Build a Better Blog with These 6 Essential Ingredients

There are two kinds of bloggers in the world: the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants blogger, and the planner. Pants bloggers post when the mood strikes, write about a wide variety of subjects, and hope for the best. Planners have a system. They have a schedule, clear guidelines about subject matter, and are consistent in their marketing efforts.

You’ve probably already figured out that planners tend to build a better blog. Which one are you?

Does Your Blog Post Have a Purpose?

Knowing what you want to achieve with your blog post (and your blog) is the first step in forming a plan. Your blog can be entertaining, informative, incite controversy, sell a service or product, or encourage people to think differently. But unless you know what your purpose is in writing, you aren’t likely to achieve any of those objectives.

Do You Know Your Keywords?

Keywords not only help searchers find your blog, they also help you write your blog. Keeping your primary keyword in the front of your mind while you brainstorm topics and outline post ideas will help you stay focused, and make your blog easier for readers to connect with.

Did You Craft a Compelling Title?

I use an RSS reader to keep track of blogs I like to read. The trouble is, there are far more blogs in my reader (167 at last count) than I have time to read, so I scan the titles to see what looks most interesting. You might have

written a fascinating article discussing the merits of veganism, but if your title is “Why Meat is Bad for Your Health” I’m not going to read it. “17 Ways Meat Will Kill You Before You Retire,” though, will have me on your page before you can say free range chickens.

Did You Write a Meta Description?

This one is just for those who come to your blog via a search engine. It’s that short bit of text that Google serves up just under your title and before your URL, and if you don’t tell Google what text to use, it will simply pull an excerpt from your page. Better to retain control by writing your own if you can, but try to keep it under about 160 characters.

Did You Include an Image?

It’s not critical (though the alt attribute is a good place for keywords), but including an image is a good way to add interest to the page, and it gives the reader a place to “rest” her eyes. You can also use pull quotes, block quotes, bullet points, and subheadings to break up the text and make it more readable.

Do You Have a Strong Call to Action?

This is arguably (copywriters and SEO guys will disagree) the most important part of every blog post. The call to action tells the reader what to do next. Leave a comment. Click here for more information. Sign up to receive updates. Whatever it is, you need to tell your reader. Don’t rely on them to guess what you want.

Building a better blog takes determination and consistency. Not every post you write needs to be meticulously planned and thoroughly marketed, but most of them should be.

So are you a pants blogger or a planner? Let us know in the comments.