10 OF THE BEST WRITING TIPS FOR BLOGGERS
The worst thing you can do when you're sitting down to write a blog post is not knowing what you're going to write about.
You need to have some idea of what you’re going to be talking about.
Because you do not wanna sit there with the blank cursor just blinking away at you and you know what it’s thinking…
But the first thing you need to realise is what you’re writing about as a whole, what comes under your entire editorial calendar. So you’ll likely have a few different categories that you’re going to cover on a regular basis.
But even so, writing blog posts can be tricky so here are some of my best tips that I want to pass onto you.
#1 | THE KEY TAKEAWAY
My first tip for you is actually going to be a game changer.
I want you to ask yourself what the key takeaway is for your audience when they read this blog post.
So they click through to your post and they’re getting ready to read it - but what’s the purpose, the goal, the one thing you want them to take away?
To make this easier for yourself you can take the focus away from you and put it on your reader. And that’s going to really help you create a solid outline for your blog post.
#2 | CREATE AN OUTLINE
It doesn’t really matter how you do this, I’ve got a Google Doc template that I use.
Whatever you use, make sure you get all your thoughts and ideas out of your head and that will help you to organise your outline.
Having this in place means you’ll always know what comes next and you’ll stay focused on the topic and the story. It allows you to lead people into the key takeaway.
And what’s great about this is that it doesn’t just apply to blog posts, it can apply to podcast episodes, videos.
#3 | YOUR INTRODUCTION IS IMPORTANT
It's important to realise is that your opening is everything.
People come and read your blog post for one of two reasons:
- You’ve written it
- They’re interested in the topic
So if you don’t hook them in right from the start, they’re not going to want to stick around.
Your introduction serves one purpose - to keep people reading. They read the first sentence then the second sentence and so on.
There’s loads of different ways you can do this but I always like to start in a way that’s relatable to my audience or with a really interesting fact.
#4 | DON'T WRITE IN THE BACKEND OF YOUR WEBSITE
Ever.
I used to do this. I used to write blog posts in Squarespace and for one reason or another it wouldn’t save and - then it would be gone.
So I would not recommend that.
What I use now is Google Docs and I love this because it’s free, I can access it from all my devices and I can share documents with others.
Plus Google Drive lets you organise your documents however you want them, so it’s a great way of staying on track.
And a quick note on when you’re actually writing the blog post - just write. Don’t worry about it being perfect, don’t worry about editing, you know you don’t want to be editing at the same time you’re being creative.
And just write like you. You don’t have to become someone else or write like someone else. Embrace who you are and let that shine through in your writing.
I always try and write my blog posts like I’m talking to a friend and it works really well because people can relate to it.
#5 | YOUR TITLE IS EVERYTHING
You knew this was coming, I know you did!
Your headline is important because it’s the one thing people will see before they get to your blog post. If someone finds your blog post in Google search, they’ll read the title to decide whether they’re going to click through and read it.
So this is where search engine optimisation comes into play.
And in order to maximise your chances of ranking organically in search engines, your title needs to describe exactly what the topic of your blog post is all about.
But it also needs to generate curiosity and intrigue too.
You know think about when you search for something and you look at the title - if it’s not interesting to you, you’re not going to click on it.
And there’s also the catch of not meeting expectations because you don’t want to write a false or click bait type headline, have them go through to your article and then leave straight away.
That’s what’s called a bounce. So people come to a page, they don’t like what they see and leave, but this can actually move your page down in the rankings.
#6 | BREAK YOUR CONTENT UP
Think about how people read online, think about how you read - we scan. So don't make your blog post one huge wall of text.
Now I know that sounds obvious but SO many people do it and it makes your blog posts so difficult to read, even if it’s great content - people won’t read it.
You need to give your readers a bit of breathing space and that’s why you create different sections. So this goes back to your outline. You can create separate sections that help make the blog post scannable.
#7 | INCLUDE VISUALS
But don’t include too many.
Images, videos, infographics - they all help to support the points you’re making with your writing.
The problem is that you can use too many, so always preview your blog posts before you schedule them or publish them to see what they look like.
Your images need to be relevant and support what you’re talking about. But if you use them effectively, they can help break up the content and like we said in the last tip, make it more scannable.
#8 | USE A CALL-TO-ACTION
If you want to get results with your blog posts which I know you do, always include a call to action.
So I’d recommend putting this at the end, but you can also sprinkle it throughout your blog post too like if you want people to download a certain content upgrade or opt-in freebie.
You don’t just have to wait until the very end to mention that.
Call to actions are great because they give your audience a next step. It's also a way that they can get involved with you and what you’re doing, and the more you can get them to do that, that more it’s going to pay off for you in the long run.
You’re hopefully giving so much value in your blog posts so you can ask for something in return then.
Just don’t ask too much. Give, give give and then ask.
#9 | PROOFREAD
I’d say that out of all of these tips, this is the most important.
Don't just proofread, proofread out loud. I cannot tell you how much of a difference this will make!
And I know you might find it weird to do that, but I catch so many mistakes when I read my posts aloud instead of reading it in my head.
Because if there are grammar or spelling mistakes in a blog post, people jump on that and I see bloggers with thousands of followers but their blog posts are written...it’s just not great.
And I know I’m not perfect, but I always proofread out loud to give myself the best chance of publishing the best piece of content.
#10 | DON'T STRIVE FOR PERFECTION
Spoiler alert - there’s no such thing as the perfect blog post.
If you aim for perfection you’re just delaying getting your creations out there into the world.
You’re going to make mistakes, I always make mistakes - the other day I filmed a video and thought I’d pressed record...but I didn’t.
The point is that you’re giving yourself the best chance to put stuff out there and learn as you go. Which is exactly what you’re doing right now by reading this video.
So take these tips, work through them one at a time, put them into action and get ready to hit that publish button. And even though it might not be 100% perfect you can always go back and make changes.
Don’t worry about being perfect. Would you really want to be perfect anyway?
I hope you enjoyed those 10 writing tips - If you have a comment to share please do, maybe tell me what your favourite tip was or if you have another tip then share that too!
Remember to become the boss of your writing so you can get one step closer to a breakthrough.