What connects with an audience and sells isn’t as much about the product as it is the feeling that people associate with that item. For example, relationship products are hot sellers because people want to strengthen their relationships to find and feel love. Weight loss products sell year round because people want to look and feel good. People want to have more money because it enables them to feel safer/happier/more confident.
Let's dig a little deeper around people wanting to look good. This isn't about how they look per se. They want to feel confident. An example of this might be acne or anti-scar products. If you tap into common feelings about these beauty issues, like “my acne made me self-conscious,” the customer feels like you “get” them and that you want to help them. Writing that acne is red and ugly with a big fat call to action for your acne gel will have people skipping your blog and running for the hills.
If You Can Relate You Can Share
When I first started blogging in 2006 I had deep depression. There were days I didn't get out of bed. Prozac didn't elevate my mood, and I found life very hard. Everyone I chatted to online just wanted to pick fault with me, and the only outlet I had was blogging. I didn't know then that writing was therapeutic and great for my mental health. I just wrote blog post after blog post about what we could deliver (we had a transport company), and it was relatable.
Is There Such a Thing as Too Relatable?
I don't know if you can be too relatable. I do know by the time 2015 arrived, everyone knew a red-haired blogger who cured her depression through blogging. The story I shared so people could relate was now commonplace.
Even if you haven’t experienced it personally, you can touch on the emotions and make your reader feel at ease on your blog and with you.
What's the Best Format For This Type of Content?
Writing emotionally charged content can be draining for you. You need to find a format that you're comfortable with. I struggle to talk about my depression and the impact it had on our family, so if I choose to live stream and talk about it I'd probably cry. For me, writing about it in a blog post is always better. For you, it may be a different format. You may want to record it as a podcast episode so your audience can hear your voice. You may prefer to live stream and link back to a blog post so that you can answer questions.
What're the Best Calls to Action?
Emotional content can go viral, often by accident. People who identify with your content will share it with others. If you tie it in neatly you can generate sales. This works really well when you show you understand your audience. It's a fine balance though and you may need to practice a few times for it to be comfortable for you.
You don't have to be raw and emotional all the time.
It's your blog, you get to choose what you want to publish. Choose your moments.
You can choose to protect your loved one's identities. Everyone knows my husband Kevin, but they also know Big Chick (eldest daughter), Middle Chick (middle daughter), Little Chick (youngest daughter), Grand Chick (grandson) and Tiny Chick (granddaughter).
You can change locations and other identifying information. You can water things down and dilute the impact on your family if you need to.
And you can choose not to write about something right now. You can save things for later when the heat has gone from the moment.
Creating content that evokes feeling isn't manipulative; it makes you memorable.
