Good content is more important than ever! That's why SCRIBERS[HUB] also provides first-class copywriters, authors and journalists for quality content. In the “Content Buzzer” interview series, Sabine Fäth, founder of SCRIBERS[HUB], asks communications professionals these questions every 14 days:
Petra Wiesmayer, journalist and author, content editor at Cazoo
What does content mean for you?
What the word means is content. Information that is well-researched and truthful. This means that the content primarily provides the reader with valuable information in an understandable way and is written in a way that is tailored to the target audience. In my case – I come from the motorsport and automotive sector – this means that, depending on the medium, I don't just write for insiders. I have to remember that I'm writing for readers who might not be familiar with technical terms and simply want to quickly find out about a topic. At the same time, this means that I don't write novels just for the sake of writing, but rather that I formulate what I want to say as concisely as possible and as comprehensively as necessary. I also always consider the following: Would I want to read all of this, and would I read it to the end? This sometimes leads me to shorten texts.
What was the worst content you've ever encountered?
Unfortunately, there's a lot of this kind of content every day. It can be texts that are clearly written just to fill space, leaving you wondering if they actually contain any message at all – in other words, "content" without any substance. It can be so-called fake news, designed to lure readers to a particular website or spread a specific ideology, or even fear and panic. Equally bad content, in my opinion, are the absurd conspiracy theories or ideologies for which there is absolutely no evidence, but which deny obvious facts. These have been increasing in number for the past few years. It can be sensationalist headlines that have absolutely nothing to do with the text that follows. It can be poorly researched articles whose veracity is questionable, or which can often be easily refuted. It can be texts by so-called "experts" who just want to make themselves look important and basically have no clue. Articles that are either written without enthusiasm or where the author is really only writing for themselves can also become quite bad content.
How does good content work?
First and foremost, it's about knowing what I'm writing about, meaning sticking to what I know. In my case, that means not suddenly thinking I can write about fashion, politics, or economics. Nothing good will come of that. I prefer to leave that to those who are experts in those fields. If I then take the time to research my chosen topic and have genuine interest and enjoyment in what I'm doing, half the battle is already won. And if I then formulate everything—for my specific target audience—in a way that is informative and engaging to read, the end result should be good content.
Complete the sentence: Content is always...
…informative, truthful, and, depending on the type of text, neutrally written, without the author foregrounding their own opinion on the topic. Except, of course, for columns or editorials, but even there a certain unbiased level of information should be present. Ideally, (good) content encourages readers to reflect and perhaps even to discuss the issues.
