Let’s kick off this blog page with a blog about how to write a good blog, shall we? After all, apart from content writing and researching, I write enough of them and I enjoy it. I’m often asked ‘Can you come in and teach our team to write blogs?’ but it’s not that easy. To be able to write well I believe there has to be some basic or underlying talent there and that’s what you build on. It’s a bit like if I asked someone to teach me how to paint; they can show me all the techniques and instil me with knowledge, but I doubt if I’d ever be any good at it because I just don’t have that fundamental bent for it.
With blogs I think that to some extent what you write should come from within, although it depends on the subject matter, the voice the client wants, and the house style. I’m lucky because I have a lot of freedom with the blogs I write so I can be creative, I can write from within. So, when I’m asked to teach someone how to write a good blog, I say I can give advice and ideas but I can’t make any promises, all I can do is teach them what I know and what I do to produce blogs that are engaging, great for SEO and help to increase revenue for my clients. So here we go:
- Read, Read, Read
To be a good writer you have to be a reader. No question about it, you have to have a passion for the written word in almost any shape or form. Read as much as you can, as often as you can, read books, read the papers, read the back of the cereal packet, read anything. The more you read the greater your vocabulary will become, you’ll find new ways to write, different styles, better ways to say things. Reading is a biggie for me, I started off very young and was reading Wordsworth’s poetry aloud by the age of six (Lucy Gray, I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud, We Are Seven). From there it grew and grew – more poetry, novels, biographies, nature guides, travel books, anything. It fires the imagination, expands your word stock and teaches you how to use grammar effectively.
- Be Original
Very important if you’re writing for the web. Why? Because as it says all over my website, search engines LOVE original content. Sometimes this will depend on the voice you’re having to use, but I would say always try to find unique ways of saying things and don’t stick to what’s conventional. Your style can be sassy, trendy, upbeat, elegant, sophisticated, whatever, but what matters most is that it’s original. Don’t ever copy anyone else’s writing word-for-word or pinch their ideas or phrases – even if something takes you days to write, you should always make it entirely your own. Original web content will earn you brownie points and go a long way to helping the page rank well in searches. Besides, it’s so refreshing to read a blog that’s written with flair and originality.
- Use More Words
What I mean by this, is don’t always use the first word you think of to describe something. The search engines are very good at finding synonyms so dig deep down into your vocabulary and pull out a better word than the one you were going to use, or be best friends with your Thesaurus (there are several good ones online). For example, you might be writing about a cake; the cake tastes good so the first word that might spring to mind is ‘delicious’. Hey, but that’s sloppy! Don’t use the first word you think of (unless it’s absolutely bang on)! Have a think, have a rummage round in your head. What else is there? Tasty, scrumptious, mouth watering, heavenly, exquisite, divine, yummy, scrummy, delectable, rapturous. You see? There are so many other words you could use to describe how good a cake tastes! Don’t be afraid to bend the rules a little either – by strict definition heavenly, exquisite, divine and rapturous aren’t words you’d necessarily use to describe a cake, but look, they work.
- Put Grammar To Good Use
This is where that intrinsic talent matters; you need to know how to use grammar to write well, how to structure your words. If you can write short, snappy, succinct sentences do so, but don’t be afraid to stretch it using effective punctuation techniques. Long sentences can really add flow and rhythm to a blog, but the trick is to write them well. Think of a long sentence as a ribbon looping and looping in the air – that’s the effect you’re after, not something that makes you run out of breath when you read it out loud. How do you do that? Simple. Drop the ‘ands’ and all the commas, instead put those little semi-colons and dashes to good use; both are very powerful ways to put a pause into a long sentence – see? Commas are fine, but don’t use too many of them and use them in the right places, and never forget the Oxford comma, or serial comma, as it’s also known. I love the Oxford comma, it’s one of the most effective pieces of punctuation in the English language. ❤️
- Don’t Repeat Yourself
Unless you’re doing it for effect – eg. ‘These cakes are good. Very good.’ That sort of thing is okay, that works, but other than that, no, just don’t do it. I’m not just talking about repeating facts or opinions here, the other thing to watch out for is re-using the same words, particularly adjectives. Fair enough, that flower may be beautiful but if you’ve already described it so once, don’t do it again in the same blog. Find another word, get your Thesaurus out (see Use More Words). Oh dear, I’m repeating myself…
- Proof Read Your Work
Of course! Who wouldn’t? Why wouldn’t you?? Read back over what you’ve written, again and again and again. And again if you like. Read it slowly and check that everything makes sense, and that there are no titchy-witchy errors or typos. If you find any, correct them as you go along. Another good idea is to ask someone else to read it too because sometimes you can read your own work over and over and still miss the odd typo or something. Wood for the trees and that. Getting someone else to read it is really helpful if you have a deadline to meet before you publish your blog, otherwise put it aside for a couple of days and then re-read it. All tried and tested proofing advice.
- Read It Out Loud
Now, this is a valuable piece of advice. If you don’t do this already, start right now because this really, really matters. When you’ve finished writing your blog, go and have a little break, a cup of tea, go for a walk or something, and then go back and read it through to yourself. Out loud, slowly. This is different than proof reading and you have to do it because if it doesn’t sound right to you it won’t sound right to others. Yes, I know that the likelihood of anyone reading your blog out loud is low, but you get my drift, it’s a way of perfecting your art. Do it, honestly. For one thing it’ll make you notice anything you’ve missed in the proofing process (see above).
- Make Sure Your Blog Is The Right Length
You’ll find all sorts of conflicting advice on the internet about how long a blog should be. Some say as short as 300 words, some say as long as 2,000, and then for focused marketing blogs it can even be as high as 4,000 words. Less than 300 words is considered thin content because it doesn’t pull the search engines so well, and more than 2,000 words is long-form content which works well but is generally used for marketing blogs that really aim to pack a punch.
So it’s partly about what you’re writing and what the ultimate aim of the blog is. Take for instance, a blog about puppies that need a new home; the ultimate aim is to get those puppers rehomed, or to get donations for the upkeep of the kennels looking after them. In that instance it’s fine to make your blog longer because the more sad stories you can include about those poor little dogs, the better; there’s more chance of it tugging at the reader’s heartstrings.
I’ve written tons of blogs and I know what works in terms of search engine success, generating reader interest and gaining sales, so I aim for between 600 and 1,500 words. It’s a funny old game though, and again it depends what you’re writing about. Not everyone can wax lyrical about say, a garden bench, and produce a well written blog of 1,000 words about it. Some of us however, can go on and on and on, an outpouring of words about how that garden bench is the best thing since the proverbial sliced bread.
- Break Up Your Blog
Most people use their phones to go online these days, that’s a fact, and reading a huge wall of content on a phone ain’t a lot of fun so what you need to do is break your blog up with visuals and sub-headings. Sub-headings work well because they present smaller chunks of content to the reader and the chances are that they’ll keep going to the end of the blog. Visuals, whether it’s photos, cartoons, charts or graphs, have a big impact and help to make a blog easier to read on a phone. Sometimes pics are absolutely necessary, eg. for fashion blogs, holiday blogs and food blogs, and they really help to sell. As with your content, always make sure your pics are good quality.
- Be Confident
Be confident and be proud. That blog is going out there into the big wide world of webiness, anyone could read it so you must believe in it. Be assured that your blog is factually correct and well written; if your personal opinion forms part of the blog, stand by those opinions. Take on board any advice that’s offered kindly and don’t be afraid of trolls or any disparaging remarks, just ignore them. Remember you cannot please all the people all the time and there will always be someone who might criticise what you’ve written. Don’t let it matter. Be strong and confident.
Happy blogging! ❤️
