W.R.I.T.E.ing your way to business success
“Oh, you just choose a topic, think of something to write, and start tapping away on the keyboard” - no matter how much one wishes writing a blog was this simple, it isn’t so. Writing a blog post, especially for social media is indeed interesting and satisfying, but it is not always simple, and definitely not instantaneous. Though a lot can be said about how to write a good blog post, the simplest way to look at it is that you must W.R.I.T.E. it to write a good one. Sounds interesting? Read on!
Writing a good SEO-friendly blog is not just about good writing. It is about good writing optimised for a specific theme/purpose.
Though every social media writer has their own content creation process, everyone incorporates elements from the W.R.I.T.E. process. The steps involved in this are as follows:
What
No blog post can be written if you are not sure of what you want to write about. The subject of the blog can either be briefed by the client or be based on something currently trending or could be part of a larger content strategy covering a wider area of knowledge or expertise relevant to the client’s online presence. No matter where the subject comes from, it is important that it is relevant in the short, medium, or long term.
Research
Once you have decided on the topic of the post, what comes next is gathering information about the topic. This is probably the second-most important step of the process, next to actually writing the material. This usually involves collecting information about various aspects of the subject matter. For example, if one wants to write about cryptocurrencies, research will typically involve collating material about what cryptocurrencies are, what problem they seek to solve, how they work, different cryptocurrencies available, market trends etc. Having a rich collection of well-researched material is a big boost when it comes to effective writing.
Iterate
Once the research is completed, or even while it is still going on, various drafts of the post are written. These are then successively refined based on feedback (from team members, client etc.), newer knowledge gained from research etc. As any writer would tell you, this is the most important and yet most tedious part of the entire process. This is where the blog post truly is born and flourishes into its final form. The critical factor at this stage is to make the content SEO-friendly by using relevant keywords in the correct context and proportion. The blog post should be easily “searchable” by the search engines, yet not be stuffed with keywords.
Tighten/Trim:
Once you feel you have written a good post, the time comes to stop playing the writer’s role and step into the editor’s shoes. Even the final draft isn’t always final. In this step, the content is edited for various reasons – the character limit of the platform where it is going to be posted, the “flow” of the content, for enhancing readability etc. Sometimes, it may be edited just because it does not “feel right” to the client/stakeholders.
Execute
After all the effort (blood, sweat and tears as we writers like to call it) that has gone into it, the final step is to “execute the tactic” in social media parlance, and “publish it” in layman's terms. This is where the post is sent out on its way to the wild wild world for consumption by the target audience.
Now that you know what happens when you W.R.I.T.E. a blog post, it’s time to understand what makes a well-written blog so essential for your business. Not only does it present your business to the digital world in a favourable light, but it also plays a major role in establishing your online presence over time. Once your target audience understands that you have been publishing relevant high-quality content consistently, your online reputation receives a major boost, which translates into better customer engagement, and of course, better achievement of your business objectives.