Four Essential Skills a Content Writer Must Possess

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People seemed to be under the misguided belief that all it takes to be a brilliantly skilled content writer is to possess an excellent command of the English language, a notable flair for writing with just the right touch of passion to top it off. Well, being a content writer takes a lot more than those three combined it seems.

Not that any of those three attributes are not exactly as imperative as they were before or that they are of diminutive value--it is just that it takes more than just decent composition skills and a passion for writing to be a successful content writer nowadays. The true nature of content writing has evolved over the years, and this is especially true for content writers who specialize in link building services.

It seems that writing decent posts alone is a skill that barely scratches the surface of what it takes to be successful in content marketing. Succinctly put, a concrete definition of content marketing is the strategic marketing approach that is mainly focused on creating and distributing content for the end-goal of marketing that is to drive profitable customer action.

Now, you might think that generating content may be relatively easy. However, the creation of compelling content is much more difficult than it was before owing to the fact of content explosion online. Now more than ever, there has been a vast proliferation of content that for a single post you make there are about a hundred more so posts similar to it. So with the genesis of content superfluity, what kind of skills should a content writer possess in order to compete?

IMPECCABLE WRITING SKILLS 

This much is obvious.

After all, you are not only representing your brand through your posts but you are also working for an industry where the advertisements of your product are conveyed through your writing.  Decent writing skills will not get you very far; you are writing to drive profitable customer action into your designated websites—not your everyday English assignment or term paper. Impeccable writing skills would include a vast array of skills such as unimpeachable grammatical, spelling and spelling skills. Complement these skills with advanced skills such as the ability to create easy-to-read contents, the capacity to make seamless writing transitions, etc.

REASONABLE AWARENESS OF USER EXPERIENCE 

Content writers should be empathetic towards their readers by considering how their posts are perceived through their end. These posts are not only conveyed through a computer screen— but they are also translated through a mobile device, within a blog template, Twitter, etc. Although, many might insist that content writers should know everything there is about SEO and optimization, this is not necessarily what it means to be aware of user experience. In essence, having an awareness of user experience means that a writer should have a reasonable knowledge of how the users interact with their websites. With this in mind, writers should craft their posts by using their designated keywords in a way that it would make sense based on the user, topic, the main focus of the blog and other relevant features.

CATCHY HEADLINE CREATIONS 

This bears no explanation as it seems rather apparent as to why catchy headline creations are necessary. However, to elaborate and drive the point home it is important to realize just how much competition you have online that having your posts read by users may seem like an impossibility if they have to sift through hundreds of posts similar to it. So with that in mind, just how are you going to herd potential readers into your post? To illustrate, say you have a post regarding interior decorating; if you title this as “Ways to Decorate Your Living Room,” you are sure to find a dozen or more so posts similar to it that yours will be buried under several pages in the search pages. Instead, think of a creative way to make your headlines—make it catchy, play with words, be creative.

MARKETING AWARENESS 

The writer should be aware of his or her unique and strategic position in writing posts for marketing. They should be aware of how to gauge their audience and base their writings from their respective receptions to their posts. This is because content writers are not just simply writers with the creative freedom to write as they please but rather they are constrained to the position wherein they write about topics that would sell their products the most. This compounded with excellent writing skills would make for compelling content.


The bar is not set impossibly high for content writers that it would seem unrealistic to be a successful one. However, it is a reality that content writing is now immensely different than what it was before, and content writers need to realize that and make the necessary changes, acquire the necessary skills and polish their existing one in order to make it in this industry. Keep polishing your skills and never stop improving and you will get far.