Content writing can be a bit more difficult than normal writing. It is because content writing requires you to take care of a few extra things. This has to be done because this content is supposed to be published online to a community of billions and so the highest quality is needed.
Keeping this in mind, writers who are new to content writing (and even oldies) can make a few mistakes that bring down the content’s quality. If you’re a newbie writer, we figured you should know what these mistakes are so you can avoid them.
We’re going to list each one of them and we’ll also see how you can avoid them. So without further ado, let’s get started.
Mistakes That Writers Should Avoid In Content Writing
Below we’re going to mention each mistake and discuss how you, as a content writer can avoid making it.
⦁ Poor Or No Research
This mistake isn’t related to writing content itself but is still a part of the content writing. Research is something that has to be done even before starting to write. Many writers might feel like there’s no need to research as they already know enough about the title. But this practice is never recommended.
It isn’t recommended because ignoring research can lead to content creation stuffed with outdated information. In the world of content writing, you have to make sure that you’re providing your readers with the latest information.
Therefore, it is important that you conduct thorough research on the title or topic that you have on hand. While conducting research, there are a few things that you have to consider. Those are:
- Gather information from multiple sources.
- Make sure the sources you’re gathering information from are credible.
Gathering information from multiple sources is important because you have to collect as much information as possible. On the other hand, taking information from credible sources can make your content credible and authoritative too.
Not Creating An Outline For The Content
We’ve seen many writers skip this when creating content. This is a huge mistake as when the write-up is complete, the information it’s supposed to convey is all over the place. An outline is required to keep the information intact and relevant to the title.
It helps the writer organize their thoughts and project them in the content in an order. An outline can also help you write constantly as you wouldn’t have to stop to think about what information comes next. This way, you’ll be done with the writing process quickly.
Headings, sub-headings, and bullets are all part of the outline. Do note that all these things must be relevant to the title of the article or the outline would become irrelevant.
- Using Overly Complex Language In The Content
Using overly complex language is a mistake you have to avoid. Content writing is supposed to be done in a conversation style. This means that when writing content for articles and blog posts, you have to ensure that the style and tone you use are similar to the one you use in day-to-day life. Using casual and nonchalant words can be a great way to achieve this.
This helps the readers make a sort of friendly connection with the writer and also helps them understand the content better since they’ll most probably be accustomed to this kind of language. Using overly complex language and words can throw them off and they might have to spend some time to try and figure out the meaning of the content.
That said, you can try to write content like you’re talking to a friend. Add questions, and real-life instances to build a narrative for your readers.
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Bad Or No Formatting
Many newbie writers ignore the fact that content for specific things has to be formatted in a specific order. For example, blog posts require you to start with an introduction, then the second heading, then the third, and the subheadings. On the other hand, a research paper has to start with an abstract, a literature review, and then the body, among other things.
You have to avoid this mistake by considering what you’re writing for and following its correct formatting. If you’re confused about what the formatting is for specific write-ups, then you can always look it up.
Formatting helps the readers go through the different sections of a piece of content. This is why you have to make sure that it’s up to the mark.
- Not Linking To External Sources When Borrowing Information
There might be times when you need to borrow information from external sources to add to your content. It can be a stat or a quote that you think would make your content credible. What happens is many times, writers forget to add a link to its source.
This basically means that you’re stealing content and it might count as plagiarism. We’ll be talking about plagiarism extensively in the next section but it was important to mention it here as well. That said, keep in mind that you have to link the source of the borrowed information. It is mostly done by adding a hyperlink to an anchor text.
Not only will it save you from plagiarism but it will also point the readers to where you got the information from. This can help them collect more information on the topic and increase your content’s credibility as well.
- Accidental Plagiarism
In the world of content writing, plagiarism is highly discouraged. It can occur in your write-up even if you haven’t purposefully copied content from somewhere. When this happens, it’s called “Accidental Plagiarism”. It occurs because there is so much content available online and the one you came up with may turn out to be similar to one that is present online.
This is why, as a writer, you always have to check your write-up for plagiarism once you’re done with it. You can use online paraphrasing tools for this purpose. If there are instances of accidental plagiarism in your content, you can paraphrase that specific part.
Paraphrasing it will remove any similarities to the online source and make your write-up unique. If you can’t seem to paraphrase accurately or don’t have time to do it manually, then using an online paraphrasing tool is your best choice. Tools like these can paraphrase the given content quickly and accurately.
One thing that you have to keep in mind when paraphrasing with an online tool is that you should always check the output it generates. This helps ensure the original meaning of the text isn’t altered during paraphrasing.
- Skipping Proofreading
Proofreading is an essential step of content writing. What many writers do is they completely skip it, thinking they’ve crafted the write-up themselves so there are no mistakes. But this is never recommended.
Sometimes mistakes can get overlooked during the writing process. The most common mistakes that writers make include:
- Grammar errors
- Punctuation errors
- Spelling mistakes
- Improper sentence structuring
- Flow of sentences
The only way to spot and fix them is by conducting an extensive proofreading session. While proofreading, it is important that you take the time to review each sentence carefully as doing it half-heartedly can lead to some mistakes being overlooked again.
If you don’t have the time and energy to do it manually, then you can always use an online grammar-checking tool. These tools can perform an extensive spell and grammar check on the given content.
Besides just spelling and grammar checking though, it can also review errors in punctuation and improper use of words. You might still have to proofread your content for other mistakes but once these mistakes are fixed, most of the work is done.
Final Words
Content writing is a delicate task and requires much of your focus and effort. This is because it is usually the content that has to be published online. Such content doesn’t have room for errors and needs to be of the highest quality since it’s going to potentially be read by so many readers.
In this article, we have discussed some of the mistakes that writers usually make while writing content. We’ve listed and talked about them so you can, as a content writer, avoid them.
