Mostly Blogging

Practical solutions and established strategies to improve your blog. Suggestions that will make a difference.

7 Types of Quality Content You Need to Create in 2018

by 33 Comments

Do you have a strategy for producing quality content?

I don’t mean a schedule or editorial calendar which tells you what to publish and when.

I mean a strategy, a plan, a checklist of ideas for publishing quality content on your website.

Guest author Jane Sheeba provides that strategy. In this post, Jane provides 5 types of content you should publish if you want to generate your readers’ excitement.

I follow Jane’s strategies with 2 additional types of quality content.

By the end of this post, you’ll have a 7-step action plan for producing quality content.

5 Types of Quality Content You Should Consider Creating in 2018

by Jane Sheeba

Every one of us knows that content marketing isn’t easy.

It requires a strategy which includes researching topics that are relevant, producing content in a way that delivers on business goals and distribution across channels where the target audience spends most of their time.

But the biggest hurdle, as many marketers believe, is the scarcity of ideas to create interesting and engaging content.

The key to generating a great ROI (Return on Time Invested) is to understand exactly what types of content your audience needs.

Since user requirements continue to evolve with time, it is important that you keep a tab on the latest trends and know what would stick over a given span of time.

Last year, there were some content types that did extremely well in contrast to others. In the same way, some content types will most likely dominate the others in 2018 as well.

Here’s a list of five types of content that are projected to make a splash this year and return a better ROI.

1. Success Stories

People are addicted to success stories. You can easily hook your audience with a success story that brings a smile to the face (or a tear to the eye) and inspires for taking action.

As success become more difficult to achieve, the need for telling success stories attains greater importance.

As a business, you should focus on those success stories that come from your customers.

A customer’s success is what other customers want to replicate and that’s where your business comes in.

To put together a great success story, you’ll need statistics, facts, and visuals.

Plus, it needs to be crafted in a language and tone that immediately builds and connects and keeps readers engaged till the last word.

Make sure you do adequate research and gather all the necessary data before you sit to write a success story with which you want to make an impact.

And remember you don’t just ‘tell’ a success story. Instead, you make readers actually feel it.

2. Infographics

Visuals attract humans more than anything else. Since infographics present data in a visual format, they are liked a lot.

Keep infographics in your content arsenal this year too.

But before you start to create more infographics, you need to take a deep dive into how killer infographics are designed.

Even when it’s an infographic, it should address the pain points of your target audience.

Most importantly, the data used in your design has to be pulled from authentic sources, the list of which is usually given at the end of the infographic.

When you want to create infographics, you don’t always have to seek the help of graphics designers.

There are many infographic tools (free and paid) that you can use to craft nice infographics yourself.

3. Videos

Without a doubt, videos have emerged to be the best form of content. And if you don’t create videos, you’re losing out on revenue.

Most of an internet user’s time is spent watching videos on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

If you plan to take your content marketing to a new level this year, definitely consider investing in video creation.

Videos are not only shared in high volume, but they are best at attracting traffic, engaging people and generating more conversions.

When creating videos, you should not forget about mobile device users who like to watch videos in vertical and square format.

4. In-depth Guides

This year, more businesses will bet on long-form content. In-depth blog posts or guides offer a wide range of benefits.

Both users and search engines look for long-form content because it digs deep into a topic or subject.

Comprehensive content is read and shared by people in large numbers.

Equipped with long-form content, you’ll also boost your chances of appearing in Google’s Featured Snippets.

Long-form content refers to guides or blog posts that contain at least 1,500 words. The longer your written content is, the more benefit you can garner in terms of traffic and engagement.

To accomplish great results, you’ll need to do a lot of research, use a concise language and have an attractive presentation.

It takes time and effort to create long-form content, but you’ll also see that it pays great dividends at the end of the day. In fact, longer content will serve as a steady source of traffic for years, when done right.

5. Podcasts

Both the use and production of podcasts will grow this year. Millions of people listen to podcasts every month.

If you plan to attract more traffic and increase engagement for your website, you should definitely have podcasts on your list of content types this year.

If you are a beginner, you may need to do some research before making podcasts.

There are some proven tips, techniques and guidelines that you should follow to achieve success with your podcasts and increase the number of downloads and subscribers.

Primarily, podcasts are used to educate an audience.

So, you should know what your purpose behind creating a podcast is and what you can do to engage the audience you’re seeking.

The average length of a podcast is 20 minutes but you can stretch it up to 40 minutes.

Quite often people who listen to podcasts are either commuting in a car or by train and so anything longer might prove to be inconvenient for them.

When recording podcasts, you should pay special attention to sound quality and the tone in which you speak.

Most podcasts use a relaxing and conversational tone because it feels real to listeners.

In Conclusion …

Content creation is both science and art. The future of content marketing looks bright and promising.

Whether you’re an entrepreneur, a CEO or the president of an organization, you too should devise a content marketing strategy which falls in line with your business goals.

Just make sure you include these content types so that you can drive more traffic and revenue.

Jane shares business tips purely from her own perspective and experience at her blog janesheeba.com. Don’t forget to claim your FREE access to her Blogging Success Foundation Course (a must-have if you are a blogger).

Host Blogger’s Comments:

Last year, I published 7 Best Blog Posts That Will Make People Subscribe in 2017.

Two of these content types stand out as still being especially popular:

6. Contests

People love contests. You could structure your contests in a number of ways.

For example, you could enter people in a drawing who leave a comment on a post. Rafflecopter is a tool bloggers often use to hold contests.

7. Quizzes

People like to put their knowledge to the test and can easily have their curiosity piqued with a simple challenge: “How much do you know about…?”

In fact, people predicted the revenue sharing website started last year, Virily, would fold like Niume and other revenue sharing sites. When Virily started challenging their website users to take quizzes, they reinvented themselves, in my opinion.

Consider these comments about the popularity of quizzes.:

“I was on Virily for about 3 months and wrote a few posts, but what I found most enjoyable were writing quizzes on this site. I had never written a quiz before and became addicted; anyway, they brought in the most comments, likes, favorites etc for me.”

I recommend you use all 7. This post helps you avoid the monotony of the same format in every blog post.

Readers love variety. Use this post as a checklist of ways to vary your formats. You’ll be more excited about your blog content and so will your readers.

Please share so other content creators discover the types of quality content which will generate excitement in 2018.

I look forward to your views in the comments section: Are there any other types of quality content you can recommend for a successful blog post?


Powered by Kingged.com
Where Quality Content Is King!

Get Your Free Copy of 123 Blogging Tools to Increase Your Blog Traffic

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Powered byRapidology

Comments

  2. This is so informative! Thank you for this post. I still am camera shy, but hopefully one day I will begin doing YouTube videos as I know people love to watch them.

    Reply

  5. Hey Jane!

    My most favorite type is in-depth articles. I like to really explain a topic to my readers. I know these can be super long but they are worth in the end. I also like to write short articles, don’t get me wrong.

    It is smart to mix it up.with the types of content, you create for your audience. I also like creating video tutorials, and that is something I’m going to focus a lot more this year.

    Thank you for sharing this helpful info!

    Best regards! 😀
    Freddy G. Cabrera recently posted…The 3 Most Important Keys To Successful Blogging (You Will Fail Without These 3 Blogging Keys!)My Profile

    Reply

    • Hey Freddy,

      Yes long form in-depth articles are ruling the internet because they usually provide complete information on a topic so readers can leave contented.

      Reader satisfaction is very important when it comes to content marketing success.

      Yes it does take a while and a lot of effort to create long form content and videos – but both are worth doing.

      Thanks for your comment!

      Cheers,
      Jane.
      Jane recently posted…Here are 12 things that will make you take a leap with bloggingMy Profile

      Reply

  6. Hi Jane and Janice,

    Content ideas sometimes become elusive. In such times a list like this is of immense help. The types of content that are all time favorites make it easy for us to decide and focus.

    The list you have given here are really helpful because we can devote more time on the details and depth of content rather than worrying about what to write or create. Having seven such tips is a delight.

    Thanks for sharing the great tips with us. Have a great day!

    -Naveen

    Reply

  9. Very nice post .. you have describe every point in detail .. and most importantly you have explain each one of them very concisely ..
    this post is every important for the person who wants to write and earn from writing..

    Reply

  10. These are all great content creation ideas for anyone in any niche or industry vertical. Even if you just focused on one or two, you’d be making awesome content for your audience 🙂

    Reply

  11. Hey Janice, great post. I really need to start using infographics since I am trying to tap into Pinterest traffic. Video is pretty vital these days. It’s pretty easy to come up with one – I mean we have all sorts of programs for this, both paid and free.

    Cheers!

    Reply

  12. Hi Jane,
    Nice to meet you here on Janice space. Video content has gained momentum and is becoming the #1 content type that drives the most traffic. But as you mentioned, being camera shy is an epidemic because myself included, I so shy on camera that I have rejected many opportunities to be interviewed on Skype.

    However, infographics are also breathtaking. Infographics are a great way to share information visually, that is why 41.5% of marketers said that graphics like infographics are the most valuable content for their marketing campaigns.

    People follow visual instructions 323% better than written instructions.

    Thanks for sharing Jane, and thank you Janice for publishing.

    Reply

    • Hey Moss,

      You are not alone hahaha 🙂 The same is with me too. And even though I do shoot videos nowadays, I still reject a lot of Skype interviews – partly because the time zone won’t match and partly because I am too shy!

      Infographics are surely a big thing in the visually appealing era. People want to visualize things rather than reading long paragraphs!

      You are welcome Moss, and thanks for stopping by and leaving a thoughtful comment.

      Cheers,
      Jane.
      Jane recently posted…5 Blogging myths bloggers STILL believe and end up cheatedMy Profile

      Reply

  13. I agree. Organic traffic is a great source of traffic. It it really important to have a good listing in Google. We have already seen the example of shoutmeloud in the monthly report

    Reply

    • Hey Pamela,

      YEs we all need Google traffic, because mostly it is the kind of traffic that’s passive. Unlike social media traffic where you have to push an update to get incoming traffic.

      And google traffic is long term too. Once your site picks up in rankings, you can get traffic almost on autopilot!

      Having said that, I agree with Janice’s point that Google values longevity. If you are blogging for a few years now, then you certainly have an edge over the new comers – mainly for two reasons:

      1. Your site has lot more content and hence a good chance to rank for many keywords.
      2. Your domain is seen as aged and hence Google knows you are now in business for a while.

      Thanks for your comment.

      Cheers,
      Jane.
      Jane recently posted…7 Straightforward and practical tips to speed up your WordPress websiteMy Profile

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badge

SKYROCKET YOUR BLOG TRAFFIC!

SKYROCKET YOUR BLOG TRAFFIC!

Do you want to increase your website traffic?

Get notified of tips to increase your traffic, access to our exclusive Pinterest group board, a link exchange, a Follow to Follow Directory, a StumbleUpon group, and a free, downloadable PDF of 89 blogging tools that will save you hours of time. Your Email will always stay private.

Check your email for a confirmation email.

Powered byRapidology
%d bloggers like this: