Yesterday I ran a workshop for a small group of bloggers here in Australia. One of the sessions I covered was on writing compelling content.
Here’s a brief look at a few of the recurring themes in what I shared:
- Be Useful – if your post isn’t informing, inspiring, entertaining or making someone’s life better – don’t publish it until it does.
- Share your Opinion – opinions are often what sets bloggers apart from the pack.
- Cut out the Fluff – before you hit publish, revise your post and remove anything that doesn’t add value.
- Visualise Your Reader – writing with a reader in mind personalises your writing.
- Make Your Posts Scannable – only 16% of people read every word online. Format your posts so that your main points stand out.
- Work and Rework You Headlines – a good headline can be the difference between a blog post being read, or ignored.
- Write with Passion – when you show you care about what you’re writing, your readers are more likely to care too.
- Give your Readers something to do Next – ask your readers to DO something once they finish reading. It could be to read something else, comment, apply a lesson, share the post etc.
- Tell Stories – stories are powerful ways of connecting with, inspiring and teaching your readers – they also create memories
- Give Your Posts Visual Appeal – the inclusion of an eye-catching image or a well designed diagram can take your post to the next level.
- Practise – the best way to improve your writing is to write. Practise Makes Perfect.
This is a very informative article. I enjoyed reading it. ty
I completely agree with you, as these points can add up to the positive traits of one’s blog post. i myself do follow these points. Well after seeing that these points are being mentioned by you, I think I am going in the right direction. :)
Great post. Very practical which I what I like!
i must say these 11 tips are useful for writing a post on blog and i love reading these tips quickly!
Just write awesome and cover all aspects…..
Nice Keep going up…
I would also add, read the post out loud. Can you read this as you would say it, if not keep editing until you can, this is a great way to ensure your personality is kept in the content after the proof reading tools have done their worst to remove your style from the post.
Trust me if it bores you then your readers have no chance :)
It is also a great way to find those missing conjunctions that you thought were there.
Great point Igor – reading things allowed certainly gives you another perspective on how it flows!
Allowed?? Not only a sound check but a spelling check is required, the word aloud is the word I think you were going for.
11 Great tips. I also believe that writing with a passion is important especially if you are telling a good story. Thanks for the article. Short, sweet and to the point! I like it.
I love how you started the list, with “be useful,” and ending it with practicing. Both are very “somewhat obvious” suggestions and yet so important.
very true – in fact most of it is ‘logical’ on many levels – yet so many of us overlook the obvious don’t we. Thanks for the comment.
Short, straight, and to the point. I didn’t scan this one! :)
YES to #6 – this is crucial in so many ways, as starting with a strong title can actually save your blog post from straying off course. The title holds your keywords, your direction, your pitch – don’t be afraid to take as much time as you need to make it perfect.
Cheers
Sarah Bauer
Navigator Multimedia
I guess the best tip is “practice”, since everything will come down easy with an every day practice.
Hi Darren,
I think sometimes it’s more important to inspire than teach since we’re all driven by emotions.
I’ve read dozens of posts on guest blogging which had everything I needed to know but what actually made me start writing guest posts was reading a post which I could relate to 100% and inspired me to finally take action.
Make your readers think you’re reading their minds.
~Philip
Very very true Philip. I think blogging for the heart, getting in touch with your feelings as a blogger and aiming to have an impact emotionally with readers can be very powerful.
1,2 and 8 are my favorites but love the post. Thank you
Great.. Wish I could meet you and get some knowledge about blogging from you Darren
One day!
These were some really great tips. Point 11, I think its most important, since its the first thing which any reader or visitors see and it should be such that it attracts them to click it.
But do you have any personal suggestion for word limit in article ( both maximum & minimum ) and I would like to know how toy optimize your post for SEO.
I don’t really worry too much about word length to be honest. I’m sure there is an optimal length for SEO (I’ve heard people say 250+ words) but I’m more worried about being useful.
So I say to my writers – use enough words to help those reading and then stop. If you need 10 words, that’s ok. If you need 8000 – that’s cool too!
6th one is my favorite. I concentrate a lot on my post’s heading or title. Interesting title grabs attention and brings more visitors.
Telling stories is a GREAT one – it’s actually something my team and I are going to start focusing on for our content strategy. It’s not always an easy task, especially when the content is centered around an online marketing product, but it’s worth the challenge to tell a great story! Thanks for these – good stuff!
Where’s the part about marketing your posts?
I like your 11 points for creating share-worthy content, but even the best posts that don’t get read are kinda worthless.
Completely agree David. This was all about ‘writing’ but then comes the ‘promoting’.
We actually did a full hour yesterday on the topic of ‘finding readers’ which covered some of that but it’s a big topic. If you want more on that topic check out this webinar that contains some of what I shared yesterday:
https://problogger.com/recording-of-finding-readers-for-your-blog-webinar/
I have put off “blogging” for so long… it’s time to take the plunge and start writing:) Great tips:) Thanks Darren. I’m going to take baby steps!
baby steps are the best steps when you’re starting out – go for it!!!
I need to remember tips 3, 4, and 8. Thanks for summarizing it for us who can’t be there to hear you speak!
Funny how attachments grow. If I read a headline similar to your headline from another blogger, which I just did on +google, I avoid it. When you post a tips list I dive in. Another example of #9. Thanks, D
thanks for reading David – really appreciate it.
That’s it, Darren – you said it all. The rest of us can pack up and go home. :)
The writer in me wants to correct your “practise” to “practice” — but overall, I enjoyed this quick read! Interesting that only 16% of readers actually read every word! Maybe I need to develop short posts like yours. Do you notice a lack in SEO juice from something this short, or not?
good pick up Julia – that slipped through two sets of eyes :-)
I don’t tend to write for search engines and so my posts can range from short ones like this to 8000 word ones (one of which I published a few weeks ago).
Update: actually practice/practice is a bit of a US English vs UK English thing – double checking this but I think/hope it’s right for me as an Aussie to have written it the way I did :-)
Great tips.
I think this is gonna make me a successful blogger! By reading this one it made me realize that there is something lacking in what I usually do. Thanks for sharing this it really help me a lot!
Being useful is probably most important, if there is no use to a blog post, why would anyone want to read it?
The main reason people visit a blog is to seek valuable information.so,providing quality information in a understandable way is the key to a successful blog.
This is absolutely true, Darren. One thing I discovered is that when I create and publish content either of my personal pinion or write business commentary on an article or blog post already published with a link to it to read more, not only do I get search engines to index my content faster, but it also attracts readers faster. It also inspired me to become a better writer and be more sophisticated in the way I published to the web. Thanks so much for this thought provoking post :-)
Might I add good grammar and proper spelling to the list? There is nothing that diminishes credibility more than the misuse of its and it’s and your and you’re, and the like. It can be as simple as paying attention to the red squiggle and using some of the many good online resources such as Daily Writing Tips and Grammar Girl.
Great post
I love the point numbers 7 and 11. Practice makes perfect and write with passion. If writing is just a skill and without the touch of passion no one will care to read what you have written.
I would like to add that its not necessary to write blog posts every day. I have seen so many bloggers get disappointed only because they posted a lot of articles at the start and didnt get the desired results.
When you focus on quantity then automatically you are going to compromise on the quality of the stuff you write. I hope it helps :)
Hi Darren,
Great share as always. The most important part of any blog post is what we have to say and how we say it. People will return to our blog if they like what we write about a specific subject and they like our writing style. With that in mind, our blog should be written in a tone appropriate to our blog topic. This is how you teach us with this excellent (short) post Darren.
Great summary, thanks Darren. Reminds me to get back into 31DBBB! I’m practising point #11 with 10mins/day of writing. Was almost a habit for a while there, but has been slightly neglected recently. Time to reinstate!
Hi Darren, Love the – “be useful” part.
Do you find it’s best to let your post sit over night, after you’ve made some corrections, so that you have a fresh perspective? Or do you write, refine, and post it immediately?
Thanks!
I hardly ever post immediately – I usually ponder it for at least a few hours and then get someone else to look it over for proof reading (both spelling/grammar and whether its actually conceptually makes sense).
Nice checklist. I would add one more – be relevant. It is along the same lines as useful, but more focused on what your readers actually want to and are reading. Pick topics that are trending and put your slant on them.
This is exactly what i needed to start my day reading! Ive already got tons of ideas and i think its inportant to note that making a blog specific and jotting down other ideas as you write the blog your working on is better than blogging to generally. : )
point number 9 is ammazing; while telling story you can communicate whatever you want without letting your reader to know what you mean to say that story. rest of the points are also awesome
Wonderful tips. I really need to take some of these in a count and start putting them in effect on my blog.
This is a fantastic list of reminders. Thank you so much for sharing it.
Great post, but re: #6 – Edit you(r) text – check for grammar and spelling errors. It still matters to some people. XO
If our content gets conflicted with others then??
Handy list Darren. I’ve found int the last year that short term wins are posts like this; punchy how to guides and opinion pieces on a hot topic. Long term wins that boost your profile are the more thoughtful blue sky types of posts. More outreach needed for them but find one evangelist and there is lots to gain….
13. Don’t write on a topic that you don’t know very good. I see often people that are writting about new gadgets and they never touched one of them. :)
Great post – short, sweet and to the point. Let’s not forget that in addition to sharing your opinion that it’s equally as important to just be yourself when you write. I love it when writer’s aren’t afraid to let their personality shine through in their writing, it makes me feel like I know them a little bit better even though I may never meet them in person.
I liked everything you suggested, very very good information, but may I make a suggestion? Correct spelling is really important when writing a blog. PRACTICE is not spelled as you did…….”practise.” LOL
Darren is Australian and “practise” is the British spelling.
@Sally, Oh! I didn’t know that!! Then I stand corrected. ……thanks!!
Clean, Nice & Informative….I love this kind of blog posts….thanks for these useful tips. Actually these are things we know, but you teach us how to implement them in our day to day blogging.
https://love26guru.blogspot.in
(Heart touching stories and Articles)
Thanks for the information provided about how to compel posts on a blog. I’m sure this will give long term benefits to the readers of the blog and everyone who visit the blog on regular basis.
Great article!! Wish it had an image to Pin. I’d love to save it for a re-read…
I always need a refresher on what is NEEDED in my posts. It is 6 & 8 that I seem to miss a lot and that to me is 2 really important areas. A headline to attract and call to action for interaction.