10 Psychological Insights to Improve Your Content Marketing

Content marketing has a number of benefits, from helping you reach out to prospective leads to establishing your company as a knowledgeable, reputable business in your niche. Without the proper writing techniques, unfortunately, it is unlikely that readers will find your content in the vast World Wide Web.

One thing that most humans have in common is innate patterns in their mind that help to draw them toward certain things. These patterns are psychological commonalities, which you could learn more about by ordering a paper from Paper written. This article will help you understand the psychological side of content marketing, so you can boost your audience and ensure you reap the benefits of publishing content on your company website.

1. The Rule of Reciprocity

Have you ever felt obligated to do something after someone else helped you? Maybe one of your coworkers helped you move, so you feel obligated to help them out when they ask you to do something. This rule simply means that when you give someone something, they feel indebted to you. This indebtedness makes it more likely that they will do what you want.

The rule of reciprocity can often be used to get customers to subscribe to your mailing list or receive updates from your company blog. Charities sometimes give you note pads or address labels, requesting that you send back a small donation later. It is also common for companies to give out free digital information, often through eBooks they have written for their site. It also works with pens, T-shirts, coupons, and other small tokens that make readers feel like they are indebted to you.

2. Us vs. Them

The us vs. them strategy describes a style of writing that avoids isolating your customer base. Some content is impersonal, using words like ‘they’ or ‘them’ commonly. The problem with this is that it outs anyone who doesn’t fit perfectly into your target customer group. This limits the reach of your content.

Out-group bias can be problematic in writing, but it also has the potential to be beneficial. Once you have established yourself as having the same view as your customers, by using words like ‘you’ and ‘we’ throughout the content, you can use out-group bias to pit them against your competitors. Explain why your services are better or what your competitors are doing wrong.

3. Create a Unique Headline

If you are researching something, you might find some websites that have just rewritten content. Some sites will have the same information as their competitors, possibly having it moved around or rewritten to make it unique—even though it really isn’t. One way to avoid your article being labeled with these is to create a unique headline.

For example, ‘Surprising Ways You Can Attract Customers to Your Site’. If you are going to use a headline that advertises how unique your ideas are, however, be sure that you deliver. If you offer the same ideas that the reader has already seen on another site, they are going to be disappointed and less likely to read your content in the future.

4. Make Your Major Points at the Beginning and the End

If you think back to middle school or high school writing class, then you likely remember that the thesis statement is a critical part of writing. The custom paper writer is necessary to make your point at the beginning and end of your paper, helping your reader keep track of the main idea and the purpose of your paper.

Like a thesis statement, you should mention the major point of your content at the beginning and end of the writing. This solidifies your major ideas and it also ensures that your main point does not get lost. This is critical since the research shows that people are most likely to remember the information that is presented at the beginning and the end of lists, reading material, and other documents.

5. Create a Sense of Authority

People are most likely to read information from someone who has authority in their field. It is hard to gain trust on the Internet, especially from rational thinkers. By establishing yourself as the authority in your niche, you gain credibility and prove to customers that you know what you are talking about (and selling). This reassurance is exactly what you need to gain respect and confidence from potential leads.

There are several ways that you can establish a sense of authority among your readers. Provide links to credible websites that back up your point or cite scientific studies that prove your ideas. Be sure to fact check this information, as the reliability of this information will affect your reliability in the eyes of your readers.

6. In-Group Bias

People like other people who are similar to them. When they feel as if you have shared their experiences or understand them on a deeper level, it is more likely that they will be positively receptive to your content. The key to doing this is grouping your target market with yourself and writing in a way that connects them with you.

For example, a company specializing in customized children’s toys might benefit from taking the view of a parent, grandparent, or another relative when they are writing blog articles. A business that is targeting an e-commerce company might address common issues, like shopping carts being abandoned, and then discuss potential ways to handle it.

7. Social Proof

Social proof has a lot to do with social influence and peer pressure. It is the idea that people are more likely to go along with an idea or like something that people they know like. If you scroll through your social media feed, you may even see people asking, “Where did you get that?” or “Who do you recommend for getting a tattoo?” People care about the experiences of others because it lessens the chance that they will have a bad experience, waste their time, or waste their money.

There are a number of ways that you can implement social proof in your content marketing. This includes including customer reviews or testimonials on your website, establishing your approval through having your company featured in news articles or videos, or getting endorsements from influencers.

8. Give Your Content Balance

If someone clicks on your content and is taken to a page that has nothing but side margins and a large block of text, their mind is going to quickly become overwhelmed. Most Internet users are skimmers, meaning that they look for keywords, headings, lists, and other easy-to-digest information to decide if the page they are looking at is worth their time.

Balance is about breaking up your text and making it easy to read. A lot of this has to do with proper headings and adding white space in the proper areas. Keep the margins neat and use things like tables and lists when they are appropriate. Images are also beneficial, but be wary of distracting backgrounds or low-quality images that take away from the professionalism of your content.

9. The Fear of Missing Out

The Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) is characterized by the uncontrollable worry that you are going to miss something. FOMO causes anxiety for some people, but for the purpose of marketing, it can help encourage people to read your content.

FOMO is especially useful for when you are giving away free material. For example, limiting the free eBook to the next 500 people that sign up for your emailing list or giving away 25 T-shirts to people who share your content on social media. This creates a sense of urgency that makes it more likely that people will do what you want.

10. Remind Your Leads That They Have a Choice

If you approach people insisting that they must say ‘yes’ to your offer to read the content, you will lose a fair portion of your viewing audience. Persuasion is useful, but if you are too persuasive, potential leads feel as if they do not have a choice and they put up a mental guard against what you are offering. If you give them the choice to accept or refuse, they are more likely to stick around (and to accept your offer).

It is not uncommon for websites to use humor to do this. For example, they offer the reader to sign up for their newsletter. The reader has the choice to click ‘yes’ or something that says, ‘No thank you, I don’t like free stuff.” This humor is relatable and it reminds customers that they do not necessarily have to sign up to reap the benefits of your content, making it more likely that they will continue to the webpage.