How to Start a Blog Post: Hook Your Readers in 30 Seconds |
Posted: June 4, 2019 |
How to Start a Blog Post: Hook Your Readers in 30 Seconds
According to Forbes, the average adult reads at 300 words per minute. Divide that into 150 words and you have a generous 30 seconds to keep your readers reading. Before we get into writing your first blog post introduction with a strategy in mind, I want you to think about why people read blogs. Sometimes it’s to be entertained, but the vast majority is to get helpful information to solve a problem. Think about it. When you go to Google, you probably type in a query with a solution in mind like “best chicken recipes”, “1-year-old birthday ideas” or maybe even “how to start a blog post.” If someone clicks through to your blog, you can either leave them with something about what you wore yesterday or something that they can instantly get value from. Here’s how: 1. IDENTIFY A PAIN POINT.The first step is to identify a pain point. A pain point is something that the audience you want to attract struggles with. For new moms, that might be putting your child to sleep. For new dads, it might be finding work-life balance. For business owners, it might be attracting people to their website. After you’ve nailed the pain point, it’s time to pinch it. If you run a summer camp for kids, you might start off with something like:
2. GIVE THEM A SOLUTION.The next step is to give them a low-level solution with supporting facts. It might look like this:
3. OFFER A PROMISE.Then we finish with something the reader will accomplish by reading the rest of the post.
That was 134 words and still a bit wordy. Keep your introduction short, address a problem, give a factual solution and promise them value. You’ll increase social and user engagement metrics and most importantly, you’ll spark the beginning of a trust relationship. So are you going to send your kids to my marketing camp? CONCLUSIONI hope you enjoyed today’s episode and got practical value you can add to your blog post introduction. If you liked the video then give me a thumbs up. In the next episode, we’re going to build on blogging and get into topic generation and ideas.
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