AN EASY, STEP-BY-STEP OVERVIEW TO MAKE BLOG POSTS THAT GET READ Blogging has become a huge part of having a successful website. Especially in Business to Business sales, having a good blog can bring sales to your doorstep. Additionally, blogging can answer those questions you get from customers and clients over and over and over again. In fact, that's how I have come up with my most successful posts. It turns out there are usually thousands of other people out there looking for answers to that question too. Follow these steps and track the amount of views your blog posts receive. You won't be disappointed. If you do really well, some of those views should turn into paying customers! Download the free checklist PDF to help you remember these steps. 1. will the topic add value?Before you do anything, make sure the topic of your blog post matches your target audience. It helps to imagine your IDEAL customer. What are they typing into that search bar? What blog post would they click on? What topic would be most valuable to them? Can you add a unique perspective? Will this make them trust you more and more likely to buy from you? 2. clearly Represent the content in the titleDon't mislead people with your title. Also, don't leave out an important piece of information from your title. Keep it down to 50ish characters, but be specific! The title is the main thing that will influence a reader's decision to click or not. It is also an important part of your search ranking. Don't skimp on your title! 3. Format main text header as [h1] or "Heading 1"This one might sound daunting if you're not used to writing posts online, but stay with me! The first line of your blog post should be a sub-heading to the title. In the top left of your text editor-- if you're using WordPress-- there will be a box that says "Paragraph" usually. Change that box to say "Heading 1". There are variations on what this might be called on different themes and text editors. They will almost always be called Heading 1 or H1. This allows search engines to better identify what your post is about. That's a good thing. 4. format subheadings as [h2] or "Heading 2"Okay. Now you should be a pro at changing text from "Paragraph" to "Header 1". Right? Well, if not you're about to get more practice. In the same box, there are other heading options. The numbered parts of this list would fall under that "Heading 2" category. Again, this helps search engines (like Google) know what the body of your content is about. Don't skip this step. It might sound complicated, but stick it out until you find that little box if you're having trouble. It's a worthwhile change to make. 5. Add a personal touch at the end and a clear, valuable call to actionOnce you've placed your written content into the main section of the post, it's time to tie things up. Don't hit publish yet! You're not done. At the end of EVERY POST you should be adding some kind of personal touch. Especially if your post was sourced from another platform. That touch can be as simple as suggesting the reader reach out to you if they want to know more. This is what we refer to as a "Call To Action". Think about what your reader is going to do when they are done with your post. By adding a call to action at the end, you can help direct their attention to your email list or to contact you. Whatever your call to action is, just make sure it exists! 6. Upload a rectangular featured imageThis one can get overlooked pretty easily. On the far right column there is a "Featured Image" box. When you share your post other places on the internet, those places will look here first for an image. If they don't find it they'll use your logo or another image from the site. Most social media sites use rectangular previews. Use an image that is rectangular for the best results across platforms. Want to REALLY be sure your image won't look bad? Make sure the main part of the image is in the center so it will still look good if it gets cropped to a square. Don't just go using whatever images you find on Google Images or Facebook. Those have copyright that could get you in a lot of trouble. Use a royalty free stock photo site like Pikwizard and just pick images that aren't in the sponsored section for some free options! 7. Publish your postOkay. NOW you can publish your post :) Hit that bright blue publish button when you're ready. Don't fret too much. You can always come back and edit the post later. 8. Share with your email listWriting the post isn't enough anymore. Very few people will stumble upon your blog. Even Google wants to see people going to your post before it is likely to rank you very high on the listings. If you have an email list (even if it's just friends and business colleagues), send your post out to that group first. Don't be timid about it. Remember, you chose this topic because it could provide value! 9. Share on Social MediaFinally share that blog post on social media! Don't just spam it out everywhere, but don't be afraid to share it either. Think about the best place to post based on your target audience. Trying to reach other professionals? Post it to LinkedIn. Trying to reach younger people? Post it to Instagram-- but you'll have to post it as a link in your bio section and post an image with a summary. Too much? Just post it to Facebook. Trying to reach politically active people? Post it to Twitter. Each social media website has a different reason people visit. Think about what people are there for and post things that they might actually like to read! Add a little message when posting rather than sharing the link. Ask them to read it! You'd be surprised how much that little call to action can achieve. Bonus: Share it againThis might seem counter-intuitive to the "don't spam" advice, but you can share your posts more than once. It seems wrong, but there's very little harm in posting the same blog post a few times throughout the month. If it's relevant longer than that, then keep posting! Don't assume that everyone that follows you will see the post every time you post it. Just spread the posts out and schedule them for different times of the day so you can catch a different group of users. 
Any questions not answered in this post?
I'm here to help! Comment below or send me an email at craiginzana@gmail.com I do my best to get back to every message as soon as possible.
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