How to Write a Blog Post [55 Blog Tips for Epic Content]

In this chapter:

• We are going to walk you through the basics of writing a blog post
• And 55 blog writing tips that will make your blog posts go viral

When beginning your blog, you have an important decision to make.

Every blog needs blog posts, and what type of content you produce, and how much are essential questions.

Here are your options:

I personally prefer Option 2, because I’m lazy, but also because I love great content.

It reminds me of the famous The Office quote:

So now that I’ve convinced you to go with Option 2, not that you had much of a choice, I want to share with you the 55 tips.

But first, we have a section that teaches you the basics of how to write a blog post.

Click here to view our beginner’s section

Here Are 55 Blog Post Tips From Expert Marketers That Are Proven to Make an Article Viral

Only 11% of published content online gets more than 100 social media shares.

One secret of such successful blog posts is use of the right words in the headline.

1. 11% of viral headlines that get the most shares are List Posts 
2. 6.74% of viral headlines use “YOU / YOUR”
3. 3.6% of viral headlines use “FREE / GIVEAWAY”

But there’s much more.

The pros consistently challenge writing and marketing conventions.

Have a look at Brian Dean.

He increased his email conversions by 785% in one day (from .54% to 4.82% opt in rate).

Want such crazy results?

Cool.

You only need to make tiny tweaks in your blogging approach.

Let me start with one such simple strategy you can easily implement in your next blog post.

Remember:

1. Get 247% More Readers by Starting a Conversation with Them  

Do you know the science behind positive conversations?

They help you in building a personal connection with your audience.

So write your blog posts in a conversational tone.

How?

By imagining talking directly to one person from your target audience.

Start by including more of these two powerful words in your writing….

‘You’ and ‘I’.

Already knew that?

Then use them more often in your content.

Do not underestimate how ‘talking’ with your audience will improve their experience.

Neil Patel experienced a 247% increase in his post readership just by changing the introduction of his post from formal to a conversational tone.

Also have a look at the difference in number of full page readers.

The variation is the one written with a conversational introduction.

There are 54 more such strategies (divided in six sections) I share in this post.

Let’s make your next blog post explosive.

How to Get Inspiration for Writing

2. Reverse Engineer Top Performing Content In Your Niche Using BuzzSumo

The subject you are going to write about has already been written. Don’t bother writing from scratch.

But how do you distinguish an average idea from an outstanding one?

By finding out the top performing content from over a million articles published in your niche.

This is where BuzzSumo kicks in.

Head over to Buzzsumo.com and enter your industry keywords (or seed ideas for your next blog post). Hit the ‘Go!’ button.

Within 5 seconds, you’ll be presented with the most shared content in the last year.

You can now model the above content pieces and:

i) write a better version on the same subject (the skyscraper technique)

ii) observe the key design elements and create the same content type on a different subject

3. Create An Editorial Calendar And Stick To Your Publishing Schedule

I know, I already told you not to do this, but I was wrong.

An editorial schedule is what master bloggers like the folks at Business Insider have done to be on the verge of being acquired for $500 million.

So if you are at a big company, and need justification to get investment for your blogging arm, then show your boss the above article.

Even if you don’t have a giant company, tons of startups use editorial calendars, and I really wish I could use one myself.

Anyway.

Proficient blogger James Clear has been writing two articles every week on Monday and Thursday. Since November 12 2012, he has stuck with this schedule.

The result: He has 200,727 newsletter subscribers (at the time of writing this post).

Amazing, right?

As simple as it might sound: the secret to producing insanely creative art is showing up consistently.  Even when you are out of ideas. Even when you can’t find motivation or feel tired.

Publishing regularly builds anticipation in your readers. They start trusting you. Slowly you’ll build a connection with them.

New York Times best-selling author Elizabeth Gilbert also stresses on the importance of showing up in the TED Talk below.

If you are a WordPress blogger, you can use the editorial calendar plugin.

Else you can try CoSchedule’s integrated blogging and marketing calendar (free for 14 days).

How to Be Prepared Before Writing

4. Do Smarter Research: Collect Information On Your Subject Using Search Operators

You cannot write high-quality content without collecting relevant information on your subject. You have to mine the web for information on your subject, case studies and expert quotes.

If you’ve an idea of the points you want to make in your article, then start with Googling those directly. Here are some search operators for smarter research.

To dig deeper:

You can use Google’s auto fill suggestions.

They appear real-time as you enter keywords in the google search bar.

You can also get new keywords for your research from Searches related to suggestions. They appear at the bottom of your search results.

After gathering links, start reading the articles. Try retaining as much information as possible. And make notes for the key ideas.

5. Outline The Key Ideas You Want To Cover In Your Article

Good writing flows and reads well. Do you know the secret behind it?

It has a proper structure.

Creating an outline before writing your first draft ensures that you remain focused.

Brian Dean recommends taking inspiration from Udemy course outlines to structure your blog posts.

The reason is that popular courses already have thousands of students who paid to enroll in the course.

Writing headlines and subheadlines

Only 2 out of 10 people read past the headline

6. Put Extra Effort In Writing Headlines. Make Sure They Invite Clicks

80% of people will not read past an article’s headline.

Viral blog Upworthy write 25 headlines for every post. Then they test out two of their best ones. Headlines contribute majorly to success of their articles on social media.

Without a compelling title, your writing efforts are complete waste.

7. Steal Headlines From Viral Sites Like BuzzFeed

Viral websites like BuzzFeed, ViralNova and UpWorthy have mastered the art of writing seductive headlines. And it is a major reason for their massive traffic.

What’s better than adopting headlines from these best headline writers on the internet?

You’ve got to be careful though. Many headlines on these websites are excessively dramatic.

Brian Dean has done the legwork on the BuzzFeed headline templates that grab attention without going overboard.

How’s this?

Here Are 55 Blog Post Tips From Expert Marketers That Are Proven to Make an Article Viral

8. Why Should You Use Subheadings, Bullets and Numbering?

1. It
2. Makes
3. Reading
4. Information
5. Much Easier

During an average visit, only 20% of words on the page are read by the user.

Don’t make the reading experience painful by writing large chunks of text.

Make the skimming process easier by:

• Using relevant sub-headlines (h2 and h3 tags) to help the reader jump on relevant section.
• Bolding/Italicizing key takeaways from each section.
• Leveraging bullets and numbers to clearly break your arguments into easy to read chunks.

9. Write Benefit Oriented Sub-Headlines

After your headline, your sub-headlines copy has to attract the reader’s attention. How can you use this chance to re-engage the user?

By using a benefit oriented powerful sub-headline.

Brian Dean suggests starting out with 25% benefit oriented subheadings.

10. Use Your Target Keyword In Your Headline

Using keywords in your content does not just please search engines. It is speaking to your audience in their language. Because keywords are the search terms used by your readers.

As per Brian Clark, using the right keywords is essential to make a blog post successful.

Google Keyword Planner is a great tool to find out the keywords that your audience is using. It is a good starting point for your keyword research.

11. You Won’t Believe How Badly Clickbait Techniques Hurt Your Reputation

Writing noteworthy headlines is important. But an increment in your click through rate will only do short-term good to your traffic.

Always deliver value in your content equating the promises you make in the headline.

If users don’t find value in your content, then they will immediately press the back button. This is called pogo sticking and can hurt your Google rankings.

Have a look the response of BuzzFeed community when their Editor-in-Chief said that BuzzFeed does not do clickbait.

12. Use Headline Writing Tools to Create Emotionally Appealing Titles

Headline templates are a good starting point. But you can use the tools below to tweak your headlines and make them more click-worthy.

• Emotional Value Headline Analyzer – Using this tool, you can find the emotional appeal of your headlines. A 30-40% score is good, over 50% is impressive.

• CoSchedule Headline Analyzer – The tool gives you a score with the weaknesses in your headline. It also gives you recommendations to improve it.

How to Make Your Posts Pretty

13. Use One Image For Every 350 Words

A plain text post makes a dry and dull reading experience. Human beings crave visuals because 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual.

But how many pictures should you put in a blog post?

Blog Pros study from 100 popular blog posts found that they had one image for every 350 words. You can use this as a benchmark for your blog.

If you are on a shoestring budget, use my list of 80 free stock photo sites.

Besides stock photos, you can also use videos, screenshots and charts.

14. Create Custom Images Using Canva, Pablo And Skitch

To further strengthen your brand, you can create custom images for every blog post.

This is especially relevant if a large portion of your target audience hangs on visual social media like Instagram and Pinterest.

• Canva: Has pre-made templates with simple drag and drop interface.
• Pablo: Create images within 30 seconds tailored for different social media.
• Skitch: Use it for taking screenshots. Has great annotation and editing features.

15. Get A Beautiful Table Of Contents Designed

Suppose you wrote a massive 5,000 word actionable post.

Brilliant.

But:

• What if a visitor only wants to read a particular section?
• Won’t it be difficult to navigate the post on mobile?

The solution is – Creating a clickable table of contents.

It’ll organize your content and improve its readability. It will also differentiate you from your competitors who had written on the same subject.

Here’s a beautiful table of contents created by Jimmy Daly for his post on email best practices.

It earned him 36,000+ readers and 1,000+ subscribers.

16. Design A Killer Infographic

The web is increasingly getting visual.

And Infographics are quick snacks – visual representation of data and information.

So they are extremely effective in earning links, traffic and social media love.

A recent example is – What Happens One Hour After Drinking A Can Of Coke.

Have a look at the number of backlinks on the infographic post.

You can take the infographic route instead of writing with these free tools.

Writing Principles and Strategies

17. Use These Tools To Get A List Of Potential Topics

Can’t think of a good topic for your next post?

Then use content idea generation tools.

Just enter seed keywords to get started (valid for all the tools). The results in the screenshots below are for ‘content marketing.’

a) Hubspot’s blog topic generator

b) Portent content idea generator

Note: Use the refresh button to get a new title.

c) Contentforest content ideator

Only take inspiration from these titles to choose a writing direction. Don’t use them directly.

You can also model these titles to write a compelling headline.

18. Use Data And Scientific Research To Make Your Point

Nobody cares about your opinions.

People validate your arguments through data and and scientific research.

So when writing an article, always refer to research studies and data.

You should also link to authority websites.

It helps you earn trust of your audience and is a positive signal to search engines. It is a way of stating that your website is related to the authority websites.

19. Use The Classic Advertising Technique A.I.D.A. To Structure Your Content

This is a popular advertising technique leveraged by many famous bloggers. Here’s the breakdown:

• Attention – Use a seductive headline to drive users to read your article.
• Interest – Deliver fresh information relevant to your headline.
• Desire – State the benefits and prove that your strategies work.
• Action – Tell the readers what you want them to do next. Make the call to action as convincing as possible.

20. Create Your Ideal Audience’s Persona

How do you decide the theme, examples and direction of your article?

If you take one-size-fits-all approach, you are deemed to fail.

Your audience can will only connect with you when you address their pain points. And come up with relevant examples and stories that appeal to your readers.

That is where creating a marketing persona can help.

Buffer’s guide on creating marketing personas is a good starting point. It ensures that you craft compelling content that resonates with your audience’s likes and dislikes.

21. Share Your Personal Stories To Increase Engagement

Humans love good stories. The reason is our brain acts as if we are living the story.

For every blog post you write, integrate a relatable story from your life.

What if you don’t have a story relevant to your blog post?

Create a fictional one.

You can even directly start your article with a visual scene like Nemo Chu did in this article at KISSmetrics.

GrooveHQ found a 300% increase in readership by adding a relevant story in their blog post.

22. Write Actionable Posts With Practical Takeaways For The Reader

Do all kinds of informative posts go viral?

Sadly no.

Dr. Jonah Berger states that highly-practical posts are 34% more likely to go viral.

People don’t want to read something they can implement after a year or even a month.

There have to be practical takeaways from every blog post you publish.

Also, make sure that you break down the strategies in actionable easy-to-implement steps.

23. Give Reasons To Read Your Article  

A 1978 study found that humans like to have reasons for doing an activity.

If you want your blog visitors to read your posts, give them relevant reasons.

This is particularly valid your longer posts, since they require more efforts from the reader.

Pat Flynn used this strategy in some of his previous blog post introductions.

And if you want your readers to stay on your page, remove these words that are making them hit the back button.

24. Your First Draft Should Not Involve Any Editing

A spelling mistake. A formatting error. Or bad alignment.

Such mistakes will make you cringe.

But to improve your productivity, you need to shut down your inner editor for the first draft.

Once you have written down your thoughts on screen, it is easier to organize and polish them.

25. Use Simple Language And Shorter Paragraphs/Sentences

Nobody will read past superfluous jargon.

Using complex words is the worst form of flattery. It only annoys the readers.

Stick with simpler words.

Neil Patel writes at fourth grade level.

Also:

Longer sentences decrease comprehension. And longer paragraphs decrease the readability of your article.

Shoot for 10-15 words in a sentence and 3-6 sentences in a paragraph.

26. Invest Time In Creating Long-Form Content (2000+ Words)

300 word articles that skim the surface of a topic are soooo-2010.

Users are getting smarter every day. They like insightful content in search results to solve their queries.

A study conducted by serpIQ found that Google favors high-quality content rich pages (2000+ words) at its top spots.

Another huge benefit of writing longer content is: You rank for many long-tail keywords over a period of 3-6 months.

27. Respect Your Creative Flow (Even At Inconvenient Times)

Creativity can strike at any random hour of the day – when you are bathing, running, driving, etc.

You can try waterproof notepad to record your shower ideas.

For other inconvenient times when you don’t have an internet connection, you can install mobile applications like Evernote or Workflowy.

Established blogger Michael Hyatt uses Evernote to record post ideas and rough outlines.

The best part about both of these applications is a web version. Both’ll sync your data across all the multiple devices you use.

If you don’t like digital distractions, then take the classic pen and paper route.

28. Ruthlessly Edit And make Every Word Count

Our attention spans are now shorter than that of a goldfish.

As a blogger, you now have a responsibility to write tighter, neater and engaging content.

• Edit out every redundant word from your first draft.
• Ensure that your ideas flows logically and are relevant to your headline.
• Delete any flabby, filler and excessive expressions.

Here is a list of weak words that dilute your article’s message.

29. Write Using The Pomodoro Technique

This technique will help you power through distractions.

Here is the breakdown of the strategy.

The short bursts in a hyper-focused state ensure that you remain productive. And the smaller breaks rejuvenate your brain to keep your creative juices flowing.

The technique helps in increasing your concentration and encourages deep thinking.

I use the TimeDoser App to implement Pomodoro.

30. Set Aside Time To Write Everyday

This is like an extended version of my third point on writing regularly basis an editorial calendar.

But Leo Babauta takes it a step further.

When we create a daily routine – our brain prepares and anticipates events.

Don’t get overambitious though.

Commit to writing only 100 words everyday. But remain consistent.

31. Turn Off All The Notifications Before Writing

Without distractions, you’ll produce your highest quality work.

So Before you start writing:

Keep digital devices like your mobile phone and tablet in another room. And switch off the internet after collecting necessary information.

If you’re on WordPress, here is a guide to enable the distraction free writing mode.

32. Add Bucket Brigades To Your Writing

Bucket Brigades are a vintage sales-letter copywriting technique. They ensured that people don’t drop off in the middle of reading.

But what are they?

They are connecting phrases to ensure your writing flows well.

Brain Dean regularly uses them: in the introduction of posts and at places where a reader is likely to hit the back button.

He managed to reduce his bounce rate and achieve an impressive 4 minutes average on-page time. You can find many bucket brigades in this post.

33. Use Easy To Read Fonts

Like I told you:

Reading on screens is difficult.

A beginner mistake is using multiple fonts to decorate your content. Don’t.

It looks unprofessional and gets tougher to process for the reader.

From readability perspective, sans serif is the best font to use online.

Here are more interesting font insights.

You can read further on how typography affects conversions.

34. Use Power Words To Make An Impact With Your Writing

An average writer provides you with information.

But some writers have a special ability to draw readers inside their articles. They make the reader feel angry, sad and excited.

Is such persuasive writing an inborn talent?

Nope.

The secret is incorporating power words in your writing.

Jon Morrow deconstructs them in a prose written by Winston Churchill (underlined):

Here is a list of 317 power words you can sprinkle in your next article.

35. Tastefully Take Side On A Controversial Topic

Controversy sells.

You will get more social shares, drive more traffic and receive more comments (watch out for the negative ones).

But it has got to be real. And packaged with a delicious headline.

You can ask a colleague or friend to read the post before publishing. It’s a good way to ensure that the issues you raise are rational.

A terrific example is Mark Schaefer. His post against content marketing created a lot of buzz in the marketing industry.

36. Use HemingwayApp To Edit Your Article

How about a free web application to improve your writing’s clarity and simplicity. Awesome, right?

Just copy your content inside the application to get started.

The app will highlight a bunch of things – your text’s readability grade, grammar fixes, use of passive income and sentences that are difficult to read.

37. Cluster Similar Tasks To Save Time

As a blogger:

You’ll need to come with interesting article ideas, outline your articles, write your first draft, meticulously edit, search for pictures and promote your article.

How about you pursue only one task from the above for 2 days?

Say you come up with 20 blog post titles that’ll interest your audience.

Then write outlines or first drafts for the first 10.

Jory Mackay used this technique to write 20 posts in 2 days.

38. Write A Conclusion For Every Post 

A strong conclusion ensures that people scroll till the bottom of the blog post. It can increase your scrollability by 10%.

So always wrap up with key points from your post and a compelling call to action.

You can ask relevant questions to encourage comments and increase engagement.

The posts at ConversionXL are great examples of writing conclusions.

Increase Engagement: Making Your Post SEO And Social Media Friendly

39. Use Descriptive Image File Names And Alt Image Tags

You need to help search engines index your content by providing them information about your images.

So don’t upload photos with generic names like image01, photo01, xhad01. Rather use descriptive image names.

And always fill alt tags with a relevant keyword to your article.

Example: We can use alt text for the above image as – blogging tips and the title as writing descriptive image names.

Social Media Examiner goes a step ahead and even write captions for all photos in their posts.

40. Make Your Content Interactive By Using Clickable Images And Click To Tweet Buttons

Interactive content improves the appearance of your post and increases its social engagement.

For an example look at point 7 in this Vertical Response article. The images has links inside inviting user engagement. You can create such interactive images with Thinglink.

Or a simpler way is using a click to tweet button inside your post’s body. Read point number 6 in this post by Brian Dean for exact instructions.

On WordPress, you can use better click to tweet plugin.

41. Insert A Pinterest-Friendly 1-Pixel Image

This is a killer tip for graphic-heavy blogs that drive considerable traffic from Pinterest.

A vertical image takes a lot of real estate inside your post. But it’s Pinterest-friendly.

Can you save space in your blog post even after using a tall Pinterest optimized image?

Yes.

Just upload the Pinterest picture in your post below your first picture. And change the Pinterest image’s height and width to 1-pixel.

Now if you click on the “Pin it” button, this invisible Pinterest optimized image will pop up.

Head over to Buffer for a video explanation.

42. Embed Your Post’s Social Media Update At The End Of The Post

You can directly start interaction about your post on social media.

Kevan from Buffer shows you the way.

This will help you get more followers and increase engagement on your social media accounts.

43. Link Internally To Your Contextually Relevant Articles

Don’t let your previously published high-quality content die a slow death.

Web users like clicking on links. So reference your previously published relevant articles in your new posts.

This will give your older posts more authority in the eyes of Google.

It’ll also increase the amount of time a reader stays on your website.

In the long-run, internal linking will increase your search engine rankings and search traffic.

44. Sprinkle LSI keywords In Your Post

Using your target keyword multiple times in the article is over-optimization and can lead to a Google penalty.

So search for opportunities to add LSI keywords (synonyms and closely related keywords) in your content.

You’ll find them at the bottom of search results as “Searches related to [your keyword]” :

You can also use Google Correlate or other keyword tools to drill LSI keywords.

These keywords will send you extra traffic from Google.

45. Create Your Own Keyword

If you are the innovative type, you’ll love this keyword tip.

The first step of the strategy is the toughest:

Formulating a ground-breaking technique that solves a major industry concern. 

Next is branding the technique with a classy name and promoting it like crazy.

An example is Brain Dean sitting on the top 3 results for his branded strategy “skyscraper technique.”

46. Find Out The Exact Keywords Your Target Audience Is Using

Sometimes Google Keyword Planner does not dig the exact language your audience is using.

You need to find out the platforms where your target audience hangs out. Then pay attention to the language (and exact keywords) they use. And incorporate the catch phrased in your headlines and content.

If you can’t find a big forum in your niche, go to Quora. Millions of curious people hangout on this Q&A platform.

Here is a keyword I found hanging out in the startups section.

47. Use Modifiers In Your Titles

Modifiers are words that make your chief noun more descriptive.

By using modifiers in your title, you will invite long-tail traffic from search engines.

Just think of related keywords that your audience might use when searching for your target keyword.

Example: Brain Dean changed his title from “Link building: The definitive guide” to –

If you can’t think of specific modifiers for your title, here is a list of generic modifiers.

48. Offer A Better Reading Experience With Quote Boxes

Would you like making your article beautiful and giving your users a magazine-like reading experience?

Then use quote boxes like these (for highlight expert opinions):

Here is a WordPress plugin to pull quotes.

49. Automate Your Social Media Posts Using IFTTT

Automating repetitive marketing tasks will increase your productivity.

IFTTT connects apps and can power your social media marketing.

For example: You can use IFTTT to post your uploaded Instagram pictures automatically on Twitter. Or you can automatically add published posts from your WordPress blog in your Buffer queue.

IFTTT calls such turn of automated events as recipes. And you don’t need to create one from scratch.

Here are 34 IFTTT hacks to increase your social media productivity.

50. Offer Resources As An Upgrade To Your Post

Can you create bonus content for your blog post and offer it as a pdf or excel file?

You can then offer it as a content upgrade inside your post.

But there’s a catch.

You will ask for the reader’s email in exchange.

This is an extremely effective strategy that can increase your email conversions by a staggering 492%.

On WordPress, you can use the Content Upgrades plugin to get started.

51. Write A List Article

Although they’ve been abused a lot by sites like BuzzFeed, list articles are still effective.

Infact a study on 100 million articles found that lists are the most shared content type after infographics.

This study also found that 10 items in your list will lead to maximum social shares (average is 10,621).

52. Schedule Your Successful Posts Multiple Times On Social Media

You can’t just send one social media update about your blog post and expect good traffic.

Many of your fans/followers might not receive the update in their timeline due to time zone differences. And the social media’s algorithmic constraints.

Optimize your sharing schedule to send the same update multiple times.

Here is a guide on doubling your traffic by sharing multiple times on social media.

53. Create Evergreen Useful Content

Don’t exclusively publish news and time-sensitive content on your blog. It will have a limited shelf life.

Rather create useful content that will be relevant to your readers for a long period.

It will invite more search engine traffic and will lead to continued, sustained success.

If you feel inspired to create evergreen content, read Buffer’s guide on evergreen content ideas.

54. Email Everyone You Mention In Your Post

You will reference the big guys in your industry multiple times in your posts. While it might intimidate you to get in touch with them, you’ve got to do it.

Even the influencers love getting linked and hearing compliments.

BuzzStream is a great tool to take your outreach to the next level.

You can steal email template from this outreach guide to save time.

If your content is high-quality, you can expect least 2% people to share and link to your post.

55. Do A Roundup Interview Post

Round up posts are extremely effective to get your name in front of the influencers.

If done right, they’ll also get you a traffic spike and backlinks.

Make sure you ask specific questions and reach out to the influencers having a decent following on social media.

But let me warn you – It is a lot of hard work.

Up for it?

Then read this guide at BoostBlogTraffic.

Ready To Craft Your Next Successful Blog Post?

It isn’t rocket science. Just try to inculcate two to three expert tips from this article in your next blog post. Your will be surprised the results.

Do you have any success stories using the above strategies? Which tip are you planning to implement in your next post? Let me know in the comments.

Share These Blog Tips with Your Friends and Followers

Chintan is an ROI-focused content marketing consultant. Join him at Elite Content Marketer where he shows you how to grow your business through content.