- September 15, 2016
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3 Ways to Pump More Personality Into Your Company’s Content
Ever found someone so relatable, so fun or so engaging that you just couldn’t wait to hear what they’d say next? Maybe their unique perspective ignited your interest or inspired an emotional connection. Perhaps you were drawn to their distinctive style or appearance.
People with this kind of effect on others are often said to have ‘personality’– to possess a magnetically persuasive ‘it’ factor that’s downright irresistible. Not surprisingly, it’s the same trait you’ll find in today’s top-performing digital content.
If you’re an integrated marketer who’s ready to pump more personality into your website, blog or email campaigns, these ideas from veteran writer and content guru, Sarah Rickerd could help you get fast results.
In her post for the Content Marketing Institute, Rickerd encourages content creators to:
- Channel Your Inner Hemingway
Tell a good story. The push for storytelling in integrated marketing is very strong right now.
But it takes finesse to help content pop off the page. Our tale-telling tips from Tinseltown can certainly provide a creative boost. But if your prose still feels dry or drab, writer Rickerd recommends injecting a relevant anecdote. A first-person perspective can help liven up many types of content. Bonus tip: Ernest Hemingway’s pre-digital-age advice for writing well is as germane today as it ever was.
- Make ‘Em Feel It
Elicit an emotional response. Memorable stories and people can spark feelings that are difficult to forget–and often times, fun or humorous to remember. Being intentional about crafting content to elicit an emotional response–packing it with emotionally charged words, for
example–grabs your readers and compels them into action; in marketing this includes buying, clicking, downloading and perhaps most important, sharing. We took this tack in the highly shared social media post “Fans’ Touching Tweets Bring Hard-Hitting Champ to Tears.”
- Be Bold and Spacey
Remember formatting. “If your words are paint, your formatting is the canvas,” says Ricker, “And no masterpiece was ever created on a napkin.” Use of formatting techniques such as bulleted or numbered lists, varied line lengths, and appealing paragraph spacing–as well as selective use of (read: don’t overdo it) visual touches such as underlining, italicizing and separating chosen content from the rest with em or en dashes–provides emphasis and sets it apart.
In longer content, another formatting device called ‘chunking,’ as well as bolding subheads throughout, helps busy readers skim through your piece and quickly zero in on the information they want.
The art of storytelling is getting a modern makeover as a powerful integrated marketing tool. Master it now and every digital page, post and campaign will have a happy ending.
