Blogging is more difficult than it seems on first glance. You have to consider your readers, and what materials they will be able to easily understand and interact with. You also have to consider your own interests, like selling products or creating relationships with customers. It can be a little challenging to focus on the actual content writing when you also have all these other concerns! Here, we share our 5 most basic writing tips for your small business blog.
1. Write like a real person.
USA Today is written on a 5th grade reading level for a reason – because it’s easy to digest. Blog readers don’t want to spend an hour slogging through an article full of SAT words or wondering what you meant in your last sentence. This also makes it easier for readers to share your content because they can share it with any audience.
2. But don’t forget about basic grammar rules.
It’s vs. its, your vs. you’re, too, to and two. Then there’s run on sentences, and trying to add commas to stop yourself from using run on sentences. All of these are small mistakes that we all make, but they’re quick ways to turn readers off from your blog. A good tip is to always have another pair of eyes check your materials before posting.
3. Use lists whenever possible.
Bulleted and numbered lists break your content up into easily-processed chunks, and help distill the most important information for your readers. Many readers are viewing your blog in their RSS feeds or Google Reader accounts, so oftentimes they are scrolling to find the content that they actually want to read. Make it easy for them to choose your content by clearly defining important points and highlights in the article.
4. A picture is worth 1,000 words.
Supplement your writing with images whenever possible. Images are a great way to draw attention, explain complicated concepts and to give readers a break in content. But keep in mind images can contain information – Infographics are one of the most popular ways to explain data!
5. Keep the flow clear.
Start with your introduction, make your points and provide a conclusion with an open-ended question to encourage reader engagement. This is a great format for any type of blog posts, because it is easy to follow along. Another tip? Specify how you want readers to respond to the question in your post. Some readers may prefer commenting or tweeting the article, so let them know where to reach you (provide your Twitter handle and/or Facebook page where applicable) and how you prefer to receive their comments.
These are our top 5 tips, but what are yours? What suggestions do you have for best blogging practices? And how do you like to engage with readers?
Leave it in the comments below!
