The journey starts here...

Where to start to be a successful content creator.

In 11 days, I have gotten more than 10 questions on how to either be a content creator, copywriter, or content writer. I am not an expert myself, but more people are interested in owning their process and creating stories.

The truth is, there is no mystery to it. Anyone can be a content person. In fact, we create content every day. The only difference is that the content person knows how to position those content to make sense to his specific audience.

I get this question a lot, what is the difference between a content creator, copywriter, and a content writer.

In simple terms…

A content creator is simply anyone that creates appealing and engaging content – images, videos, audios, or text for a specific audience.

A copywriter is someone that writes words specifically designed to promote or sell a product or service.

A content writer is a skilled writer who produces content in web articles, blog posts, and other forms of web materials.

You can easily see from these definitions that all three are involved in content creation.

Now, What is Content Creation?

Content creation involves producing different content across platforms like social media, blogs, podcasts, and more. A content creator is mostly involved with:

1.       Evaluating the brand, including deciding the tone, content format, voice, and strategies

2.       Brainstorming relevant and engaging content that drive results

3.       Writing or creating content that comprises a different range of social media platforms

4.       Elevating the content with great designs or videos, as the case made be

5.       Editing your work to ensure it is well-polished for publishing

6.       Optimizing the content, especially for content writers, you must be able to apply your SEO game to make the content rank appropriately.

While you may think this is too much work for one person. While these responsibilities can be assigned to specific persons, it is still essential that you are familiar with all of these roles as a content creator.

After understanding what the content creator does, you must know who needs you, as this will help you position yourself better.

Who Needs a Content Creator?

Everyone needs content. This means content creators can produce content for small businesses, individuals, and corporations. As long as the person or brand wants an online strategy, there is definitely a need for a driving force for the content, which is the content creator.

Now, I want you to understand that the difference between a random "poster" and a content creator is that the content creator understands that brands thrive on stories. Hence, he can boost brand presence and drive revenue with relevant content.

So, Where do you start?

1.       Learn to Invest in Yourself.

As an individual, I started my content creation journey by first educating myself. You don't need to read marketing or communications to be a content creator. Where this is good and will bolster your journey; all you need is a passion for being a content creator.

Learn to read books, articles, and learn everything that there is to content creation. You can read books like Epic Content Marketing by Joe Pulizzi. Everybody Writes by Ann Handley. This is Marketing by Seth Godin and more books. You can check pdf.com if you can’t access hard copies.

Another goldmine you must explore is to attend workshops. I can't tell my content creation story without mentioning Instabooster Academy's by Salem King, Creative Incubator by The Social Media Oga and Dimeji Stories, Plan, Write, and Push Orifunke Lawal, and many others.

An important way to grow is also by experience. In fact, a huge chunk of what I know, I learned by experience. Volunteer for businesses or intern and ensure you do good work!

2.       Find Your Expertise and Niche.

In my opinion, I would ask that you start. Don't start out looking to crave a specific niche for yourself; don't try to speak to everyone.

When you try to crave a specific niche, you end up craving a small space for yourself, which would not give room for you to explore other interests. Hence, I recommend that you start testing the waters and try different things while still retaining your core self. For instance, you could start as a web content writer but still explore copywriting opportunities, ghostwriting, and more. As you go by, you will be able to decide what works better for you.

3.       Take on Experiences and Opportunity.

I like something Adaora Mbelu said in her podcast, be ready for opportunities. Stop waiting for "real life" work before you start doing work.

Write a simple article on what your business is all about, create something about your product, write a line to sell a product, and more. You can apply tip #1, volunteer for families and friends, and take some free jobs if you can.

4.       Create Your Own Brand

Create an Instagram page for those pictures/videos you create, a podcast for those audios, a blog for those articles or copies, and you will always be one content better.

All you need is to:

·         Focus on your strength

·         Research on existing content

·         Create content will a particular audience in mind

·         Experiment until you find what works for you

5.       Network

Don't stay on your own, expecting manna! Reach out to people in your circle, show them your work. Join social media and consistently create content and interact with other content creators authentically (both upcoming and successful). The truth is, as you keep putting your work out there, you get to reach more people that could help you get better.

6.       Get the necessary tools and keep learning.

Even the best of us never stops learning. The content creation space never stops evolving; ensure to keep tabs on industry leaders. Use tools like Pinterest, Twitter, Reddit, and identify trends and ideas you can hone on.

If you have chosen to create content for others to position their brands and products well, you have made a great choice. This means many more people will start putting their effort where their money and audience are because of you. 

I remain Dammy Rachael, and I want to help you discover better ways to create content for your brand/clients.

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