Ever since I started exploring the journalism niche, a lot of years back, as a radio host, they told me the first and most important things about presenting news – start with the most important. Okay. That’s it?
Answering the W-questions: Who, What, Where, When, and Why – that, my mentors said, is essential to the good news provider. It helps any reader understand in the beginning what is most important and then decide if the rest is interesting for him or her.
But how is that practically used in content marketing, and why does it matter?
What is the Inverted Pyramid Approach?
Most important.
Less important.
Least important.
That’s it. Doesn’t get any more complicated than that. It has been used for many years now and sometimes not even intentionally. Although it should be. So, how is this related to content writing? The inverted pyramid approach means you start with the most significant and valuable information and then with additional content while you go until the end, where you share final thoughts and not-so-essential messages.
In the first stage of this type of writing, you grab the attention. By starting with the most important content, you have an impact on the readers and you’ll be a step closer to writing articles that your buyer personas will read. The second one is building the anticipation, as well as suspension, of some taken points, or thoughts that you think are also evoking interest. And the third one is, of course, the call to action. If it is not news that you are sharing, a proper call to action button would be perfect for finalizing your article.
Furthermore, those kinds of approaches can help improve your writing skills and captivate your readers’ interest and focus.
How Can You Use it for Content Writing?
As we know the most common way of reading, especially online, is skimming. In other words, going through a text without reading everything, paying attention only to headlines, and bolded parts, and reading some sentences to get the main point. That’s how most internet users do it and you have to be careful if you don’t give them what they want with a few bullet points or clearly presented points of view.
But except for the user experience, it’s also great for our favorite SEO. One of the trendy and preferred results now in Google is the featured snippets. And if you answer questions clearly, simply, and everything is keyword related, you might as well get there too. For that, you also need to answer the main questions of the topic researched in your post, provide details about it and address related questions.
Why is the Inverted Pyramid Approach Helpful?
The benefits of the inverted pyramid approach in content writing are a lot. Starting with supporting all readers, even those who like to skim. Also, it improves the comprehension, everything readers want to know can be read in the first paragraph; you don’t lose time to get to the point; if it is done properly well, readers are encouraged to scroll and read the rest of the article or open new ones.
Not to mention, “giving away” the answers is building trust and credibility in your website visitors, they are more likely to read more from you and believe everything you say. Nonetheless, they’ll be the ones that convert, and in the end, it’s what you aim for, isn’t it?
Of course, it also gives writers full control over the structure and makes it easier to edit articles from your point of view.
How to Successfully Do it?
When you have your idea about an article, you’ve done your research and it’s time to get to the planning of the content, here is what you need to keep in mind.
First, think about what are the most significant points you would like to make, as well as which are the ones that are supportive but not key to this article. Think also about the structure of your article – it needs to be well organized, having sub-headlines, bullet points, and bolded important messages.
Don’t use the approach only looking at the whole article, do it also in the separate paragraphs – start each with the core and then supports it.
Make sure the readability score is good too, as well as easy to understand. This is especially important if you are aiming at the featured snippets and SEO results. You’d be surprised how well it will work out for you.
To Conclude – Give it a Try!
There can be no harm if you try it at least once. You could also benefit. The inverted pyramid approach is a great content marketing strategy that many people prefer to write… and read. It’s a great chance for your article to be useful as it would be appreciated by those who skim too. And from Google, if you do it right and don’t fill it up with trashy supportive content.
It’s significant we focus on the most important things in life. And so is when we read, write, or else. It’s the right kind of affection we all need online.