When you started your blog, you were all fired up and sparking with ideas but now after a few months of hard slog, you’re finding it hard to maintain flames of inspiration. This is a common problem for would be bloggers, most of whom don’t understand that blogging is just another word for writing. Becoming a successful blogger means understanding the structure and format of successful articles.
The first step in writing a sizzling blog article is to decide on what type of article you’re writing. Then you can come up with an eye-catching headline. This is what’s going to make people open your post, so it’s important that you get it right. Here are five simple headlines that you can adapt to any professional environment.
Top 10 resources for …
This headline is a great start to a list-style article. Use it to capture the attention of readers who are looking for expert tips, solutions or advice. For example resources you can include in this type of article are articles and books or quotes from experts.
The benefit of writing a top 10 resources article is that it is relatively quick and easy to do once you’ve generated the idea. Find out more in this month’s free podcast Sizzling Headlines to Fire Up Your Blog Posts.
Hidden pluses of …
This headline style is usually used to introduce an opinion piece, in which you will reframe a problem into being something of benefit to your readership. For example, you could write hidden pluses of scrapping your New Year’s resolutions or not getting that promotion.
Start with a ‘hidden pluses’ headline when you want people to see you as someone who thinks differently from other experts.
Are you making this mistake?
If you want to build an audience of people who are success-orientated and solution-focussed, this is a great style of headline to employ. Topics which would lend themselves to this style of headline include “Are you making this fatal weight-loss mistake?” or “Are you making this wealth-creation mistake?”
Obviously, this style of headline lends itself well to writing solution focussed articles.
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7 reasons you should be … now
An opening statement like this attracts subscribers who want advice and tips. Give three or four really useful tips on how to go about doing it. Create a sense of intrigue by writing about topics which are hot for your audience. For example, you could write an article on “7 reasons you should be asking for a promotion now” or “5 reasons you should be using ‘why’ questions in meetings”.
Of course, you can vary the number of reasons you give. Seven is a good number to start an article with, because it tends to attract the reader’s eye.
Solve your problems with … today
This is another fabulous way to start an article which takes the reader from a problem to suggested tips and options for solutions. It’s important to think of the pain points your readers are likely to encounter in their jobs. Then brainstorm a list of these problems and choose one for the focus-point of your article. For example, solve your problems with angry customers today or solve your problems with migraine headaches this week.
In your article, be sure to cover practical strategies that your readers can use to solve their problems in real-life contexts. Get lots more tips on this in my free podcast, Sizzling Headlines to Fire Up Your Blog Posts.
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About the author of these tips
Eleanor Shakiba is passionate about helping talented women to break through barriers to success. She coaches and trains women who want to excel in business. Eleanor has been running professional development workshops for talented women since 1994. Eleanor is qualified in a range of fields including Social Anthropology, Applied Psychology, Adult Education and Neuro Linguistic Programming.