By Nikki Viljoen – Viljoen Consulting (Pty) Ltd
There’s very little, in terms of feeling a great sense of achievement, as writing the last word in your article or blog. It really gives me a sense of wellbeing that carries me well into the remainder of my day.
Checking my spelling and my grammar is something that I do as a matter of course. That said though, I have recently become more aware of a few more elements that are needed to ensure that my blog gets read by as many people as possible. As much as the feeling is absolutely great when you complete the blog, so too is it absolutely devastating, when you look at the statistics and see that no-one has read the article or blog. That can be absolutely soul destroying!
So how can we fix this?
Think about this for a moment. As we travel around town, to and from our places of work, to a meeting or indeed, just going to the local mall, we see the newspaper headlines that are strung from lampposts or advertisements up on billboards everywhere. The headlines are designed specifically to entice us to buy the newspaper or buy whatever is being advertised. So too, must our headlines (or titles if you will), entice the readers to read our blogs or websites.
The headline is very important – it must pack a punch, it must captivate the imagination, it must magnetically pull the reader in.
Having the right headline (or title) can actually mean the difference between having your blog being read by a multitude of people and not being read at all.
For me, part of my test is to read the blog out loud. This means the headline as well. Read it out loud and then ask yourself a few questions. What picture does it paint in your head? Does it make you want to read more? Does it capture and hold your attention? Does it draw you in and make you feel like you are a part of the whole story?
The next question is this – I use ‘Google’ to search what I am looking for, but it doesn’t really matter which search engine you use – if your headline was in the line up (of whatever it is that you are looking for), would you be compelled to click on it before you clicked on any of the others? If you really are stumped and you can’t think of a suitable headline, ask a friend. Brainstorm! Throw it out there and see what comes back at you. You will be amazed at the amount of help there is and even more amazing is the fact that as you practice your writing, your skill at writing will improve immensely.
Next week we will have a look at a few more points on how to write a great blog.
Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za or http://www.viljoenconsulting.co.za
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