When you think of the 4th of July, you probably think of barbecues, fireworks, and hanging out with friends. We think about what we’ll be writing and delivering to our wide base of content clients.
Copywriting, and even more general, those who are content marketers and in the Internet marketing sphere never really get time off.
Why? Because businesses always need someone out there getting the word out about holiday sales, their new products, up-keeping a blog, and so much more.
Let’s Talk About Good Writing: What Does Barbecuing & Content Have In Common?
Here’s a fun breakdown of just how awesome writing is similar to the traditional July 4th feast of a barbecue. You might say that tasty barbecuing and good content goes together like the cat’s pajamas.
The Hamburger of Writing
When you make a hamburger, you normally have bread, meat, perhaps cheese, and whatever your favorite condiments are.
That’s exactly what a good piece of writing has too.
Selecting the Bread
First, you have the bread. This is what starts the burger-making process and what finishes it off. You don’t want stale bread when you have a burger. You don’t want the beginning and end of your writing to be stale either.
The beginning and end are what people remember. You want it to be something fresh. Otherwise, nobody will want to read it.
Cooking the Meat
The meat is the most important part. Pretty much everything else you can get rid of. But a hamburger without hamburger is … well I don’t know what it is, but it certainly isn’t a hamburger.
The meat of your writing is also the most important.
What is your point?
What do you want people to get out of your post?
Why are you writing it?
When you are cooking it up, though, make sure you keep who you are cooking it for in mind. Just like some people like it rare, others like it medium, and still other people like it practically like a leather boot, your clients want different things.
When you are writing, you have to keep you audience in mind. Some people want short pieces. Others want really long posts. Remember that even if you are the one who is doing the ‘cooking,’ they are the ones who have to ‘eat’ it. (Cooking being writing and eating being putting it up on their site.) So cook it for only as long as they want it cooked.
Cheese and Other Condiments
The cheese and condiments add all that little extra flavor to the burger, but what people like on it varies person to person.
In the writing burger, you want your pieces to have some flavor, but again, remember that you have to figure out what the readers and clients want.
If they want it spicy, add some spicy mustard. If they want it very traditional, stick to some ketchup. Similarly, only add what your clients and their customers want to add.
If they want it to be a little more edgy, give them some spice. If they don’t want to make waves, give them something plainer.
When you make it like they want it, they are going to want to keep getting you to make their burgers. (Or in other words they will keep hiring you to write more for them.)
Enjoy Your Barbecue
Now that you have finished making everybody’s 4th of July meal, sit back, relax, and watch them all enjoy it.
Remember earlier this year when Google once again shook up content ranking as we knew it with some mysterious update they wouldn’t even admit to? Now it has a more official name, and we have a lot more information.
The Google Quality Update: Formerly Known as Phantom
Out of the blue last May, sites suddenly started seeing mysterious drops in their Google rankings. This was especially true for how to and hub based sites.
Nobody knew exactly what had happened, but they knew it was clear, despite Google’s denial of its existence, that Google must have once again changed up its algorithm. Since it had no other name and had appeared out of seemingly nowhere, it was coined the phantom update.
Since that time, Google has admitted that it did make a change, and we have learned more information about what happened and what it means for content marketing.
Because the change is no longer cloaked in as much mystery, Search Engine Land coined a better name for it: the Google Quality Update.
Search Engine Land’s Vigilance
Search Engine Land, the leading daily publication on all things search marketing, has been on top of Google about this update. When it was first reported, they got in contact with the search engine giant and asked if there had been an update. Google denied it.
After continued requests for information, they finally got an answer. There had been an update to the algorithm. But they were quick to point out that it was not a spam-related update, such as Panda and Penguin. Instead, it was a change to the core algorithm.
No matter how you word it, though, there was an update, and it has made obvious changes to page ranking.
What the Google Quality Update Is
While more information is now known, there is still a lot that needs to be determined. Right now, it is unclear just what the quality update has done.
When it was first examined as the phantom update, the trend seemed to be that whatever had been done hub-type pages, such as HubPages, and how to sites, such as WikiHow, were being hurt the most.
There were many theories about why this was. One was that Google had decided to disfavor sites of this nature. However, that was soon turned with the realization that this was a domain change instead of a page change meaning that the updated algorithm looks at the site as a whole instead of at each individual page.
Google was punishing sites with poorer quality content by lowering their rankings across all content on the site, even good pieces. In other words, it didn’t matter that you also created great content if you still had poor content on your site.
It was affecting how to and informational type content because many such sites, while offering a lot of great content, also tend to have lesser value stuff. But the update was not designed necessarily with them in mind.
The update is intended to rank any site with poorer quality content lower as opposed to just the sites it has most obviously affected.
The Knowledge Graph
Furthermore, as Ari Levy pointed out in his CNBC article, how to sites are also being affected because of Google’s new search display. If you search for “How to … “ the information will generally appear on the top of the page though it is the content of another site.
For example, if you Google “how to boil eggs,” which was the first thing to pop up when I Googled “how to,” you will immediately see directions that have been taken from Martha Stewart.
Similarly, if you ask a question or search for anything with information housed in Google’s knowledge base, it should pop up at the top of the research. This is all part of Google’s Knowledge Graph, which was first released in 2012.
This system is intended to save users a step in the search process. Instead of cutting out the middle man, though, which in this case would have been Google itself, it opted to turn the middle man into the source of information.
While this is useful to users, it is not as useful to owners of the information. Since this means that people less often need to click on the actual website, it also results in lower traffic on these sites. In combination with the other updates, the results can be brutal.
Quora & The Quality Update
Now that we know a little bit about this new update, let’s look at how it affects sites such as Quora.
What Is Quora?
Quora is a question and answer site where users may ask a question and, as you might have guessed, get an answer. The idea behind this site is that people not only get answers to their questions, but that the answers come from vetted, knowledgeable users.
It allows users to pick the topics they are interested in and those topics show up in the users feed.
The Effects of the Quality Update
Because of the type of information found on Quora, which is “how to” in nature, you would think that it would be negatively affected based off of the update. However, instead of falling in the rankings, Quora actually jumped.
What sets it apart from other, seemingly similar sites? As Contently points out, a big reason for the jump is that Quora consistently enforces high quality standards.
Google does not like content that is self-promotional or generic. It wants to promote detailed content that actually adds value to the searcher. And Quora is clearly doing a good job with this.
The site works through an upvote system wherein readers vote for helpful answers. Some answers, like this one on “Overcoming Procrastination: How do I get over my bad habit of procrastination?” have received over 30,000 upvotes alone.
Since an upvote tends to mean that an article has been well-received, it goes to show that the site is a good source of content that adds value to the searcher, which is what Google wants.
The Next Steps
While we do not know everything about the way the Google Quality Update works, there is a lot that we do know. For instance, take a look at the update’s unofficial name.
While Quality Update is not the most original of names, it is very telling. Search Engine Land did not come up with the name out of thin air. The update, like changes before it, is intended to promote quality content. Thomas Smale, an Entrepreneur contributor, discussed many of the things that people should be doing in order to keep high rankings even with the new algorithm.
Do not use duplicate material (e.g., do not post the same or similar article in multiple places in an effort to seem like you have more content than you do.)
Create high value content. Make your content more detailed and helpful. If you are explaining why the sky is blue, for example, don’t just say because of science, go into it. Really teach people about the subject. Basically, be a place that meets the users’ needs.
Be credible. Prove that you know what you are talking about. Use sources to back up your points. Basically, make people, and thus Google, trust you.
Make the site all about the user. While ads on your site may be an important part of your website’s revenue, they should never take away from the user experience.
Do some quality control. Make sure your content is informative and free of errors, both factual and grammatical.
Quality content has been growing in importance for a long time. Because of this, most of your content should already be high value. This means that hopefully you will not have to do a lot to get yourself up to Google’s new standards.
And if Forbes contributor Jayson DeMers is right, you may not have to worry about another one again.
Final Thoughts
In the end, this update, like the ones that came before it, shows us one very important thing. Google really likes good content. Hence the Google Quality update.
It cannot be stressed enough. Do not just throw up content for contents sake. If you don’t have time to do it right, don’t bother writing it at all. Content is important, though, so if you don’t have time to write quality content, then get someone to do it for you.
While bad content will not get you ranked very high on a Google search, no content means you won’t get ranked at all.
To get that great content without having to sacrifice your valuable time, try out our content marketing services. Photo courtesy SearchEngineLand Screenshots taken June 2015
Gary Vaynerchuk. If you haven’t heard of him, I really don’t know what kind of marketer you are. (Kidding! Or not…)
For a start, he’s a reputable entrepreneur, public speaker, social media expert, investor, Internet personality, Jets fan, self-taught and self-proclaimed wine expert, and author of several bestselling, motivational books, such as The Thank You Economy, Why Now Is the Best Time to Cash in on Your Passion and Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook.
Three Reasons Why Gary Rocks
For Gary Vaynerchuk, family comes first, but after that, his ever-growing empire is listed as one of his top priorities. We love this guy because he is forward thinking and ahead of the curve. He isn’t afraid to make his voice heard and lead the pack; he understands the new realities of the 2015 content marketing industry and doesn’t hesitate to lend a helping hand to small business owners looking for pertinent advice on how to grow their businesses.
1. Gary Vaynerchuk’s Marketing Insight Is Not for the Faint of Heart. Bold content pieces with daring titles, like, for instance, Marketers Ruin Everything reflect the challenges experienced by entrepreneurs who are disconnected or unable to see any real ROI, in spite of their continuous efforts. His take on content marketing is pretty straightforward: in order to explore the full potential of your content and use social media as a convenient marketing tool, you have to give more than you actually ask for in return. In other words, you have to avoid becoming an annoying noise maker by providing increased value to your readers through your innovative, problem-solving, engaging content.
2.Gary Vaynerchuk Practices What He Preaches. As a CEO and hustler, Gary Vaynerchuk doesn’t waste any time. After growing his dad’s company from $3 million to $50 million through a unique combo of aggressive pricing, email marketing tactics and ecommerce hacks, Garyfounded VaynerMedia, a digital agency focused on social media, and also started VaynerRSE, an investment fund estimated at $25 million. All the advice that he generously offers to fellow entrepreneurs is derived from his past experiences and based on his marketing insight, skills and know-how.
3. You Can Ask Him (Almost) Anything. #AskGaryVee is the best place to get answers to your everyday marketing, entrepreneurship and social media-related questions. Takeaway: whatever you do, don’t miss Episode 108, especially if you’re very fond of elevators, e-commerce and aliens, or at least wish to discover the connection between these three elements. Here’s how it works: you ask questions, and GaryVee answers them. Check out his YouTube channel, free your curiosity and get inspired.
Five Crucial Content Marketing Lessons That We Can All Learn from Gary Vaynerchuk
In 2015, when the battle for supremacy and the highest number of eyeballs is fierce on any digital market, small business owners need leaders and influencers more than ever. Vaynerchuk is one of the path openers who could help you overcome any challenge that you may encounter while trying to lift your online business from the ground. Here are five important lessons that you can learn from this talented all-in-one social media guru, entrepreneur and author.
1. Creating Quality Content Is a Matter of Respect. According to Vaynerchuk, proper content creation revolves around the concept of respect. First of all, you have to respect the platform that is going to carry, distribute and promote your marketing message. One must strategize around the platform, and adapt the storytelling tactic based on the way in which a prospect actually interacts with that particular channel. For instance, activity on different social networking websites is linked to different mindsets. A woman may use Instagram and Pinterest to discover new trends, while also relying on Facebook to stay connected with her friends, family members and favorite brands. Each of these channels require a unique content strategy tailored to the prospect’s intent. At the same time, you have to respect the audience and give your readers instant access to quality food for thought. Play with different nuances, explore the unique features of your products and convert them into benefits and incorporate a surprise element to stimulate the curiosity of your public. After all, Five Genius Organizing Solutions That Will Help You Keep a House Clean with X Young Kids sounds much more interesting than Here’s What You Can Do with the Cheap Plastic Containers That I’m Selling,” right?
2. Hustling Is the Key to Survival in Any Environment. In the world of content marketing, you have two options at hand: you can either go big or go home with an empty wallet. If the latter alternative doesn’t exactly appeal to you, consider the fact that only a cohesive, well-rounded content marketing strategy will offer you the desirable long-term results. As Vaynerchuk puts it, every minute has to count for something. As far as we’re concerned, every success involves a struggle, and every struggle is geared towards creating and delivering better content that resonates with a specific audience, encourages feedback and improves conversion rates.
3. You Have to Provide Real Value to Your Customers. Unless you have been on vacation for the last decade or so, you must be fully aware of the fact that clients are now more selective and difficult to reach than ever. Why? First of all, they are bombarded with more than 5,000 branded messages daily. Secondly, even if they manage to cut through the dreadful advertising clutter, your visitors have a short attention span and tend to be quite self-centered. In this context, you have to step up your game by providing real value to your potential clients. According to Moz, you can achieve this objective by providing exclusive information that your readers wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else, delivering content presented in a unique manner and prepping the ground for a major upgrade in terms of website design, accessibility and aggregation.
4. You Can Improve Your Luck by Improving Your Content. In order to make your brand visible, you have to put it in front of your potential consumers. You may ask: how do you do that? The answer is simple: you invest more time, money, energy and effort in content development and distribution. Vaynerchuk seems to think that a larger amount of quality content is directly linked to higher odds of success on overly competitive markets. This is precisely why he has turned one of his staff members from VaynerMedia into the “shadow of his life” who now follows him at conferences and local events to record all his statements and turn them into high-value social media content that could inform, entertain and educate his audience. Vaynerchuk thinks that his clever strategy will soon mark the beginning of a new trend, as more and more social media personalities and executives will hire a full-time content manager to stay relevant on their niche. Even if you can’t afford to employ a social media savvy scribe who could follow you around 24/7 and put pen to paper anytime, anywhere, do keep in mind the fact that maintaining a steady content flow is your best chance of survival on overcrowded digital markets.
5. Micro-content Can Help You Breathe New Life into Your Old Marketing Campaign. As a founder of a successful digital shop focused on quality storytelling across different platforms, Vaynerchuk uses the knowledge that he has gained via premium micro-content to design and implement creative campaigns that trigger noticeable, positive results. If you still think that bigger is always better in the content marketing world, Gary will sooner or later prove you wrong. Micro-content crafted for the native platform that it will “live” on is more compatible with a specific user behavior and thus, more likely to favor an improved response to CTAs.
How to Become Your Own Role Model in the Content Marketing World
In today’s insanely competitive business environment, staying inert and silent is definitely not at option. On the other hand, if you share Gary’s opinion and acknowledge the fact that your progress depends on your perseverance, consistency, originality and passion, perhaps now would be a good time to rethink your content strategy. Creative minds and bold, resourceful entrepreneurs like Gary Vaynerchuk offer us the inspiration and motivation that we need to dream bigger and work a little harder. Nonetheless, after following in the footsteps of those who know better and dare to think outside the box, at the end of the day, you can become your own content marketing hero and use your writing to create communities around your product or service, increase conversions, make more money, leave your competitors behind and inspire others.
All these goals are perfectly attainable, especially when you count on the unconditional support of a team of talented content marketing gurus and professional writers.
In our infographic below, we’re exploring why you should repurpose content, why Twitter should be a major focus, and six easy ways to repurpose content. Plus, four killer tools you can use.
Get started on awesome content re-purposing right away!
Don’t forget to share if you’ve found our infographic helpful!
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Transcript
Why Should You Repurpose Content?
Approximately 15% of Americans listen to podcasts of repurposed content, and the number is growing each year.
Tweets with visual content get 18% more clicks, 89% more favorites, and 150% more re-tweets.
Repurposed content helps make your content more impactful as 67% of people are likely to be convinced by a presentation that includes visuals.
An infographic is 30 times more likely to help you get views than an article.
Kissmetric’s infographics received an average of 20,859 likes on Facebook.
An average of 62% of podcast listeners surveyed have said they are likely to buy something advertised on a podcast.
70% of many major businesses say videos are a highly effective aspect of their content marketing.
Why Twitter Should Be A Focus For Your Repurposed Content
Studies show that you’ll get the most use out of Twitter if you tweet up to 30x a day, while small business owners do better around 5 tweets/day. (Kevan Lee)
A tweet usually has a “life” of 18 minutes. That’s why you want to tweet often: the more you tweet, the more you will see engagement. (Kevan Lee)
Link to your blogs and content, often: 50% of all re-tweeted tweets contain links. (Leo Widrich)
Re-sharing your content is vital on Twitter: you can get just as many if not more re-tweets on your second, third and fourth posts of the same blog. (Belle Beth Cooper)
Use different headlines as you tweet. Your unique second headline can get double the amount of clicks. (Leo Widrich)
Going viral is more possible on Twitter than Facebook because of the immediate traction tweets get. Facebook posts have a shelf life of 5 hours. (Leo Widrich)
6 EASY Ways to Repurpose Content
Make a Presentation. Turn your blog post into a presentation on SlideShare. Make a few graphics and put them into the program, and you have new, repurposed content. (Kevan Lee)
Turn Old Blog Posts Into Guides. Old blog posts provide a lot of excellent content to be repurposed. Assemble the multiple blogs you’ve written on a topic and turn them into an easy-to-access guide with multiple aspects. (Megan Marrs)
Use Your Evergreen Content. One of the best types of content to repurpose is evergreen content. This gives you more topics to work with, and helps you create something that will still be worthwhile in the future. (Kevan Lee)
Create Infographics from Written Content. Do you have a favorite blog that you want more people to read? Consider chopping it down into short points and putting them in infographic form. (Arnie Kuenn)
Host a Podcast Based Off of a Blog Post. Podcasts are a hot commodity right now, and your written content provides some great resources for one (or several). Look at your popular posts and then host a podcast talking more in-depth on them. (Megan Marrs)
Turn Your Content into Powerful Videos. Your existing written content can be used as visual in multiple ways, including video. Brand videos made from content you already have can reach more people and bring in new customers. (Salma Jafri)
4 Great Tools For Repurposing Content
SlideShare. This is a great tool to add your visual content to, creating a presentation you can give out to your clients. Try it when repurposing your content for maximum audience reach. (Garrett Moon)
YouTube. This is the best channel to share your videos on to reach out to a wide audience. When you repurpose written content into videos, always make sure you have a YouTube channel set up for them. (Garrett Moon)
Social Media Channels. Every single social media channel offers you the chance to repurpose content whether it is on Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram. Research different ones to find which will benefit your business the most. (Yael Kochman)
List.ly. Lists are amazing, aren’t they? People love lists, which makes this program excellent to use for your repurposed content. Simply break your content down into a list format, update this program, and share with your audience. (Yael Kochman)
Full Reference List
Kevan Lee, Buffer | http://buff.ly/1eEKhlQ
Is This. the next big thing? Or will it soon be That. social platform. You know. The one That. wasn’t as big as people thought it would be?
Is This. Going to Be the Best Thing Social Media Network Since Sliced Bread?
Whenever we have a new, up-and-coming anything, we say it is the greatest thing since sliced bread. And that fits in this situation because the expression likely came from a marketing strategy. It is thought that Wonder Bread’s advertisements of its new sliced bread as the next great invention after wrapped bread eventually evolved into the expression as we know it.
And right now This. is big. But will it be the best thing since sliced bread?
What a Rose by Any Other Name Smell as Sweet?
Even before we get into what This. is, let’s discuss why this is called This. and not That. (or anything else they could have come up with.)
This. as a social media expression started way before the actual platform was created. Through its use on Twitter, memes, and other social media connotations, it has come to mean, “Yes. I agree with this.” All you need to do is share a link, and type, ‘This.’ and people will just get exactly what you mean.
Basically, it means, “I could not say it in any better words, so I won’t try. Just, this. This is something you need to know.”
Kyle Chayka wrote an aricle on this for Medium. (Literally. It is an article on the word this.) In the post, the etymology of the word is discussed. It comes from the and seo. So in other words, the is a specific – not a thing, but the thing. And seo is Old English imperative of to see. So, as Chayka points out, if you point it together, it means – Look at the thing I want to show you. See this specific thing. It is a command. It’s just. This.
What is This., Though?
This. is a newly launched social networking site. It is similar to other networking sites in several ways.
Create a profile.
Connect to people.
Share links to content you love.
However, there is one notable exception (other than the fact that right now it is still invite only.)You can only share one link a day so you better make it something good.
The idea behind This. is the same thing content experts have been preaching for years: quality over quantity. If you only get one link, you better make it something worth linking to.
Apart from making the linker think about what they are going to post, there are several reasons This. should please viewers as well. Imagine if you could take your Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram feeds and get rid of all the nonsense.
Say goodbye to your best friend’s cousin’s posts about her dinner or your friend’s constant pictures of her adorable kids. Instead, the only thing you see are the articles, videos, etc., that are really important to people – because in This. world, you can add a link, not a selfie.
The idea behind the product is not only to boost quality posts, but to make what you read much more digestible. Because of the novel idea behind This. many people think it will be the next big thing in social media.
Remember Ello?
But people used to say Ello was the next big thing in social media. Where does that stand? How can there be two ‘next big thing’s’?
When Ello launched, it was touted as the solution to Facebook. It was going to take social media and turn it on its head. How was it going to do this?
By removing all the annoying ads and getting rid of the clutter by allowing you to put the posts you didn’t like under a noise category. The site gears itself towards younger generations and does not try to hide it.
Now, people do not talk as much about this platform. Sure it still exists. Technically. But as Tech Crunch will tell you, it is only pretending to still be alive and everybody has already forgotten it – except for obviously Tech Crunch and me who could not have quite forgotten it yet since we are both talking about it.
So what happened?
According to Josh Constine, who wrote the Tech Crunch article, the problem with Ello was that they tried too hard to be Facebook – just without ads. Facebook is a monster. It is not going to come down that easily. So if you want to succeed in the social media arena, your best bet is not to overthrow Facebook, but just to be different enough to cohabitate with it.
Can This. Last?
So is This. the new Ello? Or could it be the next Twitter, Instagram, etc.? Different enough to be a companion to the social network giant not a competitor? The best way to figure this out is to look at what the experts think and at what the limited amount of users think.
This. User Reviews
I wish when I said This. user reviews, I meant this user reviews the product (meaning me), but since This. is invite only, I’ll just have to take the words of others. So what I meant before is that this section is on user reviews of This.
There are only around 10,000 users right now, but that isn’t because only 10,000 people are interested. It’s really hard to get an invite. Of the people using it, though, most seem to be satisfied with it. However, for now, many of the users are press and journalists who have been lucky enough to get an invite.
In other words, most of the user reviews are the expert reviews. And that is the problem with making any sort of claim as to how This. will do once it has entered public Beta.
The “experts” and the general public often disagree. So while the experts may like it now, its eventual success will come in large part from the public.
So what will they think? We will all just have to wait and see.
The Experts Weigh In
As with any upcoming product, tool, or platform, the experts are all out their giving their opinions. But what are they saying?
Gabe Rosenberg for Contently. He appears to be a fan. Rosenberg points out the fact that the site isn’t about me’s, it’s about them’s. People are encouraged to share the works of other people’s content. It’s of essence non-self-promotional. Or, to say it in his own words, the goal of publishing should be to “too cut through the noise, not add to it.” And that is the idea behind This.
Nicole Zhu for Northwestern University’s Knight Lab. She’s a big fan. In fact, she says that the site has quickly become her main frequently used site.
It is hard to find more. With a name like This., especially in the early stages, it is not that search friendly. I could give you the reviews that they have pinpointed themselves, but I feel that would not be a very fair assessment. (Spoiler: all the reviews they post on their home page says great things.)
At any rate, cloaked in mystery or not, what does seem to be clear is that the experts who know about it and write about it, appear to be in agreement: This. is it. The best social media site since Ello – only, it’s actually going to work this time.
Making Predictions that May or May Not Prove True
After everything that has been said, what do you think? Will This. last?
My personal opinion is to say yes. It has a lot going for it. But, despite their ingenious reasons for picking their name, I think that could hurt them if they ever want to go more mainstream. It’s one thing if you get an invite to join. It’s quite another if you are trying to find them on Google – say maybe to write an article about them – and you have to search for This. I promise you, it is not as easy as it sounds. And it doesn’t sound easy.
Helpful hint: try searching This.cm Atlantic. This. is good advice, I promise.
Still, though, nothing is ever definite.
In a world where today’s ‘next big thing’ is immediately replaced by tomorrow’s ‘next big thing,’ it is hard to predict what will happen for any emerging technology. But This. Well, This. just might work. We’ll have to wait and see.
