Your Ten-Step Guide to Crafting the Perfect Blog Article

Anyone with access to the internet can write a blog article, but not everyone can write a good blog article that resonates with the reader and leaves them coming back for more. By the time you conclude this article, you will be armed with the tools necessary to craft stellar blog articles that elevate your online presence and keep your audience engaged.

Step 1: Define Your Purpose and Audience

Never start writing an article without knowing its purpose. Are you trying to inform and educate your readers? Do you want the reader to finish reading and click your Amazon affiliate link? Or are you simply sharing your experiences with like-minded individuals? Knowing why you are writing about a subject helps you write in an appropriate style and tone.

Having a target audience in mind is equally, if not more, important than being aware of your article’s purpose. Certain subjects naturally attract specific demographics, allowing you to tailor your content and writing style to resonate with them. For example, writing an article about the nuances of stock market investing requires a different tone from someone penning a blog to someone with a keen interest in professional sports.

Step 2: Thoroughly Research Your Subject

Well-researched articles add credibility to your content, particularly if you mention data or statistics in your writing. Those reading articles online tend to be savvy and will often go away and perform research of their own. Any errors will stand out like a sore thumb and usually result in that person never returning to your blog or website.

Only use reliable sources when gathering your article’s data, insights, and statistics. Linking to your sources or putting them in a footnote is worthwhile.

Step 3: Create a Strong Outline Using a Mindmap

Mindmaps are an excellent way to create a detailed outline for your blog article. Start by
putting your subject matter in the middle, then add branches to the central concept that
outline the most basic subtopics; these can serve as your subheadings. You can further
explore topics by adding more branches.

You’ll quickly find your entire article outlined in front of you, and you may even discover ideas for future articles while creating your mindmap.

Step 4: Your Introduction Must Be Compelling

You have limited time to grab a reader’s attention and convince them to continue reading the rest of your article. A strong introduction allows you to seize this opportunity. Create a hook that intrigues them and introduces the main idea of your article, but don’t give everything away.

Asking questions, being controversial, or promising to solve someone’s problems are just three suggestions for introductions.

Step 5: Clear and Concise Paragraphs Are Crucial

More than 50% of internet traffic stems from mobile devices. The smaller screens of a smartphone or tablet, combined with people reading on the go, result in readers with shorter attention spans, meaning you must write with busy people in mind.

Focus on a single point or idea in each paragraph, and ensure those paragraphs are not more than three or four lines; otherwise, they start to look like walls of text that are off-putting to readers. Furthermore, avoid unnecessary jargon and complex sentences where possible to avoid confusing your readers.

Step 6: Engaging Headings and Subheadings Are Your Friend

We touched upon keeping your sentences and paragraphs short; headings and subheadings are perfect for doing this. Headings break up text sections while giving the reader an idea of what each section entails.

Step 7: Don’t Forget About Adding Visuals

Enhance your article’s appeal by including relevant visuals. Images and infographics are perfect additions to complement your writing, but only if they are relevant or provide additional context. Avoid low-definition, pixelated images because they do not give the right impression and will take away from your stellar written content.

Always ensure the images you use are free and not copyrighted because you could find yourself on the hook for an expensive fine. It is always best to use images you create and, therefore, own the rights. However, several websites have a vast library of free photos to use to your heart’s content.

Step 8: Choose Your Tone and Maintain It

We decided on our tone before we started writing, and it is vitally important to maintain that tone consistently throughout the article. Readers become confused and irritated if an article’s tone randomly jumps from formal to conversational and back again. Maintaining a uniform tone improves readability and keeps your audience engaged.

Step 9: Wrap Everything Up Effectively

A conclusion summarizing your article’s main points and perhaps a clear call to action leaves your readers with a strong takeaway or understanding of the topic. Keep your conclusion concise while still covering the key parts of your article.

Step 10: Edit, Edit, then Edit Again

It is time to edit your work like your life depends on it now that you have reached this stage. Never publish an article without thoroughly proofreading it. Once you have finished writing, a quick edit should pick up on some minor errors, but editing your work at a later time or date is also worthwhile. It is easy to become blind to mistakes if you have spent substantial time writing. Getting feedback from a peer or using editing tools like Grammarly are other excellent ways to ensure you publish articles of the highest quality.

Conclusion

Writing an article is relatively easy, but writing a great article requires more work. Before you put pen to paper – or your fingers on your keyboard – you should plan your article with military precision. Define your audience and the article’s purpose, plan the article’s structure with the help of a mindmap, and then get to work producing some stellar content your audience will love.

Keep your sentences and paragraphs short, breaking them up with relevant, high-definition images or headings and subheadings. Once you have ticked all those boxes and have the finished article in front of you, proofread and edit it at least twice, but up to as many times as necessary, before publishing it and unleashing it on the world. Happy writing!