Content Writing: What it is and What it isn’t

Suleman M. John
Sep 7, 2018 · 4 min read

I’m a content writer. That’s what I do for a living.

Some friends think I’m a journalist. Others think I’m a typist. Still others think that I’m a professional cut n’ paster.

I don’t correct them, because they don’t understand what I do.

But if you’re reading this, you probably have questions like ‘what is content writing’ or ‘how do I become a content writer?’

So let’s get down to it: what content writing is and what it’s not.

Definition of Terms
Content writing is creating text (articles, blogs, eBooks etc) that inform and engage readers. The purpose is to offer informative material to readers in a way that they like reading it and keep coming back for more (think about your favorite blogger or columnist).

The idea is simple but powerful. If done right, content marketing helps businesses to build an audience in which people become not just loyal customers, but evangelists of the brand.

Writers, of course, play an incredibly important part in this system. However, things are not always so exciting.

What is the Job of a Content Writer?
Job descriptions are overrated in this line of work. Many content writing projects will betray your perception of creativity (and sanity) because they require to write articles on topics like “How to Shut Down Windows 10”

So you sit there and type something like:

1.Click on Start and then select Power > Shut down.
2. Move your mouse to the lower left-hand corner of the screen.
3.Right-click the Start button
4.Click Shut down

Many times you will think who is the bigger idiot, you or the reader? (Not the client of course, since he is paying you to write this.)

Along with creativity, there is another word you will have to wrestle with: unique.

Originality is also overrated in this industry, for how do you come up with new information every time? But clients want unique.

Say you are writing an article or ebook on ‘50 Best Vegan Recipes’, and as usual, the client wants ‘original’ content. Now if you are an expert chef with a different approach to traditional recipes, you can pull this off quite well.

But odds are that you are not. So what do you do?

Search the recipes on Google, then cut and paste. Then, replaces ‘ounces’ when the source article uses ‘ozs.’ (and vice versa) and ‘kg’ instead of ‘kilograms’ (and vice versa). If your source recipe is for six people, you can divide the amounts of each ingredient by the number of servings to derive the quantity of one serving, and then multiply by twelve.

Voila! Your article is now plagiarism-free.

What else? Oh yes, don’t forget those projects where you have to write a maximum of 100 words. It sounds easy, but there is a caveat; the attached instructions on how to write these short articles are not so short.

Some clients will send you 5,000-word long instructions on a subject of their expertise (say law or finance) and they want you to write a 500-word article based on that information.

The point is, as a content writer, you have to write whatever the client says, whether you find it interesting or boring.

Many people also wonder what is the difference between a copywriter and a content writer, and which of the two careers they should pursue.

The aim of copywriting is also to inform and engage, but copywriters have to get a reader to take a specific action, which is usually making a purchase.

However, the roles of content and copywriters often overlap, as Copyblogger’s Sonia Simone explains here.

Likewise, copywriter Mark Alan Holmes is right when he says:

The instructions on your dental floss: Okay, so there are no instructions on dental floss. But if there were, a copywriter would write: “Remove a length of floss, grab both ends, slide between teeth, saw back and forth until sink fills with blood. Repeat.

You must be thinking, no one needs instructions for cars, computers, and toothpaste, right?

But they do. People have problems. Businesses have solutions. And the content writer connects the two.

So writing instructions doesn’t make you less of a writer. To cheer you up further, such instruction articles are usually part of a longer project that deals with the topic in detail (e.g. ‘A Beginner’s Guide to Windows 10’).

In regards to ‘original’ content, remember that plagiarism is both unethical and illegal.

There was a time when plagiarism and keyword stuffing were legitimate ways of doing business, but now people (and search engines) want relevant answers to relevant search terms. And content writers are at the center of this exchange.

Final question: Is content writing easy?

Yes. And no.

If writing was easy, there would be no content writing jobs. But there are, and they are growing. (Read more on why companies need writers here.)

Think about it, why are business owners (who spend day and night cutting costs to maximize profits) are willing to spend hundreds and thousands of dollars on something so ‘easy’?

Because it’s not. They rather type 5000-word instructions and send them to a writer than write a 500-word article themselves on a topic of their expertise.

So that’s about it! By now you will have a good idea of what content writing is all about, and whether it’s a job that you want to go after. I stumbled into this profession and have developed a healthy contempt for it. So much so that now I can’t think of doing anything else.

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