Your content is the most important aspect of your blog. But, how you deliver and present your blog posts often dictate whether a note a post will get read.
There are plenty of blogs out there just begging for attention, but they lose the reader with lengthy diatribes or perhaps they don’t even attract readers at all. Maybe that blogger is you.
Not to worry. We’ve pulled together five simple tips to help you take that killer content of yours and build an awesome blog post that’s more likely to be read and shared.
Let’s get started, shall we?
Write a great headline.
People will choose whether or not to read your post based on the headline, so make it snappy, exciting and something that people just have to read. Copyblogger has a great 10-part series on writing magnetic headlines that’s sure to help.
Include visuals.
Pictures, graphics and other visuals help draw readers in and make the page more eye-appealing. You don’t have to spend a fortune on stock photography. You can find free images by doing a Google image search or searching through Flikr’s creative commons.
Write tight.
People don’t have a ton of extra time, so take out the extraneous stuff. If you can retain the meaning with one sentence instead of three, then do that. Concise posts make it easier for your readers to digest the information.
Chunk it up.
To make the information easy to digest, chunk up the information into manageable bites. In other words, use short paragraphs, sub-headings, bullet points and numbered lists to help keep the reader moving.
Tell the reader what to do next.
If you want people to engage and write a comment, ask them to do that. Or, if you are using the post to encourage sign-ups to your email list, then tell them that. (p.s. you can sign up for our awesome email tips here in case you were wondering.). Always give the reader some point of action at the end.
Now, it’s your turn. Which of these tips have you tried with your blog? Do you have any others that you would add?
Laura Click
Great post, Laura! Keeping post short is so key to retaining readers. Before I even started reading this post, I scrolled down to see how much time it would have taken me to read it to completion. Quality advice.
Thanks for the kind words, Andrew. And yes, I would agree that post length is important. And if you choose not to keep your post short, subheads are absolutely key!