The key to great content

Hey there,

For this first edition of The Content Moat, I’d like to talk about one of the most important prerequisites for a great piece of content—the content brief.

The content brief = the key to great content

The content brief is a document that includes all the information a writer or content creator might need to create a piece of content.

A detailed brief is essential for getting good content from writers.

This is especially true if you’re working with freelance writers since they’ll inevitably be less familiar with your company, product, and mission compared to in-house team members.

So, what information should a content brief include? While this will vary from brand to brand, every content brief should at least include information on the following:

1. Target audience

Who’s going to be reading the content?

This is probably the most important piece of information you can include in a content brief. Give the writer as much relevant information as possible on the target audience for the content piece.

For B2C, you’ll want to mention the demographics of the audience (such as age, gender, and location), interests, and behavior.

For B2B, you should focus on industry, job role, pain points, and jobs-to-be-done.

2. Target keyword (for SEO content)

Which keyword are you trying to get the content to rank for?

If the brief is for an SEO content piece, you should absolutely include the keyword you’re targeting. This will provide the writer with more context and help them when doing research for the piece.

It might also be helpful to include a list of the top-ranking pages for your target keyword.

3. Outline

How should the content be structured?

You’ll want to provide the writer with an outline that shows them what the piece should focus on, and which information it should include.

Otherwise, you have no influence over which information the writer will decide to include.

The outline is especially important for SEO content because you need to make sure the content piece addresses the search intent adequately in order to rank.

Make sure your content brief includes a detailed outline that clearly shows the structure the writer should follow, including which headings to use and what kind of information to include under each heading.

4. Research links

What are some suitable resources the writer should use for research?

While you ultimately want the writer to do their own research and explore the topic in depth, your content brief should include a starting point for them to begin their research journey.

Point the writer in the right direction by sharing links to resources they should use when doing research for the piece. These can include:

• Online articles

• Books

• Videos

• Podcasts

• Forum threads

• and more

Try to include at least five resource links in your brief.

5. Editorial guidelines

How should the content look, sound, and feel?

It’s important that you let the writer know more about your brand’s voice and tone.

For example, are you aiming for a casual or professional tone? Funny or serious?

Do you want them to use first- or third-person point of view?

Add as many details as possible to help the writer do a better job at emulating your brand’s tone and voice. Or, if you already have an entire document dedicated to your editorial guidelines, add a link to it in the brief.

Your brief, your choice

No need to limit your content brief to include just the above, though.

Add anything you think will be helpful to the writer when writing the piece. The more details you include, the better the chance that you’ll receive a great first draft.

Looking for help with content marketing?

I help B2B SaaS companies drive growth through strategic, product-led content marketing. My clients include companies like Semrush, Hunter.io, Hubstaff, and Lineup.ai.

Here are a few things I can help you with:

• Content strategy – I can create an effective content strategy for your brand that will allow you to generate leads, signups, or demo bookings consistently.

• Content writing – I write blog posts, ebooks, case studies, reports, white papers, and more.

• SEO & Link building – I can optimize your content for search engines and build high-quality links that will get your content to the top of search results.

• Fractional content management – You can also hire me as your fractional Head of Content to help you drive growth through content marketing at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire.

Interested? Book a time on my calendar here or check out my website here.