Hi everyone! There are many different types of content and review articles are one area where many people struggle. It takes some of you a long time, so what happens is, you avoid content creation – which you really can’t do online.

If you want to get better at it, faster at it, I can share some fundamental tips with you that should improve your speed. There are a few things you need to know first, before we get started with the speed tips.

Not Every Review Article Can Be Written Fast

I want you to accept the fact that some review articles just take a long time. I myself have had certain review articles that took me a couple of hours for one page. I, too wanted to throw my computer monitor through the window, disable my affiliate account and go flip burgers at McDonalds.

We all have topics that we’re slower with. The products themselves can determine whether your writing process will be fast or slow. Some products have a short spec list (that means specifications for those who don’t know). Others will have a mile long list.

Sometimes there’s just more to say about a product than with others. For instance, I could probably find 100 things to mention in a review about a smart TV – but maybe only 10 things to say about a baby teether.

On one hand, you’re grateful for the information you’re able to dig up, but on the other hand, you’re wishing it would not be so complicated. Hey – you pick the niche – you’re in the driver’s seat – so if something ends up being a beast for you, move to another niche.

Not Every Person Can Write Fast

Some people just struggle more than others. I can write 5 pages an hour – easily do 20-25 pages a day. But that makes some other people feel helpless because they can’t write that much, that fast.

Everyone is different – and for some, writing comes easier than for others. Part of your business model might need to include outsourcing IF you practice, apply tips and do this for quite awhile and never make progress OR if it causes you too much frustration.

But most of you are decent writers who can do a decent speed (even 1 page per hour or two) and you CAN get faster. You just may not believe in yourself … yet.

Practice Improves Speed

The #1 best thing you can do to help improve your speed is to practice and get better. This is true with anything in life.

If you’re going to try to write 3-5 reviews and quit, telling me you’re too slow – I’m going to call bullshit on that and say you’re not pushing yourself hard enough and following through good enough to even know what you’re capable of.

You have to give it time. You might even separate these tips I’m about to give you and try getting faster at them one by one instead of trying to speed through the entire process all at once.

Now, let’s move on to the lessons about actually writing a review article quicker, and with more ease.

#1 – Start With Products You Find Easy to Talk About

Everyone will have different things that make them have a slower writing reaction. For me, it would be something like a TV set – with all sorts of acronyms and tech talk that I don’t know, don’t WANT to know, and hope to never hear again.

For you, it might be baby items or health products – and it doesn’t mean you have to avoid those topics, just do your best. This is part of why it’s important to have a niche you’re passionate about naturally – because then it’s a cinch to quickly pull things from the top of your head and understand the language of the niche.

You may not realize how important that subtle tips is – but the language of the niche is SO important. You can tell when you read something technical by me that I’m not a pro. But if you read anything about parenting or marketing by me, you’d instantly know that I know what I’m talking about (for the most part).

This kind of comfort within the niche puts your reader at ease. That’s why you don’t see many technical things in my niche content. I don’t have TV lenses on Squidoo – but I do have headset lenses – because we all use those in our gaming family.

#2 – Master a Basic List of Review Buzz Words

In certain niches, there will be certain buzzwords or slang used when talking about the product. The best way for me to give you an idea of what I’m talking about is to show you a couple of examples, so I’ll do toys and marketing – since those are my main two niches.

Toys:

• Educational
• Motor skills
• Evolve with your child
• Safety
• Hand-eye coordination
• Matching skills
• Travel-size
• No-mess
• Colorful
• Pretend play

Marketing:

• Push button
• OTO, Upsell, Downsell
• Bonuses
• Sales copy
• PDF
• Video
• Squeeze page
• Autoresponder
• Business in a box
• Drip feed
• Proof
• Rank

Those are a small sampling of the kinds of words often used inside those niches. So it’s good to spend some time familiarizing yourself with the lingo of the niche because then you aren’t having to stop and go figure out the best way to say something.

I pick up on things even in niches I’m not in. Like my son always talks about gaining weight – so I notice when he says “reps” or “bulking” or “cutting” (Oh you should have heard the panic Mom in me screech when Dylan said summer is cutting time. I’m all thinking Fox News storyline about teens cutting themselves in depression and he’s talking about burning fat!).

Where do you find these buzzword lists?

1. Look up “topic” plus the word slang. I can look up “bodybuilding slang” (not in quotes) and find the cutting phrase. I can look up coffee sang and get a whole slew of phrases for that niche.
2. Look on the product pages. I can go to Amazon and look at any toy and find buzz words like I described above – and look at the customer reviews, too.
3. Look in forums. People talk casual in forum – you know, the same way YOU want to be talking in your product review to connect with your audience?

If you need to, jot them down in a file that you add to over time. You want to be speaking their language. Some of you will just pick it up without having to have a file.

#3 – Use a Tool to Help You Zero in on Needs

Once you have your niche or products picked – the kind it’ll be easier for you to write about – and you know how to speak the language – it’ll be time to figure out what your audience actually wants to know.

I do this very quickly. I skim pages looking for good topics or questions to answer. So there are two-three places you’ll want to look:

First, use Ubersuggest.org – really cool free tool that compiles the top searches in Google. Skim the list looking for things that might make a good review.

In my whiskey decanter lens on Squidoo, I noticed people searching for lead-free, so that topic means it’s a concern – so I jotted down “lead free” in my outline. I also noticed people asking about how to use a whiskey decanter, so that got added too.

Next, search forums. You don’t even have to go IN forums – remember, this is about SPEED. So I go to Google and type in: forum whiskey decanter. Look what results I get:

So without even entering a forum, I quickly see that people want to know about longevity, aesthetics, taste, and safety. And those four words are what I would jot down in my outline.

And last, use Amazon reviews! If you’re reviewing an Amazon product – look at what consumers are pointing out as the “important things you need to know” about the product.

So at a glance, I pick out buzzwords. Let me show you an example. Here’s a review about a specific whiskey decanter – and notice which words or phrases I put in bold:

This is a entry-level set consisting of a decanter and 6 glasses. The first thing I noticed was that the stopper on the decanter was plastic, and not glass, as I expected. This makes the decanter look and feel a little cheap. But on the positive side, both the decanter and glasses seem to be well made and look nice on display. Each feels solid in your hands, which gives them a rich appearance. The pattern on the glassware also gives it a touch of elegance.

So just scanning the review, I see that I might need to address stoppers. I also see a repeat of the look and feel. Those two aspects would definitely go into my review.

Don’t spend years writing paragraphs here – a word here, a phrase there. Just jot stuff down when you scan.

#4 – Whip Up a Quick Outline

Now put things into order. If you need to, use the five Ws – who, what, when, where, why and how.

• Who uses whiskey decanters?
• What are the most elegant whiskey decanters?
• When should you replace the liquor in a whiskey decanter?
• Where is a good place to buy or showcase a whiskey decanter?
• Why does a whiskey decanter make your liquor taste better?
• How do you use a whiskey decanter?

For this niche, I would add some of my buzzwords to the topic – lead-free, crystal, weighted, etc.

The more items you have in your outline, the faster your writing will be. If you only give yourself 3 things, and you’re hoping to whip up an 800-word article, it’s going to take you awhile.

You’ll be struggling – sitting there saying, “Well I can’t think of anyone else who uses whiskey decanters!” When you give yourself plenty of items in your outline, it makes it much easier to fly through the content because you only need to say a little bit about each thing.

If you need to add more info, and you’ve gone to Amazon, Google, blogs, forums and so on – try the manufacturer’s website! You can bet they’ve done consumer research to know which points are most important to their customers. Again, quick scan of the page and be done.

#5 – Let the Wording Flow Naturally

Once you have the little notes jotted down, just write what your natural thoughts are. People try WAY too hard to be some sort of authority figure or expert.

How about honesty? A little bit of personalization and truth go a long way. So just write it like a good buddy of yours (me, for example) has emailed you saying, “Hey – I was thinking about buying a whiskey decanter for my dad – do you know anything about those?”

Then answer it. Casually. Conversationally. Matter of factly. Screw the hard sale. Let the site do that heavy lifting. When people are looking for products to buy specifically, they’re already half ready to spend money.

No forget that – they ARE ready to spend money – they just want to figure out which exact item to spend it on. You’ll be able to write much faster if you are natural than forced.

#6 – Don’t Edit Yourself to Death

I’m sorry – I know many of you will disagree with me here, but put down the red pen, please. Yes, I know my typos are like fingernails on the chalkboard sometimes but oh well.

If I happen to catch one upon a reread, I’ll fix it. Otherwise, I waste ZERO – read that – ZERO time on editing.

And yet people love my content. They will email me sometimes and say, “Oops – you have a typo on page __” but otherwise, nah. It’s rare and my typos aren’t rare.

Those of you who edit based on content, not spelling or typos – well you’re REALLY doing yourself a disfavor because your original thoughts are probably much better than what you’ll whittle it down to.

Why?

Because you were letting it flow naturally – and that’s what online content is all about. If you’ve researched what people need, have a good product picked out, and know what questions or keywords they’re looking up for your outline, then you’ve GOT this, baby!

Don’t second guess yourself and polish and shine. It sucks up too much of your time. That professionalism is not what online engagement with your audience is all about – and reviews of products convert best when your reader trusts you.

Tiff

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