5 Tips to Ensure Your Content Is Useful

1. Bottom line up front (BLUF): The key takeaways of the article should be at the top, ideally in the introduction.

2. No fluff: Keep the information density higher. No one likes to read things they don’t need.

3. Best: Outperform the competition. At least the ones on the first page of Google search results.

4. Real: The content should come from you. Your audience isn’t interested in some inauthentic or generic crap.

5. Pretty: Format it well. People have little time. They usually scan through articles and go on with their lives.

In the rest of this chapter, I’ve explained how you can employ the aforementioned tactics effectively when writing articles.

1. BLUF

Every article (prose-type) can be distilled into a few sentences. Those few sentences should welcome your readers when they view the blog post. This helps them validate their decision to click on your link because what’s promised in the title is right there.

Of course, not every article can have a BLUF-ed introduction like this one. In some cases, it’s a couple of paragraphs.

Whenever you are about to write an article, ask yourself, “If I have my reader’s attention for 30 seconds, what should I say?”

Because that’s what they really have. Initially. Most netizens scan through an article or any piece of digital content to determine whether they should invest their time and cognitive energy into it. That lasts for about 30 seconds.

If you provide the central value in the introduction in a succinct manner, chances are they’ll read it and get hooked. Moreover, to enhance the efficacy, try to use “power words,” such as profanity and edgy opinions to reel them in. Use their lizard brain for your gains. Game is game.

2. No fluff

We’ve all been in meetings that could’ve been emails.

Imagine how your readers feel when you make them go through 1000 words to find wisdom that’s worth a couple of lines.

As a content writer, less is always more. If you can relay a message in fewer tokens, you are a better communicator. You demand less of your audience’s time. They’ll find you more engaging because the knowledge density is higher.

Doing this can be tricky at times. For instance, Google rewards longer articles. 

A simple solution is to write on topics with deeper scope. Simple topics translate to short articles, which are good for personal blogging or social media but may not give you the best results in search.

Think your articles through. Make it as short as possible. If it’s too concise for your liking, expand the scope of the title.

Now, in a professional setting, things are slightly different. Sometimes, you are given a title and must hit a specific word count. In such scenarios, I suggest adding examples and explaining them in the context of the central idea.

You can also insert additional sections, such as TLDR and FAQs, to beef up the draft. Exercise caution because, as I mentioned earlier, people hate reading things they know they don’t need.

3. Best

The goal of a content writer is to steal readers away from the competition. You’ll fail to do that if your drafts are subpar. There are no workarounds, no hacks, no tricks, or gimmicks. Do in-depth research like a professional and smoke the competition.

And it’s simple.

Search your title on Google and other research tools to find the top blog posts. Then, check them out to realize their scope. Now, when you start your writing process, include everything they’ve written and more.

Besides the depth, you can also improve your content’s perceived value by including visuals, such as images, infographics, and videos. These assets are attention magnets.

Additionally, you can enhance the tone, readability, and flow of the piece to increase its value further. People love articles that they can easily understand over information-rich pieces that go over their heads.

Various elements of crafting the “best” draft come with time. Don’t worry. Just write 1000 words per day and you’ll be there in less than two quarters.

4. Real

Think about every piece of content you’ve ever consumed. You can’t. However, you do remember some stellar creatives, be it a movie, YouTube video, or an article. 

What makes them memorable?

Authenticity.

Most articles don’t get read. Most podcasts don’t get listened to. Most videos don’t get viewed. 

I am not just talking about poorly produced content. There are plenty of pieces with high production quality that simply fail to resonate with the audience. And that’s because they follow a pattern — the pattern of mediocrity.

The internet is filled with such content. Many creators, including writers, mimic the framework of viral creatives with the hope of hitting similar numbers.

Plenty of writers don’t shy away from straight-up rewording someone else’s work or refurbishing AI-generated slop to make their jobs easy. They do pass the plagiarism tests but fail the vibe check.

Look, it is evident that you can’t spice up every article, especially if it goes out to a professional or academic audience. However, you can bank on your creativity to relay the information in a unique way. 

Yes, most articles on similar topics appear identical, but some drive readers away and others earn loyal followers. 

Content writing is hard. You have to conduct in-depth research, clear your mind, understand the concepts, and churn the words out. Since you are already going through all this, might as well keep it real, it will help your career a lot.

Saving a few minutes only to produce a mediocre draft at the end serves no one, especially your pockets in the long run.

5. Pretty

The last element focuses on making the overall reading experience aesthetic. The font size, organization of the sections, navigation within the article, and blog design play a crucial role in retaining your readers.

From a writer’s perspective, break big paragraphs, prefer bullets over prose, and use tables when comparing two things. These practices help your audience to discover the key takeaways quickly, earning their trust for the long term.

The most important thing here is to keep things simple. Put yourself in your readers’ shoes and ask yourself, “Is this ugly?”

Wrapping up

Don’t focus on all of the above tips at once.

Start by writing the best article you can. The next step is to tweak the introduction so it fits the BLUF philosophy. Then, you can make subtle or not-so-subtle edits throughout the draft to refine it accordingly.

Content writing is an artistic endeavor. Improvement comes with iterations. No artist has churned out the perfect creative on their first try. Stay patient. Keep pushing.

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Next Chapter: Good Content vs Great Content

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Index (Prologue): What is Content Writing