The 7 Types of Content That Create Raving Fans
… Which is Your Go-To?
Let’s face it. It takes a long time to rank an article on Google. The longer an article is on the web, the higher it tends to rank.
According to a study by @ahrefs:
Only 5.7% of all newly published pages will get to Google Top 10 within a year.
In our fast-paced world in which we can hang a shingle over our computer and bring in customers on the same day, in which we are convinced that we are just “one funnel away” from being a millionaire, content creation as a method of bringing in business kinda sucks.
And yet, in terms of building a real business, it’s the best way to get a steady flow of online customers while you sleep (that’s the dream, isn’t it?).
You can’t raise a child, construct a house or build Rome in a day. Though my Facebook feed is chock full of “experts” who want to sell me the next “business in a box,” it’s the belief that one can be successful in a day that sends us chasing a neverending stream of “shiny objects.”
Those of us who run steady, solid businesses know that content creates raving fans. And not just any content. Studies have shown that these 7 types of content create more likes, shares, and links than any other (and why not do what works?).
1. Guides
We’ve all seen them.
The Ultimate SEO Guide for Small Businesses
The Complete Guide to Getting a Publishing Deal
When someone types a question into Google she is looking for an answer. Guides tend to provide the most thorough answers to your customer’s questions.
To write a guide that gets ranked in Google, study the guides that your competitors have already ranked, and see what these guides do well, and more importantly, how you can do it better — how can you 10x it?
Research questions your customers are asking on Quora, Reddit, and Answer the Public. Look through the table of contents of related books using Amazon’s “search this book” feature. Study the customer reviews, especially the bad ones, to see where the book failed to meet customer expectations, and fulfill those expectations in your guide.
The good news is, Google rewards longer content. Be the one to provide the best guide out there, and you will be rewarded in likes, shares and links.
2. Did Someone Say Long-Form Content?
Though it’s far easier to knock off a 500-word article, Google rewards long-form content.
Neil Patel writes about this often. And the studies support it.
The SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) don’t lie. In a study done by SerpIQ, the posts in the top 10 results are generally longer than 2000 words.
It takes a lot more effort to write a 2000+ word piece. But if you ever want to get to Google’s first page, you must.
3. Listicles
Let’s face it, people love listicles.
Listicles are articles that are written in the form of a list.
When I Google “How to start a business from scratch,” these are my results:
Or, how about this for a title?:
The 7 Types of Content That Create Raving Fans (yes, that’s THIS article).
4. Cheat Sheets
Cheat Sheets are usually no more than 1–2 pages that boil down a process to its essential steps. They often contain links within them to fuller explanations of each step. Though Google rewards long-form content, we of the short-attention-span generation love quick, easy-to-follow reads.
What does your company do? Can you drill down some of your expertise into a handy cheat sheet? Cheat sheets also make great opt-in downloads.
5. How-To’s
The number one reason people go online is to get information. Be sure your content marketing includes well-written how-to pieces that answer your customers’ most burning questions.
Sometimes businesses worry that if they give away too much information, their potential customers won’t need them anymore.
Look at it this way.
(1) Writing a “how-to” does not mean that you give away proprietary information.
(2) If your business solved easy problems, people would not need to hire you.
(3) The people who do it for themselves are not going to buy from you anyway.
6. Infographics
People love images and quick-to-consume content, and infographics fit the bill. See how you can provide useful business data in the form of an appealing graphic that’s easy to share.
You can hire a designer to this for you, someone on Fiverr, or do it yourself using Canva or Venngage.
7. Video
There are over 5 billion videos watched on YouTube per day. What greater proof is there that people want to be shown, not just told, how to do something? Be sure to include video in your content marketing arsenal to attract this overwhelmingly large segment of your online audience.
Use these 7 types of content to build your online business empire. Create content regularly. Start with one piece, and then another, and soon enough, your customers will be landing on your web page (with Google’s help) to learn about you.
Let me know in the comments which ones you’ve had the most success with.
