The Four Elements For Creating Wonder

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As writers, we can use four characteristics that have the power to inspire a sense of wonder in our readers, Matty Dalrymple explains in Writer’s Digest:

  • mystery and exclusivity
  • a disconnect from reality and expectations
  • displays of specialized elements of knowledge
  • an immersive yet ephemeral experience

Dalrymple, I realized, was addressing novelists, but could those four elements work well for creators of online marketing content as well?

Mystery – by showcasing characters’ use of special elements, “we transport readers to a wondrous world”, Dalrymple says.

In content writing for business, we’ve learned at Say It For You, business owners or professional practitioners want to become valuable providers of information, ultimately persuading readers to use their products or engage their services. There must be no mystery about the fact that searchers have come to the right place. Still, through content, writers can show how things – or causes – their readers care about are in jeopardy, creating wonder about possible paths forward.

A disconnect from expectations – When an aspect of a setting or situation deviates from the norm, that surprises and intrigues readers.

Creating compelling content can – and should – incorporate both people storytelling and product storytelling. The expectation is for the content to tout the successes of the business or practice, but true stories about mistakes and struggles will engage precisely because of the disconnect. People want to do business with real people, and admission of failures and mistakes often surprises and intrigues.

Displays of specialized knowledge – Because the character has such arcane knowledge, readers have a sense of awe at how much exists of which they were unaware.

Content writers aim to have their clients be perceived as subject matter experts offering usable information and insights.  Once readers feel assured that the providers know your stuff and care about offering good information and good service, they might be ready to take action, Bringing in less well-known facts about familiar things and processes “displays” specialized knowledge, making readers wonder how many other “secrets” await.

Immersive experience – While allowing readers to get a sense of being part of the story, the author needs to convey that the experience is ephemeral.

When you’re composing business blog content, I tell writers, imagine readers asking themselves – “How will I use the product (or service)?” “How will I feel?” Your content can offer a “taste” of the benefits users stand to enjoy when using your products and/or services.

While assuring searchers they’ve come to the right place to find the information they need, skillful use of the four story elements can create a sense of wonder, a feeling of “Wow! I never realized…..”

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Differentiate, Differentiate, and Differentiate

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Earlier this week in our Say It For You blog, we took notice of the Aldi tag line “Everything we don’t do, we do for you!”, discussing the importance of pointing out what things a business or practice has decided not to do and why…

Differentiation strategy
A differentiation strategy identifies and communicates the unique qualities of a product or company while highlighting the differences between that product or company and its competitors, Carol Kopp explains in Investopedia.com. The differences might relate to product design, marketing, packaging, location convenience or pricing, she adds. On the consumer end, Kopp goes on to say, vertical differentiation is based on objective, measurable factors, while horizontal differentiation is related to personal preferences. .

Mission statements
Just as Aldi distinguished itself from others by listing practices and policies it chooses not to embrace, many companies choose to express what they believe distinguishes them from competitors through their mission statements.

  • Facebook: “To give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected.”
  • PayPal: To build the Web’s most convenient, secure, and cost-effective payment solutions.”
  • Sony: “To be a company that inspires and fulfills your curiosity.”

Content marketing to differentiate
As content marketers, with the ultimate goal of influencing decision-making, we must help clients differentiate themselves. To build connection with readers, the content must be aimed to create new thinking, bringing meaning to data (as opposed to merely providing data).

Make no mistake about it, in any field, there will be controversy – about best business practices, about the best approach to providing professional services, about acceptable levels of risk, even about business-related ethical choices. Rather than ignoring the controversy, as content writers, we need to help clients weigh in on those very choices and issues. Their readers need to know what’s most important to them, what their vision in in terms of serving the public.

At its core, we’ve found at Say It For You, marketing content comes down to facts, stories, and oopinion. Facts are facts, but stories, and opinion are what helps differentiate and distinguish one provider from all the rest.

 

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Content That Sets a Standard

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Absolute perfection!  (That was my first thought upon reading this Patek Phillippe ad in a special issue of Forbes:

 At Patek Phillipe, when we make a watch, however hard we work, we can only go at one  speed. One that ensures we adhere to the high standards for which we are respected. 

We understand that some people express frustration at this. They want to us to go  faster. But at our family-owned watch company, fast is the enemy.  Because to accelerate the time it takes to make a watch, we would have had to cut corners  and lower our quality.

 And then the watch might be a very good timepiece.  But it would not be a Patek Phillipe and would not merit the Patek Phillipe seal.

Thierry Stern, President

Notice how the president of Patek Phillipe never puts down competitors, in fact never even mentions other watchmakers. For that reason, he comes across as a leader, not a follower.

In content marketing, we teach, negatives against competitors are a basic no-no. Sure, in writing for business, we want to clarify the ways we stand out from the competition.  But, to get the point across that readers should want to choose your business or practice, or your products and services over those offered by the competition, it’s best to emphasize the positive.

An alternate approach to mentioning the competition in content marketing includes acknowledges that there may be alternative approaches to reader’s problem or need, then offering evidence backing up your own viewpoint.

A point I often stress in corporate blogging training sessions is that you’ve got to have an opinion, a slant, on the information you’re serving up for readers. In other words, content, to be effective, can’t be just compilations of other people’s stuff, making that be your entire blog presence. Yes, aggregation may make your site the “go-to” destination for information on  your subject. The bottom line, though, is that Thierry Stern understands the power of thought leadership, of staying true to the care values on which your business or practice was founded.

Sure, your competitors’ products and services may be very good products and services, but they wouldn’t be uniquely yours, and your content wouldn’t set a standard.

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Can Silence Sell in Content Marketing?

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“In all the noise from sales training, the underrated power of silence often speaks volumes,” Matt Nettleton of Sandler Trustpointe comments. “Handled correctly, silence allows prospects to reveal their deepest concerns and desires.” Skilled salespeople, the message is, listen intently, allowing the customer to speak.

“Successful selling requires a delicate balance between talking and listening. While you need to provide enough information to communicate your product’s value, you also have to make sure your prospect feels heard,” Aditya Kothadiya writes. “In our age of constant communication and short span of attention, genuine listening is a rare commodity and a great gift,” he adds. All those things are true only when you meet in person, Kothadiva admits. Even video conferencing, where salesperson and prospect can see each other’s faces, doesn’t create the same emotional connection as an iin-person encounter.

“Listening to customers isn’t just hearing about their problems. It’s not picking up the phone or answering the ringing bell at your service desk. It involves paying close attention to their needs and understanding how you can help them achieve their goals,” Sophia Bernazzani Barron says in Hubspot.

But how does all this work when it comes to online marketing? “Social listening”, InMarket’s Digital Marketing Playbook explains, involves monitoring keywords and paying attention to what people are saying about your brand. “You can leverage positive comments that you receive from customers about your products and service in your marketing strategy, sharing them on your website and other channels,” Hannah Smiddy of Swanky adds.

Certainly, as was discovered in a Schwab benchmarking study for Registered Investment Advisors, “when providers focus on the unique needs of their target audience, they can develop an experience that is perceived as valuable by those clients.” At Say It For You, we know that content must be tailor-made for your ideal customer – the words you use, how technical you get, how sophisticated your approach, the title of each blog entry, all must focus on things you know about your target market – their needs, their preferences, their questions – and only secondarily on how wonderful you and your staff are at satisfying those needs and preferences.

Still, how can “silence sell” in content marketing, when, by definition, you are ‘sending out” messaging rather than remaining silent? Over the years, we’ve come to realize, “silencing” the features and benefits of your products and services, while “sounding” the voice of the people behind those products and services. After all, the people who find your blog are those who are already online looking for information, products, or services that relate to what you know, what you have, and what you do! Your online marketing challenge is not to seek out the people, but to help them seek you out and then show them you’ve been listening to “who they are”.

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Use Stories to Humanize Your Brand

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“We learn who characters are the same way we get to know people in real life: We are introduced to them, we get a first impression, we see how they act and behave, what they do, how they react and interact, and little by little, we form a composite, ever-deepening picture of who they are.,” Tiffany Yates Martin observes in Writer’s Digest, teaching ways to bring characters to life on the page.

Post COVID, the Made For Knoxville initiative attempted to do that very thing, celebrating and  uplifting Knoxville founders and entrepreneurial leaders by highlighting their individual stories, asking the question “What was your big pivot moment that led to entrepreneurship?”.

To create a brand story that builds authenticity with your target audience, Adobe Express emphasizes, use storytelling for long-lasting impact, conveying the company’s message through compelling narratives rather than relying on “dry facts and features. Through storytelling, the authors assert, you can:

  • connect with customers on an emotional level
  • foster brand loyalty
  • humanize the brand

Our work at Say It For You is based on that precise concept, translating our clients’ corporate message into human, people-to-people terms. In fact, that’s the reason I prefer first and second person writing over third person “reporting”. I think people tend to buy when they see themselves in the picture and when can they relate emotionally to the person bringing them the message. I compare the interaction between content writers and online readers to behavioral job interviews, where the concept is to focus not on facts, but on discovering the “person behind the resume”.

For that very reason, “how-we-did-it” stories make for very effective blog content for both business owners and professional practitioners. True stories about mistakes and struggles are very humanizing, adding to the trust readers place in the people behind the business or practice, not to mention the special expertise and insights the providers gained that can now be applied, much to the benefit of customers.

In today’s technology-driven world, humanizing your marketing content is a way of bringing readers “backstage”, keeping the company or professional practice relatable. AI advances notwithstanding, the old saw still applies: People want to do business with people!

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