How do you write compelling content that attracts and engages readers? Ahhh, that question again…(followed usually by how do you turn readers into buyers?)
First, let’s deal with the compelling content thing. Your content isn’t going to market a thing if you don’t reach inside the heads and hearts of your readers.
Obviously it’s all about your readers. The better you know who they are and what they like, the easier it is to write content for them.
Use emotional words and phrases, and think about triggering their hot buttons. There are universal drives and human motivators. It doesn’t matter if your reader is a 20-year-old gamer or a 70-year-old retired professor. Human beings are all driven by hot button motivators. (See the excellent book by Barry Feig for more about this: Hot Button Marketing: Push the Emotional Buttons that Get People to Buy). Some of these are:
- The desire to be first
- The desire to know it all
- The desire for control
- The desire to love and be loved
- The desire to enjoy and have fun
- The desire for family values or feelings of moral righteousness
- The drive for prestige
- The drive for self-achievement
- The drive for power and influence
- The drive to help others
What drives your readers? How can you test your assumptions? Maybe you could push a few buttons to see what reaction you get?
Another way to look at this is to ask, “What are readers seeking?”
- Opportunity
- Security
- Freedom
- Approval
- Recognition – fame
- Revenge/something to prove
- Lost youth
- Ego-Driven…….Empire builders
- Money-Driven……Profit-motivated
- Values-Driven……Worry about what others think
Clients can’t want what they can’t imagine or picture on an emotional level. You must tell them how they will feel, when they use your services or products. Use imagery and associations. Think about this:
How is this product/service/concept going to reach out and touch your client?
How is it going to improve your client’s life?
If this seems too confusing, stay tuned. I’m going to delve a little deeper into this in an upcoming post, and explore the 4 Drives and the pain point that compels each person to take action.
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Good points. But don’t negatives, like fear and pain, prompt people to act far more than positive ones?
Barb Sawyers´s last [type] ..We were right, weren’t we–not
[...] a recent blog post, Compelling Content: What Are Your Readers’ Hot Buttons?, we explored the top 10 hot buttons and the use of emotional words and phrases to tap into these [...]
Great post. I feel the most important lesson of this post is to do the research and really try to figure out what your readers want and need. Ultimately, you’re writing for them.
Louis Slade
Email Marketing Company
[...] emotions are people seeking to satisfy online? What can we understand about human motivations and values in [...]