Let’s assume that you have an expert team working on your social media and digital marketing strategies. You are also getting traffic to your website and pages. However, the traffic isn’t converting into sales. Why is that? It might be because you are unable to keep your visitors hooked with your product descriptions. Sometimes, an ecommerce business owner gets so caught up in the aesthetic looks of their products and their attractive web design that they completely ignore the value of product descriptions. Now, according to this ecommerce study, 20% of website visitors do not convert because of unclear or incomplete product information. This is how they explained it, One shopper in a recent study could not find the information he needed in the product description, so he left the site to search Google for more product information. In the course of his search, he found another site with the same product, a more complete description, and a lower price. And, that is how you lose out on potential customers. So, today, we will talk about how to convince site visitors with product descriptions. If you think that a simple piece of content that describes the product will work, think again! Read on to know about what differentiates a good product description from a bad one and how to write a description that stands out. Good vs. Bad Product Descriptions What do we consider a ‘bad’ product description? Anything that fails to explain your product to your target audience. It has basically nothing to do with the length, images, or even the words that you may use. Or at least, they aren’t as important. The goal is to explain the product like, ‘what it does’ and ‘why you need it’. Take a look at this Lululemon example: The product itself is self-explanatory and so it is okay to keep it simple. And that will work just fine as it is obvious what the product does and who it is for. In addition, the company explains the material as ‘soft, comfortable, and easy to wear’, giving you an overall idea of the tee. The selling factors of this product depend on how it looks on the model (the image quality), color options, sizes, price, and availability. And therefore, even a small, sweet, and short description does the trick. Now, let’s compare it with this SuperSnorkel example: The product does not give away anything. The only thing one can guess is that ‘is it some kind of mask?’ And that’s where the product description helps you out. The elaborate explanation of ‘what the product does, why it’s different (and better), and why you need it (for improving experience)’ has got the product covered. So, when we compare these two product descriptions, we see that: A good description explains what the product does. It offers you benefits or added value. It includes all the information needed. Now, take a look at this example from AND: It is a beautiful dress from AND (a brand I prefer to wear), but their online product descriptions need work. For instance, the only description provided for the piece above is ‘A Black Dress’, (which I can definitely see myself, but thanks). In case I want to know if the dress has a shoulder lapel or shoulder closure pattern, or even a belt, I will be at a loss. Such inadequate descriptions can make a prospect decide to ‘never shop online from this website again’. So, it’s vital to focus on writing smashing product descriptions. Here’s how you can go about it. Tips for Writing Great Product Descriptions 1. Define the Buyer If you are running an ecommerce store, you will have a specific type of target audience. Write to them. Use the language they use and tone they prefer. For example, let’s take look at these two products, Dope Taupe Pencil MacBook Air These products appeal to different audiences, and so, their tones and words are different. The tone of your product description should vary according to the audience. You can go with: Feminine or manly Economical tone or a luxurious feel Classic stance or modern up-to-date beat Youthful or mature tone Playful or sophisticated And so on… This is where defining your target audience becomes a necessity as your content will speak to them. Here are some of the basic questions that will help you in identifying your ideal customer are: Who is this product for? Whose problems are you solving? Who needs your product the most? Who will benefit the most from your product? What language, words, phrases, and tone does your target audience like to use? Why would they like to buy from you rather than your competitors? Use this buyer persona, and cultivate a strategy to write content that persuades and converts your website visitors. 2. Persuade Customers with Your USPs and Their Benefits As an owner of a business or ecommerce store, you might be excited and interested in sharing your products’ features. But are your customers interested in knowing all of them? Probably not. While your customers aren’t interested in the mundane features of your product, they want to know about the ones that can benefit them. Let’s take the product description example of this Himalayan Pink Salt Glow Lamp: See how the company has mentioned the health benefits of the lamp as well as how one can use it as a décor item – thanks to the aesthetic looks. The company also mentions it as an item worthy of gifting to someone you care about. This way, it tells the customer everything they need to know about the product, right from the dimensions, colour, and looks, to benefits, making it more interesting for them. Here are some suggestions that can help you highlight the features and benefits of your products: Encourage customers by focusing on what they will achieve with this product. Let customers visualise the idea of owning the product. Make the customer release that they need the
Month: October 2020
The Art of Creating a Content Marketing Plan in Just a Week
Content Is King – this was the title of an article that Bill Gates wrote in 1996. And what he advocated back then continues to be absolutely true in 2020 as well. However, just developing content will get you nowhere. You also need to have a content marketing plan handy. Whether you are new to this or have been using content marketing strategy for a while, revisiting the plan is never a bad idea. So, in this fast-paced world, here’s how to create a content marketing plan in just 7 days. These steps are easy to understand and implement and will help you achieve your business goals with more ease than ever before. Day 1: Set Your Goals and Objectives Let’s start with the basic stuff. Without an end goal, you may get confused and lost during the journey. And so, before you start, set a content marketing goal. To set a goal, you need to simply answer ‘What is your purpose with this plan?’ If your answer sounds similar to “content development is the trend”, then think again. You do not need to brainlessly follow what others are doing, but find a meaning behind your actions instead. Setting your goal is important to: Know what you want to achieve Understand the value you will offer Determine the voice of the content across all platforms Facilitate the direction of the content Some of the most common goals I have experienced for content marketing strategy are discoverability, industry authority, and building community. So, decide what is it that you want to achieve. Additional Tip: While defining content goals, always try opting for ‘SMART’ Goals. SMART Goals stands for: S – Specific M – Measurable A – Attainable R – Relevant T – Time-bound Here’s an example of a SMART goal: Instead of setting your goal as ‘increase blog revenue’, you can employ the SMART Goal rule and define the goal as ‘Increase blog revenue by 30% by the third quarter of 2021’. Day 2: Understand Your Target Audience Once you have a goal set, the next step in the content creation plan is to zero in on the strategy. You cannot directly jump to producing content. You need a bit of planning to start with. So, start with understanding your target audience and defining them. How are you going to do that? Step 1: Who are they? Start with defining your target audience. Get a pen and paper, and start writing about what you know about your audience. For example, if you are selling designer clothes, your audience would be ‘people looking for clothes’, right? Wrong. Here’s the problem, loud and clear. You cannot go on targeting each and everyone on this planet, just because everyone needs clothes and buys them. You need to be specific about the audience. Define if you are selling clothes for: Kids/Women/Men Casuals/Formals/Party Wear Low-range/Mid-range/High-range And so on… After all, a person whose monthly salary is around 20K won’t be interested in high-range party wear clothes that cost them 5-7K for a piece. This is why, it is important to understand, define, and target your audience. Step 2: What are their struggles? The next step for defining your audience is to understand their struggles. Only then you can offer a solution to them. Let’s go with our example of the clothing line. The struggles of your audience may include: Keeping up-to-date with current trends Colors and patterns as per seasonal change Combining accessories with their outfit styles And so on… Now, once you know your audience’s problems, you can start with content creation that offers the solutions. And this is why defining the audience is very important in content marketing planning. Day 3: Competitor Analysis By now, you should have a clear idea of what objectives you are going to achieve and brief information about your ideal customer. Before you jump in and start to create the content, make sure you do a brief competitor analysis too. Why is it important? The answer is simple – to know what is your competitor up to and what your audience likes to perceive. How you will do the competitor analysis? Analyse your competitor’s blog Check their social media profile Perform SWOT analysis SWOT Analysis Can help you understand your competitor better and prepare a smarter content plan. S – Know their Strengths and check if your quality matches that. W – Know their Weaknesses and use your content to target those. O – Check if there are any Opportunities like markets or alliances they do not serve currently. T – Understand Threats like negative brand sentiments or changes in customers’ attitudes. Day 4: Generating Content Ideas and Keyword Research Now comes the main part of getting started with the content. However, don’t just produce it yet. You know your goals, and the preferences of your audience, and have analysed your competitors. Combine all these results, and get into a brainstorming session with your team. To generate content ideas: Identify topics your audience will be interested in Conduct hot keyword searches related to your industry Explore Quora and Reddit to check what people are asking Check Hashtags and Google Trends for ideas And so on… You can use certain tools to help you generate content ideas too. Some of them are: Buzzsumo Ahrefs https://ahrefs.com/ Google Alerts UberSuggest SimilarWeb Feedly Portent’s Content Idea Generator Once you have several content ideas to work on, make sure that you do your keyword research too. This simplifies the process and gives you a breather time while producing content. And I hope that you know how important the role of keywords is in the content marketing industry till now. So, start with your research. Day 5: Make a Content Schedule Once you are done with generating ideas and researching for keywords, the next step is to make a content calendar. This is an important step that can help you churn out valuable content consistently and at the right frequency. Your content schedule will play
(Free Cheatsheet) 12 Grammar Tips for Content Writers who Pursue Perfection
Getting grammar right is one of the absolute essentials when you decide to take up content writing as a career. Oops…did a crooked red line appear under “rghit”? Luckily, Microsoft Word caught it. Still, let’s not correct it right now. We need “rghit” to show you why grammar or spelling errors can ruin an otherwise amazing piece of content (in this case, the introduction). Though close to 1.3 billion people speak English all over the world, few can master it. Even if you are a native English speaker, being careful about common grammar errors and confusing words is helpful. However, we understand that learning grammar from the ground up or cracking open a dictionary every time you write can be a challenge. To make matters simple, we will share handy tips or a grammar cheat sheet on how you can avoid basic mistakes with commas, and apostrophes, and use commonly confused words (like compliment and complement) correctly. Though you can use smart tools like Grammarly or Spellcheckplus these days to catch errors, there’s nothing like the human eye. So, let’s get started with those tips. 1. To Capitalize or Not If you think that this rule only belongs to a book like ‘Grammar for Dummies’, think again! Even experienced writers tend to goof up often. So, to clear it up, proper nouns should always start with a capital letter, be it a place, brand or someone’s name. Example – Did you try the latest shampoo by Dove? It does wonders for my hair. Example – Can you ask Mary to clean up in the evening? Now, when it comes to names, don’t confuse them with the titles we usually give to our family members, like dad, mom, grandma etc. Unless the title can be replaced with a name, start with a small letter. Example – My dad knows how to fix bikes. Example – Annie, my sister, sings so well. Also Read: Content Writing Tips For Beginners 2. Stay Away from Vague Pronouns Does the sentence below sound alright to you? “After Sonia played for almost an hour with her dog Coco, she decided to chase squirrels. “ – Who exactly decided to chase squirrels? Sonia? Not likely! Vague pronouns can distort the meaning of a sentence and leave the reader wondering about the authenticity of the content. The above sentence should have been crafted this way – “After playing with her for almost an hour, Sonia’s dog Coco decided to chase squirrels”. 3. The Rule for Common Abbreviations Do you often get confused between i.e. and e.g.? Well, you are not alone. So, we decided to keep things simple and straight in this English grammar cheat sheet: i.e. is the abbreviation of the Latin phrase for ‘id est’, which means ‘that is’ in English. e.g. is also derived by abbreviating the Latin phrase ‘exempli gratia’, which means ‘for the sake of example’ in English. Hence, wherever you have to offer examples, use e.g. Example – Choose from popular content formats; for e.g. case studies, blog posts, articles and e-books. When you need to explain a sentence in detail, you should use i.e. Example – A spider is an arthropod i.e. it belongs to the family of invertebrate animals that have exoskeletons. 4. Use Comma Only Where You Should Using a comma before “that” is wrong as you are introducing a restrictive clause with “that”. Wrong – The vase, that shattered on the floor was old. Right – The vase that shattered on the floor was old. Also, you should not use a comma to separate sentences that are independent clauses. You should use a semicolon or full stop instead. Wrong – Susan was looking for salad bowls, there were no shops selling them. Right – Susan was looking for salad bowls. There were no shops selling them. [/vc_row] However, if you have to connect two independent clauses, using a comma is advisable. Wrong – After I washed the dishes I put them away. Right – After I washed the dishes, I put them away. 5. All About Quotation Marks No grammar rules cheat sheet is complete without this tip. If you are writing in US English, full stops and commas should be inside quotation marks. In the case of UK English, they can be inside or outside. Example – “It rained last night.” (As this blog post is in US English) When you are using an exclamation point or question mark, it should be inside the quotation marks, if the tone of the quotation is exclamatory or questioning. Example – “Do you come here often?” Note that dashes, colons and semicolons must be outside quotation marks always. Example (dash) – Roy said, “I like pies” – just when his friend offered him muffins. Example (colon) – He chose his favorite book from the works of Charles Dickens: “Great Expectations”. Example (semicolon) – Dan’s favorite quote is “Live and let live”; he uses it almost every day. Confused about when to use double quotation and single quotation marks? Follow this rule. Use double quotation marks while 1) Writing a standard quote or quoting another person. 2) Mentioning the name of a movie or book. 3) Indicating irony or sneering at something (like – No “good” pilot fears heights) Use single quotation marks while 1) Using a quote within another quote. Example – The bartender said, “There was absolute silence when the customer screamed ‘This is poison!’ “ Differentiate between quote and quotation – Though many writers use quote and quotation interchangeably, they are different. Quote is a verb you use to quote someone, or to say what he or she said. Quotation is a noun used to describe whatever you are quoting. 6. Don’t Keep the Participle Dangling A sentence like “A running man hit the pole” is an example of a sentence that uses an adjective-like participle (running). It basically tells you what the noun (man) was doing when he hit the pole.
The Power of User Generated Content on Instagram and How to Use It Effectively
What is UGC? If you are a social media marketer who likes to be on top of the latest trends at all times, you have surely heard of user generated content. Such content is a powerful marketing tool to boost user engagement on social media and influence purchase decisions (in case of 90% users, in fact). The biggest reason is that, content generated by users are trusted more by other users rather than the claims made by brands. So, it’s no wonder that ads involving UGC witness 5 times higher click-through rates as well, compared to those without UGC. And when UGC meets Instagram, the concoction is truly powerful. Need proof? Starbuck’s UGC post on Instagram was preferred by 61% users compared to its branded post that was liked by 39%. Now, pair this fact with the following statistics to understand why Instagram is the perfect social media platform to leverage the power of user generated content marketing: Over 1 billion monthly active users. More than 60% users check the app once every day, at least. Every month, more than 130 million users interact with shopping posts. Conversion rate of posts containing UGC is 4.5% higher than those without UGC. So, it is easy to see why promoting UGC on Instagram is wise and can help you build deeper relationships with consumers, encouraging them to buy from you. If you too wish to use consumer generated content for your Instagram marketing strategy like some of the top brands in the world, first understand why user generated content is so powerful. Also Read: Social Media Style Guide – What is It & How to Create One? Why does UGC work so well on Instagram? Establishes authenticity – Did you know that consumer are more than twice likely to consider UGC content as genuine compared to what brands create? When real people are shown using or loving your brand or products, it will be easier for others to jump on the bandwagon. For instance, here is an adorable UGC post by Warby Parker, featuring a baby wearing its glasses! Just look at the number of likes it earned. Requires less spending – Unlike ads or fancy visuals, UGC content doesn’t require you to spend much. You simply need to request customers to share authentic content that shows them using your product or service. Even if you offer incentives like promo codes or discounts, it will cost you less than paid marketing. Also Read:- How to Edit SocialMedia Posts? Boosts trust – 70% people trust consumer reviews they see online before deciding to buy something. What does this mean? People trust other people when it comes to trusting a brand. Hence, UGC is a great way to earn customer trust on Instagram, as this Glossier post shows. Viewers can easily imagine how the lip gloss will look on them. Ignites desire for your brand – Here is one of the best user generated content examples that show how you can inspire serious wanderlust in viewers. This Instagram post from Destination British Columbia sparks desire for the brand or its image! Since the content is generated by actual tourists, the authenticity seals the deal. Encourages loyalty, community feeling and aspirations – By getting multiple customers to share their product or brand experience through images or videos, you can promote a feeling of oneness on your Instagram. Equiboodle does this very well, for instance. Such UGC posts inspire aspirations in others and boost the loyalty of existing customers. How to generate and use UGC content on Instagram? If you are wondering how to start sourcing user generated content, the good news is that Instagram offers you plenty of creative yet simple options. Here are the best methods: Just ask for it – Simply posting a question can motivate your followers to share posts that show them using your product. They will not only tag you, but also feel valued for being featured. Check out American Eagle’s direct and minimalistic approach here. Go for a unique hashtag trend – Come up with a unique hashtag that grabs eyeballs quickly and ask followers to share images or videos that show how they are using your product to match the hashtag. The hashtag should go well with your brand image or voice. Make sure you promote the campaign via emails, your website, and even YouTube videos, so that people know which hashtag to use while building their story around your brand or product. Starbuck’s #redcupcontest is a cool example. Seek help from micro-influencers – Even if you are a small business, you can try and find micro-influencers who are willing to share content based on your products or services. For instance, if you run a small but exclusive bakery, reach out to a well-known food blogger in your area to showcase your goodies. Or, if you are a real estate agent, contact clients you have helped to sell homes, and request them to share their experiences. Offering incentives like discounts on the next purchase, free products or a free consulting session might do the trick. Here is an awesome user generated content example for this. How about a contest – A caption, design or photo contest can do wonders for your Instagram marketing strategy. Keep it simple so that most of your followers feel driven to participate and share content. Check out how this contest grabs attention by promising a GoPro camera to the winner. The hashtag is crisp and the text at the bottom clearly states the steps of the contest. More tips to use UGC on Instagram Apart from using the UGC Instagram content that the above tips generate, here are some other things you can do. Also remember that users who create the content will tag you on Instagram or allow you to share their contribution in your Instagram stories. Here is a look at the different ways in which top brands share their UGC: Reshare genuine and positive content – If real people
12 Tips to Help you Whip up the Perfect Food Blog!
Are your sinful desserts the talk of the whole town? Or maybe your guests gush about the magic you do with veggies? Or maybe your friends are amazed by how easily you can sniff out every ingredient from a dish! Well, if you are planning to start a food blog, all of this will help. But it’s not enough. You should also know how to combine the right language with yummy pictures and smart recipes to get your readers yearning for more. Remember that the reader is miles away from the dish you have put together in your kitchen and cannot actually see or taste it. So, a good food blog should be able to make that experience as real as possible, so that your target audience looks forward to your every post. And in case you run a restaurant or home delivery service, such a blog will drive more visitors to your site and boost conversions as well. So, here are some tips that can help you start an engaging food blog. 1. Decide on a theme first Since food or cooking is a vast field, it will be a wise move to focus on a particular style of cooking or maybe a specific region’s dishes. You can also decide if you want your theme to be desserts, savory dishes, healthy foods, weight-loss foods or something else. While crafting content for a food blog, if you are concentrating only on South Indian cuisine, non-vegetarian preparations or recipes for those suffering from lifestyle diseases, you will quickly emerge as a domain leader. Your target audience will be well-defined as well. 2. Be aware of the latest food trends These days, readers have little time or patience for complicated recipes or a super long video. They also like knowing about the calorie count and nutritional value of different dishes. Sometimes, foodies also look for information on how to prepare a vegetarian or vegan version of a non-vegetarian dish. Or, they look for recipes that have a continental vibe and are quick to prepare for office meals. These days, many households are shifting towards cooking with organic produce too. Many people look for sugar-free desserts, energy shakes and such items. So, stay aware of the cuisines, flavors and dishes that are gaining popularity and the kind of content formats that work. For instance, simple videos that are less than a minute can work wonders. Bulleted list of ingredients and images of every step of cooking are some other great food blog content ideas. You can also include colorful infographics in your blog posts as they are easy to scan and recall. 3. Get the setup basics right If you are wondering about the technical aspect of how to create a food blog, take a look at the top hosting platforms like Bluehost, WordPress, Medium, HostGator, Tumblr, Squarespace Blogger, and Wix. If you are new to blogging, go for a platform that doesn’t require technical or coding knowledge and is easy to set up. It should also be flexible and come with various themes and plugins, so that you can customize your blog just the way you want. Also, consider how you want your blog to develop or grow in future, and if you wish to make money out of it (most bloggers do). Choose the platform accordingly. It should be secure, easy to integrate with a website or online store, and affordable too. Remember that you will need a “tasty” domain name as well, something which is ideally optimized for search engines. This will help you rank high on the search results page. 4. Design a smashing website or get help For a food blog to build brand awareness and bring in traffic, a stunning website can go a long way. If you know how to design and get started with one, great! If you don’t, you can either get help from a friend who is a pro or learn how to do it yourself. The latter option is a little time-consuming, but will boost your knowledge and you can easily tweak your site in the future too. When it comes to website designing, remember that the top hosting platforms offer a variety of paid and free themes you can use for the most attractive look. Or, you can check out famous food blogs that have great designs. To know what theme they are using, just right click on their site and view the source. 5. Make your blog functional with plugins A food blogger can use these latest plugins to make their blog search engine friendly, attract organic traffic and rank high on the search results page. After all, you want as many people as possible to find and love your blog, right? WP Recipe Maker – You can add visual recipe cards to your blog posts with this option, even if you don’t know coding. It lets you add a label for nutritional facts (in the premium version), insert a call to action, templates that you can customize, and add images or videos. This plugin works amazingly on any device. VaultPress – This plugin backs up important data on your site every day, like media files, posts, and dashboard settings. This is also useful in case of cyber attacks. Advantages include unlimited storage facility and scanning of the site for cyber security issues. Yasr – If you want to gain your readers’ trust, use this plugin. It allows readers to click and rate your recipe or post, which can build your brand value over time. The plugin lets you customize the look and size of the stars and help you to appear in Google’s rich snippets too. And this can boost your ranking. SocialSnap – With this plugin, you can embed buttons for social sharing on more than 30 networks and pick from various display options. Readers can share just a photo from your blog post easily, even if they don’t read the entire recipe. Plus, this plugin allows