It’s Time to Replace the Word Content with Expression
I’m hesitant to say I’m in the business of content. It’s too dry a phrase for describing all that goes into creating words that define and steer a business or idea to its rightful direction.
Content writers (for want of a better term) are more than storytellers…
They not just help narrate the story of a brand, individual or organisation, but almost determine the very ethos they stand for…
Because, without words, any idea remains just that — an idea.
So, perhaps, it would be better to position content writers as expressionists, those who give expression to one or many ideas that a brand may have…
The word expression is more all-encompassing…
It includes emotion, imagination and a play of words that uniquely determines the voice of a brand.
When all these factors come into play, a brand begins to truly engage with its audience.
Content is a one-time effort, while expression is an ongoing one…
Expression is the need to constantly connect and tell your audience what your next big product, service or plan is.
When the need to communicate gets embedded in your brand’s DNA, words become secondary, and the message or emotion takes centerstage.
That’s when your brand stops talking to your audience, and starts connecting with them to form deep lasting relationships.
What you create next are relationships that have ‘lifetime value’, and are mutually beneficial to both…
When you provide a service to the consumer, you get returns, but when you provide exemplary service, you develop brand ambassadors…who walk the walk, and talk the talk of the brand.
Your medium of expression has now become a medium of expression for many.
Your customers begin to use the same lingo you use, see your vision the way you project it, and become a part of the brand family… True stakeholders in every sense!
Content thus goes beyond mere messaging.
Through the use of creative storytelling and writing, content dips into the emotions of the brand, the writer, and the audience… Together the three form an intricate web which becomes a site for engagement and communication.
The beautiful web of expression can only be created when content is treated as a craft, that has present-day relevance and stands the test of time…
The words used by a writer thus need to do more than project a brand’s image or message… They need to become instruments of expression and engagement, that help brands communicate intimately with their consumers everyday.
Content writers — sorry, expressionists — make this possible…
Not by doing a project or assignment, but by getting under the skin of the brand, the pulse of the reader, and exploring all the heartfelt conversations they could possibly have.
Expression goes beyond having mere conversations, to having conversations with soul…
Conversations that touch the psyche of the brand and the consumer, to find a meeting point between the two — a story of relevance.
A story of relevance is what ultimately creates brand recall…
And, this story of relevance, that creates brand recall, must be kept alive always…through meaningful expression generated in collaboration with expressionists — not content writers!
Pink Pinjra explores the important facets of expression in every avenue of living…
And, since brandspeak is an important aspect of our everyday lives, knowing how brands express themselves, and the role we — as content writers — can play in this narrative, is becoming increasingly important.
More importantly, we must constantly become conscious of going beyond writing content, to creating tools of expression, emotion and engagement, that have a lasting impact not just on our work, but on the content industry as a whole.
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