Since the mid-nineties, blogging has been a non-stop platform for growth. Blogging started as a side hustle for many but has now expanded as a way for bloggers to make a living. If you have considered starting a blog, take this as your “How to Guide” to writing your first post! For those of you with blogging experience already under your belt, use these tips to make your content even better.

Choose A Topic

You can make your blog about whatever you want! If it’s for your business, consider posting blogs that complement it well. If your blog is more of a lifestyle or creative topic, you will have more freedom to create content however you want. While you can still do that for a business blog, it’s best to stick within your own brand.

Have A Great Title

Hook your readers with the title. The title is the reader’s first impression of the blog and is the most important deciding factor as to whether they’ll want to read the blog. Clickbait titles can help to attract readers to the page, but beware – clickbait titles can come across as “spammy” to your readers and can get annoying if overused.

Write An Introduction

Many people will skim the introduction to decide if reading the post is worth their time. Make sure to write an enticing description of what the post is about without giving away too much!

Include a Featured Image

A featured image will be at the top of the page by the title, and it may be on the homepage of your website to link back to the blog. If you choose to include a featured image, make sure it represents the topic well.

Be Consistent With Your Tone

Blogging is a more casual form of writing, so feel free to write how you speak! Letting your readers get to know you or your business will draw them back in to keep reading new posts you make. Whichever style and voice you decide to write in, keep it consistent throughout the entire blog.

Use Short Paragraphs

Shorter paragraphs of three or four sentences are easy for your audience to read. Try breaking content up into smaller sections and putting them under subheads.

Use Links In Your Post

Link to other websites or blog posts whenever you can. Doing so will increase clicks and help your search engine rankings. Linking to past blogs as a reference to your new blogs will also help increase traffic.

Include Relevant Images

Using images in blogs will help visually stimulate readers. Not all content will call for the use of images but be sure to utilize them whenever possible. You can upload pictures you took yourself or find free stock photos to use online. Some great stock photo sites include Pixabay and Unsplash.

Respond To Comments Left By Readers

Connect with readers to build a network. Not all comments will require a response, but you should reply to the ones that do. You should leave comments occasionally thanking everyone for reading your blog!

Be Useful and Informative

Don’t overload readers with information unrelated to the topic you introduced in the post. Including content that’s unwanted will give readers a reason to click off, making your blog less popular.

Edit/Proofread

While the web can be forgiving of a small typo, you don’t want to make any if you can help it! Typos can make your blog appear “sloppy”. Proofreading everything before you post will help to make sure there aren’t any errors. Proofreading tools like Grammarly or the Microsoft Word Editor are extremely helpful.

Have a Call to Action At The End

A call to action should prompt your reader to interact with your website. It can encourage them to leave a comment, contact you, or make a purchase if that is an available option.

Word Count

Readers enjoy receiving longer content to make clicking on the post worth their time.

While not every post will require endless amounts of text, you should try to create as much as possible without boring your readers. The more text you have the better!

Post on Social Media Sites

Sharing your blog on other social media sites like Facebook and Instagram will make it easier to find, therefore attracting new readers and notifying your existing audience about new posts.

Remember To Update Your Blog Often!

Consistently posting new content will maintain your current audience and will help attract new readers!

Cloudsent Digital helps individuals and businesses with all website needs. If you need assistance setting up a website, developing blog content or ranking on search engines, contact us today!