Has it ever happened to you that you searched for something and the results were almost identical? Considering the explosive popularity of content marketing, this is no surprise at all. However, as a content creator yourself, falling into this trap is probably one of your worst nightmares.
There’s no denying that the kind of content being created on the internet today is not the same as it was years ago. Today, everything is about posting consistently, hitting a certain word count, and finding the right keywords. Or is it not? While much of the internet’s content has shifted towards appeasing algorithms and outranking competitors, this phenomenon is not mutually exclusive with quality and originality. In fact, a well-executed content creation strategy will not allow for forgettable and useless blogs that only take up space in the sea of online content today.
Creating the perfect blog post means finding the right balance between following strict SEO rules and letting your creativity shine through. Your content needs to be pragmatic and unique at the same time. Achieving that is all but easy. Here are a few tips to avoid writing just another forgettable blog post.
Start out strong
The first step to grabbing attention and standing out is to start out strong. People’s attention spans are getting shorter and shorter, while content only keeps breeding. If something fails to pique their interest, they will simply scroll further. So, come up with a heading that will convince them to keep reading. It should not only state what the article is about; it should also arouse curiosity and provoke thought. A catchy title combined with a strong introduction is thus the first indispensable component of a memorable blog post.
Consider the audience
The next important point to remember if you don’t want to end up with a useless piece of content is who you are writing for. Surely, you have long figured this out, so don’t stray off the right path. Considering who your audience is will not only help you pick the right topics to write about, but it’s also what will help you hit the right tone and use the right language. You shouldn’t be detailing something basic at length if your target audience already has a level of knowledge about the topic, but your creative use of current TikTok memes may also fall on deaf ears if your audience is not familiar with Gen Z jargon. You get the idea.
Be original
While it may seem like a mission impossible to create something unique in this day and age, striving for originality in your content is paramount. Unoriginality happens to the best of us at times. However, falling into the habit of repeating what hundreds of others have said before is a sure way to blend in and be forgotten by your readers as soon as they leave your blog. Don’t be afraid to stray away from the basic structure of a blog and create something more dynamic. Develop your own writing style and soon your readers will recognize your trademarks.
Solve the issue
If you want to make your content useful for your readers, you should figure out their issues and pain points and focus on them. Try to understand their point of view and offer actionable solutions. When writing about real-world topics, staying in the abstracts can do you a disservice. Use examples, personal experiences, and anecdotes, if necessary, to get your point across and illustrate it better. If you manage to do that, you can be sure that your blog post will be shared many times
Provoke emotions
If your writing manages to provoke emotion in your readers, it will leave some kind of impression on them, making your blog memorable. Your readers will also be more likely to interact with your content and share it with their friends if it resonated with them strongly and made them feel a certain way. So, work on your writing:
- Use vivid imagery
- Pick specific words
- Make it relatable
- Create a compelling narrative
There’s a lot to learn!
Keep it relevant
When you’re writing for a certain quota to be fulfilled, the focus can easily become quantity over quality. However, content should not be merely a placeholder, and you should always strive to keep your blog posts relevant. Stay on top of your industry and be in the know about what is happening. People are always looking for new, interesting topics, so relevant, up-to-date content will make your blog a reliable and valuable source for your readers. However, be sure to post at the right times and optimize well so that you can get maximum exposure during critical time periods. Contact professionals in SEO from Sydney if you need a hand in making your content search engine-friendly.
Make it evergreen
You may be asking, does evergreen content even exist in this day and age? In the era of rapid tech developments, it’s almost like things can change by the time a blogger finishes typing their entry. While this may be true to a degree, every industry and niche has those topics that are not subject to constant changes, be it past events or the fundamentals. Evergreen content is superior in the sense that it has no expiration date. It can, if written well, bring in readers regardless of the year on the calendar. Nevertheless, it’s worth taking a glance at your past evergreen content from time to time in case adjustments are necessary. Having to tweak it a bit is still far from writing a new article from scratch, so it’s clear that putting you’re A-game in these articles is well worth your time.
Combine different media
Once again, knowing your audience is paramount. If you are aware that their favourite pastime is certainly not reading huge blocks of dry text, spice up your blog with other media. Today, video is king, but even if you cannot provide that, simply using pictures can boost engagement immensely. Visual imagery will also add another layer to the emotional impact of your writing so putting ample thought into picking the right image is recommended.
Conclusion
There is no cookie-cutter solution to the perfect blog post. We can give you the directions, but you will have to figure the path out yourself. However, it is definitely possible (and in fact, encouraged) to balance SEO rules and your own original approach, so good luck.
