Plan your content
The creation and maintenance of a consistent and relevant blog requires planning. Do this by:
- establishing goals relevant to your audience
- identifying objectives and key messages (these should feature in all posts)
- building a content schedule of relevant topics, leaving space for news announcements etc.
- identifying contributors for each topic
- refreshing older content is also a good way to keep content fresh and relevant
Getting started with your article
Choose a topic
Pick a topic that you are knowledgeable and passionate about. Think about your audience. What do they want to know about?
Consider the product strategy. Does your topic align with the strategy?
Brainstorm several topics. This will give you options to choose from. It also means you will have a selection of topics to work with when you’re ready to write another article.
Google your topic to understand your audience’s search intent.
Decide on a format
Good blog posts should be interesting and educational. There are many different formats you can choose. Here’s just a few popular formats you could use.
How to guide
What do visitors to your blog want to know how to do? If your blog article can solve a problem for them, they are more likely to read it.
Lists
This is a very popular approach to blog articles. They are an easy and digestible way to streamline information. This format helps users skim the content quickly. They usually include the number of list items in the heading. For example ’5 reasons to use Enterprise mater patient index (EMPI)’.
Question and answer
These articles are great for addressing common questions your readers may have, grouped under a specific topic.
Interviews
Like question and answers articles, this type of content can also be formatted using questions and answers.
Opinion
Thought leadership and sharing industry knowledge will establish credibility. These usually cover the direction the industry is headed or emerging industry trends.
Newsworthy articles
Write about something topical but make sure it is still relevant by the time it is posted. Facts and figures help validate your content and make it more credible. But be sure to do your research! If you are referring to a news story you need to reference and link to the story.
Personal stories
Humans have a deeply rooted need for stories. Taking a storytelling approach to your blog articles can establish a human connection while keeping the content educational. Include a piece of information you want to pass on to your reader into a story and it will be more memorable.
Case studies
Show real-life examples of a topic that is valuable to your readers. It should reflect a challenge faced and the solution used to resolve it.
Start with an outline of your article
Decide on a title and the key points you want to cover in your article. Group your key points into common themes. These common themes are likely to become sections with their own headings. Use this to help you think about the logical flow of the content.
Once you have your outline you can use this to start writing your article.
Write your article
Create a compelling introduction
The first few sentences or paragraphs must grab the reader’s attention. You can do this by:
- being clear on the purpose of the post
- cultivating empathy
- beginning with an interesting fact or statistic
- explaining how the post will help address a reader’s problem
- asking an interesting question…”have you ever wondered why…”
- telling a compelling story
Make content easy to skim
When you create your content, make sure you break it down with:
- short blocks of text (paragraphs should be no more than 5 sentences)
- bullet points
- descriptive headings and sub-headings
- appropriate images
- interesting quotes or facts
Each sentence should convey a single idea.
Sources
If you are referring to sources, make sure they are authoritative.
Search engine optimisation
Blog articles can be a valuable tool for driving more traffic to a website. Articles can be an opportunity to include keywords that attract users to your site that might not otherwise visit. Make sure you use keywords naturally, don’t force keywords for the sake of including them. How to use Google Trends for keyword research.
HubSpot carried out research into blog content that increased organic traffic. It found that long form posts of between 2,250 and 2,500 words earn the most organic traffic.
Edit and proofread
Once you have written your article, leave it for a while and come back to it with fresh eyes. After a break, carefully read through the draft. Take note of where your writing feels awkward or wordy. Check for grammatical errors and ensure that you have covered your key points concisely. There should be a logical flow from one point to the next.
Read your article out loud
Don’t read your work in silence, read your blog article out loud. When you read your own writing in your head you can subconsciously gloss over words. Reading out loud is a great technique to:
- identify awkward or unnecessary phrases
- notice mistakes
- create separation between yourself and your work
- slow down and pay attention to each word
- hear whether your writing feels natural and flows well
- develop your personal perspective and voice
Tools to check your writing
Grammarly: reviews spelling, grammar and punctuation.
Hemmingway app: helps you keep your writing bold and clear.
Power Thesaurus: a free, crowdsourced tool that provides alternative word choices.
Plagarism detector: this free tool will check your article for plagiarism. Original content will rank higher on search results.
Include engaging and relevant images
Images break up text and helps illustrate the key points of your article. They make the content more engaging and informative and help tell your story.
Make sure you include meaningful alt text with your images. This means that people using screen readers will also benefit from the additional information that an image provides. Learn how to write good alt text.
If you refer to specific data in your article, try to include a graph or chart visualising the data. It is very important to include descriptive alt text versions of charts or graphs.
Blog post images should be:
- photographic
- colourful
- person centred
- diverse, show different sexes, ages, ethnic groups or disabled people
- professional
- real (not computer-generated graphics)