Many people wish they had a magic formula for writing the perfect blog post.
Sadly, there is no such formula, but we’ve got nine tips that will help make it a lot easier:
1. Write an attention-grabbing title.
Use keywords in your title, and make it enticing. In some cases, you can communicate your post’s entire message in the title. But if you can’t, or don’t want to, do that, make sure the title makes the reader want to reading the entire post.
2. Make it relevant.
Your posts should be appropriate for, and interesting to, your audience. They should also be pertinent to your business, industry and/or market.
3. Include “ads” for events, products or services in the sidebar and/or banner.
Including nicely designed ads that call attention to your offerings shows your readers what you can do for them. Build trust through providing them with great content, and it will be a natural next step for them to hire you when they are ready for the types of products/services you offer. A word of caution: Don’t go too crazy with the ads or graphics. You want the main focus of your blog to be your actual blog posts, so try not to make the ads “loud” or distracting.
4. Include a call to action at the end of every post.
Even if it’s simply inviting your readers to comment on your post or share it with their friends, a call to action is key to generating conversation and buzz that draws attention to you and/or your brand.
5. Make sure you include social sharing buttons in every post.
This one’s a no-brainer. The easier you make it for people to share your posts, the more likely they will be to spread the word, and the better your results will be.
6. Write like a journalist.
Make sure the most important information is at the top of the post, followed by key details, followed by other general or background info.
7. Don’t worry about word count.
There is really no “right” length for a blog post. Some are going to be longer than others, simply because of the subject matter. Focus instead on communicating as clearly and concisely as you can. Make sure your formatting includes plenty of white space so readers are not overwhelmed by a “wall of words”. And make sure your blog is optimized for mobile devices.
8. Track your progress
Decide which stats you want to use to measure how you’re doing. Here are a few suggestions: Site visits, leads generated, number of subscribers, social media shares, and inbound links (who is linking to your blog posts, number of links to a specific blog post, etc.).
9. Do your research.
Find out what questions your readers are asking (looking up search terms relevant to your business/industry is a great way to start!) and answer those questions in your posts. If you find others have already provided answers, don’t shy away from the topic. Instead, find a way to put your own spin on the information, or find the holes in their posts and provide that information.
What do you think? Which rules do you follow when writing blog posts? Let us know if the comments!
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