Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning we get a small commission if you make a purchase through our links, at no cost to you. For more information please visit our Disclaimer Page.
Last Updated on August 15, 2022 by coffeepo
Blog writing can be tricky and complex, but it’s a great way to get your customer’s attention. Beyond that, blogs are essential in educating and connecting with your audience to do more than just sell your product or service. You’re nurturing your relationship with your customers through your blogs to create long-term trust and loyalty.
Consider these numbers:
- Over 98% of marketing teams said that written content is their most-used content type.
- Yet, one in three marketers says their content writing is not that effective.
This tells us that most blog posts just aren’t hitting the mark. So, these companies are wasting their marketing dollars by treating content writing as a last priority.
This article aims to help you and your team improve your blog writing quality to increase your engagement and success levels.
First, let’s just take a quick look at what a blog is.
What is a Blog?
A blog is a page on your website used to write articles about different topics. It’s a place where you can share content about something you’re passionate about, or anything you want your readers to know. It can either be a personal blog, or a professional blog for businesses.
Blog writing has both written and visual elements, as well as some audio or even video elements now. Your blogs should be also published in an easy-to-read format so that people can quickly browse and find what they’re looking for. In the US alone, there are over 31.7 million blogs about just anything, from window cleaning to cooking recipes to local business marketing strategies.
Blog writing is effective because it is written in a way that the readers can connect directly with the content. Some blogs will even have a “comments” section for readers to respond or share their thoughts about the blog.
When you write high-quality blogs, you can:
- Increases engagement and reach
- Deepen trust with your audience
- Get more website visits and lower your bounce rate
- Improve your SEO performance and domain authority
- Furthers the connection between your brand and your customers
More and more people are going online right now, which means you have more potential readers for your blog. In short, there’s no better time than now to improve your blog writing and connect to more customers on a more personal level.
What Makes a Good Blog?
Owning a blog is one of the best ways businesses of all sizes can jumpstart their marketing campaignーonly if done right. In fact, 57% of marketers say that they’ve gained their customers through blogging. But how do you write blogs that really pop?
Well, here are 5 things that make a great blog.
1. You write creative headlines.
Alt text: Screenshot by CoffeePo
Exhibit A. If a consumer is looking for activewear content, they’ll be searching for something along the lines of “best gym wear for hiking” or another activity. We can confidently say that consumers will not be searching “1. Sports Bra” in search engines when looking for proper clothes to wear for working out.
Boring and irrelevant headlines decrease your chances of topping the Google search and make it harder for potential clients to find your blog. Be creative and descriptive when writing your headlines.
2. You add trust factors like hyperlinks.
When writing blog posts, gaining the trust of your readers is important. Without outbound links, it will be harder for your readers to verify your claims, especially if it includes statistics and empirical data.
So, it’s essential to link off to other content to show you’re trustworthy. You should also add inbound links to previous blogs on your website. This leads your readers to your other blogs and allows your readers to stay on your website for extended time.
By hyperlinking keywords or relevant content to other credible sources, you can also improve your search engine optimization (SEO). Similarly, when you’re doing irrelevant hyperlinking for the sake of doing so, it can also hurt your SEO score.
Pro Tip: Make sure that you’re not overdoing it. It’s recommended to have at least 1-2 external hyperlinks for every 500 words.
3. Your post is grammatically correct.
Just like any other written content, it’s always important to proofread. Even if it’s a casual blog, you still have to edit the copy you create. When readers constantly catch spelling and grammar errors while reading your post—that makes you look unprofessional.
You’ve already worked hard as a team to get the right messaging for your marketing campaign. But if your blog post is poorly written, then it can lead to:
- Deteriorating the consistency of your brand message
- Negatively affecting brand credibility
- Losing readers trust
Many readers cite poor grammar and typos as reasons to click away from a blog, especially when most businesses put a lot of effort into their websites. Content with errors means it’s a rush job and probably a scam, so make sure you’re not coming across that way.
4. You include a call to action.
In another case, your blog post is superbly written, with well thought of content, headlines, and visualizations. It is almost a successful blog. But, without a call to action, it’s a missed opportunity. Make sure you have an intention behind your blogs and you’re leading them to do what you want them to do.
Call to actions (CTAs) instruct readers on what to do next, prompting them to take immediate action. Here are some examples of CTAs:
- Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
- Click here to download the free ebook.
- Subscribe to the Email list.
- Get more tips here.
The easier you make it for people to take the next step, the more readers will do so. And more than that, including a good CTA creates a better user experience.
5. Your blog is not just a huge block of text.
Most readers want to read an article that’s easy on the eyes. This means it’s immediately scannable and doesn’t prompt their brain into thinking there’s too much to read. In fact, 43% of people admit that they only skim blog posts.
If there are this many potential customers just skimming articles for immediate information, your content must be easy to read. It’s also important for accessibility so that everyone can easily read your content and not get lost in a chunk of long, unnecessarily wordy sentences.
Don’t be scared of using things like:
- Photos
- Headers
- Charts & Tablets lists
- Bullet points
Blog posts with images will also get 94% more views compared to articles with no visuals. So, make sure you’re not just writing a blog that’s just a vast block of text because that makes a bad blog.
Blog Writing for Improved Business
Great content writing takes time, content, and persistence. Still, writing blog posts on a regular basis brings in more potential customers your way—so it’s definitely worth it. Start by keeping in mind all the tips mentioned above. By doing so, then we can say that you are already step ahead of other marketers and content writers in the industry.
Now you’re armed with the tools, go out and do it! See you in the winner’s circle.
