Did you know that marketers that blog regularly generate 67% more leads than those that don’t? How many of you are cringing right now? Although the idea of writing blogs can be an enjoyable task for some people, helping them to tap into their creative side but for many, it’s a task that simply feels like a chore. Lucky for you, there is a fail-proof template that might make things a bit easier. Here we go:
Step 1: Creating a template
Don’t be afraid to take extra time when writing your first few posts. You’ll find your groove and if you keep to a standard process for how you go about it, well, you’ll be spitting these out in about 45 minutes (and never longer than 2 hours).
Topics – You know your business better than anyone so think about questions your clients would typically ask you and write about it. Still need more ideas? Hubspot’s Big Ideas Generator could be a useful tool. Simply tell them words that interest you and they will come up with topic ideas. Brilliant. Another good tool is Buzzsumo.
Fill in the Blanks – I remember learning how to write an essay in 9th grade and what has stuck with me to this day is the basic structure: Introduction, body (with 3+ paragraphs) and conclusion. So go ahead, take some paper and jot down a couple of sentences to introduce the topic to your readers. Then, write down 3 subheadings. Finally, write down Conclusion. There’s your template!
Go back and fill in content under the subheadings with 3-5 lines of text.
For your conclusion, summarize key points so that someone just skimming your content can quickly decide whether they want to go back and read the whole article.
Step 2: Images
Select some good images. There are stock-free images that you can get from sites like Pixabay but if you really wanted to step it up, you could pay for images on sites like Fotolia. Spend time selecting impressive images because as the old saying goes, ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’. No one wants to read an article that is just text.
Step 3: Writing Style
When you begin writing your blog posts, keep to a certain style that you are most comfortable with. However, one of the styles that most people enjoy reading is one that is more conversational like using the words ‘you’ and ‘I’. Unless you’re writing a peer-review for a medical journal, keep it relatable. Here are a few more tips:
- Use short paragraphs which should never be longer than 6 lines.
- If your writing a blog that is roughly 2000 words include about 6 or 7 images throughout the body. Use your judgment here. If the blog post is shorter, still include a few images to help break up the text and increase the visual appeal.
- Ensure you include supportive links to back up your statements. It only adds credibility to your article.
- Encourage reader engagement by ending your post with a question. This invites the reader to comment or reach out to you for more information.
Conclusion:
By repeatedly following the above protocol, you should have a good routine in place to help you create blogs in no time. Remember to:
- Create your template with an introduction, some subheadings and conclusion. Go back and fill in content under each section.
- Select some good images.
- Be consistent in your writing style and keep it more conversationalist.
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For more great information, I like to follow the blogs from Neil Patel. Check out his post related to this topic here.
Do you have any more ideas you’d like to share that have worked for you? I’d love to hear about them.
