Getting shared is the goal of many content writers. A good piece that goes viral can bring new customers to a website through the tremendous traffic it creates. We talked about the elements of shareable content and this post expounds on one of those elements: content that fills a need.
Sharable content speaks to its target audience and fills a need they have. So what is that need? To determine that need, you must first define your audience. Think about the demographics of your target. Your site needs to cater to that audience as does your content. After all, your content is supposed to lead them to your website. Your content is useless if it doesn’t fill a need.
Ask these questions about your audience to understand their need:
- What do they want?
- What are their dreams?
- What do they worry about?
- What keeps them up at night?
- What are they seeking?
- What do they need?
- Why do they need you?
- What need will your website fill for them?
Answer these questions and get to know your audience. The better you know them, the more likely you are to write content that will grab their attention, consume, and share. From this brief analysis you can learn what type of content you need to produce. You will know what they want and you will be able to deliver it.
There are basically three types of content that people share. Each of these types fills a distinct need. While you may see the types bleed over into each other there is always one dominant type that is the crux of the content. Don’t muddy the waters by trying to do too much. Keep it simple.
It Makes Them Laugh.
Laughter is healing. It helps alleviate stress and produces an overall good feeling throughout the body – and people like it. People enjoy being entertained; they enjoy a diversion from routine at work or a chuckle to break up the day. If you give people content that entertains and makes them laugh you could have a great shareable moment.
Possible audience types: People who work at jobs that are routine, people who deal with stress, creative people.
It Creates An Emotional Connection.
People respond favorably to content they can relate to and that gives them an emotional connection. Most people want to belong somewhere and enjoy emotional connections. They want to be inspired and moved. They want to share ideas, opinions and knowledge. They want to connect emotionally to a post. They want to feel something.
Possible audience types: Females, religious, parents of children, pet owners, philanthropists, environmentalists, non-profit organizations.
It Gives Them Information.
This is probably the most common content type. People not only like to read content that is educational or informative, they like to share it. If they glean good information or advice from a post on a topic they care about they will pass it on to their friends and relatives. People have a hunger for new information and when you can present that information in an interesting way or from a unique perspective, not yet explored, you will capture their imagination.
Possible audience types: students, teachers, professionals, patients, young people, married couples, mothers.
