Content writing means creating insightful written text.

Businesses use it to promote themselves, build awareness about their brand, or engage with an audience.  

Blog posts, product descriptions, whitepapers, emails, etc, are some forms of content writing.

This article sheds light on content writing, types of content writing, and tips for writing winning content. Keep reading! 

What Is Content Writing?

It’s the process of creating written materials for various digital marketing assets. Such as web pages, articles, social media posts, and so on.

The writer who creates such content is called a Content Writer. It’s a well-known process throughout the world with a rising demand.

The benefits of well-written content are not limited to educating the target audience but extend to –

• Optimizing websites for search engines
• Generating leads to businesses
• Creating a trusted image of brands
• Engaging target audience

What Are The Major Types Of Content Writing

Below, find the most popular categories of content writing:

1. Blogs

Content writers are highly sought after for writing blog posts. Blog posts serve as long-form articles (like this one) that usually educate readers.

Blog owners often hire professional content writers to write engaging articles.

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2. Social Media Posts

Brands often create regular social media posts to engage with their target audience. Such posts attract more attention to your business and website.

Content writing can be used to create engaging posts – to educate, entertain your readers, and promote your brand.

3. Emails

Email writing can take many forms. However, content writing is more often used for business emails and newsletters.

For example, sending important proposals to your prospects or business partners. Also, sending promotional newsletters to stay connected with your regular customers or subscribers.

4. Product Description

Product descriptions are focal components of product pages. Writing such descriptions requires proper knowledge of content writing.

Content writers can use clear and simple language. This helps them write pieces that explain what customers can expect from products. 

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5. Website SEO Content

A website’s home, about, and other pages require unique, fresh content. Especially when you try to bring in more traffic using SEO.

SEO content writing is the most needed skill to generate effective SEO content, such as blogs, web pages, and guest posts. 

A content writer uses the latest SEO best practices to write such pages. 

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6. Business Materials

Memos, reports, proposals, menu cards, and brochures need content as well. Content writing will always be in demand for such important documents and materials.

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7. E-books

E-books require a lot of text; writing them is a specialized skill. Many writers write them themselves or hire a ghostwriter to do the work for them.

In fact, businesses nowadays take the help of content writers to create resourceful e-books and case studies. 

8 Content Writing Tips

If you’re interested in writing spellbinding content, read the following tips. 

1. Research & Take Notes

The cornerstone of compelling content is thorough research. Researching before you write can provide helpful information. 

It makes your work more reliable, even if you are already familiar with the topic. 

A great copy needs your attention. Even if you know everything about all you want to write – do pre-writing research. Here are a few things you could do.

Google relevant topics

Google is your best friend when it comes to collecting data. Browse on Google to read relevant topics.

Study the People Also Ask and Related Searches to find out what your audience is looking for.

To check facts and find information, use Google. Look for trusted websites. These sites provide reliable information about different industries.

Don’t forget to take notes. Jot down the reference sites and key information you’d like to share.

Add them later in your finished piece to make it more trustworthy. 

See writings of competitors 

Others’ writings can help your creative juices flow and give you a writing spark. Moreover, what your competitors are sharing can be worth reading to understand what your audience desires.

Simply browse the topics you’ll be writing on. Note down their content outline, key information, and writing tones.

This will help you come up with outline ideas for your own piece. What to write, how to write, how many headings will be there, and so on.

Find out relevant videos + guides etc

If Google isn’t enough, try YouTube or Google video search results. To find more reliable information, check out guides, checklists, case studies, and other materials.

These are excellent ways to find credible sources and back your claims (in your article).

Watching videos and taking notes are great ways to visualize objects and learn in-depth information.

Especially if you’re writing about a product or how-to guides. 

2. Download images 

It’s not a writing thing, but it’s important for your finished piece. Images give your articles clarity. A block of text is always meh. 

Show your readers key points and examples in images. Do not add stock photos; they add no value.

Create images using tools like Canva or Photoshop. You can also share screenshots or photos of others with credit.

This not only makes your piece creditable but also adds visual interest. 

3. Create an outline 

A good outline is equal to a great article. Many new writers make the mistake of not creating an outline.

But an outline gives you clear direction. Just before writing this article, I’ve created a rough draft which includes:

• The topics I wish to discuss 
• Points that I want to mention under each topic 

Then, I used these to create a complete outline with headings and sub-headings. So this helps you-

• Hit all the major points 
• Speed up the writing
• Write an in-depth article 

4. Write original content 

Writing original content is not just a rule, it’s a sign of respect for your readers. They deserve to read your unique perspective backed by authentic research.

Your originality is what sets your work apart and makes it valuable to your audience.

You have to give your readers what they want to read. Your own opinion is backed by authentic research. Here’s what you can do: 

• Share your opinion
• Answer frequently asked questions 
• Never include false information
• Backup your claims with quotes and data 
• Explain concepts with examples 

5. Write Concise Pieces 

Filling your article with unnecessary information is not good. Before you write anything, make sure you know your audience.

Use language and tone that directly speaks to them. 

For example, when writing for senior citizens, you must avoid trendy Gen Z or Gen alpha terms.

Use words and sentences that they can easily understand. Explain difficult concepts in a simple manner.

Your articles should be easy to consume. Use subheadings, bullets, and short paragraphs as much as possible. 

6. Revise & Edit 

Revise after you write – every time! That turns your piece from good to great. It might be tempting to edit as you write, but it slows you down. 

What I do is write whatever comes to mind first and proofread after. This helps me write faster. Here are some tips: 

• Make long sentences shorter
• Use active sentences more 
• Fix typos and grammatical errors 
• Add missing information

For example, Jeff Bezos was born on January 12, 1964, he is now 60.

You might forget the numbers while writing; keep those places blank using a few spaces.

Like, Jeff Bezos was born— — he is now  –.

Simply fill in the info after you finish writing your piece. Easy! 

7. Check the plagiarism

Previously, using plagiarism checkers like Copyscape was enough.

However, after the emergence of AI, things have changed.

Even if you never use AI or paraphrasing tools, some detectors might detect that some of your content is AI-written. 

Why does this happen?

Ai detection tools are not 100% accurate. It could be your writing style that resembles AI, or it can be a complete error by the detection tool. 

That’s why you should check before sending your pieces to clients or publishing them on the website. 

Free tools like ZeroGTP are pretty helpful. They show sentences that might be AI-written ( or resemble AI ). 

8. Use Writing Tools 

Google Docs is all you need to get started. Other writing tools help make some actions easier, such as: 

• Proofreading
• Editing
• Plagiarism checking
• Search engine optimization (SEO) 

Looking for top-notch content without the stress? Our team’s got you covered! Save your time, focus on what you do best, and let us handle the writing for you. Reach out today!

5 Tools that Writers Can Use 

You’ll find many tools online that can help you write easier and better. Here are the ones I love.

1. Grammarly

Grammarly tops my list with its awesomeness. Though it can help you in many ways, I use it for initial proofreading.

I’ve installed the Grammarly Google Docs extension. It shows suggestions on your doc file.

I use it to correct misspelled words with a click. Grammarly helps you maintain consistency in your writing.

For example, you can choose British English in the Language Preference, getting tailored suggestions for your UK audience. 

I also use Grammarly Premium to check for plagiarism. The free version is enough to proofread your pieces. 

2. Wordtune

Wordtune lets you rephrase your writing. I use the Free version to rewrite lines that seem too big or odd. 

Wordtune can shorten and expand lines. It’s a great way to find a new perspective on your writing. 

3. ZeroGPT 

I use it to find out how robotic my writing sounds. It sounds absurd, but it’s the reality.

Even if you wrote something with your heart poured out into it, your piece might feel robotic while you read it.

If a tool like ZeroGPT says a piece is AI-written, think about rewriting those parts.

Most of the time, it will declare your genuinely written pieces as human-written.

You don’t have to rewrite everything it marks red. Only when it feels robotic, make the part sound more human!

4. Semrush 

Semrush is great for SEO pieces like service descriptions or blogs. A keyword research on Semrush lets you discover what people are looking for. 

Find relevant queries and keywords in Semrush and include them in your article – make your piece stand out.

Semrush’s SEO Content Template is another feature I love. Use your targeted keywords to create a template. It will suggest things like:

• Semantically related words
• Readability
• Text length
• How your competitors use the target keywords
• On-page recommendations

I also use the Real-time Content Check to optimize my articles. It offers several suggestions for improving your writing and making it more SEO-friendly.

While the SEO content template works best in the outline phase, the Real-time content check is more beneficial after writing a piece. 

5. Text To Speech 

Text-to-speech tools like NaturalReader are my go-to tools for checking misspelled words.

Use this to listen to your text; it’s much easier to spot misspelled words or odd sentences using a voice tool. 

Actual Examples of Great Content Writing

Example No. 1:

This post of Brian Dean shows a minimalistic way of writing – like his “No fluff, No filler”.

This post addresses the reader’s problem right in the beginning, offers solutions, and ends with a simple call to action.

That way the readers know what to expect and do next.

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Example No 2:

Take a look at this product copy—it’s short and punchy! It starts with a grabbing headline, talks directly to its ideal audience—

“those who are under content pressure and living in daily stress“ 

Moreover, it tells them what are the benefits of this tea. 

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Example No 3:

When it comes to catchy titles, Buzzfeed sure beats others. Take a look at their article headlines. These titles are detailed but attention-grabbing.

They are also filled with sensory and power words that make the reader want to click them right away! 

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Example No 4:

Let’s analyze this blog from Semrush. They have a unique way of writing informative blogs that are easy to read.

“What is SEO” section explains the topic in the easiest way possible. 

Rather than providing standard definitions, they explained to the readers the concept of SEO and the outcome one could expect when implementing SEO on their website.

They used small paragraphs and short and simple sentences as much as possible. 

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Example No 5:

An article from Investopedia has a Key Takeaways section. It gives readers a clear idea about what the article is about! 

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Is Copywriting the Same as Content Writing

Definitely not! Copywriting and content writing focus on different skill sets. Yes, there might be some similarities, but they’re not the same thing! 

Copywriting skills help you persuade your reader to subscribe to your newsletter, shop for your products or services, or book a consultation.

It’s an art of persuasion that encourages readers to take an action ( any action is good ). 

Content writing, on the other hand, focuses more on educating readers. Such skills help readers learn about a topic or a brand or share news with them.

It could be writing a blog (informational posts) to tell your readers how to wash their car. Or sharing the mission or vision of your brand—content writing has many faces! 

Looking for top-notch content without the stress? Our team’s got you covered! Save your time, focus on what you do best, and let us handle the writing for you. Reach out today!

Types of Content Writing & Copywriting 

Short-Form Copywriting

• PPC ads
• Cost-per-mille (CPM) ads
• Social media ads
• SMS ads
• Sales emails

Long-Form Copywriting

• PPC landing pages
• Product pages
• Website sales copy

Short-Form Content Writing

• Social media posts
• Email newsletters
• News articles

Long-Form Content Writing

• Blog posts
• White papers
• E-books
• Tutorials
• Evergreen articles
• Case studies

Is It Possible To Use Copywriting And Content Writing In The Same Content?

Yes! For example, writing a case study of your brand can involve both content writing and copywriting techniques.

Let’s say while creating the outline, you could use copywriting and organize the parts in a way that better compels the readers!

In addition, content writing techniques can be used to:

• Proofreading articles
• Making articles easy-to-read 
• Making content SEO-friendly

You can also use copywriting and content writing in the same marketing strategy, wherever they fit.

For example, you could hire content writers to write blog posts and copywriters to create engaging social media posts.

Conclusion

To summarize, content writing is about sharing your message clearly and making it fun to read.

Simply putting words together without originality or value for readers is not content writing. It is just creating a jumbled mess.

Countless guides are out there for learning content writing. New writers, marketing managers, and brand owners should dig more into content writing.

This will help them write content that is irresistible to read! 

Looking for top-notch content without the stress? Our team’s got you covered! Save your time, focus on what you do best, and let us handle the writing for you. Reach out today!