FILL IN THE BLANK: With good ideas, a strong structure, and some SEO basics, you can write high-performing blog posts
Ever tried to sit down and devise a blog-writing strategy for your brand – let alone actually write the content?
It can be as painful as passing a kidney stone.
There are so many aspects to consider: understanding your audience, brainstorming topic ideas, optimising SEO…
And that’s before you’ve set your nail-bitten fingers to work tapping out the copy.
Blogging’s still huge
While it may not be as sexy as social media, blogging achieves impressive business results. Informative, well-written posts get your message out to the world, bring more traffic to your website – and support your growth.
A bundle of research backs this up:
56% of consumers have bought a product or service off the back of a blog (HubSpot study)
Blogging leads to 55% more visitors to your site (HubSpot study)
Businesses that blog have 126% higher lead growth than those that don’t (HubSpot study)
So don’t let doubt creep in. If you blog well, your business will benefit.
Here’s how to do it.
Step 1: how to come up with topic ideas
Generating creative ideas is arguably one of the toughest jobs around (this post has some general tips on turning your empty brain into an ideas factory).
Here are some effective ways to jump-start your brain and coming up with topic ideas faster – without smashing your favourite mug:
See what people are saying about your business on social media: this is great for identifying your target audiences’ pain points. When you know what they’re struggling with, you can write about how to solve it.
Study existing blog posts and other content marketing: if readers have commented, you’ll find clues about the sort of topics they’re interested in.
Look at competitors’ websites and blogs: are there any topics competitors have tried to cover, which you could do more comprehensively?
Read reviews of products and services your customers use: you’ll learn even more about their challenges, likes and dislikes – and you can write about topics that match.
Dive into all the things your customers like: listen to industry podcasts, relevant TED talks, TV shows in your niche. The more information you soak up, the more ideas you’ll have.
Use Google search and Google Trends to see what your audience is searching for: Google Trends shows which topics are rising or falling in popularity, so you can capture the zeitgeist in your writing.
Coffee break!
While all the above tips are useful starting points, don’t underestimate what 10 minutes alone with a coffee (and your brain) can achieve.
If you’re close to your brand, and already know what makes your customers tick, transport yourself into their shoes. What would they like to read?
Let’s think practical examples.
A website selling DJ technology might share tips and inspiration from leading DJs, information on new technology and industry trends, and nostalgic content about gear from another era.
A property website might highlight up-and-coming locations, tips on finding a bargain and aspirational content about dream properties few of us can afford.
Coming up with interesting content is actually pretty easy when you relax, think like a customer, and let your grey matter wander.
A final point here: always have a way to record your ideas. When you start being creative, you flick a switch that starts a snowball in your brain.
As it rolls through your consciousness, it picks up more and more ideas until Fireman Sam has to send out a rescue vehicle to stop it.
Write them down. Or they’ll be lost forever.
Step 2: how to structure and write a high-performing blog post
A great blog post needs the same elements as any other solid piece of writing – to grab attention, hold attention, and give the reader something interesting and useful to take away.
Make the writing process easier by creating a skeleton structure first:
Think of several key ideas you want to convey: then prioritise them so the most impactful comes first
Build out each idea: ask the kind of questions a reader would, such as ‘what does this mean to me, why’s it important, why should I care? – then use those questions to build out content for each section
Do deep research: find high-quality sources to support each of your main points and quote industry experts wherever you can. Respect your reader’s time by serving up something new and entertaining – not recycled rubbish
Think of a conclusion: what do you want your audience to take away?
Write a call to action: what do you want your reader to do next?
Now, it’s time to write.
As a writer of 20+ years, I can confidently say that great copy only comes the hard way.
Staring at a blank page will (almost) always give you writers’ block. So the best tip is to start writing anyway, even if you don’t feel inspired.
Accept that your first draft will be awful. That’s okay.
It’s like the first patchy coat of paint on a wall – after the second it’ll look so much better.
As you write and refine, do the following:
Keep paragraphs short
Use subheads and bullets to make the page readable and skimmable
Put yourself in the story: offer your opinion and insights and, if the piece suits it, inject humour and personality
Keep checking that what you’re writing relates to your target reader: ask yourself what they’ll want to get out of reading the piece and keep returning to that
Use questions regularly to maintain engagement and a sense of urgency. You get what I mean, right?
TERRIFIC TRAFFIC: Well-optimised and well-written blog posts can bring a spike in traffic to your site Photo: Justin Morgan/Unsplash
Step 3: level up your SEO so posts get more traffic
It doesn’t matter how good your posts are if no one finds them. But how do you capture more gooey eyeballs?
The answer lies in making copy SEO-friendly. By using a few basic techniques, you can make sure:
Search engines understand your copy and show it to suitable searchers
Your copy matches the interests of target readers
Don’t worry about keeping up with the latest trends and algorithms. Follow these steps to give your blog post the best chance of success:
Use free keyword tools to help you come up with high-value topics
Tools like Google Keyword Planner make it easy to find in-demand blog topics. They break down different search terms by showing you average monthly search numbers – and the level of competition for them.
If you find keywords with high search numbers and low competition, these are low-hanging fruits that you can jump on straight away.
There are even tools – albeit a bit robot-y and basic – that help you develop keywords into topics. Hubspot’s topic generator can put you on the right trajectory.
Keyword density
To show search engines that your page is relevant to the readers you’re targeting, you’ll want to sprinkle your copy with relevant keywords.
Tools like SEMRush let you research keywords for the topic you’re writing about. Again, just look at both the search volume and difficulty scores to work out which are most effective. Now, sprinkle those terms through your piece without overdoing it.
In 2022, SEO experts agree that ideal density is between 1 and 2%. So, if your post’s 1,000 words, try using a particular keyword between 10 and 20 times.
Make an impact on search results pages
Another effective way to improve traffic and rankings is to make a good impression on search engine results pages (SERP). To do that:
- Choose an engaging title: keep it short, accurate and unique
- Write a mega meta description: this is the description of your article that appears in search engines, so it’s the first thing readers see. Get it right and more people will click through to your site.
You don’t need to know the ins and outs of Google’s algorithm to optimise your blog. Use the available tools, give it some thought, and you’ll see the results.
And finally…
Blogging is as relevant to business success as ever in 2022.
Doing it regularly and well WILL boost awareness of your brand, demonstrate your expertise, create warmer leads, and attract more customers.
But what if you don’t have the time or in-house knowledge to blog brilliantly?
Let me help with your blogging strategy, idea generation, and copywriting.