Every day, thousands of new blog articles are posted across social media sites worldwide. If you want people to stop and read what you've written, then stop and read what I'm about to share with you...
The attention your new articles get depends on the quality of what you share with your audience.
So, what should you share in order to keep people hanging on for your next post?
Here, I give you the click-grabbing, snore-free solution. These are 3 stories that SELL:
#1: The Day That Changed My Life (TDTCML).
Think of this story like the written version of those 'Before' and 'After' pictures that are used by gyms and cosmetic surgeries. But instead of just snapping some shots of the results you get, you actively share a personal story with your audience about a day (or a moment) from your life story that proved pivotal.
People love these stories because all of us have aspects to ourselves or our life situation that we'd love to change. Think of the appeal of lotto- it sells this same principle, that in the blink of an eye, your financial hardships are gone, your financial dreams come true and your life is changed for the better. How amazing would it feel to hand your children the title to their house because you'd paid off the rest of their mortgage? What about that dream car you always wanted to own or that round the world trip you've talked about going on for years? Wouldn't it be nice?
The point is, we want to believe that amazing changes can happen to us overnight. Often it's not as simple as that, and great change only comes from gradual developments. But sometimes, dreams do come true, revelation comes upon us and alters our destiny. We love hearing these kinds of stories, and so do your readers. Here's my own example of TDTCML in action:
scribecopywriting.weebly.com/notes-from-the-scribe/the-moment-it-all-lit-up-to-me
#2: 'How To' posts.
The trick of the 'How To' is selling the premise of the article. Giving your article on the effectiveness of changing your file management to increase efficiency won't be a hit if you title it "How to make your work-day more efficient with file management". That's the kind of article that would appear in the 'Big Book Of Boring Stories' that Bert reads on Sesame Street. You can just imagine it, can't you?
"Wow Ernie...look at this! An article on how to clean your computer desktop up to increase efficiency!"
No!
You would title it "How to unlock huge chunks of time in your work day" or something similar. People love anything that suggests they'll gain more money or free time from reading your article. You want to remember this when brainstorming your 'How To's:
We all want more time.
We all want more money.
We all want more love and appreciation.
We all want more success or revelation.
We all want to make a positive impression on people and for them to like us.
So no matter your 'How to', see that the title and the body content lines up to one of these desires and you'll get people stopping what they're doing to read what you share with them.
# 3 List articles
Think of the sites that are commonly regarded to as 'click bait' (Buzzfeed, Junkee, Pedestrian TV etc). Have you ever been guilty of seeing a link to an article on one of these sites and clicked? I'm guilty as charged, even though I know there's a good chance the actual article itself will be underwhelming.
So why are these links so successful?
It's not only the catchy headlines that draw us in, but the numbers to these lists. Adding numbered lists appeals to us because it makes the information easier to segment in our minds. As opposed to reading a number of instances across several paragraphs, we instead take in tips, opinions or facts piece by piece . As opposed to clicking a link expecting to get some information on a subject or reasons to support the authors' argument, you're preparing yourself and thinking "I want to find out (x) reasons why/ how to (x)"
Think of this article, for instance. If I'd just written it along the lines of "These are some blog ideas that are proven to work", would it grab you half as easily as saying "These 3, specific blog ideas are ones that sell"?
Take the time to consider how many of your blog ideas can be broken down into numbered lists and make them odd numbers if possible (for some reason, odd numbered lists stand out to us, which is why you see so many lists broken down into 3, 5, 7, 11 or even 101 points)
These 3 steps are another way to ensure that your blog engages people and provides them with enough incentive to click on your latest post link in the first place.
Of course- there are plenty of other methods that ensure your blog gets the views, 'likes' and re-posts that drive more traffic to your website and social media pages, and on Monday 13th March at Studio 4 in Cleveland, you can discover the steps for keeping a regular blog- just like this one- and sharing your brilliance with a growing reader base.
To find out more, secure your spot and learn the tricks to "Make Your Stories Sell", contact me today:
au.linkedin.com/in/benmackie1
The attention your new articles get depends on the quality of what you share with your audience.
So, what should you share in order to keep people hanging on for your next post?
Here, I give you the click-grabbing, snore-free solution. These are 3 stories that SELL:
#1: The Day That Changed My Life (TDTCML).
Think of this story like the written version of those 'Before' and 'After' pictures that are used by gyms and cosmetic surgeries. But instead of just snapping some shots of the results you get, you actively share a personal story with your audience about a day (or a moment) from your life story that proved pivotal.
People love these stories because all of us have aspects to ourselves or our life situation that we'd love to change. Think of the appeal of lotto- it sells this same principle, that in the blink of an eye, your financial hardships are gone, your financial dreams come true and your life is changed for the better. How amazing would it feel to hand your children the title to their house because you'd paid off the rest of their mortgage? What about that dream car you always wanted to own or that round the world trip you've talked about going on for years? Wouldn't it be nice?
The point is, we want to believe that amazing changes can happen to us overnight. Often it's not as simple as that, and great change only comes from gradual developments. But sometimes, dreams do come true, revelation comes upon us and alters our destiny. We love hearing these kinds of stories, and so do your readers. Here's my own example of TDTCML in action:
scribecopywriting.weebly.com/notes-from-the-scribe/the-moment-it-all-lit-up-to-me
#2: 'How To' posts.
The trick of the 'How To' is selling the premise of the article. Giving your article on the effectiveness of changing your file management to increase efficiency won't be a hit if you title it "How to make your work-day more efficient with file management". That's the kind of article that would appear in the 'Big Book Of Boring Stories' that Bert reads on Sesame Street. You can just imagine it, can't you?
"Wow Ernie...look at this! An article on how to clean your computer desktop up to increase efficiency!"
No!
You would title it "How to unlock huge chunks of time in your work day" or something similar. People love anything that suggests they'll gain more money or free time from reading your article. You want to remember this when brainstorming your 'How To's:
We all want more time.
We all want more money.
We all want more love and appreciation.
We all want more success or revelation.
We all want to make a positive impression on people and for them to like us.
So no matter your 'How to', see that the title and the body content lines up to one of these desires and you'll get people stopping what they're doing to read what you share with them.
# 3 List articles
Think of the sites that are commonly regarded to as 'click bait' (Buzzfeed, Junkee, Pedestrian TV etc). Have you ever been guilty of seeing a link to an article on one of these sites and clicked? I'm guilty as charged, even though I know there's a good chance the actual article itself will be underwhelming.
So why are these links so successful?
It's not only the catchy headlines that draw us in, but the numbers to these lists. Adding numbered lists appeals to us because it makes the information easier to segment in our minds. As opposed to reading a number of instances across several paragraphs, we instead take in tips, opinions or facts piece by piece . As opposed to clicking a link expecting to get some information on a subject or reasons to support the authors' argument, you're preparing yourself and thinking "I want to find out (x) reasons why/ how to (x)"
Think of this article, for instance. If I'd just written it along the lines of "These are some blog ideas that are proven to work", would it grab you half as easily as saying "These 3, specific blog ideas are ones that sell"?
Take the time to consider how many of your blog ideas can be broken down into numbered lists and make them odd numbers if possible (for some reason, odd numbered lists stand out to us, which is why you see so many lists broken down into 3, 5, 7, 11 or even 101 points)
These 3 steps are another way to ensure that your blog engages people and provides them with enough incentive to click on your latest post link in the first place.
Of course- there are plenty of other methods that ensure your blog gets the views, 'likes' and re-posts that drive more traffic to your website and social media pages, and on Monday 13th March at Studio 4 in Cleveland, you can discover the steps for keeping a regular blog- just like this one- and sharing your brilliance with a growing reader base.
To find out more, secure your spot and learn the tricks to "Make Your Stories Sell", contact me today:
au.linkedin.com/in/benmackie1