So, you’ve written the perfect blog that’s full of hot takes, essential information, and a fresh perspective that your industry sorely needs. Your ideas have lit a fire inside you. What’s more, you can’t wait to publish this masterpiece, and bask in the adulation and success it’ll surely bring you.
If only life were that simple!
As we all know, a well-written blog and a one that achieves its goals aren’t always the same thing – but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done.
A good checklist is a lifesaver in marketing. With so much research needed and many areas to cover in your content, there’s room for error – we’re all human. But when it comes to making a first impression on a reader, it’s not an error we can afford to risk.
Before you press publish and tell the world about your topic, make sure your content can be ticked off under the following five categories.
Check one: Is your content based on solid research?
It could be keyword research, finding ways to address common complaints within your industry, or simply answering a regularly searched question – either way, make sure your content is rooted in good research.
If your content and links are supported by credible sources, and the volume of people searching for the subject you’re covering is solid, you’re already onto a winner.
Check two: Does your content solve an issue or answer a commonly asked question?
You’d be surprised how many blogs forget to focus on the fundamentals of marketing – solving problems, reassuring customers, and answering questions.
If you can do one of these three things, or perhaps all three depending on the subject, you’re more likely to capture the attention of a reader.
Check three: Is your content understandable?
Make it easy for your readers to understand the subject at hand, the problems involved, and the answers to those problems (that’s you!). As writers, we all love to indulge a little in some poetic verse, but consider the audience and keep it simple.
Check four: Does your content inspire action in the reader?
Okay, so we’ve got ourselves a well-researched blog with content that serves a purpose. It’s engaging and understandable, so we’re all set to publish, right?
Wait a second. What about the language you’ve used in the blog? Is it full of dynamic words that’ll inspire action, or reassuring sentences that comfort and guide? Whatever it does, you’ll need to make sure it convinces that reader to take action after they finish.
Check five: Does your content have the human touch?
At writefully, this is one of our most repeated sentences when helping clients to rank better or improve their brand…remember that you’re talking to a human being.
Research, technology, and strategy should never come at the expense of good content. And let’s face it, this is the one hack on this checklist that’s the most powerful hack of all. Connect to your audience through content, and you’ll not only get them reading your blogs, but also giving you their business.
