Family dinners, vacations and blog writing. Think about the planning that goes into each of these activities.
Take the family dinner for example; think of all the planning that goes into that party. Menu planning, grocery shopping and house cleaning are only the start. Doing these tasks in the right order keeps the budget in line and ensures you won’t have living room dust in your glass.
Blog writing takes a plan of attack as well!
Let’s start by assuming that you have a great topic and you’ve written it all down. Now the fun part really starts. Here’s a step-by-step plan to make the most of your post!
Capture!
Capturing the attention of your reader is vital to ensuring they stick around and read your post, not just the opening paragraph!
Tip #1 – Title. Capture the attention of potential readers with a snappy, punchy title. People are wired to be drawn to numbered lists:
- 10 Reasons to Visit __________,
- 9 Must-See ____________,
- 8 Exclusive__________.
Not sure how effective your title is? You can test it here. Other headline formulas include addressing Problems & Fears, Secrets, Tricks of the Trade and….more ideas here.
Tip #2 – Feature Image. Your Feature Image (that large photo at the top of your blog post) will capture the attention of visual fans. Picture this; a fan is scrolling thru their newsfeed and your blog feature image wakes them up and causes them to tap and read.
Bonus tip: add the title of your blog post to your feature image so that readers better understand why they need to click and read.
Tip #3 – Read More. Keep a reader on your site longer by adding a section at the bottom of your blog labeled “Related Articles”. Once your reader’s attention is captured and they’ve read your article, they’ll be dying to read more from you. Provide 2-3 related blog posts under the “Related Articles” heading and watch your analytics skyrocket. (See how it looks at the end of this post.)
Tip #4 – White Space. As you’re formatting your blog post, ensure there’s plenty of white space within the article. White space in the form of short sentences, enumerated paragraphs and font size captures and keeps fans happily engaged and reading more. (Is it working here?)
Tip #5 – Pop-up Box. Capture attention and contact info from your readers with a well-designed pop-up box. We’ve all seen these ever popular (sometimes annoying) pop-up boxes. What keeps them from being annoying is their timing. Ensure yours pops up after a reader has had a chance to see some content and realize how spectacular it is. Here’s some examples.
Tip #6 – Email. How can your email signature line help? How about changing your email signature line as soon as your latest blog post goes live. This will alert every person you email about the topic of your newest post. Remember to create a hyperlink within your email signature directing readers to the blog URL.
Capturing attention in the first couple of minutes takes a bit of advance planning and following the steps above gives you a roadmap for success. Once you have your own unique pattern and plan you’ll find your writing goes much more quickly.
Like planning a dinner party, the devle is in the details.
What steps do you take to capture attention for your blog?
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About Catherine Heeg
Catherine Heeg is a recognized social media trail blazer passionate about social media and marketing in the tourism and hospitality industry.
She creates and delivers meaningful, dynamic workshops that meet your unique needs in the Travel, Tourism & Hospitality Industry. She and her team help travel, tourism and hospitality pros design and implement social media marketing strategies and tactics that drive traffic to their social and web sites. Learn more…
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