Let’s be honest — some niches are just more fun to read about than others. Personally, I’d rather read about fitness tips or the latest fashion trends than pipe welding equipment, wicker chairs, or electric water heaters.
Unfortunately, though, if you want to succeed on the world wide web, you can’t just bury your head in the sand when it comes to fresh content. No matter what niche you’re in, people have questions that need to be answered and problems that need to be solved. They’re hungry for information, and it’s your job to publish content that gives them the information they need — in a way that’s interesting and easy-to-understand.
But until you know how to make every piece of content compelling from start to finish, you’ll never see the success you want.
So, how do you come up with irresistible content in a boring niche?
1. Come up with an awesome title first
Lots of people do their titles last. They research and write, then come up with an appropriate title. However, if you’re trying to make your content irresistible, you need to work the other way around. If you can come up with an awesome title before you do anything else, you’re setting the bar high. Your research and writing will have to live up to the title.
Think of your title as the appetizer and your article or blog post as the main course. If your appetizer is chock full of fresh ingredients, has all kinds of vibrant flavors, and comes decoratively presented on the plate, you can’t help but be excited about eating the main course. So, if you’ve already got a kick-butt title, you’ll naturally be more excited to write something equally-awesome to go along with it. Remember, the more excited you are about your topic, the more excited your readers will be.
2. Always have a story behind your numbers
Let’s say you’re writing about pipe welding, and you have a statistic that says 50% of pipe welding fittings fail within 10 years (I totally made that statistic up, so no offense to my pipe welding friends!). Instead of just sticking this statistic next to a bullet point and letting it float around cyberspace, you need to explain why it’s so important. The story behind the numbers is what makes the numbers interesting!
So, what kind of story is there behind my made-up number?
That’s where good research comes in. You might discover that failing fittings lead to more expensive repairs, dangerous conditions for the people who have to work on them, or a glut of lost profits for the companies that have to deal with them.
By telling the story behind the numbers, you’re making the numbers hit home. Your readers will understand exactly how each statistic affects them — and they’ll be far more likely to keep reading. Just like that, you’re not a boring statistic machine. Instead, you’re an interesting storyteller who’s got solid facts to support your position.
3. Tackle timely topics
Since web content is out there forever, you’ll need plenty of “evergreen” content — you know, the stuff that will be just as relevant and helpful a year from now as it is today. However, your content writing arsenal also needs to include your take on things that are happening right now. Focusing on timely issues in your niche can give you a big spike in traffic, because people are thinking about them right now. They’re looking for answers and solutions right now.
Once you’ve hooked people with your timely content, you can use your evergreen content to reel them in.
How can you make it work for you?
Let’s say you sell electric water heaters — not the most exciting product, but a necessity of life, nonetheless. By writing an article that explains the latest technological advancements that can help your water heater go green, or by writing a blog post that shows people how to maximize their tax deductions on “Energy Star” products before the deadline, you’re showing readers why your products and business are relevant RIGHT NOW.
Once you’ve grabbed readers’ attention with your take on a topic they’ve probably heard about on the news, you can use your other, more evergreen content to show them why YOU’RE the expert they should do business with.
4. Make yourself likeable
If you can establish yourself as a good storyteller, your target audience will read the content you publish — simply because you’re the author.
But how do you do that if your niche isn’t the most exciting thing in the world?
No matter what niche you’re in, you’ll need to have a style that’s all yours. Maybe you’re funny. Maybe you’re brutally honest. Maybe you never take your niche too seriously. However you decide to come across to your readers, make it a part of your brand.
This isn’t something that can be done overnight, though. Instead, you’ll have to publish a variety of articles, blog posts, and other pieces of content that prove you’ve got interesting things to say day-in and day-out.