The internet, ripe with information, continues the information influx with bloggers and vloggers writing every day. With a few well-chosen search terms, consumers can find answers, opinions, and examples on almost anything.
For blog writers, this mass competition poses a problem. How do you stand out from the crowd and grab the attention of readers? How do you build a loyal following in a sea of other credible sources?
Write for Easy Scanning
Compelling content extends beyond your writing style. You can share the world’s most interesting story or life-changing research — but if you use a solid block of text with a small font — you won’t reach a significant audience. Like the advantage a vanity phone number offers over a hard-to-recall business number, how you display blogging information can be just as important as what you write.
Online shoppers and researchers have short attention spans and multiple resource options. If a fast look at the blog confirms relevance to their question, they are more likely to stay on the page and read past the headlines.
Consider ten ways to write a blog people will want to read.
1. Spend Time on the Headline
A strong headline brings in more people to read your copy while a weak one sends them searching for something else.
Readers want two kinds of information from the headline:
- Does it confirm that the headline subject addresses what they want to know?
- Does it sound interesting?
Your headline should communicate the kind of content that will follow. Experts recommend making your headline unique, ultra-specific, and useful. Other ways to beef up your headline include:
- Convey a sense of urgency (Get your custom 800 number before it’s gone)
- Use how to or how not to (How to buy a vanity phone number)
- A number of tips or ways (7 ways a business 800 number can increase sales)
- Ask a question (How can 800.com help your salespeople close more leads?)
2. Use Headings
H2 and H3 headings make content easier to read. For longer blogs, readers can scan to find the specific details that interest them. Headings are also excellent places for keywords and keyword phrases, which help with SEO. Search engine web crawlers also check for headers and scan their content.
Headings create a well-organized presentation with a clear, logical flow of information. Your blog welcomes potential customers with quickly accessible answers.
3. Keep Sentences Short
The most popular blogs on the internet reflect writing at about a sixth-grade level. Successful bloggers need not worry about the education level of readers or their ability to comprehend complex subjects. People browse the internet in search of fast answers, and writers who deliver a clear and digestible format win more views.
Don’t over-edit your vocabulary or content. Keeping short, crisp sentences allows your readers to easily read your blogs.
4. Tell a Story
Stories ignite our imaginations, and characters engage our empathy. People often make decisions based on what they feel, and stories appeal to both logic and emotions.
A story does more than draw your readers into the blog and make a compelling sales pitch. Stories can build a personal connection between consumers and a business or between the writer and readers.
Adding personality to your blog and building a connection through stories build brand loyalty — drawing readers back to your website.
5. Use Case Studies
Consumers see sales pitches on every device they use and everywhere they go. Buyers are wary of trusting a new company, but case studies go a long way toward building trust.
Because some people may mistrust advertising claims, social proof offers a more reliable source of recommendations. Like reviews, the most common kind of social proof, case studies work by the same principle. Readers see proof of the marketing claims.
6. Engage Their Emotions
Fear, hope, affirmation, connection, loss, and joy each affect readers differently but leave a lasting impression.
Not every subject pulls at a reader’s heartstrings — but in the right place — emotion engages the reader on a personal level. It moves them to think, act, and discuss. People will gravitate toward sharing or talking about a blog that evokes feelings when they read it.
Emotions represent a crucial part of the decision-making process. They not only influence the decision you make, but they can also speed up or slow down the timing. Uniqueness, outstanding value, or a perceived shortage can accelerate a person’s decision to buy.
Appealing to a reader’s emotions makes your website, blog, or company more memorable. The mental connection created by emotions stays with readers much longer than logic or information.
7. Ask the Readers a Question
What is the catchiest vanity 800 number you’ve ever seen?
When online viewers read a question like the one above, their brain does a quick auto-search for the answer. While reading represents mostly a passive activity, questions engage the user and involve them in the information or sales process.
In the process of remembering a business 800 number you’ve seen in the past, you affirm the memorability of a catchy phone number.
Questions can turn a blog into what feels like a two-way conversation. Engaged readers retain more of what they see.
8. Bring in Admired Authorities
Referring to respected authorities adds weight to the information you offer in your blog. Expert input reassures readers and allows them to connect your presentation to a larger context.
For example, “Experts say that a vanity 800 number is one of the least expensive marketing tools you can use to effectively boost your business.”
A quote, celebrity story, or link to a confirming source shows readers that you are well- researched and knowledgeable on the subject. For example, studies show that consumers recall a vanity phone number more frequently than a standard numeric one.
Don’t let quotes from experts write your blog for you! You want to impress readers with your expertise and establish your business as an authority in the field — not act as a mouthpiece for other experts.
Use quotes and sources sparingly to bolster important points, but not so much that they obscure your expertise and authority.
9. Use Metaphors, Examples, and Statistics
Metaphors, analogies, and similes connect new information to a more familiar subject. A football fan may more easily understand the mathematics of an arch in terms of quarterback throws and field goals. Connecting your presentation to comfortable subjects also builds rapport with your audience.
Examples and statistics help fill out an idea. Examples breathe life into a concept and make it easier to map across into real life. The more different ways a reader processes specific information, the more memorable it becomes.
Often, an example will inspire the viewer to create a movie in their mind as they follow along with the idea and deepen their understanding.
Statistics give us a measure of the present status of things and a prediction of future trending. It appeals to people’s natural desire to belong as it’s often easier to accept what others have already accepted.
For example, studies show that over 90% of consumers have used an 800 number.
Both examples and statistics can motivate readers.
10. Give Something Away
If you can make people richer or healthier, make their lives easier, or let them in on a secret — you will build a loyal fan-base. People love to feel like part of an elite group or like they got something for nothing.
Contests, free downloads, and other freebies pave a well-established way to build an audience that will share their contact information with you. At the very least, make your blog a source of valuable and useful information. Readers will appreciate the quality of your posts and come back. You can hook a few people one time with a catchy title — but to build and maintain loyal customer relationships — you must consistently deliver on the headline promises.
Start Strong and Deliver Value
Attention-grabbing blogs start with a gripping headline and draw readers into a well-formatted page. Headers and shorter sentences make a blog easy to scan — perfect for online readers with short attention spans.
Stories, statistics, experts, and questions keep the reader engaged. By creating an emotional response with your blog, you not only move people to action but also make your writing more memorable.
Carving out an area of authority and building a loyal audience takes time and consistent effort. Some people rise to the top with one catchy video, infographic, or blog, but a real and lasting online reputation materializes through quality and consistency. Many tools and tricks can help you write a great blog, but the foundation has to be information your readers will value.
