The common saying, content is king, is a statement that holds true to help boost your online presence by attracting and informing the reader.  People will follow and trust a business that can provide professional and beneficial content to their readers. However, the content you provide should not only aim to inform but should also be easy to understand by all levels of the buying process. You may be an expert in your field but not everyone will understand all the terminology like you do. This is how understanding readability and ensuring you are writing for the reader is key to providing content that doesn't limit your audience. 

Getting Your Message Across To Reach Larger Audiences 

Writing content is vital for the growth of your business but it’s important that the content has a purpose with a strong and appealing message. The sharper you can present your message, the more likely your content will be successful. The Internet is ever-changing and you only have a brief moment to get your message across. If people cannot easily and quickly understand the message and the content, they’ll move on. Imagine trying to get information about virus software for your new computer. You know you need computer protection but are unsure about what type will work best for you. As you research your questions, you come across an article that seems to have a ton of information about different software but all the terminology brings up more questions than it answers. More than likely, you’ll keep researching until you find an article with the information you need that you can understand.

As you write content, remember to simplify the information for all levels of understanding. You may be targeting people who know a lot about computers and feel that you do not need to simplify the content because this targeted audience will know exactly what you are saying. However, in doing so, you’ll be limiting your business, which can hinder growth and minimize your client base. Simplifying doesn’t mean dumbing down. You should still advise difficult components but do so in a way that even a person with no knowledge on the subject can comprehend. You just have to find a way to communicate your message in a style that is easy to follow.

Better Readbility With Content Presentation

The presentation of your content is also another element to improve readability. Creating a flow for the readers will easily allow them to find the specific information they are looking for within the content provided. Your content should be presented in a way that is appealing and have a patterned structure. There are several tools available to improve your content readability and peak reader's interests. You can better format your blog articles or landing pages by utilizing organizational methods of numbering and bullet points. You can also section off what the content will be about by using titles with larger headers and sub headers for clarification. Furthermore, you can brighten up your content by providing images and links to better describe the information. All these elements will help lead the eye throughout the article and make the content easier to understand and follow. Here are a few more components to improve readability with content presentation: 

• Link appropriate words to explainer videos if the content seems to be difficult to explain. 
• Add visuals that give readers a better idea of what the product may look and how it functions. 
• Make sure your summary paragraph explains what the content will entail. 
• Include sub-headings to break up your text.
• Add colors to interest the readers. 
• All the information should flow together to explain one main topic. 

Enhancing Your SEO Efforts

As an online business, you are probably writing content to add keywords for better search engine optimization. Ranking higher on search engines will generate more leads to your website and increase sales. As said before, content is king and there are several elements needed to ensure the you are enhancing your SEO efforts. Readability is about making your content understandable and easy for readers. It may not seem significant for SEO and it’s common for businesses to get lost writing about themselves or using terms the general public doesn’t understand. However, when a website’s content is clear, comprehensible and simply understood by your targeted audience, they will learn about your service or product, and in turn, search engines will favor the site and help it rank higher. It's important to remember, you should be writing content for people and not focus your efforts solely for search engines alone. The challenge is to  balance between SEO and content, which will benefit the reader and your online business. 

Feel like you are constantly writing blogs for your business but never seem to be gaining any traffic? Check out the cheat sheet below to learn more about the fundamentals of blogging.