What separates a beginner from the pros? Amateur writers write just to write. While this may create tons of negligible content, (or offer them private enjoyment), it does nothing to help them get noticed, increase business, or move their audience to take action.
So what is the goal of great writing? Professional writers have one main goal in mind with their writing: to change their audience. Great writers try hard to help their audience see through different eyes, act differently, and change the way they interact with the world.
Just about anyone who’s made it past the 4th grade can slap a few words together and a complete sentence. (Need proof? Look at most blogs out there.) If you really want to have power in your writing, you have to write for impact. This is what separates educational from influential. Powerful writing can be had in three easy steps: 1) writing for a specific audience, 2) using the right medium, and 3) choosing the correct conversion.
Targeted Audience
Getting in touch with your target audience is vital. See things from their perspective and not your point of view. Every article I write starts with identifying my target reader: What is his age? What are her hobbies and interests? Education? Income level? Purchasing habits? Etc.
Once I’ve nailed down the exact audience I’m trying to reach, and identified their characteristics, I craft a message specifically for them. Younger readers respond to words like revolutionary, cutting-edge, fresh, or innovative. Someone in the 60+ age category will be turned off immediately by such wording. They prefer safe, effective, and proven.
Correct Medium
Right medium means the location of your message. There are many different places you can publish, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. You can use magazines, newspapers, books, journals, even radio and TV. There are also blogs, websites, ezines and other online mediums, as well. Which medium you use is determined largely by your audience.
For example, let’s say I’m going after economists in an effort to influence economic policy. I wouldn’t really publish online. Material like this requires a substantial medium, such as an academic journal. In addition, a topic like this usually involves long, detailed text, not something easy to read on a computer screen.
A newspaper or magazine would not generally work in this instance either. There’s simply not enough space. However, if I am covering a topic that is short and sweet, it makes perfect sense to use newspapers.
Most people skim when they read (especially online.) But if you publish your message in a forum that is more suitable for what you reader expects, they’re much more likely to read it. You must consider the best medium for both your topic and readers.
Appropriate Conversion
Conversion can come in three main forms: knowing, feeling, and doing. The know form is when your article is looking to inform the reader of something new. It can also be something they already know, but you are casting in a different light. The point is when they finish reading they know something. A feeling piece is just what it says - you’re trying to invoke a feeling or emotional response from the reader. And when you write for doing, you’re trying to get the reader to do something, to take some kind of action.
An amateur, when they realize there are three forms, tries to cover all three in the same article. Big mistake. A pro will concentrate on only one outcome, because he or she knows that it will affect the other two. You should ask: How does the readers life change as a result of reading this article? What do I as the writer want to see happen to them? Do I want them to know, to feel, or to do something? Know that if you pick only one focus, and you write well, the rest will take care of itself.
Maximum impact only occurs when you seek to change your audience in some way. Identify your reader, and then choose the correct medium to reach them. Focus on one conversion style and then write well. If you do that, your reader will change in some way, and I believe change is the only writing worth reading.
