In content marketing, content quality still reigns supreme

Introduction

Almost 329 million terabytes of data are created around the world on a daily basis. More than half of this is video; another 35% comes from gaming, social, messaging, and web browsing.

Considering the sheer volume of data being pumped out online every day, your brand's content is like a single raindrop falling into a vast ocean. What can you do to make sure it still gets noticed?More than ever, the most important question for marketing leaders is: how do I stand out from the crowd? With AI gaining ground, the challenge of standing out is becoming even more prominent. When everybody is using AI to write content, nobody stands out. Reach is something you can buy.

If you want attention, that's something you have to earn. Tactics like keyword infusion and link building make it possible to pay, at least in part, for your content to attract more viewers. But your discoverability (for example, in Google Search) increasingly depends on your content's ability to capture and retain attention and drive desired actions.

That means the future of online visibility depends on the quality of your content. 

And this brings us to the second question facing CMOs and other marketers: how am I going to create quality content at scale? First, let’s establish what quality is.

What is quality?

According to the Oxford Dictionary, quality is “the standard of something as measured against other things of a similar kind; the degree of excellence of something.” This means that quality is relative. If everything was of the highest quality, then there wouldn’t be any standard of quality at all.

Most people think that Sonos speakers, connected with Bluetooth and streamed via Spotify, provide quality sound. Objectively, you can argue with this. Spotify restricts the sound quality of songs, as does Bluetooth. But, it doesn’t matter. Quality is in the eye of the beholder. It’s subjective.

If your target audience finds your content better, more useful, and easier to find than other available content, then we're talking about “quality content.”

What is quality content?

There are several different aspects that make up the quality of content: 

• It has to bring value to your audience.
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• It has to be easily readable and understandable.
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• It increases your brand value.

Quality content brings value to your customers

To create quality content is to bring value to your target audience. For example, let’s say you are in the travel industry and you are selling tickets to museums worldwide. You want to target tourists interested in visiting museums in Amsterdam. So, you write a blog post about the best museums in Amsterdam. A quality blog post would look like this.

This article provides information about the museum while also speaking to the unique perspective of the tourist. The writer provides valuable insights, suggestions for where to eat, and useful advice like “make sure to book ahead.” In other words, the blog post brings value to the target audience that goes beyond the obvious.

In this case, the experience of the writer makes the difference. They know from their own experience that showing up at the museum without booking in advance is not a good idea. 

Quality content is easily readable and understandable

Readability is a much-overlooked factor when it comes to content quality. It determines how much people will engage with your content as well as how long they will stay on your page. Your content should be scannable and easy to read, technical factors like these determine how readable your text is, while creative factors affect how interesting your story is. A text that is very readable but boring still loses a lot of readers. Most of the time, people only focus on the technical aspects.
There are several ways to measure readability. The Flesch-Kinkaid Grade Level Formula is a common method. It assesses your content by determining the minimum U.S. grade level required for easy reading and comprehension. For example, if your text scores a 6, it indicates that individuals with reading comprehension at or above the sixth-grade level (age 11) can easily understand your content.

Write for an eighth-grade level

Technical aspects of content focus on how difficult a piece is to read and whether your sentences are not too long. Most readers understand information at an eighth-grade reading level. Correct spelling and grammar are also essential elements. 

Any well-crafted text is devoid of spelling errors. But this alone does not ensure quality writing. Spelling proficiency merely scratches the surface of what comprises a high-quality text. With the aid of numerous tools like Grammarly, Microsoft Word's spell check, and online resources like Reverso.net, even mediocre writers can spell correctly.

The structure of the text is another technical aspect. How are the sentences and storyline put together? Does the author avoid passive voice and create concise sentences? Does each sentence start with a clear subject? Evaluating a text's quality means remembering details like these. Still, they represent only a fraction of what constitutes overall excellence. The pivotal factor is creativity.

Creativity is the game changer

Content that lacks creativity merely repeats tired clichés and unoriginal ideas. Creativity determines whether your text captivates its audience or falls flat. This fact of life is a major challenge for content marketers, particularly in B2B sectors where crafting engaging content on seemingly dry subjects like IT and legal matters is paramount.

What exactly is creativity?

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If you want your content to resonate with your target audience and elevate brand awareness, creativity is the key. Your content should evoke vivid imagery, provoke thoughts on unexplored topics, and surprise or challenge your readers. Most of all, it needs to be original and present a unique and ownable point of view. If you want to describe something, it is better to use a metaphor or a story to illustrate your point than simply to write it out. Using words to describe abstract concepts in concrete terms lets you create interesting visual landscapes inside your readers' minds.

When brainstorming topics for whitepapers, blog posts, or articles, step outside your comfort zone and embrace creativity. Take some advice from the great 19th-century playwright Anton Chekhov: “Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.”

Quality content increases your brand value

When your content lacks quality, it hurts your brand. If you are a law firm publishing content about new legislation that is relevant to your audience, the information has to be correct. If you create content with AI, then your story may contain factual errors. AI still suffers from a lot of hallucinations. That means it spews out content that sounds plausible but is factually inaccurate. If you publish this on your website, it can not only jeopardise brand safety but also get you into legal trouble.
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Sloppy brands

Besides factual errors, spelling and grammar mistakes in your communications also hurt your brand. They make your brand look sloppy or, even worse, careless. One well-known example is the spelling mistake that clothing giant H&M made on their t-shirts with a Thomas Edison quote: “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” The t-shirt read: “Genious is one percent inspiration & ninety nine percent perspiration.” A minor spelling mistake, but not exactly a stroke of genius, especially considering the subject matter.

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Even on a smaller scale, spelling and grammar mistakes on your website make your brand appear less trustworthy. Research from 2022 concluded that almost 45% of website visitors in the US think that the level of correct use of grammar reflects intelligence. Incorrect grammar has a strongly negative impact on your brand's image. Especially key aspects like professionalism, credibility, and expertise.

Scaling quality content

Content scaling means expanding your content marketing efforts to produce more high-quality content without exponentially increasing your resources. The key to effective scaling is to “work smarter, not harder.” It's all about maximising the impact and return on investment (ROI) of your content marketing strategy.

Content scaling involves many techniques and strategies aimed at expanding your content’s reach, engaging with diverse target groups, and establishing your brand as an authority within your industry.

Why scaling content is important

Scalability is crucial as it allows you to reach a larger audience and generate more leads without exponentially increasing your investment. Once you've created a single piece of content, you can amplify its effect by modifying it, repurposing it, and promoting it across various channels. This enables you to achieve more with less. 

Content scaling is one of the most potent tools in your marketing toolkit. It deserves plenty of time, effort, and resources. How do we know? Below are some of the key benefits of content scaling that we encounter when working with fast-growing brands every day.

1. Increase your brand awareness

Content scaling lets your brand extend its reach, capturing new and previously untapped audiences while growing its online presence. As your content reaches a wider audience, your brand gains visibility. This increases brand awareness and gives you a competitive edge. As your content portfolio expands, your brand becomes synonymous with expertise, trustworthiness, and relevance, positioning it as your target audience's preferred choice.

Pro tip: Enhance brand awareness by repurposing and updating high-performing content to keep it relevant and engaging.

2. Better SEO performance

Search engines prefer fresh, relevant content. Scaling your content provides more opportunities to target keywords, address user queries, and rise in search engine rankings. Enhancing your content's SEO performance leads to increased organic traffic. This means your content is attracting potential customers who are actively searching for your products or services.

3. Enhanced user experience

Scaling your content caters to a broader range of audience interests and needs. This enriches the user experience on your website. As a result, your visitors are more likely to discover valuable information that resonates with them, so they're more engaged and eager to explore your brand.

Pro tip: Create an editorial content calendar to maintain a consistent and user-friendly content experience. Short on time to create one? No worries. Download our free editorial content calendar template here!

4. Increased lead generation

Content scaling attracts more visitors while also converting more of them into leads. With a rich content portfolio, you can tailor content to different stages of the buyer's journey. This positions your brand as a valuable resource and boosts lead generation even further.

Reach can be bought, but attention must be earned

You only have one chance to make a first impression. So, when you finally have the chance for your target audience to read your content, make sure you capture their attention. 

Whenever your target audience does a Google search to find information or learn about products and solutions, they want to find what they are looking for. So, it's important to make sure your content is created for your target audience – not for the Google bot. By creating engaging, reliable content, you'll earn your audience's attention, and you'll find yourself ranking higher in Google.

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