{Blog 101} 5 Tips to Writing a GREAT Blog Post!

Looking to grow your blog?

You have to engage your readers…by writing great blog posts!

Here are 5 tips that will help you:

1. Create a Great Title/Header.

Those few words at the beginning of your blog post can be the difference between your post being read (and spread by others) OR landing in your archives, barely noticed.

Post titles are typically a handful of words, but they are the most powerful words you’ll write.  Most readers make a decision whether to read the rest of your post or move on to something better within 3 seconds.

Research has shown that readers are more likely to read your post if it begins with phrases like… “How to…” or “5 Tips to…” or “7 Steps to…”

You also want to write a post title that includes very searchable keywords. Keywords are important because they tell search engines what your blog post is about and will help it to rank highly for those words. (I’ve had TONS of clients find my blog due to searching keywords and my blog popping up on the first page.)

Think like your reader…what search terms/titles would they be searching for?!

2. Create Great Content.

You’ve heard me say this before…Content is King!

If people come to your blog and do not like what they have read or feel like they aren’t getting anything of value, they are likely to stop coming back.

Be real, let people get a sense of who you are…let your personality shine through!

Also, don’t post just to post!  If your content is so-so, you will lose readers big time. Trust me, you’d be better off publishing one A-maaaazing post a week, rather than 5 mediocre posts.

3. Showcase Great Pictures.

A picture is worth a 1,000 words and most of us can scan a blog post and look at the pictures before we read the content, right?

If your pictures are dark, small or blurry, people won’t be drawn into reading the rest of the post.  You know people skim your post quickly for the pictures, right?!

And now with Pinterest, you’re going to want your gorgeous pictures pinned.  (Pinterest is the #1 source for blog traffic right now).

4. Include Links.

If you want to engage your readers to spend more time on your site, you need to provide links to other posts within your post.

When writing a new post, remember that whenever you mention a previous post it’s always smart to hyperlink it to that post.

Not sure how to do this? Do a search for the term “how to hyperlink text in wordpress” (or whatever blog tool you use).

For example, here is an excerpt from my “need a new logo” post last week.

If you notice, “need a new logo post” is in gold because I hyperlinked that text to the post I wrote last week about 7 key questions to ask yourself if you need a new logo design. Readers are now able to click on that text and read another post on my blog!

5. End with a Question.

Another way to engage readers is to end your post with a question.

For example, when I wrote a post about packaging design, I ended my post with the question…

Don’t you think it’s about time you got your packaging in order?

This is a call to action. Instead of having your readers read your post and leave, ending with a question allows your readers to respond to what they just read.

It also helps you build relationships and engage conversation with your readers. When you connect with you readers, they will continue coming back to your blog time and time again.

Note: It also helps to write the question in bold letters, or in a larger font, or both!

I hope you found these 5 Tips to Writing a Great Blog Post helpful!

Would you like to add a tip to this list? I’d love for you to ‘Speak Your Mind’ and leave a tip (or two) that works for you below this post!