Content is an imperative part of building a strong online presence and one of the best ways to pack your site with content would be to write blogs. Writing blogs on a regular basis gives a fresh set of content that you can use for your newsletter and other digital marketing campaigns. It can be relatively easy to write blogs but challenges still await along the path. One of the difficulties you are bound to encounter would be making sure that the blogs are written in the most effective manner and ensuring that they are in line with your goals. Below are five strategic ways to write effective blogs:
1. Choose An Irresistible Topic And Headline
We recommend that conduct keyword research to come up with a topic. It is important to write about something that your readers are already talking about. This will increase the chance of people reading up until the very end of the page and thus will improve the retention and SEO of your blog.
Keyword research is just one of the ways to find a good topic. Here are some other tips to help you discover what your readers are interested in:
- Send surveys to your subscribers
- Check out the comment section of your posts
- You can use Google Analytics or BuzzSumo to find out which of your blogs are the most popular. You can then recreate that content to give your readers something else to talk about
- Look for books related to your niche on Amazon and then read the reviews
Once you have decided on a topic, it is time to convert that into a headline. Some key points to remember would be to keep things simple and attractive.
You want your readers to understand your topic right from the headline. With that, it is necessary to avoid technical terms that the general public will not understand. Aside from that, it is also imperative for the headline to be attractive to potential readers. To do that, you need to be specific. As much as possible, do not write a headline that is too vague for people to take interest in.
2. Make The Introduction Catchy
One significant truth you need to learn about readers is that they don’t normally like to read. Of course, they do. Otherwise, people wouldn’t be starting blogs. However, people only read blogs if it catches their interest.
To make your introduction catchy you need to get into character. As much as you can, avoid writing significant facts at the beginning of your paragraph.
You’d want to captivate them. So, you might want to take notes on the kind of emotions you want your readers to feel while reading the introduction. Emotions can have a significant effect on the reader. It can make them want to read more or turn away from your website.
It would be best to start your paragraph with a short statement or question because this will reel in the curiosity of your prospective reader. Make sure that your lead is about 100 words long only. If it gets close to 200, you might want to cut it down a bit. You can decide on the best way to deliver your point with the least words.
3. Provide Tips That Are Valuable
You need to provide useful tips in your article that are impossible to ignore but you have to do it in a way that won’t consume so much time and effort.
Write it in a way that is easy to understand. If you can write something valuable in the simplest way, that will surely capture the attention of readers.
It is imperative to come up with a spectacular headline and leading paragraph. However, your ultimate goal should be to encourage readers to read the whole article.
One thing that readers avoid are blocks of texts. This is why you need to add subheadings to your blog every few paragraphs that you write. Subheadings make your article more readable. Apart from that, it also helps people who are looking for something specific.
Just like the headline, it is also important to make subheadings interesting. Do not go for plain two-word subheadings that do not tell your readers what the next paragraphs are about. Write subheadings in a way that is specific and attention-grabbing.
Another tip would be to stay consistent with your format. For instance, if you start your subheading with an action verb, make sure that all other subheadings are formatted the same way. Otherwise, the article will come off as awkward.
4. Conclude The Article With A Motivational Statement
It is not a good idea to leave your readers hanging with the last subheading in your blog. You need to write an effective conclusion. Nothing is more effective than a motivational statement at the end of the blog that encourages readers to take action. Think of it as a pep talk between you and your readers.
When it comes to writing a conclusion, as much as possible you need to avoid giving away new information. Putting new characters or concepts at the conclusion can remove the harmony from your blog. Aside from that, it also tends to jar readers.
5. Invest In Education
Steps one to four puts you in a pretty good place in writing effective blogs. However, the story does not end there. As a blogger, it is important to become up-to-date with new trends in the blogging industry. You need to learn new things from time to time. Our advice would be to read blogs and news related to your niche. Discover new ways to become better at writing. You can check out Udemy where there are lots of affordable video tutorials or you could get Alex becker H-Com to get all the educational content you need in one place.
Final Thoughts
The tips stated here are techniques that we used to boost our blogging game. However, you can always add new things to do the list. By getting to know your audience, you will soon discover unique ways to add value to your blog.
