What is Content?
The word content is everywhere today, most frequently used to refer to information you find online. Content, as we are using it, refers to the information available online from a specific web page. For example, in order to find this article you performed a search query, likely typing a question such as ‘what is content’ into a search engine such as Google or Bing. What comes up when you click on a link is a web page, and that web page can contain a variety of content.
Most likely if you typed in a question you are hoping that when you click on a link the information contained in the web page will answer your question. You don’t want to waste your valuable time in a frustrating search for relevant information. Web content is provided in a variety of mediums, and the best content is targeted to provide the right information in a way that is best suited to those who are searching for it.
A web page can contain:
- Text
- Pictures
- Video
- Infographics – visual diagrams of a difficult or complicated concept such as this one from Content Marketing Institute
- Podcasts
- Interactive forms
All of the above are examples of content. A single web page can contain more than one of the above types of content, as well as menus with links to more specific content. The best web pages contain relevant and engaging content that achieves a goal for both the online searcher and the business or organization that created the content.
What Does the Word Content Mean?
The word content, like many words, has more than one meaning. Content is pronounced differently though spelled the same, depending on whether you use it as an adjective, verb or noun.
When you use content as an adjective, the emphasis is on the second syllable (content). Content used as an adjective describes a state of satisfaction, where nothing more is needed. You can also use it as a noun within the same context to describe a state of being, contentment. Contentment means the state of being satisfied with the way things are.
When you use it as a verb, it implies settling for a situation that is less than ideal, for instance:
She tried to be content with her present situation as she did not see a way to improve it.
Used as a noun, the emphasis is on the first syllable, content. Content can mean the amount of a substance contained in something else, like the amount of alcohol contained in a bottle of 80-proof vodka or the amount of fat in a serving of low-fat yogurt.
Content also refers to information. It can mean the information or ideas contained in a book, a magazine or a speech. Finally, it can mean the information in electronic media, such as a web page. We will focus on web page content, but it is easy to see that other definitions of content can and should come into play when planning a web page content strategy.
How Content used as an Adjective Should Describe People’s Reaction to Your Web Page
The main goal in planning a content strategy is for the people who click on your link to be content with the results they find on your web page. A good strategy will achieve this objective, only attracting those people to your page that are interested in what you have to offer, whether it’s information, a product or a service.
If people are looking for what you offer, well-planned content will help people to be content when they click on your link—they do not need to search any further because you have satisfied their need. Or, maybe they will click on other links but come back to your page because, after researching various options, they can see that you are the best!
How Content Used as a Verb Is a Wonderful Opportunity to Build Your Business
As described above, content used as a verb describes an action people take who are trying to be okay with a situation which is less than ideal. Consider this scenario: John was trying to find information about how much it would cost to install a fiberglass pool. It seemed like there were a zillion links advertising fiberglass pools, but no company offered info on cost. He decided that if nobody wanted to discuss cost it was probably out of his range. He didn’t want to have a sales rep visit his house; he wanted information on whether he could possibly afford it first before he went any further. He was hoping that he could get the pool installed for his kids while they were young enough to enjoy it. This was a big reason he didn’t want to have a sales rep out because he didn’t want to get his family’s hopes up if he couldn’t get the pool. He would have to content himself with taking the kids to the YMCA to swim for another summer.
Then somebody from a company called River Pools and Spas wrote an article about the costs of installing a fiberglass pool. The guy’s name was Marcus Sheridan. Marcus wrote an article that discussed what each option would cost and the total price. John could not afford it that year, but a couple of years later he was ready. John called River Pool and Spa because they were helpful and also their transparency regarding cost built trust. He’d read all the articles on their website and he was ready to buy.
The above story is fictional. But Marcus Sheridan is a real person. You may have heard of him. He saved his company from going under during the housing crisis in 2009. Marcus got the idea of answering people’s questions while thinking about how he felt when he was looking for info online that most companies are reluctant to give. Marcus decided that he had nothing to lose and a lot to gain by creating transparency and filling the information vacuum through answering customers’ questions on the company website. For more information on how Marcus Sheridan saved his company from going under and started his new career as an advertising consultant and keynote speaker read the New York Times interview, A Revolutionary Marketing Strategy: Answer Customers’ Questions.
If you can build up your website with content that is useful to those who are interested in what you offer you can create a loyal base of people who trust your business and regard you as an authority in your niche. This is a giant step up in web content marketing: make yourself useful to people by filling a vacuum and people will see your company as the good guys that you are.