Blogging is surely the new extraordinary: Step-by-step guide for novices
Everybody and any business needs a tool that they can use to pour out ideas to their audience, to promote their products, or even to connect with them, So here comes blogging, for those of you, who want to pass their thoughts, their knowledge, or build branding, blogging is one of the best ways to go. In this article, we will go through the key points which can help you in creating an interesting and effective blog post.
Define your goal
The first and most important step to writing a blog, before even starting to write one, is figure out the goal of the blog. Was it to inform, entertain, persuade, or maybe inspire? Answering this question will help the author decide what kind of content needs to be created. For example, if the goal is to inform, then the author will concentrate on providing more information with extra detail. However, if the goal is merely to entertain, then informality and humor are preferred.
Understand Your Readers
Knowing who your readers will help you create meaningful content that matters. Proceed with the following questions:
- Who are they? (age, gender, interests)
- What problems do they have?
- What kinds of questions do they have?
Crafting reader personas can assist in picturing the people you wish to reach in order to provide content for the right purpose. For instance, suppose young graduates intending to develop their careers are in your target audience, then perhaps discussing productivity strategies or connections-building methods will be worthwhile.
Deepen Your Audience Research
To understand your audience even better, you might want to try asking them questions via surveys or polls. Applying technologies like Google Forms or SurveyMonkey helps one export such questions to the audience and get responses to topics of the readers’ interest. Also, reading comments on your previous posts or asking your subscribers questions through social media can help answer the question in more detail.
Pick an Interesting Topic
The right topic selection goes a long way in ensuring topical readership. Below are some tips on how to arrive at an interesting subject:
Idea Generation
To begin with, list all probable topics that are related to your niche. Take into consideration what is trending, what audiences commonly ask, or what common issues the target audience has. You may also use some of your experiences or past events in your industry as a springboard.
Work on Keywords
Resources such as Google Keyword Planner or Ubersuggest offer a service that allows you to see what search terms people use in relation to your topic. This could help you in determining what the interests of people are, and thus enhance your blog in such search engines. For instance, if, for example, you are dealing with healthy eating, you might use keywords like “meal ideas” or “healthy recipes” to your advantage.
Investigate Competition
Consider the posts of similar blogs with which you wish to compete. Establish what some of their posts lack that you would be able to cover in your posts or how you can present the already available information differently. This could be by providing different viewpoints in relation to the same topic.
Confirm Your Topic’s Authenticity
Once ideas for topics have been generated, search for the level of competition on the topic using SEO tools like Ahrefs or SEMRush validator. This guarantees that competition in the subject is feasible while also verifying sufficient interest in the topic.
Formulate a plan
A standard blog post layout comprises of:
- Title: The post’s title must be interesting
- Introduction: Tell the reader what the post is about and get them interested from the start
- Body: Use subsections to discuss various aspects of the main points identified.
- Conclusion: Provide a recap of what the readers should remember and a task for them.
Formatted Bullet Points and Lists:
Presenting content in bullet points or numbered lists has several advantages to content. It makes the information easily readable and even pleasing to the eye. This way concise important points are provided without forcing large paragraphs on the readers.
Include Key Takeaways:
Key takeaways added to the end of every section within the body of your post could be helpful for readers. This allows for certain important points to be reinforced while simultaneously enabling readers to internalize the article by being given summaries alongside the progression through the piece.
Write Engaging Content
With the outline done, it is time to flesh out the whole content with words! Here are some tips for that:
Begin With An Attention Grabber:
Your introduction should always have the potential of capturing your target audience, so start with a compelling one. Getting your audience’s attention can be done through a casual question or an interesting fact. For instance, citing statistics regarding how blogging has developed can be a novel way to capture interest.
Be Real:
Make sure to channel your writing in your own voice. Readers expect genuine content and are more likely to be persuaded if they think it is real. Making personal anecdotes or providing relevant insight regarding the topic will enhance the trust people have in your audience.
Avoid Jargons:
Always use simple sentences that are not too complicated to understand or that sound cringe. Stay straightforward and uncomplicated so that your message across appeals to the desired readers. It is usually recommended to make short and straight to the point sentences rather than long winded ones.
Add Visuals:
As far as infographics, videos, and images are concerned, it is vital that a blog post features them as they can simply increase the richness of the content, making it more engaging. It provides extra context or other information relevant to the topic of discussion by supplementing the text on the page when used appropriately.
Add Citations concurrently:
Active incorporation of quotations from professionals within the area of yours makes your content more informative and it equally broadens the range of views on the subject matter. Keep in mind attribution of any quotes employed where relevant.
Edit and Proof Read: Consider it a necessity to comb your text before publishing after writing it:
Walk away: Sitting idle for a couple of hours, considering mechanical transcriptions can help get the post clearer – this is especially true when you are looking to edit and modify a post! Doing this makes one more efficient and reduces the scope for errors.
Consider the quality of the sentences
Mistakes such as grammar errors, spelling mistakes, and wrong punctuation can all be regarded as errors. Making use of grammar checking tools like Grammarly or Hemingway will also pinpoint problems with the text.
Peer Review
It is advisable to have an individual review your post before you go ahead and publish it as they can catch errors you may have missed and help with feedback regarding clarity and engagement.
Optimize for SEO
SEO improves the chances of your post appearing near the top of search engine results which is very important. Some of these simple actions can increase your chances of effective SEO:
Use Keywords Strategically
Words that best describe your content should be included in the natural flow of your post. Keywords should particularly be termed in the title, heading, and first paragraph but ensure not to use the keywords too much as this will make the post seem clumsy. 1-2% is the advisable minimum content density.
Write Meta Descriptions
A meta description is a summary of an article or blog meant to help searchers make informed decisions. Draft meta descriptions between 150 to 160 characters containing suitable keywords to describe and further increase clicks to the blog post.
Publish and Promote Your Blog Post
The final step of writing a blog post entails publishing it and your promotion skills will determine the effectiveness of how you get your blog out there:
Share on Social Media
Utilizing Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, or Pinterest will help you share your post with followers. Always adjust your text to match the platform you are using and do not hesitate to include hashtags where suitable to increase user engagement.
Interact with your readers
Never ignore comments made on your blog as well as comments made on your social media platforms. Doing so builds a sense of community, and readers are likely to come back for more content.
Evaluate Performance
Once you have written the blog post and promoted its content, analyze the sales result using Google Analytics for example:
Measure Important Metrics
Make an effort to notice parameters like the number of views, bounce rate, time spent on the page, and social media sharing of the content. You will be able to know what is good and what needs improvement with such in-depth understanding.
