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blog tips

5 Elements Of A Killer Blog Post

January 18, 2018 by Marc Guberti Leave a Comment

wordpress blog

The web is filled with countless blog posts. While many exist, only a select few stand out from the crowd. These are the killer blog posts, the ones we simply cannot ignore. We have to read them from start to finish and then read some more.

Creating these types of blog posts will increase the amount of time people spend on your blog, and that helps with getting more leads and sales. As you write your next blog post, make sure you incorporate these 5 elements that result in killer blog posts.

 

#1: You Did Your Research

People love research. They love when you can provide a statistic demonstrating your concept in action. Buffer goes into incredible detail about their researching process, but it all comes down to reading as much as you can.

The next time you read a blog post you enjoyed, save the link and categorize it in a document. The more of these types of links you categorize, the easier it is for you to find relevant articles that support your next blog post idea.

Keeping a document with all of those links will boost your productivity and make it easier for you to write a killer blog post. You should keep a document containing your blog posts and other people’s blog posts. That way, you have a solid mix of inbound and outbound links.

Inbound links keep people on your site longer and results in a lower bounce rate. Outbound links result in a better SEO ranking since Google sees you’re promoting high profile websites.

Get into the habit of saving every article you read on the web. You can link them in a blog post later.

 

#2: You Provide Anecdotes And/Or Examples

storytelling

People love stories. Our entire culture is built around them. Anecdotes and stories make your concepts seem more real. Talking about your journey or showing someone else’s journey gives your audience someone to relate to.

Personal stories are especially powerful as they allow your audience to know more about you. The more personal stories you tell, the more likable you become. Don’t confuse this type of person story with the fellows who can only talk about themselves and their glory days.

The personal stories and anecdotes are rarely the focus of the blog post (unless you state that from the beginning, i.e. titling the blog post “My Blogging Journey” or something similar). They are usually meant to support concepts instead of becoming the center pieces.

 

#3: You Go Deep Into What You Talk About

This blog post can be half the length. Some people can squeeze all of their knowledge into a concise format. However, as you lengthen your blog posts, you can expand on more concepts and provide more value with each blog post you write.

If I only wrote one paragraph for each tactic I discussed, this blog post wouldn’t provide nearly as much value as it’s currently providing.

In addition, writing blog posts like these isn’t just about identifying tactics and concepts. The other essential is to prove the concepts. When I mention that you should do more research for your blog posts, I demonstrated the power of research by including a variety of links in that portion of the blog post.

Many of the top bloggers go deep into each blog post. In fact, these bloggers spend several hours to finish a single blog post.

Kevin Lee from Buffer even broke down where he efforts go towards writing a blog post. Notice how about 33% of his time goes towards writing the blog post.

blog post breakdown

If you only write content for your blog post but do nothing else, you’re missing out on all of the extra things that make a blog post so great.

 

#4: Craft An Epic Headline

Blog headlines are critical for your success as a blogger. Many readers use the headline alone to determine whether they should read your content or not. If you wrote a complete masterpiece, but you used a bad headline, few people will read that post.

HubSpot recommends some tactics for coming up with attention-grabbing headlines, but it comes down to practice. The most important tactic is to write multiple headlines for a single blog post. I write 5-10 headlines before I choose the headline that works best for me.

The headline doesn’t determine the value of your content, but it is the primary indicator of perceived value. Once you get people’s attention with a headline, all you have to do is ensure your blog post lives up to the hype.

 

#5: Make Your Content Skimmable

We are afraid of the 5-line paragraph, and we appreciate the 1-liners. The shorter you make your paragraphs, the easier it is for people to skim through your content.

You can also change the font (bold, italicize, or underline) to make certain tactics, words, and sentences stand out. Most people who read a blog post have their hand on the scroller.

Chances are you scrolled right down to this part in a hurry. If you didn’t do it this time, you’ll do it very soon (probably next time).

One way to prevent your audience from skimming through your content from start to finish is to include pictures throughout your content. The pictures give your visitors a break from a series of small walls of text.

To get into the flow of writing skimmable content, start by reading all of the blog posts you write, word for word. If you find it difficult to read a certain part of your blog post, that means you either need a picture or a shorter paragraph.

 

In Conclusion

Killer blog posts provide an intense amount of value to your audience and give your visitors multiple reference points. These reference points keep people on your blog for a longer period of time while bringing attention to other people’s content on the web.

You’ll get better as you keep practicing. I recommend writing a blog post every day to turn content creation into a consistent habit.

What are your thoughts on writing a killer blog post? Do you have any tips for us? Do you have a question for me? Sound off in the comments section below.

Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: blog tips, content creation

The Six Main Reasons Why Most Blogs Don’t Make Money

February 23, 2015 by Marc Guberti 2 Comments

Why Blogs Do Not Make Money

It is a well-known fact that a majority of blogs (about 90%) make little to no revenue. The saying that 10% of the people in the world make 90% of the revenue is similar to the blogging model. A handful bloggers are making the bulk of the profits.

The main reason many blogs are not making money is because most bloggers do not know how to effectively make money with their blogs. All these bloggers need is the right knowledge and the ability to implement that knowledge. This blog post will identify six of the main reasons why most blogs don’t make any money. Then, it is up to you to act upon this knowledge so your blog can become successful.

 

#1: No Traffic

One of the most common reasons why blogs do not make revenue is because they do not generate traffic. Without traffic, no one will know who you are. You can write the best blog posts on the web and provide your visitors with the best products, but that won’t matter if your blog does not get any visitors. This article goes into detail about several methods you can use to increase your blog traffic.

 

#2: No Subscribers

Having no subscribers for your blog is another telltale sign that your blog is in trouble. The money is in the list. That’s what the bloggers with six figure incomes say. You need to optimize your blog so it converts more of your readers into subscribers. Of course, your blog needs to get traffic to get more subscribers, but not all popular blogs get numerous subscribers.

There was a point when I got over 500 daily visitors but only 1-2 subscribers every month. That was not because my content was bad (you, as the reader, are the judge of that). Instead, it was because I poorly optimized my blog for collecting email addresses. When I started to optimize my blog, I quickly went from gaining 1-2 subscribers every month to gaining 10-20 subscribers every day. You can learn some of the methods I use to gain subscribers in this article.

[tweetthis twitter_handles=”@MarcGuberti” url=”http://bit.ly/1yPt2VJ”]Your email list is a big part of your success as a blogger.[/tweetthis]

#3: No Social Proof

Regardless of whether you sell products, promote other people’s products, or make money with advertisements, you must have social proof to make you stand out from the crowd. Social proof indicates that you are popular, and people love to gravitate towards popular things. If you see enough people doing or buying something, you may follow through in that process (sometimes, it is this action that can bring negative consequences, but this knowledge is useful for marketers). Would you rather go to the #1 restaurant in the world or the restaurant that opened for the first time? Would you rather hear advice from Bill Gates or some random entrepreneur? Would you rather buy products from successful individuals or individuals who are starting out?

 

#4: No Income Streams

One of the worst mistakes a blogger can make is having no income streams set up on his blog. Income streams allow bloggers to bring in revenue that make it possible to become a full-time blogger. There are a variety of income streams to choose from. You can create your own training courses, write your own books, promote other people’s products as an affiliate, and do a variety of other things to create more income streams for yourself.

 

#5: No Products

Some people, in a quick rush to have an income stream on their blogs, often stuff their blogs with affiliate links. First off, you should only use a few affiliate links. Overstuffing your blog with affiliate links will look like a desperate plead for the sale, and it will ruin your blog’s reading experience. Instead, you need to create products. Creating your own products leads to more sales, higher commissions (maybe even a 100% commission), and most importantly, a strong relationship to build between you and the customer.

 

#6: Reliance On Advertisements

I understand that some bloggers make strong incomes from their advertisements. However, these bloggers are typically the ones with hundreds of thousands of monthly visitors. Most bloggers are lucky if they earn over $10/month from their advertisements. The revenue generated from advertisements is generally low since few blogs are getting hundreds of thousands of monthly visitors.

In addition to producing a low revenue, advertisements also take your readers away from your blog. Instead of promoting an advertisement on your blog, why not promote one of your products? That way, the relationship between you and your readers will be strengthened. People want to see you and what you stand for, not another car ad that generates $0.02 per click.

 

In Conclusion

Making money on a blog is not an overnight success. Yes, another blogger said the same phrase, and it might drive you crazy. When I was a newbie and read other bloggers’ articles every day about blogging, the tip almost every blogger said was that blogging is not an overnight success.

It drove me crazy just as much as it might be driving you crazy. However, realizing that blogging is not an overnight success represents a simple approach instead of a complex one. That one sentence represents a simple approach that says, “Don’t give up on the journey you wish you pursue with your blog.”

It is important for you to avoid making these same mistakes. If you are making these mistakes on your blog, the first thing you need to do is fix them. Just launch your own product. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Then, launch another one and improve the process as you go. Grow your traffic and convert more of that traffic into subscribers. Build your social proof. And don’t forget to stop relying on those pesky advertisements all together. They drive your readers away from your blog.

Which of these mistakes do you make? Do you have any other suggestions for bloggers who want to make more money? Please share your thoughts and advice below.

Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: blog tips, blogging, how to make money with a blog

The 3 Things Your Contest Must Do

October 2, 2013 by Marc Guberti 3 Comments

More people are hosting their own contests. More people are talking about creative ways to host contests and how to host them on various social networks. However, no matter which social network you use, your contest should be able to benefit you in some way. If you’re giving something away, you should get something in return.

These are the 3 things you need to focus on when it comes to hosting your own contest:

  1. Get more shares on the social network. This can mean more likes, repins, retweets, revines (depending on the social network you are using), and so on. If people share your contest on their social networks, friends and followers will learn about your contest. More people share your message, and more people enter for a chance to win.
  2. Get more followers that stick around. It’s unquestionable that hosting your own contest will get you more followers on your social networks. However, are these followers going to stick around once your competition ends? In order to get followers that stick around, make sure you frequently post updates similar to the prize you’re giving away. If you’re giving away an iPad, talking about technology would help you get followers that stick. If you review books, giving away a book will allow you to get followers that will stick around. Then, you can be sure your followers won’t just bounce back and forth to this contest and that contest.
  3. Get more subscribers for your blog. Did you check your email today? You probably did. A majority of people do the same thing. Some people check their inboxes right when they see the red circle indicating they got a new message. What if some of those messages were emails about your latest blog posts. Social networks are giant places, and it’s easy for people to get lost on them. One profile looks good today, but another profile will look even better tomorrow. At the end of your contest, you can say something like, “Subscribe to my blog for more updates about future contests and free resources as well.” This allows you to create a list, and as the contest progresses, that list gets bigger.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: blog, blog tips, business, business tip, social media

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I am a business freelance writer who writes for individuals, small businesses, and corporations. My content will help drive engagement and sales to your business. I have produced content for several companies, including…

  • Upwork
  • MoneyLion
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  • Westchester Business Journal
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