Three likes. Two of them are friends, and one is you. The idea was great, the concept was clear, but the post died quietly. It wasn't your niche, it wasn't the timing, it wasn't the algorithm. It was the writing.
Most marketing posts get written from the wrong starting point: "what do I want to say?" instead of "what do they need to hear?" And what comes out is content that feels like an ad, even when there's no ad in it at all.
Here are 7 principles that will change your writing. Not theory. Each one comes with an example and with what to do differently.
7 writing principles that create engagement
The algorithm gives you about a second and a half to make someone stop. The way to earn it: hit exactly what's bothering them right now. Not the solution, the pain.
✓ Write: "3am. You can't sleep. Thinking about everyone except yourself. When was the last time you asked what you actually want?"
When a post is aimed at "all small businesses", nobody feels it's meant for them. When you write to one specific person, everyone thinks it's about them.
✓ Write: "If you're a therapist who feels your message isn't reaching the right people, this post is for you."
The human brain doesn't remember facts. It remembers stories. "I have 10 years of experience" doesn't stick. "I sat in a meeting with a client who told me he wanted to close his business, and then..." sticks.
✓ Write: "The team had stopped talking to each other. Everyone worked in their own silo. The CEO thought it was a culture problem. There was one answer to it. Nobody had the nerve to say it out loud."
Everyone ends with "what do you think?", and nobody answers. A good question is specific, opinion-provoking, and can't be answered with a yes or a no.
✓ Write: "What's the hardest thing you ever told a client that you'd been avoiding for ages?"
Information can be Googled. An opinion can't. "5 marketing tips" gets 3 likes. "Most marketing tips are nonsense, and here's why" gets a conversation.
✓ Write: "90% of the businesses I meet write 'content that gives value'. But they forget that value without a distinct voice is Wikipedia, not marketing."
The post you just wrote is probably too long. Every sentence you can drop without losing meaning, drop it. The brain scans before it reads. Help it.
When people write posts, they suddenly start sounding like executives. Words like "leverage", "strengthening your digital presence", "tailored solutions". Do you talk like that in real life? No. So don't write like that.
✓ Write: "We help businesses talk like humans, not like marketing."
Before and after: same idea, different writing
Here's the same message, written twice:
"I run workshops for women going through a major life transition. If you feel like you don't recognise yourself anymore, I'd love to help you on your journey of self-discovery. Get in touch, link in profile."
"She sat across from me and said she doesn't know what she loves anymore. Not because she never thought about it. Because she wasn't allowed to think about it for so many years.
50 years old, and only now asking. She has plenty of years left to find out."
What's the difference? The second version doesn't "sell". It shows. It lets the reader step into the story and decide for themselves. That's what creates a conversation, not statements about yourself.
Writing in your voice: why Voice DNA changed everything
The biggest problem with writing posts isn't not knowing what to say. The problem is not knowing how to write like yourself, consistently, week after week, even when there's no inspiration.
A Voice DNA solves that: it captures how you speak, which patterns repeat in your writing, which words are yours and which aren't. With a document like that, even AI can write posts that sound like you, not like an agency.
Once you have a clear voice, the next step is to build a monthly content plan that uses it consistently. If you want the bigger picture of how the pieces fit together, start with what an AI marketing system actually is.
The three mistakes almost everyone makes
Knowing what to do isn't enough. You also need to know what to stop.
"Our therapist specialises in..." turns a human business into an information page. Write in the first person. It's you. Be there.
A post that presents a service, tells a story, sells, and announces a promo is a post that does nothing. Every post: one goal, one message, one action.
The first hour after posting is the most critical. Reply to comments, engage on other posts, be present. The algorithm rewards presence, not content that just sits there.
What to do this week
Not "take this and apply it", because that doesn't work. Instead, one small action that creates a change you'll actually feel:
- Take an old post of yours that got 3 likes. Read it. Ask: "Where does this talk about a pain?" If it doesn't, write a new version that opens with the pain.
- Write three different openers for the same idea. Compare them. Which one makes you stop? That's the opener to use.
- Send one post to someone you know outside your field. Ask: "What did you take from this?" If the answer isn't the same as what you meant to say, you have a clarity problem.
"The best post isn't the one we're proudest of. It's the post that made someone message us privately: 'this is exactly me.'"
In summary
Writing that creates a conversation isn't a special talent. It's a skill you learn. It's built on clear principles: speak to one person, open with what hurts, bring an opinion and not just information, and write the way we talk, not the way we think we're supposed to write.
These 7 principles don't promise you virality. They promise something better: content the right audience will remember. And in the end, that's the goal. Not likes. Connections.
Want your posts to sound like you, not like a template?
Our free marketing audit includes a short analysis of your existing content and a diagnosis: what your voice is, what's missing, and the one change that will make your next posts work better.
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