Writing Perfect Blog Posts: The Ultimate Guide

Blog posts are probably more important than you realize.

A blog post is a page that focuses on one topic related to the overall theme of a blog or the site itself. If you search online for “best earphones 2020”, you will likely land on a tech blog/site reading an earphone-related article. What you are reading right is a blog post.

A great blog is essential to any strategy. It provides valuable and targeted information that is engagingly delivered and packaged in a way that makes it easy for customers to find the right website. They are proven to drive customers to websites and generate high-quality leads. Companies that prioritize blogging are an impressive 13x more likely to see positive ROI.

Your website likely features a blog if you are a business owner. How old is the most recent blog post? Is your editorial calendar well-stocked? Are your posts relevant?

Worried you can’t write a good blog? Then check out this guide to help point you in the right direction!

1. Maximize your blog’s potential

Have you ever tried to write a diary? It can be difficult to stay motivated and keep momentum. Why? There is no tangible return.

Blogging for your business is a great way to get started. These facts will help you feel motivated to post more.

• Delivering poor-quality or no content could lead to you losing 4 of your customers
• Blogs are 126% more effective for small businesses than blogs that don’t exist.
• 47% of customers will first read 3-5 blogs posts before they make a purchase
• 60% of customers feel more connected after reading bespoke content

2. Choose your topic

You need to have a constant supply of new ideas on the topics that interest your audience to maintain a steady flow of exceptional content. How can you make sure the well doesn’t dry up?

Start by selecting a broad topic for each post. For example, an interior designer might blog about maximising space within the home.

Next, narrow down your subject matter to a sub-category using keyword research. Keep your target buyer in your mind. Finally, find a solution in this area that the customer may need. You’ve finally found your angle.

You can reuse the idea you have by looking at it from a different buyer’s point of view. You can also look at the blogs of your competitors to see what’s missing so that you can write about it (and rank for it).

3. Determine your target audience

You’re now ready to start writing. You’re ready to write, but more than 3/4 of internet users read blogs regularly. Different people are searching for different things.

Blogs that are purely for general appeal will likely dilute your message. Take the time to get to know your audience before you start typing.

What keeps them awake at night? What are they likely to connect with? What are they most likely to look for?

Blog posts that solve specific problems are the most successful. Apart from increasing the brand loyalty of your target audience, content targeted at a particular market segment has less competition for top ranking on search engines results pages (SERPs).

4. Have a great title

Your headline must be captivating to win readers. The average reader today has an attention span of 8 seconds.

A perfect title will present your topic clearly and compellingly. Research shows that titles between 6-8 words are best for blog posts. This could increase CTR by 21%. It’s easy to see why 36% of readers prefer list-based titles in a sea of digital content.

You’ll likely start with an idea of how to maximize space in your home. You can then add your keyphrase, such as “stylish storage in the home”. Sharpen the focus of the sentence using tricks like alliteration to improve the flow.

These insights have been combined to create a punchy title that encourages clicks: “Stylish home storage: 5 clever space-saving solutions”

5. SEO is important!

The harsh reality is that 75% of potential readers won’t venture past the first page of Google Search Results.

You want your blog post easily searchable via organic searches if you want it to get a lot of engagement. What is your secret weapon? Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

Keyword research can help you gain an edge in the SEO race and improve your post’s rank on SERPs. Smart tools like Google Search Console can be used to refine search terms and flag which search phrases are less likely to rank in your market segments.

Something that sounds like it was written by a robot is not credible or engaging. Increase searchability without sacrificing readership by using keywords only when it feels natural. Google can tell the differences.

6. Create a memorable introduction

The introduction is a subtle pitch for your blog post. In the first paragraphs of your article, you must present the premise to the reader.

Try opening your blog with a thought-provoking statement. Statistics in blog posts can increase brand credibility.

After setting the scene in Hollywood speak it’s time for your “inciting incident”: the hook that draws the reader in. This is often a problem that your customer has.

This gives you the perfect opportunity to get on your horse and provide a solution for the problem. This will encourage them to continue reading.

7. Plan the structure of your post

Blog posts are fast food on the internet: they’re easy to digest and delicious.

There are many formats that you can use to keep your posts current, including listicles or guides. If the final product is too long and boring, viewers will not click on it.

A blog post that is navigable follows a clear structure. Each section is divided with the relevant subheading. The paragraphs should be short and sweet. Paragraphs should be short, sweet, and free from waffles.

A Google top-ranking post has 1,140-1285 words. If you want to rank high for keywords with high competition, you will need 2,200-2,500 words. Google also classifies posts that contain minimal words as thin content.

8. Style your writing

Your blog should sound just like you. This means that your blog should sound like you. Your posts should be more casual and relaxed.

It’s important to strike a balance between your voice, and the tastes of your readers. Visitors spend on average 37 seconds reading a blog post. You need to amaze them.

Writing is not something that comes naturally to everyone. These golden rules can be used to create highly readable content.

• Use current statistics to reinforce your ideas. Numbers are a favourite of people. They represent hard, cold facts and can be used to support our tendency to skim-read.
• Consider how many words you can use to convey the same message in a single sentence. What if you could say it in fewer words?
• Remember to use cadence, a la Amazon’s leaked email template. Use long and short sentences to make the reading experience lively.
• Do not waffle: If a sentence drives your post’s premise forward it isn’t necessary.

9. Visually engage it

Visuals can make your post more appealing by breaking up monochromatic text with vibrant splashes colour or action.

Content with relevant visuals has been proven to be more effective than text. It actually receives 94% higher views.

Visuals are a way to make it easy for busy viewers who lack the time or are restless. They appeal to the hyper-visual nature of social media: posts that contain an image for every 75-100 words receive twice as many shares than articles without images.

Your featured photo must be engaging, high-quality and reflect your post’s content. Use original images and infographics wherever possible in your posts. Make sure you fill out the alt text.

10. Make sure you have proofread the content

Poorly written content can make you look less trustworthy in the eyes of customers. We have seen typos as well as grammatical errors in the content published by reputable brands. It is amazing.

You can also proofread your post using one of many internet grammar checkers to check for errors in the text. To make your piece stand out, read it multiple times.

Copying content from other sources (or competitors) is a surefire way to undermine your authority in your field.

11. End with a CTA (Call to action)

End your post with a brief conclusion that summarizes it and offers additional help, if necessary.

Your audience should feel the value of their time with you. So, briefly mention any important points that you have made and link these to your CTA.

A strong CTA will guide the reader along a clear path, telling them what they should do next. Get in touch, sign up for a newsletter, or try writing the perfect blog post. What’s the payoff? You will receive a bunch of new, meaningful leads that you can use for your business.

12. All technical boxes must be ticked

You’ve just written the perfect blog post. Now you want to hit “publish”.

But not so quickly. Do you want your post to be as easy as possible to find? You can do this by adding a few technical details:

• A Meta Description is the name of the HTML feature that teases out the content of a webpage. It can be found below the titles in a SERP.
• Your URL should be in sync with your headline, meta description, and title.

Choose a tag. Nominal labels are used to categorize posts on your blog. This allows readers to quickly select the content they are interested in.

• Select the keywords that you will use for your anchor text. This is the text that links to other pages of your website or anywhere else. These keywords could contain a single word or several.

Once you have written the perfect blog post…

You now know how to create the perfect blog post, but you may find you don’t have the time to regularly write blog content on your own, which is fine! Ecstatic Digital have blog writing and management services that are perfect for the busy business owner who wants to maintain an active and engaging blog, If you’re interested, then why not get in touch to learn more?