At the end of the day, content drives the Internet. It's an important aspect of any Web presence, but especially for affiliate marketers, who depend on their content to interest visitors, attract advertisers, and make money.
When an affiliate is just getting started with blogging, it can seem like they're wandering aimlessly trying to find the best ways to create compelling content that will help them successfully lure in merchants and consumers alike. However, in the mad rush to just get anything out there, many affiliates are willingly sacrificing quality for quantity.
Fortunately, as the best and brightest affiliates out there will tell you, that doesn't have to be the case. It's entirely possible to publish engaging, insightful, and lasting content that will also help fatten your wallet.
Just keep these six simple tips in mind every time you sit down to start blogging:
One of the biggest turn-offs for many Web users is clicking on a link only to be met with a giant wall of text. Unless they're super interested in what you have to say, chances are they're only going to skim your article, at best, or just leave the page immediately (in other words, "tl;dr"). It's not that what you have to say isn't worthwhile, but most Web readers prefer their content in bite-sized, easy to manage doses so they can just read it and be on their way. Say what you have to say and get out of there.
It's also important to consider your headline, since most users won't read any more than that. If you want to get eyes on your site, you have to write good, informative titles that will encourage users to click-through and see what it's all about.
This should go without saying, but readers (especially those looking for very niche-specific information) absolutely want you to publish content that is relevant to their needs and interests. Your posts should be actionable and deal with both common and more esoteric topics about whatever industry it is that you choose to cover. Give the people something that won't be a waste of time.
Evergreen content, information that is always useful and never goes out of date, is a great way to keep users coming to your blog. Anything that will always be relevant to your industry makes for an excellent topic, as it can ensure consistent traffic for an extended period of time, both from first time visitors looking for the information and regulars using it as a refresher. Not all of your content needs to be as timeless as the theme song from Titanic, but the more you have on your site, the better off you'll be in the long run.
Since the goal of your blog is to make money, you're going to need ads. And if you want to utilize those advertisements for profit, you have to make sure that what you're writing about compliments what merchants are trying to sell on your site. Remember, at the end of the day, your job is to help convince your readers that these advertisers offer the solutions to their problems.
Too often, bloggers fall into the trap of thinking of content in a bubble - a horribly boring text bubble. Don't get me wrong; text content can be great, and offers a solid foundation upon which to establish your blog, but you shouldn't stop there. Believe it or not, not everyone likes to read or has time to read or can spend all of their time at work reading your content instead of actually working. Thankfully, the solution is simple; just produce and publish other types of content that supplement your regular blog posts. Popular and practical choices could include videos or podcasts.
Sometimes, you may be too busy to consistently sit down and churn out a high volume of good content. And sometimes, you may just have writer's block (it happens - trust me). In these cases, it's good to have contacts that allow you to find guests to write posts and produce content for your blog. The best part is, you literally have to do no work.