How Content Writing Can Help You Land Your Dream Job
Content marketing has become an integral marketing strategy for companies that are trying to increase brand awareness, drive traffic to their website, or demonstrate expertise in their respective field. Corporate blogs are all the rage right now, and companies hire content writers like crazy, in the effort to produce informative content that’s also going to get good Google rankings. However, content writing is not only about promoting a business, but also about marketing yourself. Your own personal brand is vital in the attempt to find a fulfilling job. While it’s all fine and dandy to create content that generates new leads for B2B or B2C campaigns, content writing shouldn’t be exploited only in the context of a company, but also of an individual professional trying to make the next big career move. Through this article, I will share some personal views on how to use content writing to get all the important people to notice you and land that dream job you’ve been chasing for years.
4 Ways Content Writing Is The Ultimate Marketing Strategy To Get Hired
And I’m not talking about specific fields, but for any field! Your hard, position-specific skills are inarguably the core of your qualifications. And of course, you have to have certain content writing skills, but trust me practice makes perfect. In my days as an English language teacher I had witnessed people make tremendous steps in writing just because they had strong incentive. You don’t need to have post-doctoral studies on creative writing to produce quality content that’s going to create buzz. It’s just a matter of strategy. And that’s what’s going to get you the job!
1. Quality Content Generates Linkedin Views
It’s not only about being an expert in your field, but most importantly about SHOWING people that you are an expert in your field. There are lots of online publishing platforms out there such as Linkedin Pulse and Medium nowadays. Content writing is all about creating original and interesting content that will increase your chances of getting likes and shares, and as a result more Linkedin views. Most people reproduce the same topics over and over again, so research plays a central role in the creation of engaging content. Write about a new subject or at least provide a different aspect to an existing topic. In addition, read up on backlinking strategies to increase exposure of your content. Generally speaking, long-form content (between 2000–2500 words on average) tends to rank better on Google, so your chances of getting more people to notice your posts get significantly higher. Even the timing of your Linkedin posts can have an impact on your content’s exposure to more readers.
2. Ready-Made Work Samples At The Disposal Of Potential Employers
Although I do not have frequent article posting activity on Linkedin, I cannot stress enough how many times recruiters or employers contacted me after seeing samples of my Linkedin writing. Having ready-made content writing samples is also a very good way to show people how you express yourself in writing, if you do not have any previous professional writing experience. Including infographics in your articles optimizes your content further and is also a powerful way to visualize data. This is particularly important for positions that deal with numbers. Also, you want your content to be next to impeccable in terms of clarity, grammar, syntax, as well as writing tone. So, make sure to educate yourself on copy editing tips before you hit that Publish button. Nothing makes a worse impact than badly edited content, especially when that content is read by hiring managers.
3. Blog Your Way Into A Career Breakthrough
Although slightly different in terms of content strategy, blogs are one of the most popular types of platforms for content writing. There have been numerous cases of people starting their own personal blog about a subject they were passionate about, and ending up having such a following that it became a job, or that blog found them a job. A quick Internet search will convince you that there are blogs about anything. From cooking and sports all the way to blogs about ugly renaissance babies or owls that look like they had a little too much booze on that tree branch last night. Think of blogging as an optimized digital version of your CV. HR managers deal with boring, conventional resumes every day. So, what better way to mix it up a bit and include your blog creations as well. You have expertise and passion about a subject, you write about it, you share valuable information with your followers, and most importantly you never know who is going to come across your content. Blogs are an open platform for conversation and communication, as well as a great way to network. They promote your own personal brand and function as your professional portfolio. As with any online publishing activity or platform, blogging requires consistency and regular posting frequency. Do your research on blogging best-practices to determine what works and what doesn’t. On the flip side though, it requires more time to set up a blog as opposed to Linkedin articles. Don’t get discouraged though, it’s definitely not rocket science.
4. Content Writing Eliminates Time And Place Barriers
This might seem a little bit too obvious, but by adopting content writing to market yourself you overcome time and place restrictions. You create your own digital professional footprint that is accessible from any place on the planet and at any time. Fortunately, we live in the Internet era and getting hired does not equal physical presence at specific locations. Interviews are conducted through Skype and everyday work tasks get done almost exclusively through digital means. As a result, you might very easily get employed by a company in China and work from the convenience of your own home in Italy. There are lots of freelance jobs out there, so it’s definitely worth producing content that might offer you that type of employment, especially if you have family responsibilities, or are plain not into the strict in-house employment scheme.
Not all people are good, or even like writing at all. I get it. However, this is the age of information. You have to show people what you know. The best way to do that is through thought-provoking and masterful content writing. You won’t believe your eyes when you see what impact it has on your future career prospects. Create content, structure your own online community and give your audience the chance to interact with you and your posts. Most importantly, show genuine interest in the feedback of your readers, because it’s what’s going to make you a stellar content writer, whatever field you do business in.
What’s your experience with Content Writing? Has it increased your chances in landing a position you find fulfilling both in terms of personal development and compensation? I’d appreciate one or many 👏 as well as your input in the comments section below.
This story is published in The Startup, Medium’s largest entrepreneurship publication followed by 309,732+ people.
Subscribe to receive our top stories here.
