How to Write Epic Content

Between TV, email and social media, we’re all bombarded with so many words a day that they all blur together into a shapeless mush. It takes some truly special content to stand out from the rest. How can you make your online marketing efforts reach the most people? Make it epic. 

Stories unite us. They define us. There’s a reason why stories like the Iliad and Paradise Lost are still popular thousands of years later. Timeless stories all have three things in common: A hero (or heroine) that we like and identify with, a challenge for them to overcome and a compelling story along the way. As much as we pretend to be motivated solely by logic, humans are drawn to the emotional power of stories. fMRI neuro-imagery shows that when evaluating brands, consumers primarily use emotions (personal feelings and experiences) rather than information (brand attributes, features, and facts) according to Psychology Today.

Let’s start with a pretty basic online marketing writeup, and see what we can do to transform it into epic content that taps into emotions. I’ll use an electrician as an example, trying to promote their new 24/7 emergency services:

Do you need immediate help? We are now offering 24/7  emergency services. We service the entire Twin Cities and surrounding areas.

It’s not bad…but it’s not very interesting, either. Most readers will probably scroll past without really processing it. 

Know Your Audience

Before you do anything, you need to know who your target audience is. There’s no point in churning out content just to throw it to the wall and see what sticks. You’re going to get a much bigger return on your time and money if you know exactly who you want to reach. Picture your ideal customer: Who are they? What do they do? What do they want?  

For our fictional electrician, their ideal customer is Mary, aged 45. She and her husband both work full time and have 2 kids. She owns a home in St. Paul originally built in the 1960s. Between work and the kids, Mary is busy. She doesn’t have the time or motivation to tackle any major household projects herself, but wants the best deal she can get. She uses Facebook regularly and finds businesses by reading Facebook reviews or via recommendations from friends and family.

Start with the Why

Your customers are born out of a need. They need goods or services that your company provides. But if base needs were all that drove purchasing decisions, we wouldn’t have the wide variety of businesses that we do. For your customers, the why is much more important than the what. Carla Johnson of Type A Communications stresses the importance of asking the question of “why?” five times, to find the root cause of your customers’ needs. Let’s go back to our electrician:

Do you need immediate help? We are now offering 24/7  emergency services. We service the entire Twin Cities and surrounding areas.

1. Why does Mary need emergency services? Because her power is out, and she needs it back immediately.
2. Why does she need power immediately? Because she can’t finish the things she needs to do without it.
3. Why can’t she finish the things she needs to do? Because she has to get her children ready for school.
4. Why does she have to get her children ready for school? Because she loves and cares for her family.
5. Why does she love and care for her family? Because it gives her purpose, and gives her life meaning.

We just found our emotional core. Mary wants emergency services not only because her power went out, but because she needs to take care of her family. 

Tell Your Story

Now we know who our audience is and why they need our services, it’s time to tap into the how of communicating to them. Let’s put everything together into a story:

It’s 5 a.m. on a Friday, and your power just went out. The kids are yelling, the circuit breaker looks fine and you have no idea what to do. We’ve been there before. That’s why we’re now offering 24/7 emergency services throughout the entire Twin Cities and surrounding areas. Doesn’t matter what day it is, doesn’t what time it is: you call us, and we’ll be there within 30 minutes, no additional charge. We’ll get you back up and running, so you can get back to your day. 

Bam. That weaves a compelling story that our target audience connects with. In a sea of look-alike electricians, this stands out.

Now that you’ve tried your hand at storytelling content marketing, take your online marketing to the next level with our Never Be Boring Again BizzyWebinar on December 14. Can’t make it? You can catch it any time after broadcast on our YouTube channel.

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2017 is almost here…are you ready? It’s planning season, and we’re all looking at what we need to do to make 2017 successful. If you’re looking for ways to grow your business with fresh digital marketing strategies and tactics, we’re here to help.