We know that blogging is a vital part of content marketing. Blogging consistently is a key aspect of that too. But how can you improve your blog writing skills, especially when you are first starting out? Today, I will showcase the practical steps I take to continually hone my writing style and blogging abilities.
Improving Blog Writing Skills
Blogging has many business benefits but only when done correctly and effectively. I have written for a living for 7+ years now and while there’s always room for improvement, I have learnt a lot in my career as a content marketer.
Practice
Practice is my number one tip for improving blog writing. Whilst I’ve been writing frequently throughout my marketing roles, it was only when I started my freelance content marketing business that I saw great improvements in my writing style. Whereas in my other jobs I may have written blogs a few times a month or a week, I now write at least one article every day, come rain or shine. Constantly writing allows you to feel comfortable with the act of typing as well as the formatting of blogs. All the administrative and style specs become second nature, allowing you to focus on the actual content. Practice every day and you will see improvements and this applies to more than just blog writing.
Research
Quality blog writing starts with quality research. The better you understand a topic, the more nuanced and confident your thoughts will be on the page. Learning to research effectively is a vital skill to build your blog writing skills. Key steps to consider are:
- Is this information or data coming from a reputable source?
- Can you cross corroborate the information from other sources?
- What details do you need to find out to give more colour and flavour to your blog writing?
- Where can you find information that is trustworthy and relevant quickly?
- Can you read around the topic to give yourself a broader understanding?
Learning
Similar to research, learning is a fundamental part of blog writing. If you don’t like to learn about a company, products, services and wider issues affecting potential users, blog writing probably isn’t for you. You must always be learning about topics, including ones seemingly unrelated to your main topic. The more general knowledge you can acquire, the quicker your writing and the more colourful your style will be.
Read
Reading is one key way your can advance your blog writing skills. It teaches you about the different subject matter but it also improves your writing through the familiarity of style and improved vocabulary. Writing every day is essential, reading every day is vital.
Feedback
Taking on feedback and constructive criticism effectively will help improve your writing. It may be from a tone or style request from a client. Or, your editor or proofreader may be highlighting repeated grammar or spelling mistakes. Be open to hearing feedback and make notes on it. If you do not write down your main issues, you’ll likely forget the next time you approach them.
Measuring
Your best piece of work should be your next piece of work. Improving your blog writing skills is about honing each piece, learning from the one previous and improving the next. To do this, you need to measure how effective your blog writing is and then see if you can improve on those measurements. Some ways to do this include;
- Using an accessibility or content analysis tool that can highlight issues with your grammar, tone or pacing.
- Feedback from clients – Have you noted down comments and made sure any errors aren’t repeated in your next article.
- Is the content working effectively – Can you measure it from a website data perspective such as traffic acquired, keyword ranking or a number of sales through that particular blog.
By understanding what is working and what isn’t you can concentrate on improvements that reflect the best performing blogs.
No Blog Writing Skills? Try my Copy Services
If you are interested in keeping your website’s blog updated consistently with quality, SEO optimised content, I can help. I have a lot of experience in creating well researched, reliable content for my clients. I write both B2B Long Form & Technical articles as well as B2C Short Form, inspirational & FAQ blogs. Whether you want a consistent blog strategy, one-off campaign pieces or simply a content calendar to work through, I can support your company’s growth. Get in touch with me today.