This content creation guideline is going to help you understand our content style and streamline your writing process. If you want to spend less time writing and revising, familiarize yourself with it.
In the introduction of your article, always explain what your post is about, who it’s for, and why your reader should read the post. Just like I did in the first paragraph. Your introduction should also be two paragraphs long.
Contents
When writing content, you’ll be working from an outline that you and your editor have put together. Each main heading, or H2, will state a main point from your article. Each subheading, or h3, will state your main point’s supporting points. There are no limits on how many main points you’re article can have, but they must be relevant to your topic.
Also, each heading must have text underneath it.
There are four basic ways to approach an article. No one method is better than the next. And there might be times when you have to mix methods to achieve your desired effect. After you look at your topic and main points, you should be able to tell which one will work best for your article.
Here’s an overview of the four different methods you can use to write kick-ass content.
The What, Why, and How Method
In this section, write a brief intro covering your main point.
What?
In this section, write about what you’re describing. Whether it’s a service or product that Thailand expats and tourists can make use of, or it’s a place, thing, or idea. Make it objective and factual.
Example:
Asia Miles awards points to members who shop with a credit card, dine out, stay at hotels, shop online, rent cars, and even send flowers.
Why?
In this section, write about why the facts matter to Thailand expats and tourists. Why are you mentioning the main idea in the headline? Why is this part important?
Example:
This means if you become an Asia Miles member you can rack up points to earn free flights and business class seats. Plus you’ll get discounts on items you buy through their merchant partners.
How?
In this section, write about how Thailand expats and tourists can make use of this new information. It’s how they can put your main idea into action.
Example:
If you’d like to start taking advantage of your everyday purchases and earn points that you could redeem for free flights, sign up to Asia Miles.
The Person, Problem, Solution Method
In our second example of how to approach your main points, we’ll look at the person, problem, solution method.
Person
In this section, write about a person. The person could be you or another expat or tourist you know. If you write about someone else, only mention their real name if you get their permission. Otherwise, change their name. Using a person sets the scene and helps readers relate to the problem.
Example:
Mike grew up in a small town in the midwest of America. Ever since he was a boy he dreamed of traveling the world. So when Mike was offered the chance to study abroad for one year in Thailand, he jumped at the opportunity.
Problem
In this section, write about the problem the Thailand expat or tourist has. It should be an obstacle they face or a challenge they must overcome.
Example:
After Mike’s gap year was over, he decided to stay in Thailand and start a life. But Thailand no longer filled his adventurous void. So he started traveling around Southeast Asia. The only problem was that Mike’s appetite for travel was eating away at his bank account.
Solution
In this section, write about the solution the Thailand expat or tourist could use to overcome their challenge.
Example:
One day Mike ran into a friend who told him about Asia Miles. Mike never knew he could earn points when paying for food or clothes in Thailand with his credit card. He never knew he could earn points when he took weekend hotel getaways to Hua Hin. And he didn’t know he could even earn points when sending flowers to his mother back home on Mother’s Day. With an Asia Miles membership, Mike would be able to travel around Southeast Asia, just like he wished.
The Pros, Cons, and Action Method
You can use the pros and cons content style when writing reviews of products or services. First give an overview of the product or service under the main heading, then talk about the strong and weak points in subsequent paragraphs.
Pros
In this section, write about all the good stuff about a product or service. Talk about what you like about the product or service. Your pros can be formatted in a bullet list or paragraph, depending on content.
Example:
If you sign up for an Asia Miles membership, you’ll earn points when you shop, dine, send gifts, and travel. You’ll also get special offers on travel and food, rental cars and hotels, and items from merchant partners. Checking your balance and redeeming your points can be done right from their website. They have an easy-to-use interface.
Cons
In this section, write about the bad stuff about the product or service. Talk about what you don’t like about the product or service and what can be improved.
Example:
As an Asia Miles member, it takes a long time to earn enough points to travel for free or get upgraded to business class. Even for a single journey upgrade to a seat with more leg room could cost you 50,000 points.
Action
In this section, write about what your reader should do next after learning the pros and cons of a product or service. How can they decide to use the product or service?
Example:
If you travel frequently, or use your credit card to make purchases often, signing up for an Asia Miles membership would benefit you. If you fly once a year and don’t make a lot of purchases by credit card, then you might want to look at another points reward program.
The Facts and Opinions Method
With this content style, you expand on your main points using the fact and opinions format.
Facts
In this section, write about all the facts of your main idea.
Example:
Asia Miles awards airline travel points to members who shop with a credit card, dine out, stay at hotels, shop online, rent cars, and even send flowers.
Opinions
In this section, write about your personal opinions or what the facts mean to you.
Example:
I like the idea of memberships like the one Asia Miles offers. But to work for me, I’m forced to spend a lot of money to rack up enough points to fly for free or get upgraded business class seats. I’d rather save the money I’d spend trying to earn points, and use that to buy my airline tickets. If you fly a lot or use your credit card a lot, Asia Miles could work for you.
Other Formatting Options
There may be other cases when you need to format tables or highlight important text. Here’s how to do it.
Tables
And here’s a properly formatted table.
| Product or Service | Comparison | Comparison | Comparison |
| Name | detail | detail | detail |
| Name | detail | detail | detail |
| Name | detail | detail | detail |
To use this table as a starting point for your table, copy and past the following code into the Text editor field of the WordPress blog editor:
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<Td><strong>Product or Service</strong></td>
<td><strong>Comparison</strong></td>
<td><strong>Comparison</strong></td>
<td><strong>Comparison</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Name</td>
<td>detail</td>
<td>detail</td>
<td>detail</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Name</td>
<td>detail</td>
<td>detail</td>
<td>detail</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Name</td>
<td>detail</td>
<td>detail</td>
<td>detail</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</Table>
Notes Box
Similar to the Key Takeaways box, you can highlight important details for your readers by using a Notes Box.
Important! If you don’t use your Asia Miles points within one year of earning them, you’ll lose them.
To highlight important text, use the following code and past it into the Text editor field of the WordPress blog editor:
<p style=”padding: 2px 6px 4px 6px; color: #555555; background-color: #ffedda; border: #F96E5B 2px solid;”>Important! Your important text goes here.</p>
Final Thoughts
In this section, you can tell your reader what you’d like them to do next, whether that means leaving a comment, checking out a product or service, or signing up to our email list.