Archive for Writing Great Blog Content – Page 3

Better Blog Writing: Getting Hooked by Your Own Hook

Social engineering conceptIt must have been the coffee. But there I was at 5 a.m. looking for a “hook,” a magnetic headline that would draw readers into my client’s blog like bees to honey. The client needed a post that day, and I needed to write and edit what she’d given me quickly. After all, my morning tennis partners were waiting for me.

Eureka! I cried as I found a cleverly compelling hook, saved my post as a draft and ran off to the tennis courts. Only, when I returned to the office two hours later, my client had a left a message, “Uh, …it’s great except for the headline and lead. Call me back.”

I blame it on the coffee. The hook was indeed inspiring, only it had little to do with the message my client was trying to convey. But a little caffeine and dopamine in the brain can fool you into thinking your writing’s great – and never mind it’s missing the point. Read More→

Easy to Make Ebook and Blog Writing Mistakes

Writing-Pen

Here’s why it’s so easy to make these common ebook and blog writing mistakes:

Many small business professionals with a business blog are keenly interested in getting their message out there, and don’t care so much in writing “properly.”

Younger people, in particular, like to write like they talk. Speech can be a great way to convey personality. It’s more like jazz rather than a sonata.

When people use a lot of verbal expressions in online content, however, their readers have to work harder to understand the message.

Blog writing with a conversational tone is good for connecting with people, for sure. You should, however, make a concerted effort to follow grammar and writing rules that make your blog easier to read. Read More→

6 Easy Tips to Be a Better Blog Writer

BlogWritingHow can you get to be a better, faster blog writer?

Did the job of blogging or writing fall into your lap? Or have you been a professional writer for some time, who’s now transitioned into blogging for yourself or a business?

Bloggers come from all walks of life, that’s one thing that I know for sure.

Whether you’re a professional writer or not, here are some tips on how to be more productive and efficient when it comes to writing. No blogger is safe from the pitfalls of writers’ block or lack of inspiration.

Here are a few ways that you can work on becoming a faster and better blog writer, which will in turn free up your time:

  • Set yourself up for success.  Are you easily distracted? Clear your writing space of anything that might take your mind off of the task at hand. All I need to write is my PC, a notebook, and a pen. I have to keep everything else away if I hope to get anything done.
  • Plan your content before you start. Even if it’s just jotting down a few ideas before you get started, you’ll be happy you planned ahead when it comes time to start writing. Sitting down to a completely blank canvas can be stressful. Try to come up with some ideas about what you’ll write about ahead of time. Read More→

How to Blog without Boring Readers in the Holiday Season

HoidaySeasonsHow do you blog about the Holiday Season – without boring your readers?

It’s no secret that the holidays are upon us! With one less week between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year and Hanukkah already in full swing, the holidays have arrived.

So what does the holiday season mean for your blog? Several things! The holiday season provides a lot of opportunity for keyword-rich blogging.

  • Put your own spin on popular topics and it will help bring traffic to your site.
  • You can use this seasonal opportunity to feature charities that you support.
  • You can expand topics beyond your core business services to what truly matters in life. Read More→

Smart Business Blog Linking:
Top 25 Content Marketing Blogs

Blog-LinkingIf your business blog needs to get inbound links, here’s a prime example of how to do it. Pay attention to this tactic, it’s easy, it’s smart blog marketing and a great way to get other blogs linking to you, thereby improving your search rankings.

I’ve talked about creating your own Top 10 lists before, and it still makes sense, even more so given the way SEO works today.

Recently our blog here, WritingontheWeb.com showed up on a list of the Top 25 Must-Read Content Marketing Blogs. Well, we’re listed as #24, but hey! Who cares?

Author Jennifer Barry, who writes for Hubspot as well, says on the Writtent.com blog:

“The marketing industry is diverse and ever changing, and one of the easiest ways to stay on top is to read the most relevant and pertinent blogs. There are thousands of marketing blogs out there that focus on different aspects of the marketing industry from optimization, conversion, advertising, and content.” Read More→

Ghost Writers Needed: For Business Blogs Everywhere

Ghost-BloggersMany professional business blogs need ghost writers. How else can busy professionals maintain quality content and frequent publishing schedules?

What about you and your blog? How can you consistently publish on your professional business blog and never have to worry about coming up with ideas, researching facts and stats, and writing compelling, quality content that solves problems for your readers?

I’d like to tell you an easy answer, like, “All you need to do is outsource!” But it’s not at all easy to find quality ghost blog writers who understand your business and clients, is it?

Here are some other objections I hear from my blog consulting clients about outsourcing to ghost writers, along with my responses: Read More→

Why You Should Write Quality Blog Content

Best-Business-BlogQuality blog posts are key to your business getting found on the Web. While that may sound obvious – (“Of course, why would I write something ho-hum boring?”) it’s harder than you might think. Not everyone agrees on what quality content is.

Quality content scores high with readers, your target clients, and with search engines. If you want to get found, get known and get clients online, you need to write and publish quality blog posts that resonate with your readers.

There’s a lot of emphasis on publishing frequently. Most professionals and small business owners are told that once or twice weekly is a bare minimum. But none of that matters if what you write is boring, mediocre, confusing or poorly written and formatted.

What is quality content? Sure, you know it when you read it, but what are the essentials? It depends on who you’re writing for. As writer Ginny Soskey at Hubspot blog points out:

“There are lots of concrete principles of writing that can help determine the “quality” of a piece of content. Verb usage, spelling, sentence structure — these all have defined rules that, for the most part, have stayed pretty constant. It’s black and white. That is wrong; this is right. 

“Then there are the gray areas in writing. Stylistic preferences. Imagery. Storytelling.” Read More→

How to Find Great Blogs for Better Business Blogging

Reading-blogs.jpgWriting quality content is key for your business blog. Never stop focusing on  better business blogging. But what about reading great blogs yourself? It’s a great way of getting ideas and topic inspiration from other writers who have different views and perspectives.

Why do you need to find great blogs to follow? If you want to build a better business blog, this is key: you must read the other great blogs in your field, and some others as well. Why? It’s not only for inspiration.

  • You need to know what your readers might be reading.
  • What else is being published that can help solve their problems?
  • What else do your clients need to make their lives better?

When you find good info that’s helpful to your readers/clients, you’ll want to share that on your blog. In turn, this creates good blogger relations which can lead to reciprocal projects and posts.

And, this means search engine marketing linking possibilities. But you can’t reach that point if you’re not reading other great business blogs.

What kinds of blogs or other Internet publications do you read? Some of my favorites include cooking and baking blogs, and news sites like Huffington Post and Mashable and occasionally The Onion.

How do you find great blogs? Read More→

6 Content Marketing Rules for
Professionals on the Web

Content-Marketing-for-ProfessionalsFor busy professionals who want to get found on the Web, writing quality content that not only informs but generates business leads is a challenge. Most small businesses and professionals like doctors, psychologists and leadership coaches aren’t media or Internet experts. Many don’t even know what content marketing means.

I’m a big fan of the Content Marketing Institute and have followed its leader, Joe Pulizzi, since he first played the content marketing trombone and started leading the big parade. For any consultant and small business owner responsible for getting found online, CMI offers great advice.

Joe’s latest book, Epic Content Marketing, is a fine example. Written for both small businesses and global corporations, there are key content marketing principles to aim for. Here are six principles that anyone can and should apply to their writing, whether it be for for their business blog, e-newsletters, or e-books and websites.

I’ve taken each principle and adapted them for independent coaches and consultants, who are my ideal clients. Anytime you write content on the Web, your content should meet these principles:

  1. Fill a need. What problems do you solve for your clients? Most Internet users go online to either be entertained or educated. Your clients have challenges that you are uniquely qualified to help. Write quality content that does just that. Read More→

Common Mistakes Made by Beginning Bloggers
…and 5 Tips to Fix Them

How-to-BlogWhen you first start a business blog, it’s easy to make a few blogging mistakes. While it seems like nearly every business already has a blog, new blogs are popping up every day. If you’re just getting your blog up and running, here are a few common mistakes that can be detrimental before it gets off of the ground.

Seasoned bloggers are wise to take note of these tips as well; even the most professional of us can use a reminder every now and then!

Here are a few things not to do with your blog:

  1. Not making sure all of your content is original. While most of us understand the ramifications of plagiarism when it comes to writing papers in college, it can be more of a grey area when it comes to blogging. It is possible to get into legal trouble for stealing someone’s ideas and re-printing them word for word. Just be careful to keep your blogging original, even if you are taking inspiration from something that someone else wrote.
  2. Using recycled content. Many blogs do use the content of others, with due credit given. This is particularly true of things like news articles or announcements. While it’s fine to include things like this from time to time, don’t fill your site with outside content. Your readers will get bored quickly and abandon your blog for something better.
  3. Not writing about something you know. Picking a blog topic that is completely outside of your realm of expertise is unwise. Writing about something that you are interested in and are familiar with will come across to your readers as more natural. That’s not to say that you can’t explore new topics, just make sure that you understand that your blog readers want to see you as an expert.
  4. Not researching what you’re writing about. In addition to checking out your competitors, you can also see what topics in your planned area of expertise have already been beaten to death, so to speak. Coming up with a new spin on an old topic or touching on an issue in your field that hasn’t been covered much is more likely to gain readers for your blog.
  5. Not making sure your blog is visually interesting. A good layout is key to get people to come back and keep reading. Seasoned bloggers are wise to evaluate their visual interest occasionally as well. Another way to keep people interested is to use lots of images, graphics, and infographics.

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About our Guest Author:

Megan Totka is the Chief Editor for ChamberofCommerce.com. She specializes on the topic of small business tips and resources. ChamberofCommerce.com helps small businesses grow their business on the web and facilitates connectivity between local businesses and more than 7,000 Chambers of Commerce worldwide.