Blogs can be an integral part of a company’s marking efforts, yet they often fail due to poor SEO and marketer’s inability to maintain them. So how can you ensure your blog posts are reaching your target audience and generating traffic that can be turned into leads? We’re going to go over some of the fundamentals of blogs including what they are, what makes a good blog post, and how to write one.

Blog posts allow your business to publish insights, thoughts, and stories on your website about any topic of your choosing. They’re intended to help boost traffic, stimulate brand awareness, create conversations, and ultimately bring in revenue. There are many different kinds of blogs, and some of the most popular blog formats include:

• “How-To” Blogs
• “What Is” Blogs
• List-Based Blogs
• Infographic Blogs

What Makes a Good Blog Post?

Blogs should benefit readers in some way in order to entice them to keep reading and come back for more. A good place to start is by curating topics your audience would benefit from reading about, they should answer questions and help readers resolve a challenge they’re experiencing. The introduction should grasp the reader’s attention, then continue to provide actionable steps and examples to keep your readers interested in what you have to say.

How to Write a Blog Post

Now that you understand the purpose of a blog post, let’s break down how to write one.

Understanding Your Audience

Understanding your audience is crucial in order to produce content curated for them. What is it they want to know about? Your buyer persona can help you determine the demographics of your audience, too. If your buyer personas are millennials, you may want to develop blogs from a more casual, personal approach as that language will translate better. Having that personal understanding of who you’re writing for can make a big difference in the response rate of a blog.

Create a Blog Domain

Choosing a content management system (CMS) is your next step in writing blogs. A CMS helps you create a website domain (where you create your website) and subdomains (where you create a webpage that connects to an existing website). HubSpot, WordPress and DreamHost are a few popular websites that host web content such as blogs.

Customize the Theme of Your Blog

Once you have your domain set up, you can customize the appearance of your blog to reflect the theme of your content that aligns with your brand. It’s important to include your logo or business name to ensure readers know who is publishing the content, as well as an “about” page, which should include a blurb or mission statement that describes your business.

Create a Topic

Creating a topic for your blog will give you a better idea of how to format your blog and bring it to fruition. To start, think of the kinds of products or services you provide and refer back to the blog formats we discussed earlier. For example, a company that sells golf equipment could create a list-based blog detailing top raked golf clubs.

Create an Outline

Most blogs that fail have too much information or stray too far from the intended topic. You want to organize the information in a way that readers won’t be intimidated by the length or amount of content. Creating an outline can help you better organize your thoughts and ideas to avoid getting off topic, and when it’s time to start writing, you’ll know what points to cover and the best order of operations to write in.

Include a CTA

Once you’ve compiled your blog into a piece of content you’re happy with, you’ll want to include a Call to Action (CTA) at the end of your blog. This indicates what you want the reader to do next, whether it be subscribing to your blog, registering for a webinar or signing up for a free trial. Readers who want to learn more are provided with the opportunity to do so, which provides your business with a lead that could become a potential customer.