by Skellie
Photography: An artist’s signature by Slewrate
I have dim memories of the time I spent creating my signature, and looking back on it, I didn’t give the task the attention it deserved. Now the signature I’m stuck with is somewhat jagged and messy, and I’d go back and change it if I could.
Despite its short-comings, it does get one thing right: it’s unique, and like any good signature, can’t be copied.
This week, I want to discuss how signature content is created — content your readers won’t be able to get from anyone else.
Why create signature content?
When researching this article I stumbled across a quote by Leo Babauta which, I think, gets to the core of why creating signature content is important. Though he was speaking about including biases in blog posts at the time, the quote rings true in this context and can apply to any form of web content:
With millions of blog posts out there, yours is not likely to be very unique — unless you put in your post the one thing that you know is unique — yourself. There is no other like you out there.
In other words, the internet is so vast that chances are at least one other person is writing on the topics you cover. By signing content with your own signature — your thought process, your experiences, your stories — you’re ensuring readers can only come to you and you alone for the content you provide.
Some other benefits
- Readers connect to you as the author, not just to your content.
- What you write can’t be mimicked, copied or replicated.
- Increases reader trust because you are putting yourself in what you write.
- With advice writing, shows that you are “walking the talk.”
- Will help set you apart from others.
Adding your signature to different types of content
News
Everyone can have an opinion, and plenty of people have the same opinion. Your biases alone are not enough to make your news content unique.
Consider asking yourself the following questions as you write and working in the answers where (and if) appropriate.
- Where were you when you heard the news? Doing what?
- What were your first thoughts?
- What was your gut reaction?
- How will it affect you or people you know?
Advice
If you’re recommending something you should have personal experience (or at least have personally observed) that it works. The more you put yourself in your advice writing the more you’re showing yourself to be “walking the talk.” You can also use your own experiences as proof that the advice works.
Lastly, advice writing is one of the most commonly duplicated forms of writing. How many advice articles have you seen listing ways to increase website traffic, for example? How many points had you seen elsewhere? Putting yourself in your advice writing can ensure that it seems fresh. A great example of an author putting themselves into their advice writing is Darren Rowse’s 18 Lessons I’ve Learnt About Blogging.
When working on your own advice writing, think about including the answers to the questions below.
- What happened when you implemented the advice you’re giving?
- Have you noticed it implemented successfully by someone else?
- What was your behavior before you discovered a new way of doing things?
- What challenges did you face when implementing the advice?
- Where did you get your inspiration to try it?
Referrals
What you do when you create content for the purpose of pointing to content elsewhere. That might involve linking to a great article you’ve read, a new service you discovered, a funny webcomic, and so on. If the content is new and popular then it’s most likely that a lot of other people are creating referral content about it too. You can make your content unique by considering the following questions.
- How did you find the content?
- What was your reaction?
- How do you think others are going to react?
- What’s good about it?
- What’s not so good?
Other forms of content
Above I’ve listed three common types of content. The web is home to still many other types of content, but I hope the examples above illustrate how you can add your signature to every type of content you create. You could put yourself in one sentence or you could dot your thoughts and reactions throughout the whole piece.
You might be doing a bit of it already!
Most of us don’t write completely in the abstract, and some of your content is probably already marked with your signature. What I want to suggest is that we can be more conscious of how and when we do this, and we can do it more — especially when we know the benefits.
Walking the talk
I should end this article by saying that this is something I myself don’t do enough of. My effort was the introductory anecdote about working on my own, real-life signature, but I could definitely do it more.
Is this something you already feel you’re doing well, or do you think it’s something you could work on?
Skelliewag features daily discussions on content creation, great ideas you can use, and design tips. Join the community by subscribing!
rss feed
27 Comments, Comment or Ping
Michael Martine
I’ve been on a mission for myself, lately, to make sure that I’m posting content that Seth Godin would call “remarkable.” I plan on infecting every corner of my blog with “remarkableness” (remarkability? words, oy!), but as for the post content, my first thoughts were similar to yours above: to make it more personal, tell stories, and inject some humor into it.
The specific questions to ask that you provided in this post are incredibly helpful. I’m actually going to print them out and keep them by my monitor. Thanks for a great post.
Aug 5th, 2007
Rochelle
Even before I read Michael’s comment I had already decided to print this entry. You really provided a lot of meaty content. I tend not to inject much of my personality in my posts (recipes). I will rethink that. Thanks.
Aug 6th, 2007
skellie
Thanks to both of you for the kind words
I’m glad you found it useful!
@ Michael: I’ve only just started reading Seth Godin. I’ll have to go and search his archives for his definition of “remarkable.”
@ Rochelle: I can see how adding personality to recipes would be difficult! You could try talking about your own experiences making the dish. Any kitchen disasters? Interesting smells? Who ate it and how did they react? I think you can add your signature to any type of content — though obviously some types are more of a challenge than others
Aug 6th, 2007
Tsahi Levent-Levi
This strengthen what I am feeling, now that I am a bit over a month into my blogging experience. People tended to react a lot more to stuff I’ve written that has a lot more of me written into it. Only problem is that it’s very easy to do on a personal blog, but a lot harder on a professional one…
Aug 8th, 2007
skellie
It is harder, Tsahi. But I think it can also help build trust. It shows that the person behind the blog is a very personable human being, not a shady character.
Aug 8th, 2007
Bloggrrl
This is really, really good. The post, your design, the whole thing. You’re definitely an inspiration.
Aug 9th, 2007
skellie
Hey Bloggrrl, thanks for stopping by and for your encouragement. It’s really nice to get that from someone I admire. It’s wonderful to read someone who explores the funny side of blogging — and I know how hard funny writing is because I’ve tried and failed at it before… thankfully not here ;).
Aug 9th, 2007
Lady Roots
Peaceful greetings from Jamaica. Thank you, Skellie, for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm. As a new blogger, I am trying to learn by reading other blogs to see what touches me as a blog reader. I hope to emulate the best of what I see and learn from the experiences of others. I do know that my strongest reactions are to blogs that reveal some component of the “humaness” of the blogger. Blessed love, Lady Roots
Aug 9th, 2007
Michael from Pro Blog Design
This is a really great insight Skellie, and I’ll certainly be trying it out on my blog, but how exactly to go about it? Is there any way you could post an example/case-study post, or is this one of those things that you need to work out for yourself?
Aug 9th, 2007
skellie
@ Lady Roots: Thank you. Good luck with your blog — I’m pretty impressed by your writing!
@ Michael: Thanks for the feedback. I see you’re mainly in the business of ‘advice’ type writing so I’ll share a post I read recently (and you might have read too, since most of us seem to be subscribed to ProBlogger) that I thought did this really well:
http://www.problogger.net/archives/2007/08/07/plan-your-next-weeks-posting-schedule/
The signature starts at the ‘How I became a blogger that planned’ sub-heading. The writing is personal and experiential while also proving a point. Does that give you a better idea of what I mean?
Aug 10th, 2007
Michael from Pro Blog Design
Thanks Skellie, yep, I’d read it, but I had never really read it before. I think I do understand you now. He is speaking from experience, and telling us a story. He doesn’t worry about grammar rules etc. he is just telling us a story (And the story proves the point of course).
“rubbishy posts.”
“Hmmmm - not good.”
Thanks for the great example. It helped a lot!
Aug 10th, 2007
Dave
Interesting ideas. Also, I love the pic, it complements the theory in a very nice way.
Aug 14th, 2007
Caroline
First off, this is a great post. I think another way you can add signature content to your blog is to have section that is entirely yours. On my blog, for example, I’d like to think as my comics as the unique content. On Gala’s blog (http://galadarling.com), I think what’s unique about it is the Daily Outfits portion. When I first started blogging (about 3 weeks ago), I tried to distance myself from talking in my own voice, but then I found it hard to write anything at all. When I started to write more with personality, I found that writing and ideas came easier.
Anyway, great site. Keep it up!
Aug 15th, 2007
Jeff Vincent
Hey Skellie,
As always, truly inspirational stuff. I really enjoy the formatting of this post, made it great to read whether on the computer or printed out (I did both).
I’m still trying to build my blog (and tumbleblog). But every post I aim to differentiate myself, to put my stamp on it, to make it mine. The more experience I have, the more I can do that. So I grow as my blog does. And that is truly a rewarding venture.
thanks!
jv
Oct 9th, 2007
skellie
@ Jeff: That’s good to hear that the formatting works well — I don’t actually own a printer (shameful, I know!) so I’ve always wondered how Skelliewag looks printed.
Sounds like you’ve got the right idea with your goals. A nod to a fellow tumblelogger, also — there should be more of us!
Oct 9th, 2007
Ricardo Bueno
I think it’s something that I can work on a little bit more. But not to worry, you’ve raised a slew of insightful questions that will serve as a guide!
Dec 20th, 2007
aezaz
i want to create my own new signature,so give me sample of manytypes of signature
Feb 8th, 2008
brandon kane q
This was fun
Jun 11th, 2008
yibeltal
I want to creat my own signature
Jul 18th, 2008
Reply to “Creating Signature Content”