At 10-years-old, most kids aspired to be astronauts, pro-basketball players or ballerinas; I wanted to be an author. Ever since I can remember, I’ve carried a journal and I’d fill it with countless stories, doodles and random thoughts. I’d come home from school, flip on our ancient Gateway PC and type up stories for hours. If only I could still dig those up – I’m fairly certain they’d be award winners. Ok, I kid.

I had an infatuation with words, with creating emotions on each page and with stringing those emotions into a story.

A story; one that’s about experiences, one that’s relatable and one your brand desperately needs to connect with your target audience.

The connection between your brand and your audience is tangible.

Although there’s no physical touch - the content, the blog posts and the social media posts you’re creating have the ability to create a relationship like no other. The relationship you have with your target audience starts slow and steady, like any other quality relationship you have in your life. Treat it like one of your most cherished relationships because that’s exactly what it is to your brand.

First and foremost, know your audience and give your brand a voice. At Save This, Buy That®, I’ve created a consistent tone for my blogs and my social media posts. It’s playful, quite funny, though I’m a little biased, ‘hip’ (never take yourself too seriously), yet still informational. SaveThisBuyThat.com is our microsite that’s completely devoted to all things budget-friendly – whether it’s Girl Scout Cookie Hacks, The Art of Tipping Like A Pro or How-to DIY Popcorn Bar. As the sole copywriter for the blog, I’m always scouring my resources, such as random news articles on Huffington Post, Pinterest boards and even my personal Facebook Newsfeed for inspiration. When I start my posts, the first thing I think about is our target audience and their needs.

Is this something they’d be interested in reading? Will they share this? What are they getting out of this post?

When I create a post, I’m not afraid to put personality into each paragraph and I’m certainly not afraid to let my readers know I’m a human behind the computer screen; I’m not a robot trying to sell them a product.

 

I’m guilty of splurging on a pair of pricey sandals (#TreatYourself) and if hitting up Starbucks every week for an iced coffee is wrong, I don’t want to be right. Although my posts are angled to help our audience save money, it’s important to put yourself out there and let your readers know you have flaws just like they do – absolutely no one is perfect. If we fail at a DIY Pinterest project (we definitely have), we make it known to our readers. By all means, don’t pretend to be perfect especially when it comes to your content.

Secondly, give your readers a story and imagery. Your readers want to smoothly read through a post with a complete storyline. Keep in mind an introduction; body and conclusion are significant parts of every post. WithSaveThisBuyThat.com, my posts give detail into why I’m posting about a particular money saving topic and lead into the rest of the storyline. In How-To Conquer The Real World Post-Grad, I gave our audience descriptive details of my personal experience in college and how I was, like many, extremely uncertain with my route. The creation of a storyline is extremely important to keep your readers hooked from the initial sentence.

Your content is the way to your target audiences’ heart – give them what they want.

Be relatable, be vulnerable and give them an experience with your words. Don't be afraid to put your brand’s personality into every word.