Have you ever been drawn into a reading someone’s blog by a great title, only to leave disappointed that you didn’t get what you thought you were going to? I bet you don’t consistently return to that blog, do you?
Writing a blog is a fun way to grow your business. Writing a blog that is engaging and effective is also a lot of work. A great blog writer accomplishes some important things, without you even realizing they have done it. So what are their tricks?
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE
The first part to knowing your audience is determining what you have to offer them. Ask yourself some questions.
- What is your area of expertise?
- What are you passionate about?
Once you have defined your area of expertise, break the topic into categories. This will give you an excellent starting point for topic ideas. Stay focused by plotting your topics for blog posts for the upcoming calendar year. This can help you avoid feeling overwhelmed or lost in a sea of ideas as you begin to write your blog.
The second part of knowing your audience is figuring out who this information would appeal to.
- Who do you want to reach?
- What does your audience want or need?
Spend a little time creating a reader in your mind. As you sit down to write, create your content for your imaginary reader. How does your content fill a want or a need? Have you summoned an emotional response in the reader? Does your content inspire the reader to respond or act on the information you are presenting?
MAKE THE MOST OF EVERY WORD
As you create a following for your blog, realize that your readers have given you their time. Don’t waste it. Keep blog posts clear, concise, and easy to read. Drawing readers in with a great title is important, but writing quality content is what keeps them coming back for more.
Begin writing each blog post with a keyword in mind. What does this article focus on? Then use that keyword in the title and throughout the post – without irritating your reader. If you are forcing keywords for higher SEO rankings, your reader knows it. If it sounds awkward to you, it will sound awkward to your reader.
Know what the goal of your post is prior to writing it. Are you writing a how-to, looking to entertain or provide information, or showing how your product/service can make life easier? When you have finished your post, review it to see if you have accomplished your goal.
GETTING THE MOST OUT OF EACH POST
You have worked hard to understand your audience. You have worked hard on creating an outstanding blog post. So here are a few final things to consider before you hit publish.
- Have you thoroughly edited?
- Have you provided links to related topics? (Links can be to another page on your blog or to other supporting information entirely.)
- Have you added some relevant images?
Once you feel your content is clear and concise, readable, and accomplishes your original goal, hit PUBLISH. Pat yourself on the back, but don’t get too comfortable yet.
AFTER HITTING PUBLISH
Whew, that was a lot of work. But don’t forget the final step in creating a great blog – SHARING. Promote your work in order to create the buzz. There are a variety of ways to create visibility for your blog.
- Promote your work on social media platforms
- Provide social connections with social media widgets on your blog
- Build relationships with other bloggers
- Provide your services for a guest blog
- Use blog syndication to spread your posts
Building relationships is imperative to building a great blog. Acknowledge your readers, invite their comments, and provide content that they want to share with others in their life. If you do the hard work behind the scenes, your readers will gladly do the sharing for you.
