Until you discovered inbound marketing, you probably didn’t think of writing as a skill worth cultivating. It couldn’t help your business or advance your career, so you left writing behind you in college.
Now you know that well-written blog content will attract visitors to your business’s website, gain their trust, and convert them to paying customers. You’re ready to get writing but you have some questions:
1. What is the Only Rule of Blogging?
Don’t stop. Businesses fail at blogging when they stop blogging.
The more you publish, the more chances you give buyers to find you online, but most importantly, the only way to improve at writing is to practice. When you’re new to inbound marketing, your primary goal should be to do whatever it takes to build a sustainable blogging habit. Anything else can come later.
It’s like starting a new exercise routine or healthy diet. Most people give up before really giving it a chance to work. Don’t give up.
2. How Long Should My Blog Posts Be?
About 500 words. As you gain experience, you’ll find some things you have to say will take fewer words and some will take more. But at first, 500 words will give you enough space to stretch out your writing muscles without overtaxing them.
Remember, you’re trying to build a sustainable blogging habit. You have to be able to run a mile before you can run a marathon.
3. What Part of My Blog Post Should I Spend the Most Time On?
The title; the first couple sentences; the first few paragraphs. If readers aren’t drawn in at the beginning of your blog post, they will never make it any farther.
Online readers always have one foot out the door. The opening of your blog post is your only chance to convince your readers what you have written will be worth reading. Fail to do that, and they’re gone.
4. What If I Don’t Know Grammar?
Everyone knows grammar. Without it, we couldn’t communicate. If you can hold a conversation or email a question and get an answer, you know all the grammar you’re ever going to need.
Instead of worrying about predicates and subjunctives, worry about clarity and readability. Make it easy for your readers to get your point. A good sentence is one you don’t have to reread to understand.
5. What Should I Write About?
Try to separate the “what” of blogging from the “how.” When you sit down to write a blog post, you should already know what you’re going to write about so you can focus on conveying your message as clearly and compellingly as possible.
Your inbound marketing strategy should include a calendar of blog topics extending months into the future. Pick topics based on what you know about your business’s customers. What questions are they asking? What problems do they want to solve?
Here is an example of a long-term inbound marketing strategy based on solving customer problems.
