Why Does Copy Matter)?
Think about content marketing as a strategic approach that’s entirely focused on creating and distributing valuable, consistent, and impactful content with the goal of acquiring and maintaining a defined audience to generate leads, communicate with an audience, and drive customer action.
That’s a really boring way to say that the words you put out in the world NEED to bring value to your people–so they can trust you, rely on you, and be inspired by you! That’s how sales and connections happen, my friend.
When it’s done right, content marketing takes the form of something like a blog, where it delivers high-quality content that’s created and shared consistently.
In the same way, content marketing should be used to complement your other forms of marketing. This strategy should work in tandem with your social media marketing, SEO strategy, and other forms of digital marketing.
But here’s the thing about content marketing. It doesn’t exist without words. And the higher quality your words are (hi, copy!), the higher quality the content is. You’re probably starting to see where this is going, right?
(A direct route to teaching you the ins and outs of high-quality copy so you can have high-quality content marketing, of course!)
Your Go-To Checklist for High-Quality Copy
It’s one thing to say something is high-quality. It’s another entirely to know what “high-quality” means in the first place.
So, what does creating high-quality content look like?
Every piece of content will be unique and valuable, and we’re certainly never going to suggest that you abide by the same rules for everything you write (that’s counterproductive, which we’ll get to eventually).
But before you launch any piece of content into the world, you’re going to want to make sure it checks certain high-quality content boxes to ensure it’s going to do its job to the best of its ability.
The 10 Signs You’re writing High-Quality copy
It is unique and focused on providing value to your readers. Your content shouldn’t just function as a keyword opportunity.
It’s credible (like, with proof!). This means including outbound links and proper citations that support your research and claims.
It’s engaging and authentic to your brand voice. It sounds like you and echoes the mission and goals of your brand.
It’s educational. In other words, it’s not just an opportunity for marketing or selling your services/products. Quality content does more than just push your brand’s stuff. It provides real value.
It’s a Google-acceptable length. We’re not saying that there are hard-and-fast rules about the exact word count of your posts (and that number is constantly changing with the SEO algorithms)–but the more high-quality content, the better. Often, we advise our clients to shoot for 1,000 words per post, but 800 words can be an acceptable middle-ground.
It’s SEO-optimized. You don’t need to be a total keyword whiz to start this process. If you’re totally new to SEO, start thinking about which keywords someone might search for on this topic, then work backward.
It’s formatted for readability. Headings, subheadings, short blocks of text, and plenty of white space are all elements of proper formatting. No one likes reading large blocks of text (and, spoiler alert, neither does Google).
It includes photos & videos (stuff to keep your people interested). Your words matter, sure, but including multimedia pieces like gifs, videos, graphics, images, charts, screenshots, memes, etc., give you big bonus points with readers and search engines.
It’s properly edited and reviewed. Will a typo here and there make or break your reputation? No (and that’s coming from us). Still, it’s a best practice to make sure the content you’re putting out into the world is as flawless as possible–and, like it or not, people will judge your brand on its spelling and grammar.
It’s something you’re proud of. Is every piece of content going to be your all-time favorite piece? Nope, but you should be proud of every piece you put up online. This might not be a normal KPI or benchmark for high-quality content, but it is a Boundless Copy benchmark.
6 Reasons High-Quality Copy Matters for Your Content Marketing Strategy
By now, you’re probably like, “Great, I’ve got a good grasp on how to write quality content. But why does this matter to my marketing strategy, anyway?”
We’re happy to answer that.
Basically, content marketing is one of the methods that provides this all-inclusive way to improve a ton of your brand’s sticking points.
Google Cares – That Means You Should, Too
There’s really no avoiding this reality–Google controls a lot of what people see on the Internet.
As a general rule, Google will put the best, most relevant information in front of Internet users, and ultimately, that search result will depend on what people type into the search bar and the type of content out there on the web.
And here’s the thing about caring about what Google cares about: there’s no real shortcut.
Strategies like keyword stuffing, overloading backlinks, and drawing out length without adding volume won’t do you any favors–Google is looking for value, educational content, and content that actually provides answers that users are looking for.
How can you crack this Google code? It’s paradoxical, but if you write with your audience in mind–not your keywords or the SEO algorithms– you’re setting yourself up for success.
Ultimately, Google cares about providing users with valuable, informative, helpful, and quality content–you can only accomplish this by actually providing these elements in your content.
Google cares about that, and if you want your content (and your products or services) to pop up on more computer screens, you’ve got to care, too.
Valuable Content is How You Connect With Your Audience
Your content is more than just a marketing ploy–it’s how you communicate and connect with your audience.
Think about it this way–content is sort of like a connective tissue that links everything together and allows you to understand your customers better.
Through trial and error, you’ll see what works, what doesn’t, and what your audience is looking for/ attracted to. Then, you can learn how to communicate directly with them, providing them with the information they’re actually looking for.
The More Social Proof, the Better
The more quality, informative, and valuable content you can provide readers, the easier it is to become an authority in your industry.
As a result of this, your customers are far more willing to trust your brand. If a customer views you as an industry expert, they’re far more likely to look to you for answers, products, and services, all the while recognizing that you’re the go-to resource for whatever they might need about a specific topic or industry.
Sure, this is something you can (and should) establish in other areas of your website (testimonials, your own industry experience, etc.), but content marketing is where you can share experiences, opinions, and expertise in approachable, interesting ways.
Social proof is an enormous part of doing business–that’s why reviews are so critical and such a crucial part of a customer’s journey. With content marketing, you can chip away, over time, at establishing that necessary social proof potential buyers need to make their first purchase.
Good Content Drives Good Traffic
Studies show that anywhere between 70-90% of clicks in search engines on Google are on a result on the first page–that means ranking on that first page is super important to get that desired traffic.
How do you accomplish this? Optimize your blogs and landing pages, use SEO best practices, and write audience-first content that’s informative, valuable, and optimized.
The more web traffic you can drive to your website, the more eyes you’ll get on your website–and that means the more potential conversions you’re setting yourself up for.
Robust ROI at a Not-so-Robust Price
Let’s put this simply: Content marketing can be a pretty cheap marketing strategy, but it pays off big time.
Of course, you don’t have to just take our word for it.
The Content Marketing Institute (CMI) says that small businesses that invest in consistent, high-quality content on their blogs will get about 126% more lead growth than the small businesses that don’t have blogs.
Tack that on to the fact that about 77% of internet users actually read blogs, and you’ve got quite the case for content marketing ROI.
We don’t mean to keep throwing numbers at you, but they don’t lie.
Blogging (and content marketing in general) pulls in more visitors, generates more leads, increases traffic, and converts those high-quality leads to customers.
The fact of the matter is that investing in high-quality content on your brand’s blog will bring in leads, generate revenue, and pay off in the short and long term. And the actual cost of content marketing can be as cheap as you want it to be.
Whether you buckle down and do the content work yourself or outsource to a reliable team to get the job done, the investment will be minimal compared to the fact-of-the-matter return on that investment you’ll see.
Quality Content Converts Leads
Content marketing isn’t always linear, but if you’re pushing out good, high-quality content that gives readers the information they need, they’re more likely to purchase or trust you in the future.
Exceptionally well-done content marketing will include clear calls to action (CTAs) that direct potential (and current) customers in ways that can generate new, high-quality leads for your sales team.
While there are numbers to back this up, we’re just going to say this from anecdotal experience–the happier someone is with your content, the more likely they are to click your CTAs and buy from you.
The 7 Must-Know Benefits of High-Quality Copywriting
Spoiler alert: there are more benefits than the ones we are listing here, but we think these seven are super notable.
Your company will be more visible than ever.
Your audience will trust you more.
Great content will retain guests on your website (and more time spent on your website is always positive.
You can attract more (and better) leads.
You’ll see improved conversions.
It’s easier to elevate your brand awareness.
When done right, you can become an authority within your industry.
Need Help with Your Content Marketing Strategy? We Got You (With High-Quality Copy)
If you’re not loving the idea of putting together an entire content marketing strategy, pushing out blog content, or figuring out the ins and outs of SEO, don’t fret–you can still reap the benefits of a stellar content marketing strategy.
How? With our help.
We’re proud to be content marketing pros over here, and we’re even prouder when we get the chance to share that knowledge with brands like yours.
Whether you’re ready to kickstart your content marketing strategy from scratch, revamp your current content, or just chat about what you could be doing differently (or better!), our team is here to help.
