5 Tips to Create Blog Posts That Activate Your Audience
While marketing trends like artificial intelligence, automation, and voice continue to get lots of press and industry buzz, there is one type of content that marketers rely on year after year to build affinity with their audience and move them to action: blogging.
According to recent research, 66 percent of marketers use blogs in their social media content (Social Media Examiner) and 81 percent of B2B companies use blogs as a content marketing tactic (Content Marketing Institute).
But what blogging best practices should content marketers use to build a strong connection with an audience and move them to action?
Here are five secrets to writing blog posts that resonate with an audience and move them to action.
5 Tips to Create Blog Posts That Activate Your Audience
Get clear on the intent of the copy. You need to be able to answer the question: “what is your ultimate goal for writing this article?” Have a goal in mind for the reader. What action would you like him or her to take upon reading this piece? What knowledge do you want them to walk away with?
Dissect copy you really like. “Leaders are readers” as the saying goes, but writers are also readers. Become a sleuth for captivating content; then dissect it. How did the writer pull you in? What is the tone? What is the structure of the piece? Reverse engineer good copy and then use those tactics in your own writing.
Investigate the pain points of your audience. Who is your reader? What problem can you help them solve? Every piece of content you create should have a connection to the overall goals of the business. From large, long-form pieces, down to social media posts, every piece of content should serve your audience.
Use an editorial calendar. Each piece of content should serve a purpose in a greater overall marketing strategy. By using an editorial calendar, you’ll be able to create an effective, multi-channel marketing campaign that serves your audience and drives them to take the same action from various channels.
Edit ruthlessly. The Hemingway app is a great tool to use to highlight the parts of your prose that can get the axe. Your blog posts should be packed with actionable information. Blogs are not the place for superfluous words and meandering language. If it doesn’t serve the goal of the article, cut it.
Though new forms of content are certainly on the rise, blogging remains the cornerstone of content marketing. Strengthening your blogging muscle and reexamining how it serves your company’s overall goals will help you create content that resonates with your audience and moves them to action.