10 Fast Tips to Crafting a Perfect Small Business Blog Post
If you are not a writer, writing a blog post is a challenging task. It’s even a challenging task for many writers, too! So if you’re a small business owner struggling with the same challenge, you’re not alone. The best way is to follow a structured, step-by-step process. Here are some ideas for how to create that process and write a perfect blog post:
Come Up With A Topic
Before you write anything, you need a topic. The topic should interest you and, ideally, you should have some knowledge of it. Try not to make the topic too narrow as you will run out of things to say (which usually leads to repeating yourself). But don’t make it too broad either as it will lose focus and the information won’t offer any value to the reader. Instead, think of how your unique view on the topic can add an interesting angle to the online conversation.
Write A Headline
Once you have a topic, write a headline. This is a working headline, so it can always be changed and improved once your article is written. But seeing a headline at the top of your page will help you focus your writing as it’s easy to veer off topic. See these headline writing formulas for creating a great title.
Research And Organize
Next, do any research needed to properly cover the topic. Once you have everything, decide on a structure: what points are you going to make first, how will it flow, what is your conclusion, etc.
Use Short Words
Make your writing concise by using short sentences and words and phrases that your customers use in everyday conversation. Writing a blog post is not about being formal, and it should never have words that people have to Google to discover their meaning.
Think About Your Audience
Always consider your audience. Will the style of writing and language appeal to the audience? Have you introduced a concept or used a phrase that some people might need further explanation on? How will this information help your audience?
Introduce the Topic In The First Paragraph
The first paragraph is critically important as it should capture the attention of the reader, explain to them the topic, and tell your readers what to expect. Make the introduction as captivating as possible, and get to the point. Your first paragraph is not a place for mystery or cryptic sentences. To understand this better, have a look at your favorite news website. You will have a solid understanding of any story on the website within three or four sentences, even if that story is hundreds of words long.
Break Up The Content
You should write your blog posts so visitors can easily skim read them. This means breaking the content up into regular paragraphs. You should also use frequent sub-headings and lists. Sub-headings let readers quickly find sections of the blog that most interest them, while lists are one of the best ways to both structure your content and keep it concise.
Include A Concluding Sentence Or Paragraph
Your blog post needs an ending. You don’t need to write anything long, and you don’t need to use a sub-heading like Conclusion or Summary. It is usually best if the flow is more natural, with the final sentence/s used to round-off or tie the main points together.
Review Keywords
Once you have finalized the blog post, decide on a main keyword you feel people would use to search for it. Try to include that keyword in the headline, sub-headings, and first sentence. Only make changes to the sentences, however, if the change is grammatically correct and makes complete sense.
Spell Check And Proofread
Finally, run the article through a spell checker and then proof read it. You should proof read slowly and read the entire article out loud. If possible, get someone else to proofread it too.
These ideas on how to write a blog post may seem daunting at first. But it gets easier over time. The only way to get better is to start writing and keep publishing!
Blog away!