We’ve broken down the entire process. To help you achieve your content marketing goals and become a better writer.
1. Choose a Blog Topic Idea
If you haven’t already, create buyer personas like the one below. To gain a better understanding of your target readers. And what type of content they’re interested in.
Ask your audience what they want to read about (on social media or via email surveys)
Those marked green are already covered on your site. While those with a flame icon are trending.
Difficulty: The subtopic’s keyword difficulty score , which measures how hard it is to rank highly for that keyword
Tip: For a more strategic approach to content production, create a content plan . This details all the content you’ll create over the coming weeks or months. Including blog posts.
2. Perform Keyword Research
This is important because adding keywords to your blog post can help your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. Meaning you rank higher in relevant search engine results pages (SERPs).
Plus, keyword research lets you identify topics with the biggest SEO potential. Which is important if you’re using blog posts to increase organic traffic (unpaid search engine traffic).
Enter a word or phrase to base your research around. Then, choose your country and click “ Search .”
To find relevant keywords for your blog post, focus on search intent —i.e., what the user is looking for when they perform this search.
The type of search intent is listed in the “Intent” column. Here’s a breakdown of each:
To get a better understanding of a keyword’s search intent, perform a quick SERP analysis :
For example, the SERP for “why a 29er mountain bike” is dominated by 29er bike guides. So, publishers trying to rank should create a similar kind of blog post.
Keep in mind that it may be appropriate to target multiple keywords on the same page (i.e., do keyword clustering ).
For example, “why a 29er mountain bike,” “what is a 29 mountain bike,” and “what is a 29er bike.”
In these cases, pick a primary keyword—the main keyword you want to rank for—to focus the blog post on.
Tip: Perform keyword research with the Keyword Gap tool, too. This tells you keywords competitors rank for but you don’t.
3. Create an Outline
Creating a blog post outline helps you plan your content effectively. So you can streamline the writing process and create a better post.
If you haven’t already, analyze similar content that’s performing well. To work out what searchers want—and how you can stand out.
For example, the top Google results for “why a 29er mountain bike” are all guides. With sections for the definition, benefits, and history of 29er bikes.
But to outrank these rivals, you need to add value. To make your guide the best version out there.
For help planning different types of blog posts (such as how-to guides and listicles), check out our blog post templates . You can also get inspiration from our blog post examples .
If blog SEO is your priority , get recommendations from Alien Road SEO Content Template tool.
The tool analyzes your top 10 rivals in Google results based on your target keywords, location, and device.
Plus, it shows how competitors use your target keywords. So you can optimize your content more effectively.
4. Write the Body Content
We recommend saving the introduction, conclusion, and headline until last. So you can make sure they accurately reflect the body of your article.
But it’s a good idea to approach the other sections in order. So you can ensure flow between them.
Next, write the bottom line up front (BLUF) in the first paragraph. In other words, provide an immediate answer or explanation.
“In the diverse world of mountain biking, where wheel sizes and frame geometries can vary greatly, the term ‘29er bike’ has carved out its own unique niche.”
Simply import a brief from the SEO Content Template tool. Or generate a new template based on your keywords and target audience.
5. Add an Introduction and Conclusion
For example, the first line to a 29er mountain bike guide should read something like this:
“This guide will explain what a 29er mountain bike is and whether it’s right for you.”
“Imagine a world where the trails seem smoother, obstacles appear less daunting, and every turn in the path beckons with an allure of adventure.”
But the right approach depends on the topic. And where readers are in the marketing funnel .
For example, it makes sense to promote your mountain bike range at the end of a buying guide. But this could be overly salesy in other contexts.
6. Write Your Headline
The headline is one of the most important parts of your blog post. It impacts how many people read your content. And whether they’re satisfied with what they find.
It should establish the tone upfront and set the right expectations for your readers. Otherwise, they’ll end up disappointed.
Or enter your blog post topic into the Free Title Generator . And click “ Get my titles .”
Now you know how to write a great blog post draft. But let’s go through some other essential steps.
7. Review Your First Draft
If possible, wait a day or so after finishing your first draft. Then, come back and review it with fresh eyes.
If you’re part of a team, consider asking someone else to read your draft. And provide constructive feedback and edits.
Tip: Tools like Grammarly and Hemingway App can help you proofread your blog posts. And become a better writer .
8. Publish Your Blog Post
Now it’s time to publish the blog post via your content management system (CMS) or blogging platform. Or schedule it to publish later.
This will help you maintain a regular publishing schedule. And align with other marketing activities or real-world events.
Before going live, make sure your blog post is formatted correctly. (Things can go wrong during the upload process.)
URL slug : The unique part of the URL. This is usually auto-generated based on your headline, but you might want to customize it. It should be short, descriptive, and future-proof.
Title tag : The title that appears in search engine results and the user’s browser tab. This should be the same as or similar to your headline.
Meta description : The short description that can appear in search engine results. This should let searchers know what to expect from your blog post. And encourage them to click through.
Alt text : The image descriptions used by search engines and screen readers. These improve your page’s accessibility.
Open Graph tags : The title, description, and image displayed on social platforms like Facebook when your article is shared
9. Distribute Your Blog Post
Email outreach : Contact relevant influencers and convince them to share or link to your post
This allows for greater success on other platforms. And helps you reach audiences with different needs and preferences.
10. Track Performance Metrics
Choose and track performance metrics based on your blog posts’ goals. So you can measure their success objectively.
With Google Analytics (or a Google Analytics alternative ), you can monitor user behavior and engagement metrics. Including:
After setting up, head to the “ Pages ” tab to see which blog posts perform best:
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