You can have an amazing website design, but content is ultimately what sells your website to the outside world. Writing irresistible blog posts is an important component of keeping content fresh and engaging.
There are many elements that make a blog post stand out.
Tip #1: Know Your Audience
The first step in writing an irresistible blog post is to know who you are writing the post for.
Who do you want to reach with your post?
Once you figure that out, deciding the right focus for the article is a simple matter.
You can figure out who your audience is by reading through analytics and polling your regular visitors. Once you know your target audience, write a user persona or two.
Now, write all your articles as though you are writing it for that persona.
Dig deeper: 12 ways to understand your audience
Tip #2: Find a Trending Topic
Your next step is to figure out what people want to know about your niche topic. You can write the most beautiful prose in the world, but if readers don’t care about the topic and want to read it, then you’ve just wasted your time or the time of your writing staff.
There are several ways to figure out what topics people are interested in. Start with keyword research. Listen to what people are asking on your site and similar sites. Finally, pay attention to trending topics on social media.
Dig deeper: How to find blogpost ideas that people can't wait to read
Tip #3: Come Up with an Engaging Headline
The title of your blog post can entice the reader to click on the link and read the post or to bounce away. The best headlines are descriptive and active. It’s important to make the reader want to read the article.
Dig deeper: 35 Headline Samples From The A-List Bloggers
Tip #4: Write as You Speak
If you normally speak in an informal tone of voice, then that is the same tone your writing should take. Imagine that you are having a cup of a coffee with a good friend and discussing the topic you are writing about.
By writing as you speak, you will create a natural flow to your posts that will make them relatable to the reader.
Tip #5: Introduction
The opening line of your blog post is your opportunity to really grab your reader. An opening line should be unique. You can use an interesting statistic, point out a fact the reader might not know, or you can use a quote, be humorous etc.
The best way to learn how to write an engaging opening line is to study what other writers do. Look at just the first line in magazines, books, newspapers, and online. Which ones grab your attention and make you want to read more? Which ones do not?
55% of your visitors will spend 15 seconds or less on your website.
This means that you have to not only grab the reader with the first line, but keep her reading from that point on. In that first paragraph, it is important to explain what you’ll cover in the blog post without going into so much detail that the reader gets lost. Think about the way you write an essay. You introduce the topic and you provide a thesis statement that explains what the essay will be about. You need to do something similar in a blog post, only the language will be less formal and more conversational.
Tip #6: Organize the Body of Your Post
Before you begin writing the post, think about how you want to organize it.
What points should you explain first?
What should you close with?
You might want to write in chronological order, or you might wish to skip around in time a bit to highlight points as they are needed.
The important thing is that the organization makes sense and is in line with the topic you are writing.
Think about how you would write a recipe for a cake. You wouldn’t start with how to cut a cake. Instead, you would start with what ingredients to gather and then move through the stages of making the cake. You might close with how to cut the cake.
Tip #7: Add Subheadings
Your subheadings help break up the material in your post and make it easier for readers to skim.
Time spent on mobile digital data is 51% compared to just 42% for desktops.
This trend is on the uptick as more and more people access the Internet on their mobile devices.
Smaller screens also mean people are scanning content more, though. It is important that you break up your content with subheadings so that the reader can skim through the content and go to the exact section he is most interested in.
Tip #8: Use Stories
Sites that use storytelling manage to capture the interest of readers. You might wonder how you can use stories if you are writing about a nonfiction topic. You simply use examples.
So, if you were writing a blog post about the best water for runners, you would share a story about a runner who used smart water and how it improved her performance. You can gain stories by interviewing sources. You can also use your own personal experiences within your blog posts.
Dig deeper: Why story telling is a vital part of blogging
Tip #9: Close with Purpose
Don’t lose steam as you approach the last paragraph of your blog post. You will want to close the article with the same momentum you opened with. A solid concluding paragraph will remind readers what you’ve covered in the post and will leave them feeling as though they’ve learned something new.
Within that closing paragraph, you’ll also want to create a call to action. Another option is to add a button to the end or a separate line with the call to action (CTA). A CTA simply calls on the reader to take some action.
One example of a call to action would be a statement such as, “Become a better runner by reading smart water reviews.”
To write a good CTA, you need to know what you want to accomplish with the statement. What action do you want your reader to take? Once you know the action you want the reader to take, it will be easy to write a statement that asks the reader to do just that.
Dig deeper: A case study of successful call to actions
# 10: Valid Sources
Google is constantly changing algorithms for their website ranking system.
However, there are some things you can be pretty sure they will continue to look at for the foreseeable future. One of those things is how reliable your content is. This means you should link to reliable, high quality sites for your sourcing and hopefully they will link to you as well.
# 11: Proofread
After you finish writing your blog post, take the time to read through it carefully. Watch for typos, things that are misspelled, and missing words. If you don’t trust your editing skills, hire an editor, or ask a trusted friend or fellow blogger to look it over for you.
Go ahead and run the article through a spell checker, but don’t expect it to find every mistake. For example, you might type “lick” instead of “lock”. Your spell checker will not catch that error, because both are words and both are spelled correctly.
You will also want to check for readability. To catch awkward phrasing or places a reader might stumble, go ahead and read out loud. Read slowly and listen carefully for any errors. You can repeat this as many times as needed until the pieces reads smoothly.
Dig deeper: Five ways to catch errors in your own writing
Why Spend Time Creating Amazing Posts?
Great blog posts can help with search engine rank, entice site visitors to sign up for your mailing list, and put your website in the best light possible.
By following the secrets in this post, your blog posts will be the highest quality possible.
