No matter what the theme of the blog, however serious, boring blog posts are a sure way to kill a reader’s interest. Keeping blog posts interesting is a difficult challenge for bloggers, especially after a certain period of time. Often, we assume that the problem is uninteresting or irrelevant topics. If this is true, then why is it that blogs with themes that should be relevant and interesting to people still fail to attract reader loyalty?
Take for example a blog that deals with food. Food is both interesting, and relevant to everybody. With the development of media, there’s a growth in the ‘foodie’ culture. Food & Beverage blogs are interesting because they share information about rare delicacies, cuisine cultures of various regions, recipes, cooking tips, wine pairings and so much more! Add to this the evolution of cameras that are now very high in quality and there you have it – the ultimate way to provide visual stimulation on such blogs!
If the popularity of a blog depended only on the topic/theme, then every food blog would have been popular – which is not really the case. There are a number of other factors at play that determine how popular the blog will be. Here are some things that experts in blog content writing have determined:
1. Heavy content
Today, nobody has the time or patience to spend a long time, reading heavy content. Putting up a lot of information in so painful details is a sure way to bore the reader in no time. In order to put up content that conveys the whole meaning, but in simple and precise sentences, you must put in a little extra effort. Avoid big and complicated words, phrases, sentences, and so on. Use simple language as much as possible. In case you cannot avoid using jargon, make sure you explain the word so that you won’t lose your reader.
2. Content structure
Information that is presented as one gigantic mass of words is a big snooze. This creates a sense of crowding to the eyes of the reader, who will immediately lose interest. Instead,
· Break down what you’re trying to say in terms of themes and ideas and separate them accordingly.
· Use bullet points as much as you can.
· Break down large paragraphs into smaller ones.
· The points you present should make sequential and logical sense.
· Let there be sufficient space between lines, paragraphs, and points.
3. Talk to your readers!
– Don’t just lecture them
The more you make your content friendly and conversational, the more chances you have in retaining your readers. Nobody likes lectures. Your readers want to feel welcomed to your blog. As such, keep your tone chatty, personal and simple. This way, you bond with your readers and connection is formed. This connection is what a number of blogs are lacking.
Of course, sometimes this may not be possible because the theme of the blog is a serious one. In such cases, it would be better to keep using a tone that matches the content of the post.
4.The blog design
This is another important area that blog-writers overlook. The design and layout of your blog are very important in attracting and retaining your readers. This includes the colors, the pictures, the background images, font and so on.
Here it is important that you realize that the same colors and designs that work for another blog may not work for your own. Neither does a color theme suit a blog simply because it looks good on something else. For example, you may love the color black and so may own a black car, black clothes and so on.
However, if your topic is on gardening, you can use a lot of black simply because it’s your favorite color. You must realize that colors, patterns, designs, font-style etc. have certain emotions associated with them. As such, a poor match between your content and the way you have designed your blog can have disastrous results.
Seek the opinion of people you know are experts in these matters before choosing these elements. Different opinions will give you certain patterns that can help you make the right choice.
5. Visuals are VERY important
People simply love visual stimulation. We don’t simply want to know, we want to see. That’s why it’s important that you put up a good number of photos or illustrations to accompany your blog posts. No matter how descriptive you get in the posts, your readers will still want to see what you’re trying to say – and you must give them that!
There are many more things that you can do to ensure you don’t become a big snooze on your posts. Read successful blogs and try to figure out what they are doing right that you aren’t. Most importantly, figure out why you yourself find certain blogs boring and others interesting, and compare your observations with your own blog. There’s nothing that can’t be achieved with a little extra effort and attention.
Image credits: Pixabay