How to Write Quality Blog Posts Effectively
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This guide includes:
How to plan your business
How to set up your marketing
How to build your website
And more!
All in a simple goal-oriented format.
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Blogging can be a lucrative career. It is one of the most straightforward ways to build a business doing what you love on your own terms. As a blogger, you can truly be your own boss and control the course of your career and your life.
Unlike other start-ups, there is little to no overhead cost involved. You can literally start a blog for free and only take on fees as you grow. This is a stark contrast to many other industries that require investment in materials, products, and complicated software or technology.
However, blogging is not just for people who want to take this on full-time. Blogs are also an incredible tool that can drive organic traffic to your website to conduct other business or offer services. Blog posts or articles can help search engines put you in front of your customers without lifting a finger.
You will have many moving elements to control while building a successful company. Attracting traffic to your website is just one of these elements. Why not incorporate something that works long-term to do that for you?
Getting all of this organized can be overwhelming when you are just starting out. If you are spinning your wheels and don’t know where to start, download my free how-to-start an online business checklist. It walks you through the process of finalizing your idea and publishing your blog in a simple, step-by-step manner. You can choose the tasks you want to focus on and create deadlines to keep you on track. You can download your copy here.
What is Search Engine Optimization, and Why Does it Matter?
Long-form content is vital to any search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. Google and other search engines crawl the content on your page and determine how useful or relevant your site is compared to each query they run. Creating long-form content organized in a way that’s best for these search engines helps them offer your site more readily.
If Google thinks your page is well-maintained, organized, and relevant, it will offer it as an option in the search results. The higher you are rated in the search results, the more likely a person will click on your page to visit your post.
SEO is crucial because it’s a long-term marketing strategy that brings people who are already looking for what you are talking about. They are already interested without you having to educate them or push the information on them. As long as this post is up, people will keep clicking the link and visiting your website. If your posts are helpful, thoughtful, and engaging, they will keep coming back!
SEO is also free. As mentioned before, blogging has an extremely low overhead. So, you don’t have to make much of an investment to get started. Once you have these blog posts up and optimized, customers can find you. It’s an investment in traffic that will keep attracting visitors for as long as it is up. That’s why it is so valuable.
Why Should You Write Blog Posts, and How Do They Help SEO?
Writing a blog post can be intimidating. Writing is a highly personal process, often with a lot of weight. We don’t want to be judged for our technique, ability, or style. Authors are notoriously sensitive, regardless of whether their medium is novels, songs, or blog posts. We are terrified of poor reviews, and our egos are easily bruised.
So why should you ignore all of this and delve into the world of blogging? Because the benefits are so great, and your help and insight are desperately desired.
Many people want to cut free of the traditional 9 to 5 and become bloggers, having adventures and telling tales! This can be a fantastic, flexible way of living, but it is a lot of work.
People often say they earned $10,000 in just 30 days of blogging but are very vague on how. I’m not going to lie; this is an outlier, but it’s achievable. The first thing you need is a solid grasp of writing a blog post. Unfortunately, it’s not just throwing some words up on a website. A deliberate recipe will help you optimize your post for your readers and the search engines that will bring them to your site.
Long-form content like blogging is crucial for any search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. Each heading and caption are cues that tell Google exactly what you are delivering and what a reader can expect. Search engines are intelligent enough to scan the page and decide precisely how easy to read it is and if it’s well organized and maintained.
That’s why the format of a blog post is so specific. So that search engines like Google are not confused by the structure or organization of the content. They will nerf your score if they can’t crawl your pages efficiently. This will affect your ability to rank on search results and redirect traffic to your competitors.
You might have noticed this pattern if you have been paying careful attention. My blog posts have a very distinct structure, as do others around the web. Today, I will actually break it down and show you how exactly to replicate that structure. This way, you can use it to create your content and capture the attention of search engines to help drive traffic to your website.
What is Blogging, and Why Does it Matter?
Blog posts are one of the cornerstones of SEO optimization. They are long-form content, giving search engines lots of material to sift through. This means they are more likely to suggest these pages to searchers looking for information on that subject.
When a search engine drives traffic to your site, this is called “organic traffic.” This is traffic that is driven with purpose and without intervention. Organic traffic is essential because it is free. You don’t have to pay for it or send out ads to attract customers. These are people who are already looking for whatever it is you are writing about.
Paying for traffic through ads can be effective but costly and casts a wide net. You’re not necessarily getting people actively looking for content like yours. This means they may not be interested in acting when seeing your ad and are probably “cold” leads.
The downside of blogging is that it is a long-term investment. Depending on the age of your website, your authority on the topic and the competition you are up against, you may not see the results of SEO optimization for several months.
Your website could take anywhere from 6 to 12 months to start ranking against others on popular search terms. Initially, targeting more niche long-form keywords is always better since they are easier to compete against. This way, you are more likely to rank, and the audience you will attract will be looking for your specific topic.
How to Write a Blog Post Outline
Staring at a blank page can be intimidating. I am constantly publishing posts, and starting a new article still gives me anxiety. It’s like an artist staring at a marble slab, waiting for the masterpiece to reveal itself… Where do you start?
I prefer to use the outline method for any writing. This method allows me to get my ideas out and organized before I put any pressure on myself to write. This way, I am answering questions and guiding my readers rather than trying to bulldoze through an article.
This step-by-step process can be used to write any blog post or article. Following this template, I can write a post in a couple of hours, from start to finish.
I aim to have each of my posts be at least 2000 words long. This is because my material is almost always educational. This gives me a good sense that I have explained the process in the amount of detail required for my readers to get a solid understanding and be able to follow the instructions.
This is not a hard and fast rule. Depending on how blogging works in your strategy, you may want your posts shorter or longer. Posts can be as little as 500 words. You are the boss. Write as much as you need to get your point across clearly and get out before you bore the reader.
Start with a question your audience is asking.
This is going to give you a reason to write the blog post. If you write about something no one wants to read about, you automatically put yourself at a disadvantage. If no one is searching for this information, no one will visit your site to read your article.
Your blog posts should always answer a question or solve a problem. This is especially crucial while you’re building your audience. People who don’t know you are not searching for what you ate for breakfast unless you describe how to make it or why it is a good breakfast choice.
Make sure to answer the question clearly and thoroughly. Provide detailed instructions so the reader can achieve the desired outcome. This will keep the reader happy and coming back for more.
Delighted readers will return time and time again to consume more content. They will also recognize your brand amongst the sea of competition and trust that you will deliver the answers they seek.
Research the keywords to help find context and structure.
Keywords will help you to find the language your audience uses. These are also how search engines determine the relevance of the information on your website. Start your post by doing keyword research before writing your first paragraph.
Keywords will help you find exactly what your readers are struggling with. You can often get your article’s phrasing and section headings simply from performing this research.
Sometimes, you might have an idea for one article in mind; however, research reveals that a similar question is being searched far more often. This will allow you to pivot your content to capture more readers just by changing how you phrase the question.
Keywords are the currency of SEO. Search engines use them to classify the topic and measure relevancy. The first step in writing your blog post is to list the relevant keywords, the corresponding monthly traffic volume, and the difficulty rating at the top of the page.
In the beginning, try to go for more accessible keywords. Aim for low competition scores if you use a site like Ubbersuggest to find your keywords. These are highlighted in green and can be easier to break through and rank than targeting words with higher difficulty ratios.
The downside of these words is that sometimes they have fewer monthly searches. However, the unseen side effect of targeting any keyword is that you will unintentionally also optimize for hundreds of similar keywords that all drive traffic independently. So, you will also naturally rank for many others by ranking for one. The combined total of all these keywords will give you a noticeable bump in organic traffic, even if each term only nets a few visitors.
Choose a call to action and decide how you will monetize your blog post.
I am using the word “monetize” broadly. This does not necessarily have to do with money. In every blog post, you publish, you should consider what offer you will present to your audience. This might be a physical product, a freebie, or a service.
It’s a good idea to start an email list from your very first post. Email lists are invaluable and allow you to connect directly with your audience. This way, you can keep them briefed on everything you are up to and notify them directly when you put up a new post or run a promotion.
Email addresses are gathered in one of 2 ways. First, you can extend an opportunity to sign up for your newsletter. Second, you can offer a freebie in exchange for their email address.
The people that sign up to stay in direct contact with you are the ones that love what you are putting out. These are the most likely to be interested in any products or services you might launch in the future and want to continue to receive value from you. These offers are the key to those $10,000 months!
You can also monetize by using Google AdSense or a similar ad service. These embed ads into your page or blog post, optimized to the readers’ search history. This means you can’t control what ads are shown on the page since they are customized to each visitor.
I use Google AdSense on some of my websites. So, don’t take this phrasing as a sign of discouragement. But you must realize that you require massive traffic flowing through your page for this form of monetization to be viable.
I should also mention that these ads can slow down your page. If you add too many, it will be intrusive and really hinder navigation. Readers will leave your page without even looking at the post if there are too many ads.
Depending on the post length, I stick to around 3 or 4 ads on a page. This is not my primary means of monetization, but it does play a role. Generally, I like to rely on a balance of products and services to make up the majority of my revenue.
I provide many free resources on my Absolutely Studying website because it’s vital information students need. Students are also often short on cash and can’t always afford to pay the high prices of one-on-one services. To fill in the gaps, I position a few ads throughout that site to continue providing high-quality content without charging.
Another way to monetize is using affiliate links. While I have some affiliate links, I am cautious about what I promote. Cultivating trust with your audience will take months and years, but it can take one lousy product to destroy.
I approach affiliates backward by first using a product or service, falling in love with it and wanting to share it with my audience. Only then will I look into if they have an affiliate program. If they do, I sign up. If they don’t, I still promote the product anyway. Money is never the initiating factor for me.
Next, let’s create your sub-headings.
These headings will outline the essential sections of your blog post. Using your Heading 2, create the following titles:
Introduction
Conclusion
Call to action
These sections are a given and will be standard across every article you will ever write. They are pretty self-explanatory, so we are going to move on.
These next sets are also the same Heading 2 format. In this part, you want to start breaking down what you want to say and your audience’s steps to solve their problem. You can also offer some background information on the topic. Some great examples are:
What is (insert your keyword or phrase here)
Why does (keyword or phrase) matter/happen/exist/etc.
When is (keyword or phrase) important?
How to (keyword or phrase)
Tips/Facts to remember
Depending on what you are writing about, you want a couple of sections before your blog post’s main body. This main body is often either the “How-to” or “What is” section. To decide, go back to the main question you are answering with your blog post. In this post, we are learning “How to write a blog post”; thus, the “how-to” section will be the main body.
Distribute these headings as appropriate between the introduction and conclusion. Depending on how intricate the blog post is or how long you want to make it, choose only the headings that are relevant.
Subheadings will give the exact steps.
Using Heading style 3, break down this section into the necessary process to get the desired outcome. This is where you lay out the entire procedure step by step. Don’t go into too many intricate details yet. Right now, we just want to capture the overall route.
Position these headings to flow logically, one after the other. There should be a cohesive flow from one section to the next. This goes for both the large Heading 2’s and the more specific Heading 3s.
There is no solid rule on how many of each you need. You can gauge based on how long you want the article to be and how much detail is required to get the desired results.
Before you even start writing this post, go through and follow the headings step by step:
Are these instructions easy to follow?
Are there any steps missing?
Could you follow them to the target outcome?
If your audience can’t follow these instructions, they will get frustrated and likely not look to you for help further.
How to write a blog post in 10 simple steps
Up to this point, we have really only been streamlining and organizing the writing process. Most of this work is done using the initial keyword research we did. In this next section, we will break down how to turn this list into a comprehensive, easy-to-follow blog post that your audience will love.
Start filling out your paragraphs.
Now that you have created the outline of your blog post fill out each section. I like to start with the body and elaborate on each of the steps. This is where you can go as in-depth as you want to. Make sure that you try to anticipate any questions or difficulties your readers might encounter.
Even if some steps seem common knowledge, still explain them. You never know the expertise level of the reader. What appears to be evident to you might not be to someone with limited knowledge of the subject. That’s why they are coming to you for advice. Outline all of the steps, then describe them to give a complete understanding to anyone in need.
Next, fill in the more prominent headings like introductions and conclusions. I find these easier to write at the end because I can give a generalized idea and summary of what the reader will have experienced. This way, I can prime them or review the central premise and essential points.
Try not to worry about getting it perfect on the first try.
It’s often hard to find the ideal wording when you are staring at a blank page. When you are creating this first draft, don’t worry about the phrasing. This is always something that can be worked out in the editing process.
At this stage, just capture what it is you are trying to say. You can worry about making it sound good later.
Getting the words down without worrying about what they sound like will also help with writer’s block. If this is something that you struggle with, I have a guide to help here.
How to overcome writer’s block
Now, add some of your personal stories and experience.
It is always nice to sprinkle some of your own experience with the subject into your posts. This can lighten the subject matter and allow the reader to get to know you a little better.
They may be self-conscious about their experience level. Learning that you also struggled or even hearing some of your best practices can shed some insight and help readers become more confident to try it out for themselves.
Read through and SEO optimize.
Even though I try to include some keywords when initially writing my posts. I don’t stress about them. Instead, I wait until my first readthrough to try adding and optimizing more of my keywords.
This way, I can focus on fluency and communication. I don’t have to stress out about phrasing and capturing every keyword. When I read it on the edit, I can rephrase sentences to better reflect the keyword I am optimizing for.
I find it easier to get all the words out on the paper first and then edit to make it better second. This won’t necessarily work for everyone, so choose what’s right for you.
After I am finished writing:
The first thing I like to do is take a long break, usually at least 24 hours. This way, I can forget exactly what I wrote and get a little distance from it. When I return, I will have fresh eyes, and I can edit more objectively.
I will edit using Grammarly and read all the way through. Sometimes I will read it out loud as well. This is my fine-toothed-comb edit, and I want to catch as many mistakes as possible.
Make sure you read through your post at least twice before publishing. This way, you can catch any errors you missed during the editing process. Take a break between each readthrough so you are not pushing yourself or getting bored.
This is when you can make all of those phrasing changes to make it sound just right.
When I started my content creation journey, I didn’t know how to properly format a blog post, and it showed. I still have articles on Absolutely Studying that have not been updated. As time goes on, I go back and edit many of these posts; however, I am not stressing over it.
The idea is that progress trumps perfection. While they are not optimal, these pages still drive traffic to my website. I am still getting paid off that investment, even though these posts can definitely be updated. However, the structure of my new posts works double-time to increase the overall authority of my web page, allowing some credit to be lent to these older posts.
Over time, I update them to reflect the new, structured layout. By updating my old posts periodically, I am indicating to Google that my site is well maintained. I am not just pumping out new content but also carefully updating old content to reflect new information and formats.
It’s okay that I didn’t know how to properly format from the beginning. The important part is that I started and learned as I grew, and so will you.
Tips For How To Write Quality Blog Posts Effectively
Use long niche keywords when you start out (4-6 words).
Use keywords with a low competition score, even if they have low traffic.
Refresh your blog posts and re-promote them periodically.
You don’t have to constantly force yourself to pump out new content. Find ways to repurpose old content.
Brainstorm and collect many post ideas and save them for later.
Batch content to increase your productivity.
Be your authentic self, or your audience will see right through you.
If you continue to put yourself out there, your people will find you.
Don’t be afraid to get personal.
We were all new at something once. Don’t be ashamed of your progress or your journey. Just keep learning.
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Stop putting off your website because you are not confident in your writing ability, fear of failure, or whatever other self-limiting beliefs you impose on your success. Just start.
Get in there and get your hands dirty. As you grow, you will learn what works for you and incorporate these fine SEO details. But, if you have no posts up, a search engine has nothing to crawl there, and SEO is the least of your worries.
Writing a blog post is just as easy as reading one. As you work your way through this conclusion, open up a Word document and outline some of your thoughts. You may be surprised at what you come up with.
If you are overwhelmed, you can take this free outline with you. It will allow you to work through starting your website step by step, picking priorities, and setting goals. With this structured layout, you will see progress, and it will inspire you to keep going. But first, you have to start by downloading it now.
I want to be transparent so that there are no misunderstandings. As an affiliate, I may earn a small commission from any products linked in this post. This is not a sponsored post, and I was not asked to recommend these products. These are products that I genuinely love and wanted to share with my audience.