12 lessons we learned about writing blog posts

If you search the web you will find many tips on how to improve your blog and blog posts. We use them as well of course. Some days ago we were reviewing how our blog is developing and we concluded that despite all the knowledge we have we are still making the same beginners mistakes, just like everybody else. That’s why we would like to share the 12 lessons we learned.


1. Use a descriptive and inviting title containing your fundamental message. Mentioning the main issue in the post title makes your readers curious and will focus their attention on the topic. Put some power into it.

2. Introduction and summary should include some conclusions. Try to look at your post as if it is a newspaper article. A short headline with a clear description giving essential information to catch the reader’s attention and encourage them to go through the whole article.

3. Use paragraph headers. This is not applicable to all types of blog posts, but in general, you will be able to divide your post into several paragraphs. Give them a clear descriptive title, summarizing the paragraph. It will enable your readers to go through your post quickly and to read for the relevant parts.

4. Use numbered lists to make your post more clear. Most people don’t like reading long posts. They have little time and they need to be given all the information they need in the quickest way possible. Listing your thoughts makes them think you give only the most important summary and essence in your post, which is exactly what they are looking for.

5. Choose short sentences instead of long and grammatically complicated transformations. Long sentences are more likely to be incomprehensible. To avoid misunderstanding it’s highly recommended to write short sentences with simple grammatical constructions. You can even use some bullet points to shorten your post and make it more structured. Make that your mother will understand your post!

6. Don’t write about the obvious. Give people something new, they haven’t heard about. Wouldn’t you be bored reading the same magazine or listening to the same lecture for the 5th time?

7. Reveal your personal experience. People like reading about other people’s experience. Personal feelings and matters you were dealing with yourself make readers feel more comfortable with your post. It shows them there are other people facing the same kind of problems.

8. Use a descriptive image. A picture is worth a thousand words. Adding a relevant picture, which is not that easy, makes your post more attractive and easier to be recognized.

9. Send just one message. If you feel your post is going to be too long, it might be a good idea to divide it into a few short posts. You can easily link between them. Try to send just one main message to your readers.

10. Link to other blog posts. It’s obvious that you won’t be the only one who writes about your subject. Try to link to other posts on other blogs. This makes your post more relevant. Besides, it saves your readers time looking for similar information.

11. Find strong keywords. To improve the SEO of your blog it is important to use the right keywords within the (sub) titles (h1, h2 tags), image titles and link descriptions.

12. Call to action. After all, we all love to achieve something by writing a blog post. Share with your readers what you would like to achieve! Invite them to help you. Any action taken by them would give you excellent input on what to do next, what they can expect, what you can expect and write about in your next post.

By following these lessons learned our posts started to improve, were visited more often etc. For sure they are still not perfect. We had to conclude that writing attractive blog posts is a profession. Would you like to have more tips? A good source to improve your blogging skills is e.g. Problogger and HowToMakeMyBlog.

Peter Horsten

VP Software Development Europe for Aspire Systems. Sociologist and electrotechnical engineer, a great combination that stimulates him to look for the best working software solutions for clients. Passionate about converting great ideas into new solutions. Married and a proud father of 3 great sons. Training for and participating in triathlons/runs to stay fit.

1 comment

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