What a Content Writer Is and How to Become One [Research]

Firms rent content material writers to create partaking articles, ebooks, case research, and different codecs.

A content material author’s job is to tell, educate, and entertain their target market whereas additionally selling the enterprise’s services or products. 

Learn on to get an in-depth have a look at what content material writing is, primarily based on our evaluation of content material author jobs printed on Certainly.com. 

You’ll learn to change into a content material author, what the job entails, and which abilities are wanted to rise via the ranks in 2023. 

What Is Content material Writing?

Content material writing is the act of writing, enhancing, and publishing digital content material. Content material writers goal to interact and inform a enterprise’s target market in a means that additionally promotes the model or product. 

A content material author’s job includes creating materials that’s entertaining and academic. Such content material drives visitors to a corporation’s web site and builds leads and conversions.

Why Is Content material Writing Essential?

Creating valuable content helps companies appeal to and retain prospects, construct model loyalty, and set up themselves as thought leaders of their business. 

Content material writing additionally helps enhance search engine rankings, driving extra net visitors and growing gross sales.

What Is a Content material Author?

A content material author is an expert specializing in creating written materials for numerous kinds of digital web site content material. This could embody weblog posts, ebooks, e-newsletter content material, and every little thing in between.

Content material writers are sometimes half of a bigger content marketing group. They work with designers, editors, and entrepreneurs to create efficient and cohesive advertising supplies.

Aspiring content material writers usually start their careers as interns or junior writers. On this function, they’re coached by senior writers or content material managers.

As their careers progress, they’ll transfer into extra senior roles. 

These can embody managerial positions, and even changing into an editor or director of content material advertising. 

Content material writers preferring to develop their writing prowess could specialize as a substitute, shifting into areas resembling copywriting or technical writing.

Content material Writers vs. Copywriters

Typically, the phrases “content material author” and “copywriter” are seen as interchangeable. Nevertheless, regardless of some similarities of their talent units, these are two distinct roles.

Content material writers usually concentrate on creating informative or instructional content material resembling blogs, articles, case research, and white papers.

Copywriters normally craft persuasive or promotional content material like commercials, slogans, promotional emails, and taglines.

To achieve a greater understanding of what a content material author does each day, let’s delve additional into their function.

What Do Content material Writers Do?

There are numerous tasks that every one content material writers have. Our analysis recognized among the commonest tasks talked about in content material writing job descriptions:

As you possibly can see, content material writers are normally answerable for researching, writing, and enhancing numerous kinds of content material, together with blogging and different long-form items. 

In lots of circumstances, it additionally signifies that these folks want a minimum of a primary understanding of search engine optimization.

Content material writers ought to have a transparent understanding of their goal audiences, know methods to interact them, and use a related tone of voice.

Let’s have a look at a few of these tasks intimately.

1. Analysis

Excessive-quality content material relies on hours of in-depth analysis. 

Content material writers have to investigate plenty of info—a few of it technical—to construct sturdy articles and blogs. 

This may occasionally even imply conducting interviews, studying business publications, and analyzing information to glean related info.

2. Writing

This one ought to come as no shock! 

As soon as they’ve completed researching an article, content material writers should begin writing. 

They need to be conversant in writing all method of various article types and lengths, in addition to different kinds of media. 

This could embody weblog posts, articles, social media updates, white papers, and extra.

Content material writers must also have the talent set to optimize their content for rankings, engagement, and conversions.

3. Enhancing

As soon as content material has been written, it wants a deft hand to edit it. 

Extra senior content material writers want to have the ability to proofread and edit their content material. 

This includes ensuring it’s free from factual errors, follows the model’s type and tone of voice, and is grammatically appropriate.

4. Collaboration

Content material writers want to have the ability to work carefully with different groups throughout the corporate.

This contains advertising, design, and gross sales groups, ensuring that produced content material aligns with an organization’s targets and messaging.

Key Abilities for Content material Writers

Content material writers want a number of attributes up their sleeves to assist them construct a profitable profession. 

Such qualities embody a love of phrases, creativity, and a focus to element. On prime of this, content material writers want to have the ability to work independently and meet deadlines. 

Content material writers must also be adaptable and capable of write in quite a lot of tones and types, relying on the wants of the model or mission.

Listed below are the most typical abilities required in content material writers, in line with our analysis:

Let’s look extra carefully at these—in addition to another abilities content material writers ought to possess.

Writing Abilities

Sturdy writing abilities are the muse of content material creation and content material writing. 

Content material writers should have wonderful writing abilities to supply high-quality content material that engages the target market. 

They need to be capable of write clearly and concisely to greatest talk with their target market.

Technical Writing Abilities

Many content material author positions may contain creating content material for technical audiences. That is very true for B2B and SaaS firms. 

Your skill to shortly perceive and convert advanced technical ideas into digestible copy may very well be extraordinarily precious.

Copywriting Abilities

Copywriting is the artwork of writing persuasive content material that converts readers into prospects. 

In addition to constructing on foundational writing abilities, copywriting abilities assist content material writers to supply compelling calls to motion (CTAs) that encourage readers to make particular selections. 

These are sometimes linked to purchasing a services or products. 

Writing Participating Headlines

Headlines seize consideration and generate clicks. It’s a key talent for content material writers and copywriters. 

You may make the proper title to your content material with our free AI title generator. It’ll provide you with tons of concepts that may catch your viewers’s eye. 

It’ll additionally show you how to provide you with new content material concepts. 

Merely kind in a subject, and also you’ll have a bunch of useful suggestions, guides, lists, and extra you should use later.

search engine optimization Abilities

Content material writers should know learn how to optimize their copy to rank greater on search engines like google.

Should you’ve not heard of search engine optimization, it stands for SEO. 

That is the artwork of guaranteeing your content material seems excessive in search engine outcomes. 

Content material writers want a primary understanding of SEO principles to make sure that their content material outranks the competitors and generates natural visitors.

Enhancing Abilities 

Because the adage goes, in case you can’t keep on with a phrase depend, you possibly can’t write. 

Content material writers want prime enhancing abilities to maintain their articles, blogs, and social media posts concise and to the purpose. 

The power to proofread and edit their very own work is much more essential than coping with others’ writing. 

Content material writers must also be capable of determine grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors.

Our free paraphrasing tool will show you how to edit, shorten, and rewrite sentences—supplying you with three choices for each piece of content material you wish to modify. 

Storytelling Abilities

Good content material writers can craft nice tales to maintain their audiences engaged and entertained. 

They should tell stories that resonate with their target market and preserve them returning for extra.

Storytelling might help make your copy extra partaking and dynamic—whether or not a technical white paper or an entertaining weblog submit.

Tech Abilities

Content material writers will not be normally required to work with a number of tech instruments. Nevertheless, a number of platforms are talked about within the job postings we analyzed.

In keeping with our analysis, listed below are the highest 10 tech abilities for content material writing positions:

Abilities for Later-Profession Content material Writers

After all, being a content material author is a profession of many ranges. 

Content material writers have to develop completely different abilities as they transfer up the profession ladder. Normally, these can be aligned with main groups of inventive folks. 

Two key areas important for senior content material writers are content material administration and management.

Content management includes overseeing and planning the creation, publishing, and distribution of content material throughout a number of platforms. 

Content material managers should be capable of lead a group of writers, editors, and designers to make sure that content material is produced on time and to excessive requirements. 

They need to additionally be capable of develop and implement content strategies that align with the general targets of the corporate or the consumer.

Management abilities are essential for senior content material writers. 

These professionals should be capable of rally the troops, inspiring and motivating their group to supply high-quality content material that meets the target market’s wants. 

Do Content material Entrepreneurs Want a Diploma?

As a contract content material author, you don’t essentially have to have a selected diploma, 

Nevertheless, some in-house positions require having one; primarily based on our analysis, 13% of job descriptions point out a related bachelor’s diploma.

We recognized among the commonest fields of research for would-be content material writers talked about in job descriptions. 

Prime 5 diploma choices for content material writers embody:

• Writing
• English
• Advertising
• Communications 
• Journalism

Such programs can arm college students with the required writing abilities, crucial pondering, and analysis skills to succeed as a content material author. 

Additionally they give college students an opportunity to flex their inventive muscle mass. 

Should you’d like to enhance your personal abilities with out getting a specialised diploma, there are additionally many on-line programs to select from. 

What Do Content material Writers Get Paid?

Fortunately for aspiring content material writers, there’s a steady development of digital advertising and the ever-increasing demand for high-quality content material.

In different phrases, the profession prospects within the business are promising.

Salaries for content material writers fluctuate relying on a number of components, together with expertise, business, and placement. 

In keeping with our analysis, the typical content material author’s wage within the U.S. is $63,400 per 12 months. The bottom and highest salaries vary from $30,000 to $152,000 per 12 months. 

For senior content material writers, salaries can are available considerably greater, with greater ranges of base pay and the next total common. 

The Semrush analysis discovered that the typical wage for a senior content material author is available in at $89,800 per 12 months, with a spread beginning at $60,500 and rising to $152,000.

Wrapping Up

As you possibly can see, content material writers are a extremely sought-after group of execs. 

To achieve success on this discipline, would-be content material writing professionals should be stand-out writers with nice abilities in enhancing and storytelling.

These skills are important for creating high-quality content material to assist companies have interaction their viewers and stand out from the group.

Content material writing is a dynamic and rewarding occupation. It provides all kinds of alternatives for individuals who like to be inventive with phrases. 

With this information, it’s time to start out constructing your content material writing profession! 

Be taught extra about content material writing and content material advertising traits within the State of Content Marketing 2023 Global Report.