Web Site Content - How To Get It & Keep It Useful

© Elizabeth McGee

Content is King. No doubt you've heard this before. So developing quality, worthwhile web site content is crucial to  attracting targeted visitors and attracting the attention of the search engines.

Creating content today isn't the same as it was 3-5 years ago.  Today it's much more scrutinized.  Visitors and search engines alike are looking for unique yet interesting content that has it's own voice, it's own individual style. 

To create content that people can find elsewhere is a waste of your time and your reader's. 

Instead keep your content unique, the ideas don't need to always be original, of course it's better if they are, but they do need to reflect your own voice, your own opinion and your own style of writing.

Here are several effective options for helping you develop content that is original and won't be found everywhere.

Use Editorials.

Write editorials that reflect your personal opinion. Editorials are often food for thought and invite viewer opinions. Urge visiting guests to write relevant editorials for placement on your site.  Good comments and feedback will keep your site interesting and colorful. 

Have articles written for you.

If writing your own content makes you cringe then by all means, have it done for you. Elance.com is an excellent resource for writing exclusive articles just for you, and it can be done for as little as $5-$10 each. Request that the articles be written in a conversational style.  Include ideas and thoughts that you have on the topic and ask the writer to incorporate those thoughts into the article.

Use News Stories and add your own ideas

Keep your site up to date with the latest news stories related to your site's topic but don't place the news story directly on your site. You can include a link to the full story but sum up the story as you see it and add interject your own comments.  Remember to keep the news articles recent and relevant.

Use Interviews

Depending on your web site topic, find someone that is well known in the field and ask them to consider conducting an interview with you. Compose a number of relevant, perhaps burning questions that many people would be interested in and compose an answer and question interview. You'd be surprised at how many interested viewers you could attract.

Create Product or book reviews

If you endorse a product on your web site, go the extra step and purchase the product yourself. Use the product and write a candid, personal review. This not only adds original content, it creates credibility and establishes you as an informative resource.

Post a forum on your site.

This often gets lots of interest because people can post comments, questions, and opinions. It will also keep viewers returning time and time again to keep up on the latest forum entries. It's also an excellent way to make connections and build joint ventures.