Hello again! You have accomplished so much; now it’s time to learn the basics of writing skills and write like a Pro.

By now you are at least a Starter member at Wealthy Affiliate. You have found a niche, built a website (great!), removed default pages and posts, and added two very important plugins – the All in One SEO Pack and the EWWW Optimizer. You have taken one of the first steps in driving traffic to your website. Congratulations!

Another important step is learning the basics of writing wonderful content to continue driving traffic and marketing your site to earn revenue. Let’s begin.

What do we Need to Know?

Well, we know articles aren’t going to magically appear or write themselves. Where do they come from? They come from you!  There’s content and then there’s quality content which is what you are going to be creating. You will make it readable, presentable, and interesting. Writing consistently is the key.

Note: You have yet to learn about keywords, what they are, what they mean for your content, and how important they are in driving traffic or helping you earn revenue. What is important to remember right now is that your articles should be written for your visitors.

But first, you need to learn the basics of writing effective, quality content. When you are ready to start writing that first great article, go HERE to learn all about keywords and their benefits.

“Without content, there is no traffic, without traffic there is no revenue.

There is a saying around the WA platform – “Content is King.” Repeat this to yourself “Content is King.”

What Makes Great Content

• Short clear paragraphs

• Interesting titles

• Larger heading sizes for each new idea

• White background with black or grey text

• Writing as if having a conversation

• Inserting an image relevant to your post in the first fold of your website

Your goal should be to show people something, not tell people. Always keep in mind your goal is to help people. They have a problem, you have the solution. Don’t try to SELL them!

Some Tips for the Basics of Writing Skills

• Build Trust

Ask yourself if the content you are writing gives a feeling of trust and credibility. Is it engaging? Is it readable? Is it knowledgeable? Is it understandable?

• Be Passionate in Your Writing

Great speakers are passionate. They use gestures, and excitement in their voices. They are enthusiastic. You are probably thinking “How can I be passionate when writing?” Well, you can be just by incorporating some of these behaviours as part of your basics of writing.

• Be descriptive, and articulate

Include sensory details, painting a memorable picture that appeals to your reader’s senses. Let your feelings come through.

• Write as if you are talking to the person

Don’t use words that you wouldn’t normally use in everyday conversation. Practice. Write a few paragraphs, sit back, and read it. Does that sound like you? Is that how you would normally talk to someone? Do you recognize yourself?

• Be interesting

To interest others, you need to be interesting. Copy the style of others; don’t ramble or just use words as fillers – this makes for boring reading; try using a rhetorical question which is asking a question you don’t expect the reader to answer, but you will answer as a lead-in to the next sentence.

• Educate – Don’t be the Dreaded Salesperson!

This is a great opportunity to educate your readers about your subject or topic. No one wants irrelevant facts – give them the benefits! There will be plenty of time to make your sales pitch after your readers trust you and look forward to what you have to offer. But for now? Educate!

• Develop Your “Voice” in Writing

As you write, you will develop a certain way of writing, your ‘tone,’ and this is important as this is what your readers will come to expect from you: Are you playful? Are you very conservative? Are you detail-oriented? Are you a no-nonsense type? Are you analytical?

Before you know it you will be writing a certain way and feel very comfortable with it.

• Add Visuals

To enhance your content use visuals that can be effective such as images, infographics, and videos. At Wealthy Affiliate, you have access to 1,000,000 (count those zeroes), high-quality images so there is no excuse not to find one that will work. Use your own wherever possible; have fun creating short videos or interesting graphics!

Different Writing Styles

Content doesn’t have to be just one long blog, with paragraph after paragraph. Let’s look at what you can do. We will discuss 7 different styles that will get you on your way.

(1) Lists

Lists are very popular and easy when you are learning the basics of writing! They are easy to absorb because they are in point form. Start your lists with a capital letter; be consistent in your formatting (for example, if you are using sentence form, use a full stop period after each point); and if you use just short phrases, a period isn’t necessary.

Give the introduction before the list about the value of it.  You can use lists in different places – at the beginning of your article to tell people what the article is about, in the middle to break up a long section, or when suggesting ideas. Include good-quality graphics/images and a strong call to action. I could have made a list here about ‘lists.’ People love lists!

(2) Reviews

A Review is one of the best ways of showing you are an authority on your subject and you are providing information that the reader is looking for. You can review books, popular products, companies who scam people, the pros and cons of a product, etc. – the list is endless. Some key points are:

• Short description of the product or service

• Name of the brand and the company if you have it

• Where the product can be found

• How the product is used

• Pros and cons of the product

• Conclusion – Why do you give it the thumbs or thumbs down
  

Again, remember the strong call to action (CTA).

(3) How-to Type

These are probably the most read and the most sought-after type of content so learning this in the basics of writing is essential. How many times have you personally started a search with “how to.” I do it all the time.

Introduce the problem and tell them you have a solution – give benefits. If you are providing a lot of steps, use a numbered list. Well-thought-out images can help make your steps clear.

Make sure you give a compelling conclusion with the main benefit and a call to action.

(4) Examples

Examples are another good way to create your content. Your value is in the example and you can show how people have used the information. Show them if you can with some well-placed images; explain benefits; go into detail. Leave them with a strong call to action.

(5) Case Studies

A case study is described as:  “a process or record research in which detailed consideration is given to the development of a particular person, group, or situation over some time; a particular instance of something used or analyzed to illustrate a thesis or principle.”

Your introduction should be a summary of the study and how it has helped your client,  the goals you hope to accomplish, and the methods to overcome any roadblocks.

This is a very detailed and specific type of article because you will have to explain the steps you took to achieve the results. Again, you will be concluding with a strong call to action.

(6) The Expert Roundup

The expert roundup post is a collection of contributions such as quotes or interviews by influential and multiple experts with authority in your particular niche. Conclude with a call to action such as asking for some comments from your readers about the contributed information.

(7) Interview

Again, another very popular style. You can get up close to an expert in your niche. You will be providing your reader with information that most people won’t have access to. You can add to your written content with videos or audio interviews.

Begin your interview with an introduction and some background about the person you are interviewing and ask your questions. Add links to relevant resources where beneficial. Conclude with a call to action.

There you have it. Seven styles to get you going. You may have noticed a couple of common threads to all of these different styles – You are offering help to your reader and you are leaving them with a strong call to action.

Note: When you become an expert in your niche – an authority figure – you will understand why consistent quality content on your site has been the foundation in driving traffic and earning revenue.

Use A Writing Platform

You won’t find a better platform for writing than the Site Content platform located in Wealthy Affiliate. You will have access to 1,000,000 graphics, grammar and spelling perfection, plagiarism checker, templates, word count, and great font sizes for your headings – everything you need to assist you in producing quality content.

Going forward, this writing platform which is exclusive to Wealthy Affiliate members will be where you will be creating most of your documents.

Proof-Read!!

This is IMPORTANT. Look, even with a platform as wonderful as Site Content is, mistakes can happen.

It isn’t just spelling and grammar. Perhaps you started or ended a paragraph where you didn’t mean to, maybe you forgot to list an item with the others, perhaps you have a capital or no capital by mistake or the wrong punctuation, perhaps your sentence makes absolutely no sense and you have to rewrite it. It happens!

Check your work carefully, or if you are still unsure, have someone you know and trust to read it for you.

Editorial Calendar

Whether you are a seasoned writer or someone just starting, I would recommend an Editorial Calendar; (simply put, it is a schedule to keep track of your articles from beginning to end (from start to publishing). No matter what your goals are – one article a week, three a week, or whatever – a schedule will help to keep you on track and meet your goals.

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing about.” ~Benjamin Franklin

Conclusion

By now you should be excited to start writing your first piece of content. You should also understand that creating quality content, consistently, with you as the authority (the expert here), is what your website needs to earn revenue.

Follow these basics in writing and you will produce content you can be proud of. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can’t do this or you don’t know where to start. Even if you only write a short paragraph a day just to form the habit of writing, I guarantee, with practice, you will be writing long interesting articles with you as the expert quicker than you think. I should also mention that if you get stuck with writing ideas, take a look at my Jaaxy Review. It will show you how to use keywords to come up with an idea to write about!

Get out there and start writing!

If you are a new visitor and have not created your FREE website, I strongly urge you to head HERE to get started!

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