Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link to tools you can use to format a professional-looking blog post. If you decide to purchase this tool, I’ll receive a small commish at no cost to you.
When I started blogging about 10 years ago, I had NO CLUE how to format a blog post. I thought all I had to do was add a title and a few paragraphs and my post would be good to go. But I was oh so wrong!
There are a couple reasons why having a well-formatted blog post is important:
- It makes your content easier to read
- Your audience is likely to read the entire blog post making them stay longer on your website
How To Create A Well-Formatted Blog Post
There is a specific formula you should follow to put a well-formatted blog post together.
In this post I’m going to show you how to format a professional-looking blog post to
1. Your Blog Post Needs A Great Headline
First things first. Your post needs to have a great heading. Don’t make so long that it cuts off on a Google Preview. You want the whole title to be seen like this:
When writing your heading, make sure it contains the keywords of the content.
To make sure you have as perfect a headline as can be, install the Exact Metrics plugin by MonsterInsights*, you’ll get the headline analyzer feature to make sure you heading has the right word balance. I wrote a post about it called How To Write Killer Blog Post Headlines Every Time.
2. Paragraphs
The first paragraph should hook the reader by describing the problem your reader might be experiencing using the keywords that’s in the heading, like this:
There are days when you don’t know what to blog about.
The second paragraph should identify a character, in this case it would be bloggers.
Give more detail about why this problem keeps happening. This is where you make the connection with your audience. For example:
It’s not that you’re in a blogging slump – you’re just not coming up with any ideas. This happens to a lot of bloggers, even those who have been blogging for a while now.
And even those seasoned bloggers go through this stumbling block, they still manage to come up with a fabulous post for their readers. But how?
The next paragraph should introduce a solution to the reader. This would be a great time to tell your story to really connect with your reader. The most common and preferred type would be to list every solution with an example that shows the reader how to implement the solution.
And finally, a paragraph to recap your post with a call to action statement like joining your mailing list or sharing your post on social media.
3. Subheadings
It’s important to have subheadings that will introduce paragraphs. For one, it’s easier for the reader. It will let the reader know what the paragraphs are about.
And according to the latest blogging statistics shared by OptinMonster, since 43% of people admit to skimming blog posts, your subheadings should be attention-grabbing.
4. Graphics
It’s important to include graphics in your blog posts. I recommend 2-3 but the longer the post, the more graphics you should include.
Make sure the image you select will accurately represent what your blog post is about. Think of the images as a summary of your post.
The best tool for creating gorgeous graphics is Canva. You can use the free version or for more features like custom fonts, you can choose their premium plan.
Tip: For featured images, check your themes documentation to find out what the exact dimensions are so that the image appears
Wrapping Up
I hope you found these tips helpful. If you have any tips to share with other members, leave them in the comments below!
