Series Post #13: What is Content Writing? PLUS 3 Tips for Beginners

Welcome back to another post in the Series: How to Earn Passive Income with Affiliate Links as a Writer!

Last week, we wrapped up our section on copywriting with SEO basics for writing copy. Today we’re talking about a different kind of online writing– content writing.

So you may be wondering– if this series is all about earning passive income with affiliate links, where’s all the stuff about affiliate links?! Patience, young padawan, we’re getting there.

But, before you write content, you need to know SEO basics and practice using it in copywriting for your site. Before you start writing copy, you need to know how to build your site… See where I’m going here?

Today we’re getting closer to talking about affiliate links by learning all about content writing (spoiler: this is where you’ll use the majority of your affiliate links). Ready? Let’s get started!

What is Content Writing?

Understanding the difference between content writing vs copywriting is the first step to defining content.

Copy is writing that sells. It’s a way to market a business or individual using words the niche audience will latch onto.

Content is writing that engages.

The purpose of content is to start a conversation with its audience. That means good content should have an audience in mind. This is where all that niche audience research we did earlier in this series will come in handy.

Here are a few examples of content writing:

• blogs
• articles
• reviews
• listicles
• press releases
• digital whitepapers

Content writing occupies a wide range of writing styles. But they all have one thing in common– they engage with a specific audience with the intent of keeping readers coming back for more.

Content Writing Tips for Beginners

Now that you understand what content writing is, check out my top 3 tips for beginner content writers. And stay tuned next week for an in-depth breakdown of how to write good content.

1. Research

Content should be well-researched. Here are two types of research you need to know to write good content.

Keyword research

You should do keyword research before you even decide your topic. Sometimes, keyword research helps decide your topic for you.

That’s because keyword research tells you the things your audience is searching for and the terms they’re using to search for them.

Topic research

Once you have your keywords, you should have a good idea of your topic. Now you need to do a little research on that topic to see what’s already online and what’s not.

This is a lot like niche research in that you should be looking for the tips and topics your audience wants that no one else is talking about.

2. Make it Skimmable

Content should be skimmable. Online viewers don’t want to read every single little word on the page. They want content that’s easy to skim and easy to understand, even if they only read the subheadings.

Here’e how to do that in your content:

• Use images
• Use bullet points and numbered lists
• Use subheadings
• Use bolded SEO keywords
• Use links to your own and others’ content

Part of making your content skimmable is editing and proofreading until its error free.

3. Edit and Proofread

Content should be error-free and grammatically correct. This is extremely important if you want to be taken seriously as a content writer.

That’s because grammatical errors and missing words make your content harder to read. They also make it look like you don’t care about the content you write.

When you’re a beginner, you’re still learning the ins and outs of editing and proofreading. That’s why I suggest beginner content writers use Grammarly.

Editing software like Grammarly doesn’t just make your writing polished, it also helps you learn how to write better first drafts. The more you see the errors you make in your drafts, the more you’ll be able to fix them on your own in the future.

Want to know more about Grammarly? Check out their free and premium plans.

So there you have it! Leave a comment and let me know what kind of content you want to write. Happy writing!

Want More?

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Why Freelance Writing is the Best Career for Introverts

How to Earn Passive Income with No Money Upfront