How to Create Content like a Journalist

Regular, consistent content creation is a stressful task. It often starts out as an easy outlet for thoughts and ideas, but that well quickly runs dry. When it comes to creating fresh content, there is no shortage of tools, advice, and blogs offering inspiration and insight – but they are often short-term fixes that only keep you going another few weeks.

If you’re looking to create content for the long-haul, consider looking to another profession for inspiration: reporters and journalists. These industries had been creating unique content for generations before content marketing even existed – they’re old hats when it comes to building engaging stories that resonate with their audience.

Here’s four ways that journalistic standards can improve your content creation:

1. Oldie, but Goodie – I’m sure you’ve heard this one before, but it bears repeating: who, what, when, where, why, and how. These are questions that can be asked about any topic that will give initial shape to the content. Although you’ll rarely answer six questions in your piece, just working through the answers will give direction to an otherwise meandering piece.
2. Find the Value – Another valuable question to answer is ‘why is this important?’ Or, ‘what value does this bring to my reader?’ This will help you get to the heart of the topic and focus on what really matters. This is a great tool when writing about company news – find the kernel that matters in the husk of details.
3. Don’t Bury the Lead – An old adage among journalists, not burying the lead means starting out with the most important information. It is tempting to put the juiciest content at the end in order to encourage reader to finish the piece, but in today’s world that just doesn’t work. If you don’t start out strong, readers will simply move on – find the most important part of your content and start with that.
4. Talk to People – Reporters are never working in a vacuum, they are always talking to other people. Getting feedback, reactions, and opposing viewpoints will always strengthen your content. Getting out there and interacting with other people will strengthen your content while also keeping an eye on what’s trending and popular. Part of good content creation means reading and interacting with a wide range of views – so don’t be shy about interacting with others.

Keeping these four tips in mind won’t make content creation a cake-walk, but they will help to give shape, focus, and readability to your content. By thinking and working like a journalist, you can write content that is engaging and drives traffic.

By answering the important questions, showing the value of your work, and interacting with real people; you can create fresh content for the long-haul and leave behind the weekly struggle for new and exciting material. With Fusion Group USA’s website and SEO plans, we can provide high-quality consistent content on a regular basis. Contact us today to get started.