- Feb 19, 2016
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Before you start: This guide contains 1700 words, so it's going to be a long read.
Whether you’re a webmaster trying to populate his site with new content or a writer who has to write about a topic of which he has never heard before, doing proper research is critical if you want to create a compelling article that your website/client deserves.
Yeah, sure, anyone and their grandma can write about dogs and gadgets (or do they?), but what if you have to write about “The Quickest Ways to Have an Orgasm Using the New Virgin Destroyer X5000 Dildo” or “How to Kill Somebody and Hide the Body with a Mattress and Some Water”?
You don’t want people opening your article, scrolling through it, and calling bullshit right away. That’s a quick formula for failure.
Don’t mess up, do your research, and no one will notice that you’re new in the field with no background about the subject.
This especially applies if you’re a new content writer hunting for new clients. You don’t wanna fuck up so early in your career, especially if you’re planning to turn writing into a living.
How? Simple, follow the following 4-step process, and you’ll be able to write fantastic, authoritative, well-researched masterpieces about any subject:
1. Set Your Content’s Goals
What people don’t understand is that there’s a huge difference between content writing and copywriting. The first involves blog posts, informative articles, or any piece of content that’s aimed at enticing and entertaining the readers, while the second has a direct marketing or promotional goal.
Yes, I used DIRECT while referring to the copywriting.
Why? Because even informative blog posts have a marketing goal, but it isn’t as obvious (Adsense? Internal linking? Ranking? You know what I’m talking about)
Copywriting, on the other hand, aims at selling something to people or encouraging them to submit their email or perform some action.
So, back to our topic. The first thing that you need to do in your research phase is determining the end game of your client’s (or your) content.
What will that piece of content be used for? Will it be published on a website? Printed for offline use? Is it a sales copy? Is it an informative article? A guide?
Once you take care of that, get as much information about the target audience as possible.
Hate to break it to you, but Wikipedia isn’t what you’d call a reliable resource. Why? Because it has so much information about so many topics that you cannot really determine what’s accurate and what’s not, and it can be biased in some - actually many - instances.
You can quote Wikipedia now and then, but don’t use a site that theoretically anyone can edit in something as serious as writing a 500-word article for $100. Remember, you still need to impress that new client and turn him into a lifetime money machine (Sorry, clients).
Now, Wikipedia isn’t totally useless. It can give you a pretty good idea about any subject, and the fact that every wiki page links to similar related information can be beneficial.
What you really should look for in a Wikipedia page though is the “Citations and References” section at the bottom though. That’s Wikipedia’s most important obvious (yet so hidden) gem.
Once you get a grasp of a subject through Wikipedia, you need to move on to more serious research. The resources that you’re gonna need will differ depending on the theme of your content.
If your article is about potty training one’s kids, you need to find authoritative parenting sites and blogs ( http://www.naturalchild.org/ and http://www.ahaparenting.com/ are good examples), as well as relevant parenting books.
If you need to prepare the homepage for a travel agency’s website, you need to find what’s trending in the travel world by checking the latest influencers’ social media profiles (Not a proper resource, but it’ll give you a clearer idea about what you should write about), reading recent articles from authoritative blogs ( such as http://www.expertvagabond.com/ and http://www.joaoleitao.com/ )
If you’re writing about a medical condition or issue, do your most thorough research for the sake of writing ethics. Check every relevant, authoritative medical report you can put your hands on, along with official government sites and medical studies (that you can find on http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/ or http://omnimedicalsearch.com/ for example). For real though, if you’re writing a medical subject, make sure that your resources are accurate and that your research is organized and neat.
Looking for what’s trending can be really beneficial, so make sure to check recent, relevant press releases (https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/) and social media sites/posts.
I also recommend checking REDDIT. There’s a subreddit for everything (I see you smiling creeply in the corner, r/mlem and r/birdswitharms), so you can easily find what your prospect audience is talking about at the moment. Yeah, Reddit is great.
One final note, if you can have an interview with an expert in the specific field you're researching, do not hesitate to do it, as that will make your content even more authoritative.
PS: I bet you noticed that I’ve been repeatedly using the word authoritative throughout this section. Well, I’ve done it on purpose, so don’t bother to complain about repetition, fellow Grammar Nazis. Besides the apparent relevancy and authority mentioning those authoritative sources would give you, linking to those sites is beneficial for SEO purposes, but that’s a tale for another day.
3. Set a Research Plan
Now that you have a list of all the resources you’re going to use, it’s time to establish a research plan. What, did you think that we were gonna read through all that without proper organization? Silly you, if you want to be a successful content writer, it’s time to start taking your research seriously.
Don’t let the term plan turn you off or discourage you though; it’s not like we’re building a rocket or something. You simply need to visualize (or write down) how you’re going to get the most out of your resources.
Using Google for the research? Make sure to skim through the first search results (which are really similar most of the time, thanks to you, marketers fighting for the first position (no judging)), the last search results, and some random pages in the middle.
Why? Because those random pages can have some outstanding pieces of information that can hugely benefit your content, but their owners don’t have enough budget to get them on top of the SERPs.
While you’re doing so, make sure to write down every relevant piece of information along with the link for later reference. As mentioned above, the priority goes to the authoritative sources for accuracy and SEO purposes.
Also, if you’re writing about a controversial topic, take a look at the opposite point of view/perspective so that you can include counter-arguments and open a healthy, relevant discussion with the readers.
If you’re writing an article for a high-ticket client, make sure to take that extra step and interview some people with expertise.
Writing a blog post about a beauty procedure or product? Look for some well-known beauty experts that you can interview either personally or through the internet.
Writing an article about the best places to visit in the Maldives? Contact famous travel bloggers and experts.
If you do decide to go with interviews, it’s essential to prepare a list of relevant questions that you can ask the interviewee and the subjects that you need to cover so that you don’t run out of time while talking about your grandad’s adventure when he was into hookers.
I can’t give you an exact checklist of what you have to do as this is a case-dependent process, but you get the idea.
Remember, take your time depending on how specific and complicated the topic is and how fast of a learner you are, and focus on QUALITY rather than QUANTITY.
4. It’s Writing Time!
Yes, it’s finally time to crack your fingers and start the writing.
What’s left for you to do is take that pile of information that you assembled and filter it depending on the length of the piece, how much information must be included, and what sub-topics must be covered.
Four critical points here:
While the above steps may seem obvious to some of you, my heart still aches with pity for the readers every time I see an article that’s poorly researched or someone complaining about the poor quality of the content they received from a writer.
My content may not be the best in the world, but I take pride in the quality I provide, and I feel confident enough to share the process I follow while writing every piece of content. I hope the above info can help some of you, webmasters and content writers.
If you’re an aspiring writer, please do your proper research before starting the writing process. Your clients (and your future self) will thank you.
If you’re a webmaster, remember that your readers expect quality, so keep that in mind when you’re preparing your articles/copies.
Keep in mind that I’m addressing content writers that treat this field of work seriously, not those who are in for a quick buck.
You can’t expect much if you’re paying $2 or $4 per 1000 words. You always hear it, but here I am repeating it once again: you get what you pay for.
PS: Let me know if you want more writing-related posts/guides, I’d happily share some of the processes and tips that I learned during my content writing/copywriting journey.
Whether you’re a webmaster trying to populate his site with new content or a writer who has to write about a topic of which he has never heard before, doing proper research is critical if you want to create a compelling article that your website/client deserves.
Yeah, sure, anyone and their grandma can write about dogs and gadgets (or do they?), but what if you have to write about “The Quickest Ways to Have an Orgasm Using the New Virgin Destroyer X5000 Dildo” or “How to Kill Somebody and Hide the Body with a Mattress and Some Water”?
You don’t want people opening your article, scrolling through it, and calling bullshit right away. That’s a quick formula for failure.
Don’t mess up, do your research, and no one will notice that you’re new in the field with no background about the subject.
This especially applies if you’re a new content writer hunting for new clients. You don’t wanna fuck up so early in your career, especially if you’re planning to turn writing into a living.
How? Simple, follow the following 4-step process, and you’ll be able to write fantastic, authoritative, well-researched masterpieces about any subject:
1. Set Your Content’s Goals
What people don’t understand is that there’s a huge difference between content writing and copywriting. The first involves blog posts, informative articles, or any piece of content that’s aimed at enticing and entertaining the readers, while the second has a direct marketing or promotional goal.
Yes, I used DIRECT while referring to the copywriting.
Why? Because even informative blog posts have a marketing goal, but it isn’t as obvious (Adsense? Internal linking? Ranking? You know what I’m talking about)
Copywriting, on the other hand, aims at selling something to people or encouraging them to submit their email or perform some action.
So, back to our topic. The first thing that you need to do in your research phase is determining the end game of your client’s (or your) content.
What will that piece of content be used for? Will it be published on a website? Printed for offline use? Is it a sales copy? Is it an informative article? A guide?
Once you take care of that, get as much information about the target audience as possible.
- Who’s gonna read that content? Experts? People looking for knowledge? People looking to buy or sell something?
- How will they read it? On a webpage? Social media post? In an email? In a printed poster?
- When will they read it? Tomorrow? The day after? Years from now? When SEO dies (aka never)?
- Are they required to do perform any action after reading the content?
Hate to break it to you, but Wikipedia isn’t what you’d call a reliable resource. Why? Because it has so much information about so many topics that you cannot really determine what’s accurate and what’s not, and it can be biased in some - actually many - instances.
You can quote Wikipedia now and then, but don’t use a site that theoretically anyone can edit in something as serious as writing a 500-word article for $100. Remember, you still need to impress that new client and turn him into a lifetime money machine (Sorry, clients).
Now, Wikipedia isn’t totally useless. It can give you a pretty good idea about any subject, and the fact that every wiki page links to similar related information can be beneficial.
What you really should look for in a Wikipedia page though is the “Citations and References” section at the bottom though. That’s Wikipedia’s most important obvious (yet so hidden) gem.
Once you get a grasp of a subject through Wikipedia, you need to move on to more serious research. The resources that you’re gonna need will differ depending on the theme of your content.
If your article is about potty training one’s kids, you need to find authoritative parenting sites and blogs ( http://www.naturalchild.org/ and http://www.ahaparenting.com/ are good examples), as well as relevant parenting books.
If you need to prepare the homepage for a travel agency’s website, you need to find what’s trending in the travel world by checking the latest influencers’ social media profiles (Not a proper resource, but it’ll give you a clearer idea about what you should write about), reading recent articles from authoritative blogs ( such as http://www.expertvagabond.com/ and http://www.joaoleitao.com/ )
If you’re writing about a medical condition or issue, do your most thorough research for the sake of writing ethics. Check every relevant, authoritative medical report you can put your hands on, along with official government sites and medical studies (that you can find on http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/ or http://omnimedicalsearch.com/ for example). For real though, if you’re writing a medical subject, make sure that your resources are accurate and that your research is organized and neat.
Looking for what’s trending can be really beneficial, so make sure to check recent, relevant press releases (https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/) and social media sites/posts.
I also recommend checking REDDIT. There’s a subreddit for everything (I see you smiling creeply in the corner, r/mlem and r/birdswitharms), so you can easily find what your prospect audience is talking about at the moment. Yeah, Reddit is great.
One final note, if you can have an interview with an expert in the specific field you're researching, do not hesitate to do it, as that will make your content even more authoritative.
PS: I bet you noticed that I’ve been repeatedly using the word authoritative throughout this section. Well, I’ve done it on purpose, so don’t bother to complain about repetition, fellow Grammar Nazis. Besides the apparent relevancy and authority mentioning those authoritative sources would give you, linking to those sites is beneficial for SEO purposes, but that’s a tale for another day.
3. Set a Research Plan
Now that you have a list of all the resources you’re going to use, it’s time to establish a research plan. What, did you think that we were gonna read through all that without proper organization? Silly you, if you want to be a successful content writer, it’s time to start taking your research seriously.
Don’t let the term plan turn you off or discourage you though; it’s not like we’re building a rocket or something. You simply need to visualize (or write down) how you’re going to get the most out of your resources.
Using Google for the research? Make sure to skim through the first search results (which are really similar most of the time, thanks to you, marketers fighting for the first position (no judging)), the last search results, and some random pages in the middle.
Why? Because those random pages can have some outstanding pieces of information that can hugely benefit your content, but their owners don’t have enough budget to get them on top of the SERPs.
While you’re doing so, make sure to write down every relevant piece of information along with the link for later reference. As mentioned above, the priority goes to the authoritative sources for accuracy and SEO purposes.
Also, if you’re writing about a controversial topic, take a look at the opposite point of view/perspective so that you can include counter-arguments and open a healthy, relevant discussion with the readers.
If you’re writing an article for a high-ticket client, make sure to take that extra step and interview some people with expertise.
Writing a blog post about a beauty procedure or product? Look for some well-known beauty experts that you can interview either personally or through the internet.
Writing an article about the best places to visit in the Maldives? Contact famous travel bloggers and experts.
If you do decide to go with interviews, it’s essential to prepare a list of relevant questions that you can ask the interviewee and the subjects that you need to cover so that you don’t run out of time while talking about your grandad’s adventure when he was into hookers.
I can’t give you an exact checklist of what you have to do as this is a case-dependent process, but you get the idea.
Remember, take your time depending on how specific and complicated the topic is and how fast of a learner you are, and focus on QUALITY rather than QUANTITY.
4. It’s Writing Time!
Yes, it’s finally time to crack your fingers and start the writing.
What’s left for you to do is take that pile of information that you assembled and filter it depending on the length of the piece, how much information must be included, and what sub-topics must be covered.
Four critical points here:
- ABSOLUTELY NO COPY-PASTING.
- Write your own point of view in your own words.
- Adjust the simplicity, readability, terminology, and jargon depending on the level of expertise and GEO of the prospect readers.
- Write an article that’s going to benefit the reader, not some bullshit-filled piece of content that will leave them thinking “Why the fuck did I waste my time reading this piece of crap.”
While the above steps may seem obvious to some of you, my heart still aches with pity for the readers every time I see an article that’s poorly researched or someone complaining about the poor quality of the content they received from a writer.
My content may not be the best in the world, but I take pride in the quality I provide, and I feel confident enough to share the process I follow while writing every piece of content. I hope the above info can help some of you, webmasters and content writers.
If you’re an aspiring writer, please do your proper research before starting the writing process. Your clients (and your future self) will thank you.
If you’re a webmaster, remember that your readers expect quality, so keep that in mind when you’re preparing your articles/copies.
Keep in mind that I’m addressing content writers that treat this field of work seriously, not those who are in for a quick buck.
You can’t expect much if you’re paying $2 or $4 per 1000 words. You always hear it, but here I am repeating it once again: you get what you pay for.
PS: Let me know if you want more writing-related posts/guides, I’d happily share some of the processes and tips that I learned during my content writing/copywriting journey.
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