12 Rules for Writing a Great Blog

As a ghostwriter and ghost-blogger, people pay me to write for them. This means I cannot write sloppily, even if I’m tired. I cannot wait for the Muse to strike, because I have deadlines. My blog posts need to be compelling, powerful, sometimes funny, and most of all moving. Every time. 

This isn’t easy. To make it easier, I came up with 12 rules for writing blog posts, which I try to follow. (I’m not perfick, so I don’t always follow them all.) If you’re struggling to keep up with writing your blog, you might be interested in my rules. Here they are: 

1.  Not too long! 

Blog posts are usually from 200 to 500 words.  Rarely more than 800 words. Any longer, and people tend to skim or skip them. They look like too much work. If you have more to say, write an article, and if you have a lot more to say, write a book.  When writing a blog post, be succinct, clear, and get your point across fast. The web is not made for leisurely reading. Think of your readers hopping like fleas from one blog to another; a sip of blood here, another sip there. If the blood is tasty, they might stay longer, but you know the old saying – the blood is always redder on the other blog. (Actually I made that up.) 

2.  Be yourself. You’re not a corporation or a king.

You are an individual, writing for other individuals, no better and probably no worse than you. It’s your job to connect with them on a personal level so they feel they know you. Whenever possible, use “I” and “you”. Share your opinions. Share bits of your story. Relate points of your post to your own life if possible. If your blog is for an organization, you can use the royal “we” but make sure your readers know who the “we” represents. And don’t pontificate and don’t preach. Don’t be a know-it-all. Do you really know it all? Of course you don’t, no one does. And no one likes one, either. 

3.  Be funny, and if you can’t be funny, be wry.

Humor attracts. You don’t have to make your readers hurt their cheek muscles, but a snort or two is good. A self-deprecating sense of humor, poking a little fun at your own missteps, often makes people like you. They’ll want to keep reading just to see what you’ll say next – so they can repeat it to their friends and sound funny themselves. Who doesn’t like to laugh?

4.  Know your readers and what they want, not what you think they need.

You may think everyone should be interested in what you have to say – but this isn’t real. Be clear on who you are writing for. What do your readers care about? Who are most likely to be attracted to your subject? Who do you really want to reach? Men or women? Young, middle-aged, older?  From a specific geographic area? Working in certain industries?  Describe your readers to yourself. Your information must be valuable to them. If it’s not, they won’t read it. Even if they read it once, they won’t come back if your message doesn’t help them visualize any benefits. It must be applicable and relevant to your readers, so they can relate it to their own lives.

5.  Know your field – its past, present and future.

Tie blog posts to current happenings in your field. This requires research – you’d better know what is new and exciting. You’ll should read other blogs from the same industry, or browse Facebook pages of people interested in this topic, or read industry magazines, e-zines or newsletters. Discuss the history of your field, and why it is the way it is. Take a position on controversies. Ask for feedback from your readers – do they agree with you or think you’re a fool?

6. Use sensory detail.

If you always use generalities instead of specifics, if you always tell and never show, don’t be surprised if your readers yawn and move on. Your readers’ emotions are activated if they feel they are “really there.” Don’t write “flower”, write “daffodil”. Don’t write “we jumped in the car and took off”, write “we jumped in the Jaguar and sped off” or “we piled in the pick-up truck and rattled away.” And don’t get stuck on how things look – remember you have at least five senses. Include what it smells like, feels like, sounds like, tastes like. Sensory details elicit emotions, leading to action or change.

7. Tell stories.

 “Reality TV” is popular because people are fascinated by true stories. Most of the great teachers and leaders in history have been good storytellers. Tell a story in a way that captures attention – solve a mystery, master a challenge, conquer a problem, avert a crisis.  If your blog mentions products or services, tell stories of those who use those products and services, and how they changed as a result. Interview customers, employees, subscribers, or fans, and let them tell their stories in relation to your topic. 

8. Call to action.

What do you want your reader to do, learn, or give you? An email address and permission to add them to your list? Order a free report? Give you a testimonial? Or make a comment on your blog and start a conversation? (A call to action does not mean you write variations on the theme of “Buy My Stuff!” ) 

9. Propitiate the Google Gods.

I haven’t yet said anything about SEO or any of that techie-stuff. That’s because although you must know some techie stuff, it’s much less important than the content. It doesn’t matter how many folks you attract if your blog isn’t valuable, interesting, or fun to read, because they won’t do what you want them to do, and they probably won’t come back. That’s not to say SEO isn’t important. It is. But to write SEO-friendly isn’t that hard. If you know your topic, you already know which key words, key phrases, and common questions that people are apt to type into a Search. You’re an expert, remember. Make sure you use these words and phrases in your post.  The best places are in headers, sub-headers, and the first few lines of your post. But do not overdo it – remember, the most important thing is a well constructed message, not a bunch of key words and phrases flung together. The keywords should not disrupt the natural flow of your writing; they should enhance your message, not distract from it. If the term SEO scares you, remind yourself that you are writing for the human who is reading your post, not the search engine algorithm that discovers it.

10.  Be generous.

Link to other blogs and websites. This will increase your readers’ knowledge, introducing them to others who may be valuable to them, which in turn increases their appreciation of you. This is also a way to engender good feeling with other bloggers in your industry, and they might reciprocate in kind, and hyperlink to you.  The use of hyperlinks also may help to boost your SEO rankings. Win-win-win all around.

11.  Tweet your blog.

For every new blog post, tweet about it, including a link to the post. How to write good tweets is a whole other subject, but my number one rule for tweet writing is – Be Funny and Useful. This isn’t always possible, and never easy in less than 140 characters.  (Yes, less than 140 characters – you have to leave room for others to ReTweet.)

12.  Comment and respond.

Okay, now you’re writing great blog posts, so you can relax, right?  Not so fast.  Blogging is an interactive medium.  Your blog post is only the first step.  Now you need to comment on other blogs, with backlinks to yours. Comment on blogs which are complementary with yours, or even on your competitors’. Don’t be afraid to comment on “big” or popular blogs. Your opinion is valuable – you’re an expert, remember?  That’s why you won’t make inane or blah comments like “Good blog.”  Contribute something valuable, something that adds to peoples’ knowledge. Again, be generous. And don’t forget your own blog – if someone comments on your blog, you need to answer them. Keep the conversation going. This is how you convert readers into real people, people you know and who know you.

A final note: what’s the hardest thing about writing blog posts – or writing anything, for that matter? It takes time!  Coming up with new topic ideas takes time, researching your readers takes time, staying up to date on your industry takes time, interacting with your readers takes time.  And writing well takes time. If you want good content that moves people, the writing must be powerful, compelling, and stick with the readers so they remember you and come back for more. That’s why people pay me to do what I do.