Breaking the Mold: Creating Unforgettable Content in a Competitive Landscape

Most content marketers are lying to us. 

They say an article is a “practical guide” on a topic, and it isn’t. They say an article will reveal “unknown” strategies to do a thing, and it won’t. And honestly, it’s pretty annoying. Naturally, I leave the page faster than Rock “Wham” Middleton can bounce a ball. 

Before putting words in my doc, I took the time to look at what others had written on “standing out”. I quickly noticed a recurring pattern — not many stood out. 

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Most of what I found regurgitated the same information, albeit presented in slightly different tones. There was a lack of unique perspectives or fresh insights that truly made any piece stand out from the rest. Almost all the articles say the process is something like this:

1. Identify your target audience
2. Conduct thorough research
3. Craft an Eye-Catching Headline
4. Hook Your Readers
5. Tell compelling stories
6. Use visual appeal
7. Make Your Article Scannable
8. Leverage different content formats
9. Optimize for search engines
10. Promote strategically

When I see this, I’m bouncing. Those are the same strategies almost all 4 million blog posts published daily use. If we all go this way, then is anyone truly standing out? Aren’t we simply pimping posts in different colors?

The competition for eyeballs is at an all-time high

Going back to our blog post stat again, that’s 4 million blog posts every day — and only blog posts. You also have newsletters, ebooks, emails, tweets, and Threads?? You’ll get lost in the sea of content, especially when your content doesn’t strike up conversations or leave an impact on your reader. 

Traditional approaches to content writing no longer hold the same allure. It's time to think outside the box, to explore new and creative approaches to content creation that can turn heads and ignite conversations.

You can’t hack your way out of this. As Ryan Law rightly put it, readers can smell fakes from a mile away. Here’s how I write content that gets straight into the bookmarks.

Innovative Approaches to Crafting Unforgettable Content in Any Niche

1) Give readers a peek behind the curtains

Unforgettable content usually offers a view often missed, something unique - like your process. Claude Hopkins (now one of the fathers of modern advertising) realized this early and leveraged it too. Here’s what happened.

In the 1900s, Schlitz Beer wanted to become the top brewery in US, so they brought in Claude. At the time, all breweries talked loudly about how their beer was "pure." But they didn't explain what "pure" meant and couldn’t show that their beer was better than the others. 

So, that was what Claude did. He created ads highlighting the process behind Schlitz Beer and why it really was “pure”.

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This tweak sent Schlitz Beer to the top of the rankings for American breweries after a few months.

That’s the advantage of giving your readers a peek behind the curtain. You give them a new understanding of something while cementing your expertise in their minds. 

I’ve seen the First Round Review do this perfectly too. An example is this article on product-market fit: How to Pivot and Succeed as a Solo Non-Technical Founder:

Here, Todd Jackson focuses on the journey of Harry Ritter, a solo non-technical founder. He delves into Harry’s experiences, challenges, and strategies, describing his path to product-market fit in detail. He also uses specific examples and anecdotes from Alma's story to illustrate key points and lessons learned about product market fit.

You won’t find that in the SERP clutter. I tried. This is what you get.

This article talks about:

• What is Product-Market fit?
• How do I know when I have Product-Market fit?
• How do I know when I don’t have Product-Market fit?
• How do I find product-market fit for my product?

That’s great, but what about the challenges, the successes, the failures…… the human element? This is all lost to keyword targeting and unoriginal content. This drop in quality and loss of human element is why I'm not big on keyword targeting.    

I’d rather share how the magic happens. In Harry’s case, that’s how he solved his “loneliness” problem, the events of launch day, finding product market fit a second time, etc. 

It’s a matter of value. If I can whip up an article by opening up a few tabs, then everyone else can. That’s why I’ve abandoned rehashing basic information that others have extensively covered. If I can’t offer a new perspective, I might as well point you toward what’s already available. Instead, I seek out uncharted territory and delve into the heart of each topic, unearthing its modest yet enthralling essence. 

Here’s what that research process looks like for me:

• I spend too much time researching (and I feel it's still not enough)
• I dig for facts and data points (think Google search, deep dives into publications like Statista, McKinsey, Google Scholar, Google books, industry podcasts)
• I then interview experts through sites like Help a B2B Writer and HARO or just start up a conversation with someone in the community (I love the Superpath Slack channel for this)
• I find snippets on Twitter or look through the huge catalog of industry newsletters in my mail 
• I use aggregator sites like Alltop to find fresh examples 

I keep a swipe file of exceptional content I encounter. This helps enrich future content. While the content I collect may not be immediately relevant to our current projects, I store it for later. 

2) Share your edge

Why should anyone read what you write? 

If you’re talking about market research. Why should anyone listen? What gives you the edge over the next guy? That edge is what Ryan Law calls your “shtick.”

https://twitter.com/thinking_slow/status/1660986668407463939?s=20 

And for good reason. Your shtick sets you apart from the copycat pack. It’s what makes you “the guy.”

Take Alex Turnbull, for instance. He’s the founder of Groove, a help desk solution for growing businesses. When preparing to launch Groove, he had to contend with big players like Zendesk, Salesforce, and many other help desk Goliaths already in the market. 

Alex mentions that

“The frenzy of successful customer support software companies showed that it’s a problem that people desperately want solved. And the lack of a clear winner with across-the-board customer satisfaction showed that nobody had solved it yet.”

Today, Groove is a prime alternative to Zendesk. Rather than defeating the giants, Alex tackled the issue many individuals faced with these industry leaders (overloading their products with useless features). On the journey to doing that, Alex:

• Had a conversation with every Groove customer
• Turned down a $12M acquisition offer so he could build Groove into a better product for customers  
• Turned down another $5 Million in VC funding
• Rebuilt Groove from the ground because the initial build was limiting him from making updates he knew the platform needed

Now, he has privileged insights resulting from time spent behind the scenes. It's a unique viewpoint only Groove can offer. That’s their shtick. 

Finding your shtick is difficult, but not impossible (another thing I picked from Ryan). While it takes many forms, you can find your edge by:

• Weaving data into your content in a story-like manner — like painting a vivid picture with facts and figures. This makes your content more persuasive and trustworthy.
• Sharing your journey, adding that human touch to your content, making it relatable and authentic
• Tapping into the “earn secrets” and diverse experiences of others in your network
• Sharing your bold and unconventional opinion that challenges the commonly accepted beliefs in your industry or field

You often find thought leadership as a mix of these different forms:

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If you can find and share your edge, your content will be memorable.

You Won’t Always Have a Shtick (And That’s Okay)

Finding your edge involves digging into years of experience and finding what gives you the X factor - years you may not have. But it’s never too late to build a shtick. 

Here’s a simple (not so easy) way to do that. 

Learn and educate yourself

Dive deep into a niche and start learning as much as you can. Read books, research articles, follow industry blogs, and listen to podcasts related to your interest. Develop a strong foundation of knowledge that will form the basis of your expertise.

Share your insights and perspectives

Look for fresh angles or alternative interpretations within your niche. Consider different aspects, trends, or emerging technologies others might have overlooked. Present unique viewpoints that spark interest and encourage meaningful discussions. Go beyond surface-level discussions and provide in-depth analysis. 

Engage with the community

Actively engage with professionals and thought leaders in your field. Attend industry events, join online forums and communities, and participate in discussions. Contribute your insights, ask questions, and provide valuable input to build your presence and credibility within the community. This helps you develop a persona for yourself, one that you can mold into your very own shtick  

3) Write actionable content

Say, you now know your edge, you have your alpha. How does this knowledge benefit your audience? How can they apply it?

Let’s take this article as an example of how I solve this problem. I mentioned giving your reader a peek behind the curtain when writing your content. That’s true. But WHATTTT?

What does a blog post that gives a behind-the-scenes look like? How do you actually write a blog post that shares a unique process or story? It’s like telling someone to become successful; how? 

I show you what run-of-the-mill content looks like. Then, I show you what taking a unique approach looks like, exemplified by Alma's Path to Product Market Fit. Next, the bridge — how to write content like that using my research process. This writing style highlights the reader’s problem and gives them a clear path to solving it. 

Think about it: when people come across your content, they want answers, solutions, practical advice. They want to learn something they can apply and see results. If your content doesn't deliver on that promise, it's like serving your audience soggy sandwiches without filling. They’re bland and unsatisfying, and that’s how your audience will leave your content feeling.

Include a step-by-step instruction, a practical tip, or and real-life example your audience can follow. It makes them feel capable and motivated to put my advice into action. And guess what? When they achieve success because of your content, they'll keep coming back for more, hungry for the next course.

4) Simplify your reader’s work (or give them no work at all) 

Don’t leave your audience guessing. The burden of connecting all the dots in your content lies on you and you alone. That’s hard work, and most content doesn’t go that far for the reader - the writers are lazy. 

Here’s what they do instead. 

• They make claims
• Skip context and supporting info
• Push the reader to change behavior 

So, you’ll often see statements like this: 

Video marketing drives higher engagement rates. Nothing. Nothing. Then bam! Here’s how to start using video in your marketing strategy. 

Writing like this leaves the reader confused. How does video marketing improve my engagement rates? Is there any proof it worked for anyone? Is this even true? 

It’s a wasted opportunity that opens your reader to question your credibility and expertise. Write something like this instead:

Video marketing drives higher engagement rates. For instance, when the Ava Estell team integrated video into their marketing strategy, their website's engagement increased by 15.67%. Incorporating video into your strategy can similarly amplify interaction with your brand, attracting a broader audience of potential prospects.

Empathize with their challenges and provide actionable steps to solving their problem, and you’ll see them running back for more. You can certainly go beyond solving the reader’s problems. You can teach them to fish so they can solve problems themselves.

What does that look like? 

Take this article, for instance. I could teach you how to pimp your content so it looks like “the one to beat” for a while. You know, create incredible visuals, use infographics, write catchy hooks, find the gap in other content and fill it up. That won’t hold for long. Instead, I’m showing you the principles underlying these best practices and success tactics so you can solve the problem once and for all (or fudge when your problem mutates).

It Doesn’t Have to Be a Race to the Top

Creating content solely to win the SERP race is a common motivation, given the impact of SEO on online visibility. But content creation should go beyond this narrow objective. 

Have a genuine desire to provide value, engage, and connect with users on a deeper level. When content is driven by desire to help, it will resonate emotionally, spark conversations, and inspire others.

Most importantly, don’t say something and not do it. Just don’t. If you say you’re giving a guide to do something, give a guide to do a thing and do it well. This consistency between what you say and what you do not only builds trust with your audience but also demonstrates your commitment to delivering quality and value.