Stories are shaping content these days because everybody loves a good story. Who hasn’t stared at the blank screen without a single idea? Creating exciting and engaging content can be challenging. This post will give tips to create unique content.
Know your audience
You can create content about almost anything. But, good content resonates with the audience. You win trust and engagement if you can tell the story in a way the reader or watcher feels reflected on it.
Think about who is going to read or watch your content. What are their interests and their pain points? How can your story help them? Adjust your story to align it with your audience.
Get your angle right.
Finding inspiration to write or create content can be tiring. Knowing who you are talking to and your story’s goal makes things more manageable. What are you trying to achieve here? A story can achieve brand awareness, increase conversions, or boost engagement. Craft your story with the result in mind to reflect the message you are trying to convey.
Invest time in finding a great hook
How you start your story sets the tone for everything that comes after. A good hook should catch the audience’s attention and make them want to know more. Think of creative ways you can start.
Based on their pain points, a question is “Do you have X problem? Don’t you hate when X happens? Data or statistics are also helpful.
Get personal
There is a reason social media influencers work. People love personal stories, the more personal, the better. Real-life stories drive connection. Think about how you can incorporate personal details into your story. For example, if you are writing about a healthy lifestyle and you’re a runner, you can incorporate details about how taking up running helped your health.
While adding personal stories work, you must know what to share and what not and how. Look into your audience. What makes them pay attention? Beware of clickbait. While some argue it works, it is only so in some cases. When creating video content, watch your body language, and rehearse beforehand. You can alienate your audience if you tell a personal story but barely make eye contact.
Be clear and concise.
It is easy to go off-topic when you are creating content. When drafting your outline, ask how this section contributes to the content’s goal. We have all been there, adding irrelevant details or derailing from the topic altogether. Be clear and concise. I don’t mean writing just a bullet list of points, but ask yourself often throughout the content creation process: Is this important for the reader or audience?
Try new channels
When you create content for a living, sometimes things get stale. When you feel that way, try adding new channels where to publish your content. For instance, if your blog is not doing well, it may be time to add video content. Writing a script can be a nice challenge for your content-creating skills. Try some video-sharing apps to publish your content. You may find yourself inspired by other content creators and draw interest in your blog.
Why is storytelling important for businesses?
Storytelling helps sales. Consumers like to read about other people’s experiences with the product. When creating content for a business, use cases and testimonials are essential.
Storytelling can do wonders for branding, too, establishing a solid brand image and helping the marketing strategy. But there is more. Here are three reasons storytelling is important for business:
Creates more engagement
Research by Nielsen shows that our brains are more engaged by storytelling than by numbers. When reading a story, the brain uses both the language and logical decoding functions, and we read the story as we would experience it ourselves.
Stories create human connections and build trust with your audience. When you tell the story behind an idea, the audience will probably see themselves as part of it.
It makes your business more human.
Although it is not guaranteed, storytelling has proven to increase profits by humanizing organizations. Storytelling reflects the company’s purpose and mission humanly. Organizations like Nike, Amazon, and Land Rover use storytelling to engage their customers. People want to buy from companies with a good, empathetic mission behind them.
It gives a competitive advantage.
You can win over your audience and boost your brand by telling a memorable story. A study by Joshua Glenn and Rob Walker proved that storytelling boosts sales. The researchers listed small, low-priced items on eBay but gave each one of them short stories in the descriptions. The stories were heartfelt and drove emotions. They sold each item for at least five times the price they bought in a garage sale.
Summary
Coming up with fresh ideas and creating amazing content is challenging. But with the tips in this article, you can get started. Get inspiration from other creators, change your channels, and refine your storytelling techniques. You will see a positive change.
