Crash course in writing successful blogs
Often referred to as a form of user generated content, a blog is an online journal or web site that allows users to create posts, describing their thoughts, ideas and views. This offers anyone the opportunity to share their opinion on any topic and publish it on the world wide web at large. As web applications become more sophisticated, creating a blog and uploading opinions using text, links to other web sites, audio and video has become easy, accessible, instantaneous and quickly becomes an essential practise.
So what are the top 5 tips to writing a successful blog?
1. Content is king
Content within your blog needs to be useful and unique. No one wants to read through a whole lot of jargon and feel vague and confused. When you write a blog, incorporate some of your own personal experiences into it and add some relevant information. This ensures you strike up that valuable connection with your target demographic.
With dozens of blogs being created every minute, the challenge is to create a blog that stands out from the crowd. Provide content and information that is not only useful but engages users so that they don’t hunt for the same information elsewhere.
Remember there isn’t just one structure when it comes to blog styles. A blog is capable of triggering different outcomes and can be utilised in different ways.
- Community – Focuses on the importance of user generated content on the internet today, it allows users to feel that they connect and belong. The connection is usually more important that the blog topic.
- Entertainment – Users spend time on entertainment blogs predominately as a light hearted way to chat about celebrity images and gossip, the arts and entertainment.
- Debate – Their specific purpose is purely an outlet to allow users to have a discussion, debate or even a fight over any issues.
- Information – Generated to educate interested users on a particular issue, product or topic.
2. Link frequently
Linking to other blogs and websites strengthens your credibility, generates traffic and boosts your rank within organic search engine results. The most rapid way for your blog to get attention that results in secondary links, is to post links from social media sites to yours. A well crafted heading and summary about your topic that appeals towards your target audience will earn countless exposure to your blog.
3. Use Keywords
To reach a organic search engine rank, your blog must contain the most relevant content about your subject using the most amounts of associated keywords or phrases related to the search terms used. This is also known as SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) and is an important part of generating traffic towards any website. The clearer you are about your subject matter, the better your search engine results will be. The clearer the purpose, the more effective your keywords become and it will help you sustain focus.
4. Create a headline that will either ruffle feathers or asks a direct question
Why write a title that people expect? Blog headings should entice a user to read content. Write a headline that’s opposite of what users would anticipate. Make it something controversial or wacky. If you find it’s a little inappropriate in relation to your topic try writing a bold question or statement that’s bound to make your target audience shift in their seat and be intrigued to continue reading. And don’t forget those keywords littered somewhere amongst it too!
5. Keep your posts short and sweet
You want to encourage discussion not drive people away because they have lost interest. Most users skim content in a blog so you need to nail them within the first paragraph. Word economise – Use the least amount of words to discuss the maximum amount of information. Keep your target audience in mind and get to the point already!
