How Marketing Writing Is Different From Other Types of Writing

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You’re a strong writer, but does that mean you can write marketing content for your business? Maybe. The truth is that marketing writing is different from other types of writing. Because of the differences (and the time it takes to write content consistently), it may be a better choice to outsource your content writing.

How Marketing Writing Is the Same as Other Types of Writing

Before we delve into how marketing writing is different from other types of writing, let’s talk about how it’s the same. Because, if you’re a strong writer, you may have some of the skills you need to create marketing content.

Certainly, being a professional writer for a couple of decades before I became a marketer helped me transition into this new style of writing much more quickly. Mostly because marketing writing has a lot in common with the journalistic writing I used to do and teach professionally.

Ways writing for the web is like traditional writing include:

Audience Focus. You have to know who you’re writing for when writing online. That’s the same in marketing writing as it is for any other type of writing. Who is your audience? Once you understand your audience and their needs, you gear everything about your piece toward them.
Purpose Driven. Like with any other type of writing, every piece of content marketing has a purpose. Understanding the goal of the piece is critical to its overall success.
Format. Writing for the web isn’t all that different from the journalistic writing I used to do. Design and comfort in what to expect are essential for the readers. I even ascertain that the inverted pyramid used for news writing is ideal for crafting blog posts. Regardless, you have to get to the point quickly, reel the reader in, and keep them interested by writing as concisely as possible.
Great Titles. A great title or headline is critical to getting any piece of writing noticed. The title is perhaps even more important online, where it may be the only thing the reader sees to encourage them to click on and read the piece.
Catchy Leads. But the title can’t do all the work. You have to pull the reader in as soon as they start reading, so a catchy intro is essential in all types of writing.
Storytelling. People love a good story. Even if they aren’t interested in the topic, they’ll often read further if the story draws them in. Storytelling is just as critical in marketing writing as it is in any type of writing.
Engagement. With any type of writing, your readers will only continue reading as long as you engage them. Blog writing is engaging and often casual, like other types of informal writing. And, of course, it’s written in active voice, like the most interesting writing is.
Accuracy. Accuracy is critical in any writing. You want to ensure you have your facts straight. Also, use correct grammar and proper spelling.
Excellent Editing. All good writing deserves excellent editing. Content marketing is no exception.

How Marketing Writing Is Different

It’s easy to see from the list above that marketing writing shares fundamental traits with all other types of writing. And let’s not downplay what it means to have grasped the concepts above. If you can do those things, there’s no doubt you’re a strong writer. But does that strength transfer to marketing writing? Let’s take a look at how marketing writing is different from other types of writing.

SEO Focus

Marketing writing is about catering to your audience and machines. What do I mean by this? You want to serve your audience and their needs with your content, but you can’t expect them to just find it or want to read it. Instead, you have to use SEO content marketing best practices to ensure that Google and other search engines serve up your content to the people looking for the answers it provides.

Having an SEO focus in your content means researching the right keywords to include in your content — whether you’re drafting a service page or a social media post — and writing with those keywords so your content gets noticed.

Scannable

People don’t sit down with the idea of reading the internet. While people spend a lot of time online, they don’t spend much time reading any one thing. Research shows that they spend about 52 seconds on average reading a blog post. That means it has to be easy to scan. How do you make that happen?

To make your writing scannable:

Use Subheadings. Use subheadings to build on your headline. People should be able to read the title and subheadings and get the gist of your post.
Insert Lists. Either write in numbered lists or insert bullet points to make the information easier for the reader to consume.
Write Short Paragraphs. Write in short paragraphs that break up the content. Think: one idea per paragraph. A sentence can be a paragraph online. Think about how the copy will look on a mobile device. Break it up accordingly.
Use Pull Quotes. Pull quotes and bolded text help make the information easier to process.
Add Visuals. As they say, pictures speak louder than words. Use photos and graphics to communicate key points easily.

Linking

Many types of long-form writing go in-depth to explain data, the history of a topic, or other related but not critical information. But there’s no reason to go back to the beginning of thought in marketing content. In fact, search engines don’t want you to. Instead, you add links to significant, worthwhile resources to help your readers dive deeper if they choose to do so and to signify authority to search engines.

Optimized for Discovery

Marketing writing also is different because you have to use SEO solutions on your website to make sure people discover it. These solutions include both on-page optimization, which is actions you take on your website, specifically related to the content, that help it rank higher in search. And off-page optimization, which concerns everything that happens off of your website that helps it rank.

Help With Marketing Writing

The points above aren’t a comprehensive list of how marketing writing is different from other types of writing, but there are some critical, obvious differences. You may be a great writer, but that doesn’t mean you have the time or skills to write persuasive, SEO-focused content — especially while you’re trying to run your business.

At Content Journey, we’re experts in SEO content writing, so you don’t have to be. Want to learn more about partnering with us to write and publish all your marketing? Book a call. We’d love to chat.