Writing a blog post can be a lot like creating a landing page. You have a specific action you want the reader to take such as buying, subscribing, sharing or clicking through to some other link. There are headlines and subheadings to grab and keep your reader’s attention. Having the right structure for your blog post can mean it going viral or going nowhere. <-[Tweet This]
Derek Halpern of Social Triggers has come up with a structure for what he calls The Perfect Blog Post.
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Here are the 9 areas of the perfect blog post and what Derek says about them.
1. Headline – Goal = Grab Attention
Your headline gets read more than anything else on your website. That’s why your headline serves one goal: grab attention so people feel compelled to read your opening.
2. Opening – Key Insight #1
Direct marketers have long known that if you get people to read your first 3-4 sentences, they’re more likely to read your entire article. That said, the point of your opening is to get people to read your opening… and that’s it.
3. Half-Width Image – Key Insight #2
When people make snap decisions about text, they prefer fewer characters per line (CPL). The half-width image shortens the line length of the opening – fewer CPL – thus enticing people to read because it caters to their preferences.
4. Sub-Head – Big Promise #1
This sub-headline has one main goal… to entice people to read your first piece of content and that’s it. How? Make a promise to your readers… give them a benefit.
5. Content – Connect Emotionally
Your first piece of content should aim to trigger an emotion in your reader. When people get emotional, they pay attention. They’re also more likely to take action after being put into an emotional state.
6. CTA 1 – The Soundbite
Use a click to tweet “quote” right here. Why? Who do people quote? People quote authorities. Enticing people to quote you positions you as an authority. Plus, people like tweeting quotes and you’ll get more traffic from social media as a result of it.
7. Sub-Head – Big Promise #2
Here’s where you promise people exactly what they’ll learn… the step-by-step method… the how to. You already connected. Now’s the time to get people to take action.
8. Content – The How To Section
Give people practical, easy to implement advice. Get people results and they’ll remember you forever. Also, practically useful content is more viral than other types of content.
9. CTA 2 – Buy or Subscribe?
Here’s where you close out your article with another call to action. You can include a “buy now” CTA or a “subscribe.” I often use subscribe.
Is This The Perfect Blog Post Structure?
What do you think of this blog post structure? Is it something you would use on your own blogs?
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