The two most important elements of effective content writing are clarity and purpose, as the goal is to ensure that the reader understands what direction a given article is going in starting from the first sentence and can then follow a clear train of thought for the remainder of the piece. Web-based content writing is not the place to write long-winded introductions or to go off on numerous tangents. Instead, the content writer should always ask him/herself what the main purpose is behind an article?what he/she wishes to achieve and what message must be conveyed?and then ensure that the piece is tightly focused around these themes. </p> <p>The best way to go about this is to make sure that the first sentence of a short article accurately reflects the actual content of the entire piece. For example, a travel-related news site would almost certainly carry the airline industry?s breaking news today, namely the collapse of SkyEurope?a major European low-cost carrier?and the fact that more than 1,200 passengers now find themselves stranded at airports. If a content writer were producing an article on this topic, his/her first sentence should introduce all the main points of this story and might sound something like this: Slovakia?s SkyEurope?one of continental Europe?s main low-cost carriers?filed for bankruptcy early this morning, stranding thousands of passengers and shedding light on the challenges that all airlines face due to the global recession. </p> <p>Once this introductory sentence has been written, the content writer must make sure to stay focused. This can be achieved by concentrating the entire article around the three points outlined above?namely, the circumstances of SkyEurope?s bankruptcy, the fate of passengers and the impact of the recession on the airline industry--and then explaining each in some detail.<br />