What Does “Great Content” Mean, Anyway?

[snakeair]

Don't answer this question till you read the article.

How many times have you heard people (including me) rant and rave about the internet marketing benefits of great content? A lot, I’m guessing. But how many of those pundits and the practitioners that read them stop to consider, What IS great content? What makes it great? How do you define that?

Is it great because the author thinks so? Or because the content was retweeted 700 times and shared 150 times on Facebook? Was it great because there were 70 comments? Those are all things most marketers would feel satisfaction from in regard to content they created and published. But there’s a common disconnect with this idea of “great content”.

What’s the problem with....

Continued at: http://www.toprankblog.com/2011/10/great-content/

Your thoughts on this blog post?

[PainFreeProfits]

For me, the hit or miss with "great content" is whether I can use the content to go do something. If I'm trying to learn how to build a deck and I find an article with appropriate diagrams that explains it all, I'll say that's "great content."

I'll suggest that most of the forum threads that get massive hits (not just here but on others) are those that are about gossip or a way of making big dollars quickly. Popularity doesn't mean effectiveness.

"Great content" is functional, explains well, and makes me think: "Jeez, I didn't think of that..."

[nicolebeckett]

It's ironic... the concept of that blog post could not have been more basic (find out what your target audience wants/needs and give it to them in a way that's interesting and helps them take action) - yet it's a point that so many people overlook! Too many internet marketers have gotten so wrapped up in link bait, PR, and SERP's that they have completely forgotten the basics.

Thanks for hammering this point home, Snake. Hopefully, alot of people will take the points to heart!

[jhoanna]

Of all the posted articles out there, most of them help but only a few can really make me say "wow, that's great content!" I can only say that if the article I just read is worth the time, doesn't matter how long it is written, has the information I was looking for, a real eye opener and the ones that, like PainFreeProfits said, "Jeez, I didn't think of that..."

[mauritiusl]

Great content should be relevant, unique and interesting to read as well...

[snakeair]

Originally Posted by mauritiusl

Great content should be relevant, unique and interesting to read as well...

Thanks for the response but i'm also looking for some feedback from the blog post i linked us to.

[signorm68]

after latest Google update(panda), I think nobody don't knows answer on question "What Does “Great Content” Mean, Anyway?"

Well,it is a joke, but it is also a true, for example if you take a look onto affected sites you will find many articles directories ,hubpages and similar sites who all the time had strict policy if you want to publish something there. After all, it showed us that they didn't have idea what is good content...

[C.A. Perez]

Snakeair,

The blog post states much of the obvious attributes of 'great' or 'quality' content, but I don't think it answers the question he posed, "What is great content?"

The definition of great content is subjective. It varies from reader, to search engines, to authors. For us to attempt to agree on some Platonic definiton of 'great content' is futile.

However, as article marketers there is a measure that we can use to circumvent any idealistic, one fits all, definition and that is intent.

As article marketers, did our writing fulfill our intent to motivate the reader to act on our intent (opt in, buy, or whatever)? Assume grammar, spelling, and format are equal.

All the qualities and attributes noted in the blog article attempt to corral the definiton of great content into a nice tight package. Impossible.

That is why copywriters (akin to article marketers) must test variations of their copy to determine what is great copy.

One thing I know for sure, I know great content when I see it, but maybe no one else will.

[C.A. Perez]

I should have added this quote which sums it up:

"Figuring out what your customers care about along with strong creative, social and SEO execution, means you can create content that is valuable, useful and far more likely to inspire specific business outcomes than something based on a personal, subjective definition of “great” and leaving it to chance to spread."

My emphasis.

[plraticlecontents]

To me great content is defines as any content that is useful or helpful to its readers. If you write great content word of mouth will spread about your website's contents.

[Inspired Ink]

Interesting article, and something that I'm just starting to weigh out as I'm getting started again.

I used to write for the web a few years ago, and "great content" at that time meant that I wrote lots of posts relevant to the aim of my blog (most of my writing was on blogs) that people could appreciate, would comment on, and would make them come back to my blog. If it was a paid post, I did my very best at all times to write a post that could STILL be appreciated and useful to my readers ... sometimes in a way that really promoted the product, but if I could not do that, then at least something that people could still use and still gave the link to the advertiser.

Now I really wonder. I have a niche that I've been writing status updates on Facebook and posting articles and forum posts around the web that people really love. Most of the time, I think the larger audience are just entertained by my little homestead, but a smaller audience of like-minded folks can find useful information as well. But I have not yet really pursued making it a source of paid posts, because I'm honestly not sure if there is much of a market for it. But it certainly generates a lot of interest among readers.

[pearpandas]

I'm starting to realize the value of great content. It is so difficult, but you have to bite the bullet and really get creative or you won't make any money online.

[steelbrand]

I'd call great content something that is original and interesting enough to generate organic growth.

[Webstudio Pros]

It's hard to just assume that what you are writing are "great" content. You need to have strategies to be able to get noticed by readers. Add value. Add entertainment. Add awesomeness.

[annabelle07]

Originally Posted by Webstudio Pros

It's hard to just assume that what you are writing are "great" content. You need to have strategies to be able to get noticed by readers. Add value. Add entertainment. Add awesomeness.

I like that! I think that really works - nicely put

[BiologyWebmaster]

Originally Posted by signorm68

after latest Google update(panda), I think nobody don't knows answer on question "What Does “Great Content” Mean, Anyways?

What does Google Panda have to do with writing great content? That is the problem right there, DON'T CREATE CONTENT FOR SEARCH ENGINES!

You need to create content for people, the ones who are actually going to read the article; who cares about search engine spiders when it comes to readability, creativity, thought, information provided, and grammar?

I for one, with everything i write, write for the reader, end-user, or select audience in which I am intending on coming across to.

When it comes down to it great content is written by great writers, who know how to write, and how to write well!

Much Thanks,

BiologyWebmaster

[thehawkman]

Well, great content obviously means something that people care about. It's astonishing how many people are so obsessed with creating content for search engines, or with writing about something that maybe 5 people care about.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505143_1...waste-of-time/

Even if you remove the business part from the title, the message of the above article remains clear.

Your readers are not your customers. This happens more often than you think. For example, a friend is an incredibly successful financial planner. He writes a blog that gets thousands of unique visitors a month. But he writes about topics of interest only to other financial planners. That would be fine if his blog generated media opportunities, or supported a book he plans to write, or helps him network and bring in more business -- but it doesn't. Building an audience is useful only if the audience contains current and potential customers. Know who is reading your blog. If you can't be bothered to find out, that's yet another indication it's time to stop.

Your customers may not even care to read anything at all. Most people don't anyway. Some may not even have access to the internet during the day. Don't think that just because you read a lot, most people out there do. And if you really must create content, it needs to be "heroin content".
Like the IMDB for instance. Or the tabloids.

http://www.webpagesthatsuck.com/bigg...1995-2015.html

Site lacks Heroin Content.

In his classic book Naked Lunch, which I read when I was 15, William Burroughs described heroin as the ultimate product. Why? Because people would crawl through the sewers and beg to buy it. In the non-drug world, there are very few products that can be classified as having heroin's appeal.

How many web sites have Heroin Content?

Heroin Content's characteristics vary by type of site — but you'll know it when you see it. One global characteristic, though, is frequently updated content. The best way to get people to come back to your site again and again is by having content they need, and then updating this content on a regular basis.

How do you create Heroin Content? The answer depends on the likes and dislikes of your audience. Remember, it's what your audience wants that counts. What I consider Heroin Content is somebody else's Quinine Content.

Here are some thoughts about web content.
• Does your content solve your customers' problems or does it create problems?
•Does your content match your audience's expectations?
•Have you determined the purpose of your site?
•Do you know your target audience?
•Ask yourself: "What content do I have that would cause anybody in their right mind to visit my site a second, third, or fourth time?" This is extremely important. You might con (seduce) someone to visit your site once, but why would they want to come back a second, third, or fourth time? If you can't answer this question, you really shouldn't have a web site.
•Is the content technically correct?
•Does your customer need to know the content you're presenting?
•Is the content current and updated frequently?
•Can people find the content they're looking for?
•Does my site have Heroin Content?

I just got through reading that Bill Gates wants to start a blog. Why would anyone in their right mind want to read it? Do you think it will contain Heroin Content? As Seth Godin brilliantly points out, blogs only work when they meet four of the following five conditions:
1.Candor
2.Urgency
3.Timeliness
4.Pithiness
5.Controversy

If you can answer the part in bold, that's your "great content". Optimization should only come second. I mean when was the last time you ended up on some SEOed page that was simply there hoping some guy with Parkinson's would mistakenly click on a Google ad? Would that qualify as great content from a search engine's point of view? Would it even matter? It would certainly be completely meaningless to people. You may rank first in google, but it doesn't really matter if people don't care about your content.

[rigaconnect]

My opinion is that great content is content that can not be found somewhere else. On topic that none has wrote about.... Only question is how to find such topic and after what time some one else will write about the same topic.

[rigaconnect]

My opinion is that blog post is useful, but would need more detailed information about creation of good content.
I have found such information (it seems very useful for me).
Information about what need to write in website to advertise services and get customers

Here is quote from http://scribeseo.com/downloads/How-t...ng-Content.pdf (not my website)
You’d probably give her essential information about how you understand her problem, options for solving the problem, examples of how you can help, and explanations of why you perfectly meet her needs,

[jerrypohn]

I would add that, if I find myself reading an article from begining to end then that is great content. Even if I scan read the piece, it would still be considered a successful post by the Author. The only time basic or mediocre content can be effective is if you are just using it for the backlink rather than for actual traffic to your site.