5 Types of Content Writing
Creating good content takes time and dedication. It also takes writing skills and experience, especially with certain forms of content. But when done well, good content can define your brand and help you reach your business goals.
There are so many different types of content out there, and many freelance writers specialize in multiple types. If you're looking to hire a freelance content writer, it helps to understand what content you need first.
Blogs
Blogs are conversational, informal pieces of writing published on your website. (Hello, welcome to mine.) Blogs can boost SEO, increase brand reach, position you as an authority in your field, and generate leads.
The fun thing about blogs? There's a ton of different types of blog posts you can create. Browse through some of my other posts, for example. You'll find book reviews, lists, and link roundups.
But there's also interviews, news releases, customer success stories, step-by-step guides, best practices...options abound.
Copywriting and ads
Copywriters and ad writers create action-oriented content that helps businesses reach their goals, whether that's improving brand awareness or driving conversions. Your business's strategy goes hand-in-hand with copywriting and ads.
Types of copywriting include website content, print media, product pages, and product descriptions. Ads, of course, include online or print ads, but also sales pages, promotional material, and landing pages.
Technical writing
Technical content, like user manuals for software or instructions for manufacturing equipment, can be complex and confusing. It's a technical writer's job to make that content easy for others to understand.
Good technical writing will take an audience's needs, reading preferences, reading level, familiarity with the subject, and more into account. Other examples of tech writing include how-to guides, FAQs, and UX messaging.
Social media
Social media should be a conversation between a business and its target audience. Good social media content sparks conversations and engages followers. They may do that through captivating photos or videos, questions in captions, interactive content, or giveaways.
A good social media writer can keep up with trends and best practices for various platforms, but also make your social media content work for your brand. All of your content should be created with purpose. Without a purpose for your business, your social media posts just add to the online noise.
Long-form content
Think of social media as a sprint and long-form content as a marathon. While social media content creation takes flexibility and quick wit, long-form content writing is more of a time investment. It's often grounded in research and technical, with word counts in the thousands.
Ebooks, white papers, and case studies are some of the most common types of long-form content out there.
We touched on some of the most popular types of content for businesses, but there are many more out there: ghostwriting, scriptwriting, journalism, and email writing, to name a few more. Content is a complex and many-headed beast. That's why freelance writers skilled in multiple types are a solid investment for your business. If you're ready to start creating content...let's talk.