Crafting a Compelling Blog Post
A well-written blog post has the potential to become a strong marketing tool, a vehicle for establishing greater credibility and thought leadership in your field, and a unique method of educating potential or existing clients. After spending hundreds of hours writing blogs for previous employers and clients, I’ve got my method nailed down to an easy-to-follow science that I’ve detailed below.
Your first few paragraphs should introduce the topic at hand by using general statements about people who use the product, have the problem, or experience whatever you’re discussing. Using a personal anecdote provides relevance and helps to humanize the post through creating a familiar connection with the audience.
Your introduction should also summarize how your blog post will be valuable to the reader. For example, you can state the problem and highlight how you’re going to address it, or briefly state your opinion on the matter. Keep it short and sweet and to the point, much like the rest of this article!
+ Pose Your Problem
Early on, you’ll want to elaborate on the problem you’ve presented. Discuss people who are experiencing it, why it may be relevant to your readers, and other points they may not have considered. Be concise but direct and factual.
Additionally, citing outside sources will add a respectable and academic quality to your blog that would otherwise not be there if you just wrote from your point of view (not to mention will help boost your search authority on search engines). Your opinion as an expert matters, but if you can find other experts or grounded research to reinforce what you’re saying, your case is that much stronger. It’s best to cite these directly within the sentence in which you’ve cited something, according to Hubspot.
+ Use Headings Throughout
Search engines crawl blog posts first by the H1 title and meta description, then by the sub headings. If you can come up with a way to create a catchy phrase with a 3-5 word summary of that section, you’ll have found your sweet spot.
It’s also important to not only provide value in your content, but to also consider the way the content looks on the page. Notice I use italics when I want a point to be emphasized, and that my paragraphs are no longer than 2-3 sentences each. People grow tired of seeing only words over and over and over and over and over…
+ Make It Interesting
Besides short paragraphs and varied uses of bold and italics, I also suggest using images and bulleted lists within your blogs. Images should be clear, in focus, and on topic, and you should never take them from another site without getting permission. You can find free and unlicensed images on sites like Unsplash and Pexels, but make sure you crop and compress these photos before posting to avoid slowing down your own website.
Along with images, bullet points are a fantastic visual tool for providing content. Keep these lists at six points or smaller—anything longer gets confusing. Generally, bullet points have the benefit of:
Providing content in an unmistakable way
Showcasing a list in a visually interesting manner
Organizing a series in a specific order
+ But Make Your Point
I usually like to make my best points in my second-to-last section. This is where I back up my opinion with other credible, external sources, as well as make my final argument about whatever it is I’ve been discussing this entire time.
I also like to keep my blog posts between 500-1,200 words. Anything shorter will not pull in the search traffic you’re looking for and will most likely not address your topic thoroughly. While there is nothing wrong with posts over 1,200 words, I think there is real value in fully covering a topic concisely. If you feel that you want to go longer, consider splitting the post up into multiple articles. (Hooray! More content for your site!)
As long as you’re writing to create real value for the reader, rather than throwing a bunch of hot garbage on a page, your words will help your site with SEO.
+ Final Thoughts
Generally, my blogs end in one final section that has a soft sell. You don’t want to hit people over the head with it, but if you are pulling in organic traffic from search engines, there will be visitors reading your blog that have no idea what you do or who you are. That’s why including a link or contact information is helpful.
End the blog by summarizing your points (much like you did in the introduction) and throwing out one or two ways in which you can be of help to the reader. (For example) If you’d like to learn more about the value of blog writing or you need additional assistance growing your business, feel free to reach out to me here.