Last week, I had the opportunity to attend Social Brand Forum in Coralville with a few of my fellow Convergians. We laughed. We learned. We networked. We heard marketing analogies made out of everything from broccoli to bourbon.

It was my first big conference experience, and I walked away feeling inspired. I would say that’s a win in itself. The real highlight of #SocialBrand14, at least for me, happened on the first day. Ann Handley, Chief Content Officer of MarketingProfs, delivered an enlightening keynote, The Future of Marketing is Writing. As a writer and a marketer myself, her thoughts and insights were like music to my ears.

While the writer in me was busy nerding out over the context of this session, the more polished part of me that works as marketing professional on a daily basis managed to jot down some key takeaways.

Here are 10 things I learned about writing from Ann Handley’s keynote at Social Brand 2014:

1. Words are important. Absolutely. Yes. It’s all about delivering the right message to the right person at the right time.
2. Writing is a habit, not an art. I’m still digesting this one, but the more I think about it, the more I agree. As writers, we’re not painting pictures, we’re telling stories. It’s something everyone should be able to do, which brings us to lesson #3.
3. We should all be able to write effectively. You may be asking yourself: why? See takeaway #4 below.
4. Becoming a better writer means becoming a better marketer. Preach. If we know how to tell our story, we know how to sell our story.
5. There is no one right way to write. No prescription works for everybody. As writers, we are also often editors. This is an important piece of advice to keep in mind when reading, reviewing and providing feedback.
6. Write with a strong, unforgettable voice. Take risks. Make clear who you are and who you aren’t. The best person to tell your story is you. Own it.
7. Write with the door closed. Edit with the door open. Get in the writing zone. Prepare your words. Then, open the door for insights, feedback and a fresh perspective.
8. Make the customer the hero of your story. A fellow Social Brand audience member asked a great follow-up question to this point: “As marketers, can we be the Robin to our customer’s Batman?” Ann Handley says, “Yes. Exactly.”
9. Everything is content. As a Content Strategist, I know this all too well. Words aren’t the only piece of the content puzzle. Content includes visuals (images, video) and exists everywhere from your website to your Twitter feed to your old-school print marketing collateral and beyond.
10. Useful x Inspired x Empathy = Great Content. Saved the best for last. We should think about these three things when we think about content: focus on empathy and experiences, focus on relevant and inspired stories, focus on useful. Ann used multiplication symbols rather than plus signs because if you’re missing one of these three things, the result is zero. Great content is all three: useful, inspiring and empathetic.

Want to chat more about writing and content strategy? Connect with me on Twitter @megancendrowski or tune into our free webinar on How to Make Better Videos (Thursday, 10/23 @2PM EST) for more information on generating great content.