This fact can hardly be disputed – blogging is an essential content marketing strategy. The importance of blogging for business is well-known, especially for small and growing businesses that need to build their brands, improve credibility and attract customers and leads. Both large and small companies need to maintain effective blogs to make announcements, inform their customers about changes in the company and to keep them coming back for more.
Content is king nowadays and people want to read blogs that have been written by authority figures. SEO techniques can only get you so far, blogs will only be ranked highly if they have relevant content. As a result, many companies are hiring blog writing services to create posts and to maintain their blogs.
Sophia, our head of business development, is a blogging expert as the company has created thousands of successful blog posts for its clients. The internet is littered with failed blogs and how do you make sure that yours doesn’t join them? Sophia shares some tips on writing a professional blog and how to make it stand out:
Q: Why do so many blogs fail, even though they have excellent content?
Sophia: Most bloggers are knowledgeable about the topic they are writing on but they fail to make the posts attractive. They must make sure to put a captivating heading for each post that is eye catching and will prompt casual visitors to read through the article.
Q: Is this enough? How does one follow-up on a killer headline?
Sophia: Yeah, this is a problem that many bloggers face. They often combine excellent blog post headlines with irrelevant or insipid introductions. Bland introductory paragraphs can instantly put-off any reader. Bloggers must maintain the momentum gained from the headline in the first few lines of the blog post. This will lure the readers deeper into the content. Not to forget – it will prompt them to read other posts on the blog.
Q: And what do you think is the easiest way of creating a great opening?
Sophia: I’m glad you asked! The easiest way is to ask a question to which the reader will answer yes and then follow it up with the value proposition of your blog post. For example, if you’re writing a post about advice on working from home, the opening of the post can be ‘Most people would like the option of working from home. But how do you ensure you do not take a big hit on your income to exercise this option?’. The opening displays empathy and creates a connection with the reader. But at the same time, it shows that there is some valuable advice to follow. This is bound to make the reader read the blog.
Q: Is this the only fail-safe way? Are there other methods that bloggers can use to open their posts with a bang?
Sophia: Sure, I would suggest a quote or an anecdote as the opening few lines. Quotes and stories are interesting, it makes the reader think and even laugh. It goes without saying that they must be relevant to the topic covered in the post. A thought provoking post from a well known person or authority figure instantly adds credibility to the post. Some successful bloggers also use statements like “picture this” or “imagine if” to engage their readers. Another way to create a great opening is to state a shocking statistic – something that is quite contrary to popular belief.
Q: Do you have any closing remarks or tips for our readers?
Sophia: Definitely! Apart from the opening lines, bloggers must also pay special attention to the last or the closing paragraph of the blog posts. One way to close a post effectively is to refer back to the opening statements. The last few lines must tie up the loose ends or summarize the points discussed in the body of the post.