What really makes a great blog post?
You know it's important to include keywords in your content, include internal and external links in your blog posts, and create a consistent posting schedule to keep readers coming back.
However, don't forget that the best content is about much more than just SEO alone.
It's about knowing your reader, writing content that genuinely helps them to solve their problems, and creating a voice and tone that's all your own.
What other content writing tips should you follow if you want to increase your conversions and stand out from the competition?
Keep on reading this post to find out.
Before you start typing anything, first decide on the goal of the content you plan to create.
Is it to inform readers about a new product or service you're launching? Is it to get visitors to subscribe to your e-newsletter so you can capture leads?
Maybe you want readers to share your posts on social media, make a purchase on your website, or even comment on a post.
Once you have this goal in mind, create a rough outline of the things you'd like to discuss in your post. Organize your thoughts, and ensure you're not covering too many topics at once.
You should also define the specific niche of your market that you're writing this post for. You may even create a customer avatar to help you picture your target audience.
This will help you to stay on task -- and most of all, it will keep your writing specific.
You need to draw readers in from the second they click on your article.
You can't do this without a strong hook -- something that grabs their attention and keeps them engaged with your article.
You can begin with a question, such as, "Are you tired of spending half of your workday negotiating with vendors to get the best possible price?"
You could also start with a shocking statistic, share a powerful quotation, or even tell a personal story from your own life.
Avoid generalizations, obvious information that's already common knowledge, keyword stuffing, and, most of all, an immediate sales pitch.
Above all, your hook should intrigue your readers.
The average website visitor will read only about 20% of an article or blog post.
If you want to keep your readers engaged and encourage them to take action, you need to get to the point. This means that, after you've finished the first draft of your post, read it to look for what you can get rid of.
Are you repeating yourself throughout the article? Using too many unnecessary adjectives? Including a paragraph that could perhaps be turned into a completely separate article?
To keep your content scannable and encourage your visitors to keep on reading, use headers, pictures, and white space to break up your content.
After all, no one wants to read a wall of text that reminds them of their freshman literature class.
Keep things direct, short and sweet, and genuinely informative. Click here for a great guide on how to banish fluff and padding from your content writing.
There are few things worse than reading web content that sounds like a carbon copy of everything else that's been written on a topic.
If you're not teaching your reader anything new or sharing a fresh perspective, then why should they trust you above your competitors?
Yes, as a content writer, it's fine, even encouraged, to share your opinion on popular topics and developments in your industry. It's also a smart idea to research your competitors to see what they're writing about.
But you absolutely must keep your tone, your opinions, and your advice unique. After all, your goal is to show your readers that you're offering solutions that no one else has.
You can't do that if your writing sounds just like everyone else's.
Remember that, if you feel as though you just don't have the writing chops to create the best possible content for your audience, working with a freelancer is always an option.
Finally, one of the most important content marketing tips is to create a sense of empathy between yourself and your readers.
In order to pull this off, however, you first need to conduct thorough market research.
This will help you understand your target demographic's age and lifestyle, pain points, income levels, hobbies and interests, what they do for a living, their beliefs and values, and much more.
Remember that your readers, above all, want to feel like you "get" them. They want you to be able to provide the information or solution they've been looking for, too.
Don't be afraid to be honest and show vulnerability when you're writing your content. Develop a sense of trust by discussing a time when you struggled, felt like you couldn't get everything done, or became frustrated with the options at hand.
The goal is to speak to your target market in the same way that you would a close friend when you're advising them on how to solve a problem. Do that, and you'll have readers and customers for life.
Thanks to this list of epic content writing tips, you're ready to create blog web content that will have everyone buzzing about your brand -- and consistently coming back to your website for more.
Of course, we also understand that as much as you'd love to be able to craft your own content, sometimes you just don't have the time.
That's where we come in.
We've made it easy for you to connect with the top article and content writers to can provide the specific service and type of post you're looking for. This way, you can spend more time running your business, meeting with customers, and making sales.
We can't wait to help you grow -- and to connect with your target market on a deeper level than ever before.
