Blogging is a powerful platform that combines all the great features of print, audio and video. Blogging gives you full control over multiple mediums at the whim of your imagination. The content you create, for your blog, can represent your brand, build an audience, earn an online income for you or help to launch a business and so much more.
However, trying to skim by with the bare minimum will not do it; a short, 400 word blog post will not have an impact in a niche community. There are thousands of bloggers aiming to become ‘top dog’ in a niche; you have to stand out from the rest by creating compelling, passionate content.
This article will share the fundamentals to creating blog posts that capture your readers and pulls them into your community.
It Starts with an Idea
The idea and focus of your content is everything. Compelling content is very similar to a great product. Content solves a need in its consumer, provides entertainment value and has a great price. Content, in many ways, is your connection to the world when you are not active on the web. Content represents your brand.
Every piece of content can be compelling depending on the audience and angle you present the information. However, your content will fail to make an impact if the subject matter isn’t interesting.
Begin generating ideas for your blog content by examining the world around you:
- Discover what people enjoy by visiting popular blogs and browsing through the archives.
- Ask your readers for the type of content they would love to see.
- Spend time brainstorming topics that interest you.
As noted, every idea can become a compelling blog post but only if your readers want it. Find out the compelling, passionate, controversial topics that people read and form your own ideas that will become your future blog posts.
The Information is Everything
Learn as much information about a subject once settled on the topic of your blog post.
There are two elements of gathering the best information for your blog topic:
- Research
- Implementation
Research is a breeze with the web. A search query for your blog topic will present thousands of results that you can use to reinforce the information provided in your blog post. Additionally, research gives you the insight to take your blog post content to the next level through implementation.
Implementation is the application of the information you have learned. Implementing the information you plan to convey, in your blog post, will give you an edge in your content creation. Your research will reveal new opportunities that may not have been covered with bloggers in your niche. Pull from your own experience and knowledge to craft compelling blog posts that none can replicate.
Gather every bit of information you can on a topic. Aim to create a definitive reference for those that read your blog posts. A compelling blog post that answers the questions of its readers, shares a unique angle and has subtle elements of entertainment is what truly makes incredible content.
Your Voice adds a Connection
A highly detailed blog post is very informational but lacks character. Anyone with a connection to the web can create extremely detailed blog posts, but it’s the unique voice you add to a post that makes it stand out and creates a compelling read.
The voice of your blog post comes in the form of your writing style, examinations and feedback on the topic and your personal stance on the overall topic. Your voice is what adds flavor to an otherwise dry, white-paper style blog post. The little elements that reveal your voice (and brand) are culled out when you create posts through a stream of conscious writing.
Stream of conscious writing forces you to convey information based on what you remember. The flow of your writing will result in omission of elements that may not necessarily add to the overall value of the post. On the flip side, you may need to reinforce your information with additional editing and research.
In all, writing naturally adds voice to your writing that doesn’t seem forced. You will develop your blog post based on information that truly matters and avoid the minutia that research-only writing creates. The addition of your voice helps your readers connect because it forms a story arch and elements for people to feel connected.
A Call-to-Action Builds Participation
The term ‘compelling’ does not need to end at the engagement when people read your blog post. In fact, a truly engaging blog post will create a form of community interaction. The interaction of your community can come as a form of blog commenting, social media sharing, purchasing a product and much more.
The path to creating a complete, compelling blog post is to include a call-to-action. A call-to-action is a direct message that tells people exactly what you want them to do. Your call-to-action is direct and aims to make the reader do one task of your choice.
Common examples of a call-to-action include:
- “Click here to learn more”
- “Leave a comment below”
- “Share this post on Twitter”
The call-to-action is the final element of creating a compelling blog post on your end. Afterward, it’s up to your community to engage.
The Network is the Secret Key
The final element of creating compelling blog posts are the network interactions you build from sharing your content on social media platforms. The distribution of your content will have a great reach if you tap into a strong following. Your content will take on a viral effect if your network helps to spread the message.
Social platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and StumbleUpon offer the greatest opportunity to get your content found. A single tweet, fan page update or stumble is all that your content needs to be put in front of thousands of people. The viral effect comes from an authoritative member of your niche community sharing your link; their level of trust signifies, to their followers, that your content is worthwhile and should be given a view.
Build your network with the same level of passion as you put into your content creation and blog building. At the end of the day, it’s your network that will ultimately decide if your blog post is compelling. Your network is the deciding factor that gets people interested in what you have to offer. Every person that lands on your content will be an opportunity to create engagement and share your expertise.
Conclusion
In this article, you’ve learned the foundations of creating compelling blog posts. The dedication and passion you put into creating content will have a considerable amount of influence on how well it’s shared on the web along with the overall impact it has for your brand. A single post can lead to your online success; strive to create a compelling post that puts you on the map using the tactics described in this article.