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10 Indispensable Steps to Writing a Great Blog Post
Blogging for business is an integral part of your overall marketing strategy whether you’re marketing your business or integrating Social Selling into your sales process. Blogging has been around since the late ’90s but many businesses and salespeople are still very new to it. The steps to writing a great blog post aren’t always easy to figure out and that can make you unsure of where to start or what to say.
The benefits of blogging are many:
- Establishes Authority: you become the “Likable Expert” to your customers and prospects
- Drives traffic to your website
- Helps convert traffic into leads and sales
The benefits of blogging are so huge that you’d be crazy not to have a blog. However, there are many components of a blog that make it successful and with so much content being published on the Interwebs, you need to have a solid product or people simply won’t engage.
Your goal is to make an impact on prospects and customers. Today, we need to use all methods of reaching customers and your blog is the foundation from which to launch from.
Follow these 10 indispensable steps to writing a great blog post:
1. Write What You’re Thinking
There are many, many people who believe they’re “not writers.” Simply put, blogs are merely your thoughts and advice on paper (or video, images or even spoken into a microphone for the world to hear). When you put your thoughts to paper, something magical happens. Inspiration takes you to places you never thought you’d go. Start by writing what you’re thinking.
2. Put Yourself in Your Reader’s Shoes
Ask yourself, “What’s the ONE thing I want the reader to takeaway from reading this post?” Write with one concept in mind – don’t get caught up in a bunch of different ideas. Save all those other ideas for other posts. Stay focused on the one concept, one solution, one story that will keep them coming back for more.
3. A Clickable, Shareable and Compelling Headline
You only get one chance to capture your readers attention and that’s your headline. There are many formulas to write great headlines and studying headlines has been sort of a hobby of mine. One of the my favorite formulas is this:
Number + Adjective + Keyword + Rationale + Promise
- Numbers win readers i.e. 1o Tips…
- Use interesting adjectives such as killer, amazing, ultimate, powerful, exciting etc. I use this great list here–>
- Use rationale such as tips, tricks, reasons, principles, elements etc.
- If possible, include trigger words like ‘Why’ and ‘How’
- Make a promise, such as 10 Powerful Tips to help you…
- Make your headline shorter rather than longer to avoid Google truncating it for you
- Include a keyword when possible because you still want organic traffic
4. Tell a Story
There is simply nothing more compelling than a story. The best way to illustrate why people buy from you is to tell stories about your everyday interactions with customers. Let their actions convey the trust that you’re looking to build with your prospects. Stories paint a picture and evoke emotions in the reader. Blogs are at their best with they build trust and telling great stories draws people closer.
5. Grab Them With Your Opening Paragraph
The headline’s job is to get people to read your first paragraph. The first paragraph’s job is get them to keep reading!
Your opening paragraph should have two components: Expertise and Empathy
- Expertise – Mention that people come to you with a problem or concern. Say, “Customers come to us all the time…”or “Recently, a client asked me the following question…” By doing this, you’re making it clear that you/your company are an expert in solving this problem.
- Empathy – No one wants to feel alone in their problems. Everyone wants to feel understood. Phrases like “we can relate” or “we appreciate” or “this is understandable” go a long way to help the reader perceive you as someone who’s not only trustworthy, but “gets” them—opening up the doors for a potentially great working relationship moving forward.
6. Include an Irresistible Image
Images help tell stories. Sometimes, they are the story. Include an irresistible image with your post so that people who learn visually (65% of your readers) will connect with your post.
Another important reason to include an image is so that when you publish it on Social Media, the thumbnail populates, thereby optimizing your content for readers’ newsfeeds.
7. Readability
Many people will scan your post. Some will read 50% of it and some will read all of it. Make your post readable to each type of reader:
- Break up long paragraphs
- Use sub-headings
- Use bullets
- Take advantage of block quotes when possible
8. Optimize for Search
Blog posts are valuable in two ways:
- Humans (customers and prospects) read them during their shopping research.
- Search engines look for fresh, relevant content when ranking sites and blogs are the best at providing it.
You can spend time figuring out how to exactly optimize your blog posts for search OR you can use this handy plug-in I use on my WordPress site. It’s called WordPress SEO by Yoast. Install it and it will guide you through the process of optimizing your post for search engines.
9. Call-to-Action
In this sharing economy, we’ve all become accustomed to getting information for free…and that’s an awesome thing. However, it’s still important to remember that you need to guide readers down your sales funnel when appropriate.
Include a Call-to-Action at the end of your post. It reminds them that, if they need further assistance or deeper expertise, you’re there to help.
10. Perfect is the Enemy of Done
When I first started blogging, I would fret over my post until it made me crazy. I’ve learned that blogging is a conversation you have with your readers, prospects, peers and customers. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It also doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t proofread. My routine is:
- Write from the heart (“Bleed onto the page,” as Hemmingway once said)
- Edit accordingly
- Link back to sources where applicable
- Proofread twice – at different times
- Publish
Now that you’ve learned my 10 indispensable steps to writing a great blog post, take a moment and jot down the subjects you want to write about. If you’re still not sure about subject matter, start with your customers’ most frequently asked questions.
“Don’t die with your music still in you.” ~Dr. Wayne Dyer
For more blogging assistance and guidance, reach out to me here. My focus is to support your marketing efforts with the ultimate goal of traffic, leads and sales.
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