It has been almost three years since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two came out and almost seven years since the last Harry Potter book was published, yet Warner Brother’s is still winning at marketing. They have yet to give up on Harry Potter as quickly as most companies give up on their mega-films, which is proving to be an excellent strategy for them. Scholastic’s marketing team is also not giving up on Harry Potter bringing in customers and money. Both of these companies know just how to engage everyone while also providing people with wonderful items to buy. People say Harry Potter is a cash cow for these two companies and they’re right! Let’s take a quick look at how these companies are still making millions by using excellent content.
Pottermore: Which House Are You?
This is an excellent example of utilizing fun content while convincing people to buy your brand. J. K. Rowling and Scholastic teamed up to offer fans an experience with the world of Harry Potter by immersing them in Hogwarts and the wizarding world. They started with beta users to test out the site and, in fact, made a big hoopla about becoming a beta user. You were able to take a trip into the virtual world of Diagon Alley to purchase your books, your wand, your animal (cat, frog, or owl), your robes, and anything else Hogwarts required of you. While doing so, you were able to find random little things along the way such as chocolate frog cards or Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans.
The wand purchasing required you to take a test written up by the master herself, J. K. Rowling, ensuring you got the correct wand. “The wand chooses the wizard, Harry.” You can then go through Harry Potter’s first chapters in the Sorcerer’s (or Philosopher’s) Stone and then proceed to be sorted into your house. This was the moment every Harry Potter fan was waiting for and the moment new fans are excited about. This quiz was, yet again, written by Rowling, ensuring you couldn’t guess your way into your favorite house and made sure you were sorted correctly. This caused much rejoicing and much sorrow, depending on house loyalties.
The lesson you can learn from this is that you should be creating content that is fun and engaging for your customers. The more engaging you make your content, the more likely your client base will grow, bringing in more revenue and readers. In addition, you should be involved with your content just like Rowling. This will make sure adequate knowledge is shared about your product and people will enjoy that you took the time to be involved.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
To keep audiences craving Harry Potter goods, Warner Brother’s studio created an excellent Harry Potter theme park for all the old and new fans. At first, the park was limited in what it offered, yet it was still, dare we say, a magical experience for everyone. People got to go through Hogwarts, purchase wands, and drink Butterbeer, and, of course, purchase many other Harry Potter items. The park is a huge success and because of this, the park will be expanding to allow people a ride on the Hogwarts Express, head to Gringotts, and many other fanciful locations we all want to experience.
How can copywriters take inspiration from this? Copywriters can use this as inspiration to keep their product out there in different ways. You don’t have to go to the extreme of the Wizarding World, but come up with some neat ideas to let people use your product in various ways. This could also be a great time to do some storytelling with your product. Basically, anything that engages your audience will keep your product out there longer and will bring in more buyers and customers. You can also use this as a chance to recycle and repurpose old content. As you can see, the possibilities are endless.
Accio New and Gorgeous Covers!
Older Harry Potter fans all enjoy the older covers and remember seeing them revealed upon release. It was an exciting time seeing the latest artwork but now there is a new audience growing up and that audience needs new covers. Or so says Scholastic. The new covers are just as gorgeous and still capture the magic of Harry Potter but connects with a newer audience. These new covers aren’t only for the newbies though, because many old-time Harry Potter fans are finding themselves purchasing the new books just for the covers. In fact, the spines of the new books make the castle of Hogwarts and who wouldn’t want that on their bookshelf? What a great marketing ploy, Scholastic!
Gain Marketing Inspiration from the Boy Who Lived
Sure, your product will probably never reach the Harry Potter level but Scholastic and Warner Brother’s Studio can give you great inspiration. Follow a few of their steps by engaging with your clients, using your product in different ways, and spice things up with new content. Try implementing these three elements and watch your content and product soar! You’ll graduate from the realm of Muggles to the wonderfully magical Wizarding world in no time.
You’re sitting there and you have just gone through your site’s traffic statistics. You just released a snazzy new advertisement but have seen little change in the number of visitors coming to your website. You also haven’t had many calls or emails asking about your company or product. Your thoughts could be along the lines of, “What’s going on? I gave them the old razzle dazzle, and still nothing!”
Here’s a handy tip: commercials and advertisements aren’t actually going to bring in that many viewers.
Sure, they may spark interest here or there, and advertisements are a great way to get your company out there but you shouldn’t be focusing solely on that method. This blog is going to talk about how you can move your content marketing strategy away from purchasing several crazy expensive ads and how awesome copywriting can bring in customers. It is possible!
Commercials Are Expensive Nowadays
We all want to make sure we stay within our budgets and this can be difficult when advertisements cost so much. We see the prices, but we keep remembering all the marketing tips we used to hear, “Advertisements are worth their weight in gold! Invest in ads!” This isn’t the case anymore and you can actually save money with your content. You read that right, if you have great copywriting, you can bring in more viewers and save a couple hundred dollars in advertisement costs.
Chipotle Went The Extra Mile
A great example of using content marketing instead of traditional advertisements is Chipotle. We all remember that amazing infomercial they released in 2013. It told the story of a down-and-out Scarecrow who wanted his little garden to flourish into a well-working farm, but it was tough due to all the processed food business bullies out there. The video keeps going until we see this little garden grow into the Scarecrow’s dream farm and we see him setting up shop with a little cart to sell great quality food.
This wasn’t run as a typical ad on a major network like CBS or NBC; this relied solely on the Internet and going viral. It didn’t advertise anything specifically about Chipotle, it just told their story. Because of the layout of the video, people watched all the way through and were more apt to share this video with their friends online. The only time people will share a straight ad to their Facebook is if it is a hilarious Superbowl commercial, otherwise they don’t want to clog up their friends’ news feeds with even more ads. Chipotle knew this and took advantage of it. This was a great marketing strategy without sounding like a used car salesperson giving a sketchy speech.
Going The Extra Mile With Brand Marketing
Since you know about Chipotle, and have seen how successful their campaign is, it is time to consider how you can implement this into your copywriting and content marketing strategy. You are probably feeling intimidated because Chipotle has the funding to hire a great marketing agency, but you have to rely on yourself to market your brand. This is why you are sticking with expensive ads – you are terrified that you won’t get more customers if you don’t use them.
Well, let’s take a moment to look at a few ways you can implement this into your business, without seeking out very expensive marketing companies:
1. When Storytelling Becomes Your Advertisement. What we saw in Chipotle’s ad was a great example of blending storytelling and copywriting. Instead of making a commercial that sounded like something a politician would produce, Chipotle took a very genuine and honest approach by telling their story. They are a company that took a chance and made a huge decision to cut out genetically modified foods from their menus, meaning they would probably have to start charging more because this world is run on processed eateries. You can see the desperation for a healthier world and you can see that they believe the world is changing for the better. It is very powerful and inspiring, making you want to eat there more than if they simply stated their mission in an ad.
2. Web and Product Design Will Be Major Selling Points. In the Internet Age, your website and product designs must be out of this world and awesome. Great designs work incredibly well with your content, and will encourage many visitors not just to stop by but also to learn more about your company and to purchase your product or service. Learn who your target audience is and go to websites that are popular within that audience. For example, ModCloth is a very trendy website for Millennials – their layout can teach you a lot about designing for the Millennial crowd. You can also look to Accenture for a more professional, older generation look that is still quite appealing to younger generations. Just going to these websites will give you great inspiration on how to design your website. Never underestimate the power of a great design.
3. Active and Engaging Product Descriptions Will Save Money. You will find that product descriptions that are written in an active and engaging manner will save you a lot of money in advertising. A person may be interested in a product but if they do not find a great description, they’ll assume the product isn’t very good. Don’t think your product copy isn’t important and put it on the back burner. This will make a sale or break a sale, and if you treat it like it is unimportant, your customers will treat the product as unimportant, according to David Ogilvy’s tips on awesome copywriting. Focus on making all sales copy sound genuine and engage your audience. Try writing in a style that will speak to them and sell them on your product without coming across as overbearing and annoying.
Awesome Copywriting Matters
Storytelling, great product descriptions, and incredible web and product design is going to go a long way in marketing your business. In fact, it will probably go a lot further than those crazy expensive ads you have been posting and sending out. Your customers will be more than willing to share your product and services if you stay far, far away from the sales lingo none of us like to read. Try crafting awesome copywriting and an excellent content strategy to back up a handful of advertisements, and you will watch your client base grow!
Target. That wonderful, mystical land where one can buy shoes, clothes, novelty tees, movies, Legos, and food when they were simply going in to buy a crafty little graduation card. Target is a place that sucks you in, makes you spend every penny to your name, and you never feel like you wasted a dime. How do they do this? How do they bring in thousands of people a day and convince them to buy what they need and more?
Copywriting Tips from Target
Let’s take this opportunity to look at Target’s various copywriting and marketing campaigns, as well as taking a little journey through the store to see just what makes us spend all our money there.
1. All The Things! First off, Target tries to appeal to a very wide demographic from Millennials to the Greatest Generation, all while “targeting” the latest group of little ones with cute designs. They have something for everyone in their store and they know that’s what brings in the cash. However, their “something for everyone” isn’t dollar store cheap material; most of Target’s merchandise is very good quality. Many of their clothing items and shoes are even designed specifically for Target by many well-known designers around the world.
What can a copywriter take away from this point? Offer something for everyone and you will please a wider audience. Take the time to learn your demographics – you may be surprised by just how diverse your potential customer base is.
2. Epic Lighting and Easy To Find Items. Their content marketing goes beyond just their Internet and mail content – it goes into their store design. The store is one that makes every shopper feel chipper, which helps foster the feeling of needing to purchase everything in sight. The lights are bright and the aisles are laid out in an interesting and easy-to-follow pattern. Because of this, we are all ready to purchase everything we see since we can easily go through the store.
This is an incredible lesson for copywriting experts and for web designers. While you most likely will not be focusing on a physical shop, you will be focusing on the website people come to. If it is drab and difficult to navigate, people won’t stay for very long. Follow Target’s example and make your site an easy and fun experience for readers.
3. Creating Memorable Advertisements That Last Forever. Target has some of the greatest ad campaigns and many of these campaigns are ones that we will remember for a long time. For example, everyone remembers the Target dog, especially when it came to the Holiday season. Whenever you saw that dog, you thought of Target. Whenever you saw that dog on an item, you bought it.
Their latest ad campaign is called “The Everyday Collection” which features photographs that look like high fashion photo shoots but they incorporated the typical everyday items such as laundry detergent, food, and vitamins. It is very much a typical Target ad campaign filled with witty one-liners, all while advertising their product. Every single marketing campaign is incredible; just look at their 2013 back-to-school campaign and their 2013 Holiday season campaign.
The lesson copywriters can learn from this is common sense – create content that will be memorable. After you have begun creating memorable, compelling content, you will start seeing some excellent results!
4. Responding to Controversy. Controversy is never too far these days and it seems just about everyone is right in the middle of one. Target isn’t any different. They’ve had their fair share of controversy from the big security breach pre-Heartbleed to the Terry Richardson controversy. Target always takes adequate steps to ensure that these controversies are dealt with properly by not reacting immediately and thinking over the issue.
This may not seem like part of a content marketing strategy, but Target always considers how many customers they will lose if they do not carry out appropriate measures. Instead of sweeping these issues under the carpet, Target deals with them in the open. This is a great lesson for every company to learn. Your copywriting can be great, but it can only go so far; having proper responses to any controversy whether large or small will help keep your business afloat.
5. Making Things Fun and Enjoyable For All. Target is the expert at making their content strategy a fun and enjoyable one. Their commercials are always upbeat or silly, their ad campaigns in the local paper always capture your attention, and they’re just plain ole good at creating successful marketing techniques. Many times, they utilize storytelling in their ads and content, which connects with their customers.
This shows every copywriter why it is important to actively engage with your client base and make things fun. Create something that is unique to your company and that people will enjoy.
In The End…
Use Target as inspiration for how to engage with your customer base and how to have fun with your content strategy. Having fun is a huge element in the majority of Target’s marketing campaign and it sure works like a charm! You’ll start seeing excellent results if you follow some of Target’s great copywriting strategies.
The world has changed so much. 50-60 years ago, the “complete marketer” could just walk into his or her newspaper and print store, finish editing yesterday’s draft of today’s newsletter or news piece, publish and print, circulate, and that was almost their entire circle for marketing. Today, 2014 – wow. You might as well say we advance 50 years in a year, with the way online marketing increases in value, assets, tools, structure, and possibilities every single month.
There’s the online press release that can be sent to over 200,000 journalists at once via PRWeb; infographics that can be designed, created, shared to go viral; blogs, articles, email campaigns, website content, all your social media platforms like G+, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and oh-so-much-more.
Valuable Skills for Modern Marketers
With all these valuable tools and structures available, what are the crucial skills that a modern online marketing genius should (or already will) have? Let’s take a look.
1) Adaptability. Adaptability is a key skill that should be displayed by all modern marketers who don’t plan to change their profession anytime soon. Why? Take a look around. The so called complete marketer is now the 21st century version of the Homo Universalis, who basically has a plentitude of intellectual interests and is good at everything. From creating content creation to analyzing web analytics and developing and creating successful social media campaigns, the modern marketer can do it all on time and on a budget.
According to the Guardian, one of the biggest challenges that marketers face is poised by technological advancements. However, what doesn’t kill today’s modern marketers makes them stronger. The 21st century men of letters who know online marketing like the palm of their hands are able to adapt to any kind of new situation. Even when they get thrown off their routine by a sneaky algorithm update sent with love by Google, they still manage to get back in the game in no time.
Adaptability is one of the most important skills of all times that ensured the survival of the human race. At this point, all modern marketers should put this skill to good use and learn how to explore technological advancements to their best advantage. With so many tools and resources available online, their daily tasks become simpler and less time-consuming. The key is to get familiar with innovations in order to fill their digital skill gap. All in all, a successful marketer is part artist, part scientist. Once these professionals learn how to get closer to a beneficial left brain-right brain balance, their success is guaranteed.
HubSpot supports the same idea and introduces a new point of view. According to HubSpot, modern marketers should have mad coding skills. This would help them be on the same page with the nerd that is developing, maintaining and improving websites. To code or not to code?-this is the question. Even though coding skills are not considered an important part of the marketers’ job requirements, they represent a major plus that is always appreciated by employers. Why is it so important for marketers to code like a pro? Here are only a few reasons why understanding code is important:
Knowledge Is Power: As a marketer, you have to have full control over the project that you’re working on, and this means that you have to understand the basic structures that bring your blog, website or app to life. Knowledge is power and it also represents a major source of inspiration. Once you get the basics of coding, you can create your own masterpieces (new tools and apps, for instance) that could wow your customers and spread the word about your geniality.
Fix Simple Issues on Time: Do you really want to call your website developer every single time you stumble across an itsy bitsy error that can be solved in 2.5 seconds by a pro? The answer is no. Calling an expert just to ask him to resize your pictures or embed a YouTube video is embarrassing and doesn’t make much sense, from a financial standpoint. You can save time and money by learning to do all this on your own. It’s much easier than you may be inclined to think.
Gain a Competitive Edge: The online marketing industry is extremely competitive, so why not burry your rivals 6 feet under by simply learning how to code?
2)Awesome Copywriting Skills. Marketers should be talented writers. But they should also have the highest level of empathy and the ability to write for a certain segment of public. Web content as we know it should be original, informative, educational and entertaining. Therefore, all marketers should be able to create and publish content with their readers in mind. Crafting content pieces without any substance or motivation would be like planting palm trees at the North Pole. All their masterpieces should include powerful calls to action enabling prospects to act in a certain way (buy a product, subscribe for a newsletter, post a comment, test a new service and so on).
3)Superior PR Skills. According to MediaBuzz, if you want to become a successful marketer, killer Public Relations skills are a must-have. As a marketer, you have to interact with clients, staff members, brand evangelists, bloggers, media representatives and more. Your goal is to build solid relationships that will stand the test of time. You use every single opportunity to make new connections and preserve the old ones. In a world in which everybody knows who’s who and only want to work with the cream of the crop, you have to learn how to make a name for yourself, take your company to a whole new level, spread the world about your accomplishments and your competencies and fish for new clients. Obviously, in order to do all this you need killer PR skills, which are an important component of today’s marketing mix.
4) SEO Skills. Search Engine Optimization is one of those things that you can’t live without these days. SEO is just as important as oxygen for modern marketers whose mission is to improve the online visibility of certain brands, boost their competitiveness and maximize their profits. To get a certain website on page 1 in Google, Bing and Yahoo you need lots of energy, commitment and of course an understanding of SEO. You have to be familiar with all the white-hat optimization tactics that can help you reach your target. Moreover, even if imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, in a world in which people are obsessed with SEO you don’t necessarily have to flatter anyone to attain your goal. What we’re trying to say is that copying someone’s SEO plan won’t guarantee you the positive results that you are hoping to witness. You have to speak SEO and try to enhance your own vocabulary. In other words, you should follow SEO leaders, learn from their success stories and mistakes and find your own path. You can become a respectable optimization expert only by conducting countless trial-and-error processes, analyzing results and perfecting old strategies. And it at first you don’t succeed in optimizing a website like a pro, just dust yourself off and rewind.
5)Social Media Skills. Social media platforms are the favorite playground of modern marketers. You cannot think that you are working on an effective communication plan unless it is backed by solid social media marketing strategies. Social networking websites are a huge pot of gold for companies of all sizes, operating in different sectors. These gigantic platforms offer extremely attractive and affordable marketing opportunities that should never be neglected. Therefore, today’s marketers should be able to tap the enormous potential of social media to represent the best interest of their clients. All in all, whether they want to improve brand awareness, boost customer loyalty, attract a new segment of potential buyers or stimulate sales, social media networking websites are the perfect channels where modern marketers can distribute their messages and turn their objectives into accomplishments.
6) Strategic Planning Skills. Let’s face it: marketers are those busy bees who have lots of ideas and the know-how that supports all their creative processes. Marketers don’t follow the heard; they are the shepherds. This is because the really competent ones have awesome strategic planning skills. They know how to create, improve and implement even the most complex concepts and make them appeal to clients. They are able to come up with a cohesive marketing strategy, select the best course of action, indicate the most reliable back-up plans and determine the KPIs (key performance indicators) of their program right from the start. A marketer is a man with a plan, who always has a set of strategies, an exit route, a word of advice and a prediction for just about anything.
7) Editing and Video Production. Content is king, we are all fully aware of this fact. But is your king mighty and extremely influent, or is he about to be dethroned? Please allow us to explain. Content based solely on text is boring and will never manage to help you get and stay on the same page with your readers. At this point, website visitors are craving for first-class multimedia content that comes in many forms. Vlogs are increasingly popular and tend to make old-school bloggers blush. Well-crafted videos capture the attention of a larger audience and build credibility and trust. Clever words may say it all, but videos back the statement. Videos and infographics allow marketers to have the last word on any matter. These extremely popular forms of content can make it easier for you to create and distribute meaningful marketing messages that have higher odds of being analyzed and filtered by a larger segment of public. Infographics and videos allow you to become noticed and also support your optimization efforts. Killer content that is likely to interest many influent players operating in the media industry will help you collect tons of backlinks from reputable sources, which is always a major plus. Of course, you could hire someone and let an expert handle the editing and video production, but this would cost you. If you want to become a better version of yourself and save some money in the process, it is highly recommended to take on these new responsibilities and cultivate your own progress.
8) Website Management Skills. A website is one of the most powerful tools that you can rely on, to take your company and all your clients to a whole new level. A properly optimized website is clearly the most powerful ally that you could ever count on: it reinforces your online presence, helps you connect with your targeted audience, generates leads and boosts traffic. All in all, a fantastic, fully-functional website is the most valuable business card that you could ever get. Because webpages are incredibly effective lead-generation and web content publishing tools, they have to be handled with gloves. These days, having a website is not enough.
The real challenge is to create, run and constantly improve websites that are flawless from all points of view. The perfect website loads fast, profits from the best on-page optimization practices, is incredibly eye-catchy and user-friendly and attracts visitors like a magnet. Moreover, marketers also have to become fervent bloggers. Sometimes, brand that are driven by ambitious goals need to make their voice heard through a series of blog posts. Blogs are not overly adorned bedtime stories; they are extremely powerful tools used by modern marketers to interact with prospects, improve the online presence of a certain company and ultimately drive business growth. Blogs require awesome writing skills, consistency but also extensive research and attention to detail.
9) Paid Search Marketing Skills. For many deep-pocket business owners who are expecting to witness radical improvements, there comes a time when paid search marketing also comes into play. This is precisely why marketers should be able to anticipate their needs and demands and address them in a timely fashion. PPC (pay per click) campaigns are a smart investment, as long as they are properly developed and implemented. Despite the fact that they differ a great deal, based on the needs and objectives of every client, PPC campaigns comprise a few common elements, including an accurate budget estimation, a clever segmentation, powerful calls to action and suitable optimization tactics. To be able to focus on all these essential details, marketers should be able to understand how paid search programs really work.
Do you think that this is the most difficult part of the job, where the left side of the marketer’s brain is about to explode? Think again. Marketers don’t get easily intimidated by numbers. As a matter of fact, data analysis plays an important part in this equation. Real professionals should know how to interpret numbers and how to prove marketing investments via ROI. Analytical skills are extremely necessary, especially since marketers have to interpret info, evaluate the success rate of their campaign and communicate their end results. According to IBM, marketers have a huge responsibility: they have to convert data into intelligence and then turn intelligence into action. Putting numbers into words is not always easy, especially when you have 1 billion other things on your mind, but somehow the best specialists in this field of activity have everything covered.
10) Intuitive Skills. Marketers are very adaptable people. This means that the best experts in this line of business are also highly intuitive. They may not be able to take a good look at the sky and tell you if it’s going to rain or not; however, they can predict the wind of change way before it starts wiping companies off the face of the earth. Intuition put to good use can do wonders for both marketers and their clients.
Could a certain social media marketing strategy reinforce the buyers’ interest and stimulate sales? Could a certain website design change boost click-through rates? Could a certain marketing campaign idea be the secret recipe for success that your client has been struggling to uncover or a total bust? Intuition offers marketers the chance to provide the best answers to all these questions and more. Naturally, those who make final calls based solely on empathy and intuition are gamblers, not competent marketers. The really good ones don’t use crystal balls to decide the faith of their clients or to select the best course of action. They follow marketing savvy leaders, learn from the best, conduct extensive research and consult data analytics before making a decision.
Write Tomorrow’s Success Story!
These are the 10 basic skills that any competent marketer should take pride in. All in all, professionals who are on a quest to conquer both online and offline environments and protect the best interest of their clients should focus on content creation, clean, Google-friendly optimization tactics, PR strategies, PPC campaigns and social media marketing. Those who work around the clock to expand their understanding of solid data and improve their technical know-how are the ones who are writing tomorrow’s success stories.
Just so you know, this blog is also subtitled, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
Why? Well, it’s hard not to relate the entire topic here in any way to the classic 90s television show, “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?” It was such a great show and everybody loved trying to figure out where Ms. Sandiego was. Remember? What many of us didn’t realize with this show is that we were being introduced to different cultures all around the world. We were being taken out of our current setting to learn that there are people different from us. It was a great learning experience as a kid and can now be something you implement in your copywriting and content marketing.
The globe is massive and there are thousands of different languages out there, which means if you want to take your business global you are going to have to start writing in different languages. If you are wondering just how to go about doing this, then you are in luck! This blog is going to discuss how to create global content for everyone, as well as how to write in different forms of English (yes, there are different forms!).
English Is the Norm for Many
English is the standard language in the business world. All you have to do is go onto the Metro in Paris and see universities offering Business English courses to anyone interested in becoming a businessperson. However, approximately 6% of the world cannot speak English well enough to conduct business, according to the Content Marketing Institute. Because of this, many people are left out in the cold and it can even limit their ability to grow further in the business world or any other aspect of an English-speaking world.
Many people are attempting to learn English and many children learn English in their schools. Unfortunately, many countries do not have the resources to teach everyone. While English is the norm for many things, don’t rely on the fact that people may be learning how to speak and read English. You need to start considering writing for many cultures and languages.
An important note to consider is that the United States and many English-speaking countries are filled with more than just English speakers and we have to reach out to them. Some of the major languages spoken in the United States are Spanish, Chinese, French, Tagalog (Filipino), and Vietnamese. While many of these people can speak English and understand it well, many still would appreciate any content that is written in their own language.
Copywriting: Can You Write Content for Different Languages?
You can! It doesn’t have to be overwhelming or too difficult. You can actually find many people that are more than willing to help you write content in different languages. The more languages you write your content in, the more customers your business will bring in. We actually write a bi-weekly English blog and a bi-weekly Spanish blog for one company. It is a great experience and gets your product out to more individuals by doing this!
Here are a few great tips that will help you write content in multiple languages:
1. Learn What Languages Are Spoken In Your Area. This is the best way to slowly make your content go global. If you don’t write for the locals, you will have a very hard time writing for others in different countries. This is a great opportunity to learn a different language or to find someone to write in a particular language. Never assume that one language is spoken more than another is – your area might shock you. Many assume Spanish is spoken the most, but there are areas where Russian is spoken more or where Chinese or Vietnamese is spoken. Research your area and learn the most prevalent language. If you are having a difficult time finding out which languages are spoken in your area, you can always go to the US Census website and use their interactive language map.
2. Hire Local Writers to Craft Content For You. When we say, “local,” we don’t just mean people from your town, but people who know the language you are planning to use. They will know all the puns, jokes, and alliterations that can be used in that particular language. If you are hiring someone to write content in a different language for local customers, the writer will know what a particular culture sees in the community and what they enjoy.
A “local” writer will also be able to write for the search engines and help your site rank on that language’s search engine results page. Having a writer who is fluent in specific languages is the best way to adequately meet any language and copywriting needs your company will have. Put out an ad and start looking for someone to help you craft diverse content for your company.
3. Hire and Consult Local Editors. Every copywriter needs a copy editor to make sure they have met all grammatical rules and haven’t made horrible spelling mistakes. When you have a writer craft content that is in a different language, you will also need to hire an editor who can edit in that language. They will help catch any spelling mistakes that you may not find and will make sure the content makes sense to readers. Copy editors are crucial for your copywriting campaign, no matter what language the content is written in.
4. Look Into How Different Cultures Spend Their Time Online. Each culture spends time on a different site and the amount of time they spend on the Internet varies. This will help you know which social media site to use when you begin your marketing campaign for a particular culture or if Internet marketing will work for that culture. You can find many different sites that will give you information about the culture you want to reach and how they spend their time online. Once you have learned this, your new language campaign will start taking off!
5. Consider the Different Cultures You Would Like To Reach Outside of Your Home. Starting the process of writing for different cultures in your area will help prepare you for going to a global market. Start researching the different areas around the globe you would like to reach. Do you want to reach out to people living in Mexico or Argentina? What about those living in European countries like France or Germany? As you figure out where you would like to go, start looking into hiring content writers and editors that are fluent in those languages.
Writing in Different English Forms
English is an extremely varied language. Americans, Canadians, the British, and Australians are constantly arguing over who speaks English correctly as well as who spells words correctly. It is a joke in the majority of British films that make it over to America (see Hot Fuzz) and Americans constantly tease the British. It is all fun and games until we get to the content realm. When it comes to writing content for multiple sites, you need to make sure you are able to write in the English format the client expects. They will specify that they would like it to be with “British or Australian” writing and you must know what that means, in order to meet their requests. It isn’t really all that difficult.
Here are a few tips on how to write with different spellings whether it is for a British site or an American site:
1. Watch A Few Movies, Read A Few Books. The best way to know how a different culture writes or speaks English is by reading books by authors from that culture. You can read a plethora of British authors to get a feel for how they write and can enjoy watching shows like Doctor Who or Sherlock to gain an understanding of typical British phrasing. If you are one who speaks and writes in British English and are writing for an American, read writers like Chuck Palahniuk or watch American films to get a firm grasp on the phraseology.
2. Contractions: Americans Love ‘em. We use contractions throughout our blog posts as most Americans do. If you are writing for an American company, it is always a good idea to make sure if they want contractions used or if they want it to be written in a more professional way. Other English speakers will use contractions, but most of the time it is Americans who take the prize in most contractions used in a single paragraph.
Another thing to remember when marketing to a different culture, American English uses phrases like “breaking it down” which is considered colloquial and is used by many Americans. Most of the time, we don’t realize we use these until someone asks us to explain ourselves. Make sure you don’t use too many colloquial phrases if you are writing for a foreign company.
In the End…
When writing for foreign companies, it is best to have someone who is “local” to that culture so that you can write properly and market to that culture. Proper marketing skills will make your company very successful and you need to consider foreign and cultural marketing techniques for your next copywriting campaign. Get an ad out there for a writer who can write in Spanish, Chinese, or French and start writing great content that can go all over the world!
