The dreaded writer’s block. We have all been there. You stare at a blank content calendar and need thirty days worth of fresh ideas. However, not just any old idea will do. For the time and resource investment to pay off, they must be PROFITABLE content ideas.
What do you do?
While crying and browsing LinkedIn for new jobs is one option, we have a better idea. Use our three-bucket approach. It’s a form of brainstorming for ideas that uses content goals as your guide to ensure the ideas you do come up with will generate the results you need to grow.
Let’s leave the blank page behind and join the three-bucket approach together.
What Is the Three Bucket Approach to Content Ideas?
Whether creating new content or refreshing old content, you need a strategy for finding endless topic ideas that won’t waste your precious time or drain your resources without promising a return.
The three-bucket approach begins with the end. Before creating content that generates results, you need to define what results you want.
I recommend summarizing your desired results in three buckets or overarching ideas and goals. They will keep your marketing content focused on the end goal and ensure what you publish contributes to those profitable goals.
Here are three buckets that we use at Express Writers and works well for many similar brands:
SEO & Brand Awareness: Create content that will appear in search engine results, generating traffic and getting our name out.
Lead Generation & Nurturing: Create content encouraging web traffic to fill in forms, read multiple articles, and engage with content as they move through the sales journey.
Sales: Create content that promotes products and services and drives sales.
While your buckets may look very different, SEO should still be a top priority, as over half of web traffic comes from organic search.
Can content fall into multiple buckets? Most definitely! For example, some content will be SEO cornerstones but also drive sales. The key is filling your website with content that falls into at least one bucket. Otherwise, you are creating content for content’s sake.
Connect Your Buckets to ROI Goals
Let’s not just leave your goals as buckets. If you want to turn your content into profits, you will want to define what success looks like.
Let’s start with the SEO bucket. For SEO to be successful, how much of a traffic increase do you want to see from organic search? Define that number and monitor how well your content performs to keep you on track.
Lead generation might refer to a target number of new leads you generate each month or a target engagement rate.
Sales will be an easier category to track as you can use unique tracking codes in your content to monitor how many of your readers click the link and purchase your product, sign up for your demo, or request a quote for your services.
Fill Your Buckets with Seed Keywords
Along with establishing goals, you also want to list seed keywords. At this point, don’t worry about search traffic and deep research. Your seed keywords are terms that define who you are as a company. They are very broad.
For Express Writers, our seed keywords would be terms like “Content marketing,” “Content writing,” and “SEO.” You don’t need to stick with just three, but you also don’t need to list over a dozen seed keywords. If you have too many seed keywords, consider finding a term that captures several keywords into one overarching idea.
To start, list three to five seed keywords. These might define your industry or cover your product categories. As you move forward in your three-bucket strategy and begin brainstorming, those seed keywords may change as you find better terms to describe your business and categorize your content.
How to Generate Content Ideas That Turn a Profit
Once you have those buckets defined and benchmarks established, it’s time to fill them out and overflow them with topics!
At this point, you will set those three buckets aside. We are just looking at brainstorming and jotting down as many topics as possible. Sorting them into buckets comes later. However, you will want to keep those seed keywords handy as they’ll provide a starting point.
Discover how to find blog content ideas with five tried-and-true methods.
1. Perform Keyword Research
If your goal is search engine ranking, this step is a must!
Keyword research not only finds topics for content but also identifies topics most searched among your audience.
Our favorite tool is SEMrush, but we and other marketers also use Ahrefs, Buzzsumo, and Moz.
It’s time to pull out those seed keywords again. They will be a starting point for your SEO. If you’re using SEMrush, you will type the first seed keyword into the search bar, such as searching “Content marketing.” From there, SEMrush will return a list of related terms.
At this point, you don’t need to be too picky about the terms you save. As long as they’re relevant, all those recommendations could become potential blog and web page topics. Add all the keywords relating to your topic into a list, which you will export into an Excel file and add to your master list of content ideas.
Google offers three different ways to discover new topics for your website. The first step is to begin typing your seed keyword into Google search. Google will suggest searches based on what people commonly type after the seed keyword. These suggestions are constantly changing and usually reflect trending topics.
If you perform a search of your seed keyword, Google has two sections on the search results pages with follow-up search suggestions. The first is “People also ask.” This section is near the top of your page and includes long-tail keywords and questions that people often ask relating to your search. This is a goldmine of topic ideas. About 8% of people phrase their searches as a question, so there are many question keywords to pull from.
As a side note, if you choose topics from this section, write small snippet sections in your content in the form of summary paragraphs that quickly answer the question in the topic. That way, you increase your chances of not just ranking for that keyword but appearing in people’s “People also ask” section.
If you scroll down further, Google also has a section titled “Related searches.” These are similar terms and phrases, usually shorter than the previous section and often more competitive. However, they are another valuable source of topic ideas to add to your list.
3. Check out Industry Websites
To remain competitive, you need to know what the competition is doing. If you have tools like SEMrush, you can perform what’s known as a competitor gap analysis. This research strategy lists what topics your competition covers and which ones you cover so you can see if there are any topic ideas you haven’t written about yet that your competition has a monopoly in searches.
You can also visit your competition’s website and scroll through their resource library. These topics might inspire ideas for your list.
If you write on a topic your competition covers, remember not just to copy what they wrote. That won’t win you any quality traffic. You need to find a way to give the topic a unique twist. For instance, what is something you offer that your competition doesn’t? That might be the angle from which you approach the subject, allowing you to highlight your unique selling point while covering similar topics to help visitors distinguish you from the competition in search results.
Adding personal experience and authority are ways to help you stand out to Google and improve your search engine ranking.
4. Listen to Your Customers
Your customers may be your most valuable source of topics. They are, after all, the ones you are trying to reach.
By saving common questions customers ask, you are generating a list of topics you know your audience wants to learn about because they asked you directly about it.
For example, we receive many questions about SEO and creating SEO content, so we often cover SEO topics in our blog posts.
We can attract new visitors through these blog posts, and when customers have questions, we can link to those posts to help them understand their projects better.
5. Follow Local Communities
This one requires a little more time and effort but often leads to the most unique topics. Following groups and communities in your industry helps you keep the pulse of the industry.
Reddit is a popular source of information. If you follow several industry threads, you will see an endless stream of questions directly from people also interested in the industry. You can answer those questions through blog posts and share those answers directly on Reddit to generate interest in your blog.
On social media, you can follow industry hashtags to see what conversations people are having around the industry. You will especially want to follow any industry leaders. For example, an SEO agency would follow Google closely to be one of the first to write topics on any new Google updates and changes, grabbing top spots in search results.
How to Organize Content Ideas into Buckets
If you went through those five strategies for generating blog ideas, you should now have a long list of blog topics. While you could start at the top and dive in, we don’t recommend that. Not all topics you have on the list will generate the desired results. Without results, the time and money you spend researching and writing on those topics will be a waste.
We highly suggest taking this last step and sorting those topics by buckets. Use these three tips to help you decide which content marketing ideas are keepers.
Determine the Keyword’s Relevancy
Be sure to go back through your list of potential topics and review the keywords. Delete any keywords that don’t apply to your brand.
Remember, it doesn’t matter how much traffic that keyword brings in. If your brand isn’t relevant to the audience, they will leave. That will increase your bounce rate and can hurt your search engine ranking. Instead, focus on topics you can answer with authority.
Sort into the Keyword Buckets
You will now sort your list of keywords by their bucket. This step is crucial for making sure your brainstorming is profitable. If you have interesting topics that don’t match your goals, it’s time to say goodbye to them. Otherwise, it will just waste your resources.
Review the Keyword Data
Now that you have a much shorter list of topic ideas, you can begin performing keyword research on those terms, primarily to satisfy your SEO traffic goals.
As you perform keyword research, you have two primary objectives:
Determining the traffic potential
Determining the competitiveness
Any topics you select with high traffic should be a priority on your website and blog. Those keywords are most likely to help you reach your traffic goals. You know your traffic potential by looking at a keyword search volume. This is the number of searches for that keyword that occur each month.
While that number alone can be a good indicator of a keyword’s value, other factors should be considered. Most keywords will also show a chart of how the keyword fluctuates over time.
For example, searches for information on an eclipse will skyrocket during eclipse years but won’t hold the same steady traffic at other times. Other keywords are evergreen topics that will bring in consistent traffic for years.
Image from SEMrush
You should also consider that not all monthly searches equate to monthly visitors. There’s a chance you might not even see half that number land on your page, especially if it falls further back in Google search results pages. The first page results tend to capture 99% of the clicks.
That’s why the second factor is essential: a keyword’s competitiveness. Keywords with low competition are easier to rank high for. For example, a keyword might only see 100 monthly searches but has very little competition. On the other hand, a popular keyword has 10,000 monthly searches but it is also very competitive. Targeting that easier keyword, landing on the first page, and attracting all 100 monthly visitors is far more valuable than trying for the 10k keyword and losing out on all the visitors because you land ten pages deep in the search results.
You will most likely notice that those long-tail keyword topics, like what you found in Google search, are far more likely to land you a top spot in Google. Those will be the topics you will pour the most energy into and prioritize on your content calendar.
Fight the Topic Burnout with a Three Bucket Approach
Far too many websites have fallen into the trap of creating content without purpose. If you wield your content well, your website is a huge opportunity to attract, retain, and convert customers. It takes a little research and vital goal-setting to get your content on track to generate profits.
Our content strategists are ready if you need help creating a profitable strategy. Our team of researchers and strategists is ready to find new, engaging topics and align them with your goals.
Contact us to begin your next order of profitable, goal-oriented content.
But a mere fraction of them receive any traffic (only about 400 million – 15-20% – are even active).
Thousands of new websites are created daily. About 4 million new blog posts are published every 24 hours.
The problem?
Barely anyone will read them. The lion’s share of the traffic, clicks, and visits (and thus, the attention) will go to top contenders.
These are the people, brands, businesses, and organizations that are making their voices rise above the heap.
In the vast wasteland of the internet, these people have nailed their content differentiation factor and lean into it.
They know how to make people sit up and listen (and/or click their links, read their content, and buy into whatever they may be selling).
In a landscape of utter content saturation, where every topic under the sun, moon, and stars has been exhausted 20 times over…
This is a big deal.
Being unique enough to stand out online is everything.
At the same time, it’s ridiculously hard.
Let’s explore why standing out from the crowd is one of the most difficult parts of content marketing. Then, we’ll look at a few amazing brands killing it with their uniqueness and content differentiation factor.
Finally, we’ll dive into some tips on how to discover your own uniqueness online.
Go time. ?➡
Have You Discovered Your Unique Content Differentiation Factor? Why It’s Harder than Ever for Brands to Be “Unique”
2 More Reasons Why It’s Hard to Stand Out Online (And Why You Need a CDF)
Content Shock Is Real
Consumers Are Inundated with Information
3 Brands Killing It with Their Content Differentiation Factor
Backlinko (Brian Dean)
Spotify
Tasty
My Best Tips to Dig Deep and Find Your Content Differentiation Factor
Step Away from Work and Go Internal
Step Away from Work and Have More Conversations
Your Content Differentiation Factor Is Key
2 More Reasons Why It’s Hard to Stand Out Online (And Why You Need a Content Differentiation Factor)
Back in 2018, I came up with a concept called the Content Differentiation Factor.
Basically, this concept comes down to asking yourself (or your client, your boss — whoever you’re managing the brand for) this question:
“What separates our content from the rest of the content out there? What makes my brand different from all the others out there like me?”
You have to have something truly different to stand out from the crowd (more on this and examples below). And you must spend time on this to figure it out before going full-force into content creation. (It’s worth it).
A content differentiation factor is a key to standing out.
But, first, you should know what you’re working against.
1. Content Shock Is Real
Mark Schaefer’s classic, groundbreaking article on content shock explains why and how content marketing will reach a breaking point.
As he explains, we have free content coming out of our ears on the internet. You can read blogs and articles on every topic that’s ever been studied, thought about, or questioned.
The problem lies in supply/demand. There is more content in existence than any person can legitimately read in a lifetime – let alone their free time. So, to break away from the information overload and stand out, content marketers are paying to get their content seen.
Of course, that’s not sustainable at all.
Only those who separate themselves uniquely from the information mountain – who provide unique value to their audience – will continue to see ROI from content. (It will not be whoever pays the most money for Google Ads.)
2. Consumers Are Inundated with Information
As we mentioned, content is exploding. Anybody can make a free blog and publish whatever they want. Businesses are blogging because they know the ROI could be amazing – but unfortunately, that leaves us with MILLIONS of blogs that are mediocre at best.
Think about the sheer number of new blog articles that appear on your feeds daily, and how many you have to skip over vs. read. Think of all the news articles, videos, tweets, social media posts, emails, ads, and search results that flow in front of you without stopping.
You have to make micro-decisions all day, every day, as long as you have the internet or a smartphone. You have to sift through the mountain and decide what’s worth your time and what isn’t. 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created daily. Yes, daily. And, according to Domo’s Data Never Sleeps 7.0 infographic, by 2020, 40x more data bytes will exist than there are stars in the observable universe.
With so much information and content flying thick and fast on the web, we only have the bandwidth to pay attention to a limited amount.
Who and what gets our attention? The brands, people, and content that manage to rise above the rest because they differentiated their content and message successfully.
3 Brands Killing It with Their Content Differentiation Factor
These three names have found their content differentiation factor and lean into it – with amazing results.
1. Backlinko (Brian Dean)
Want to see a perfect example of simplicity as a differentiator? Look to Backlinko, Brian Dean’s brand and blog.
When he says his advice is zero-fluff and practical, he’s not kidding.
His introductions to his blog posts are a great example. He doesn’t try to convince you how clever he is or wind you up with a story. He doesn’t hook you with examples other than ones from his own experience and tested results.
He tells you what to expect and what you’ll get out of reading the post. That’s it.
Simple. Straightforward. To-the-point. No fluff. Understandable. That’s Brian Dean’s style in a nutshell, and it has differentiated him from other SEO experts in a big way.
He explains SEO concepts so clearly that you don’t feel like learning. But you are.
Also, note Brian’s use of the one-sentence paragraph. Almost every paragraph in all of his blogs follows this format. Screenshots and images are sprinkled in copiously.
Not to mention, his sentences are short and simple. No run-ons or confusing constructions, here.
It’s all geared toward helping the reader learn and understand in the easiest way possible.
No one else has this type of identifiable style. It’s a content differentiation factor, and just one of the reasons Backlinko consistently stands out among all the other SEO blogs out there.
2. Spotify
Spotify could be just another streaming music service – but it’s not.
In recent years, their content differentiation factor comes from how they provide personalized content to their users. Enter Spotify Wrapped.
This end-of-year event brings you a custom playlist based on your listening habits from the past 11 months. The songs you played the most are all featured in one handy list.
Spotify has taken it even further, providing you with a personalized “story” showing your music stats, including how many minutes you streamed music this year and a rundown of your most-listened-to artists. You can view the whole thing on both desktop and mobile, too, and share any of it with social media.
Plus, in 2019 Spotify users were treated to their “decade wrapped,” which showed you your top artists and songs from the last 10 years (if you were a member that long).
Spotify could present these listening stats to users in some way within the app, year-round – I’m reminded of the “top 25” playlist that was continually updated in iTunes (R.I.P.) – but would it feel as special and fun that way? I would argue not.
Instead, the streaming service has taken something that might have been just another feature and turned it into personalized content people actually look forward to at year’s end. In fact, Spotify Wrapped was so popular this year, it went viral. Seemingly everybody across social media was sharing their music stats. (Meanwhile, users of other streaming services got jealous.)
3. Tasty
There are thousands upon thousands of cooking and baking blogs on the internet. However, one that really stands out is Tasty.
Tasty, as you might know, is a brand that popularized the overhead-camera-step-by-step-process video with no talking or narration. You just watch a pair of hands make the recipe, and text tips show up on screen to help clarify things. ?
ALL of the videos are mobile-optimized and short. They’re the perfect type of snackable content you can watch for a few minutes of downtime during your day.
The content is mainly visual, and the style is fun and unique. There are hundreds of videos with hundreds of recipes in their repertoire, all of which are of equal quality. They range in content from easy hacks to more in-depth tutorials (like how to make a snow globe cupcake).
It’s no wonder Tasty has over 97 million likes and over 100 million followers on Facebook. Their success has been so huge, they branched out into cookbooks, cookware, toys, merch, and even activity kits, like this Royal Icing 101 kit. Their videos have expanded under the moniker “Tasty Presents,” where they have new shows like Eating Your Feed; I Draw, You Cook; and Making It Big.
What sets Tasty apart is its video-forward approach, fun style, and interesting recipes. They have a unique angle on “food blog” that no one else has cornered.
My Best Tips to Dig Deep and Find Your Content Differentiation Factor
So, you know the importance of uniqueness online and how others have gone after it. But what about you? How do you find YOUR unique content differentiation factor?
My two best tips start with stepping away from work.
1. Step Away from Work and Go Internal
If you’re constantly in work mode, your brain won’t get a chance to recharge and light up with new ideas. Shake away the cobwebs by stepping away from your desk and start doing some meditation, journaling, deep thinking, prayer – whatever works for you.
Even just sitting still in a chair and allowing yourself to daydream and – *gasp* – do nothing are great ways to create some brain sparks.
Going internal has the power to produce epic thoughts that are mega lightbulb moments. For example, look at personal development trainer Brendon Buchard. Right after he wakes up in the morning, he meditates, journals, and then writes.
What comes from that process? Highly shared, impactful content.
[bctt tweet=”Finding your unique content differentiation factor requires some deep thinking. How do you do this? Start by doing nothing (seriously!)? — get away from work mode and allow yourself to recharge and get those new ideas coming. ?? ” username=”ExpWriters”]
2. Step Away from Work and Have More Conversations
Recharging is everything to the creative process. No one can keep going, going, going 24/7 on a single trajectory. We all need time to stop, relax, and expose ourselves to different experiences and viewpoints.
When most of your work is digital, stepping away from the computer to have real-life conversations and interactions is invigorating. This might include:
Going to lunch or coffee with a colleague or coworker
Attending conferences and meeting people in your industry
Speaking at conferences and having Q&A sessions
Going to a local meet-up or industry event
And, if you can’t step away from the computer right now, engage with different people on social media. You never know where a friendly comment or chat may take you.
Someone leading by example in this respect is Michael Brenner, the author of The Content Formula and Mean People Suck. He’s been a keynote speaker for four years, including at CMWorld, where I met him. He’s likable, but he also takes the time to talk to people and start conversations!
Bottom line: Be open to the possibility of conversations and what they might hold. A creative spark can come from the flint and tinder of someone else’s perspective, ideas, or stories.
Your Content Differentiation Factor Is Key
Without a content differentiation factor, you will blend in and fade away. This is a sad, sorry fate for anyone, brand or person, that longs to leave their footprint on society.
Before you make your mark, you first have to know what makes you YOU. It may take some dedicated internal time and a lot of searching conversations, but little by little, you’ll discover why you’re not like the rest of the internet.
Once you find your uniqueness, hold onto it, lean into it, and celebrate it. The world has enough same-y brands and personalities to contend with. Be the breath of fresh air everyone is looking for.
Work until you will no longer have to introduce yourself!
This is arguably one of the best pieces of advice that you will ever receive while working hard to grow your business.
Next thought: could a blog simplify your efforts and support your boldest ambitions?
The success stories of today’s best-loved influencers in the content industry show that a blog is an invaluable asset that can bring you money and fame in the long run.
Let’s look at how they did just that!
15 Bloggers Who Prove That Content Success Is Just Around the Corner
Some of the most influential bloggers of the moment demonstrate that inspiring strings of words can consolidate businesses, change mindsets and turn losses into profits. Here are 15 prominent, brilliant people who master the art of business blogging.
1. Noah Kagan. Noah Kagan of okdork.com is the founder of two multi-million businesses, successful blogger and Tacodeli lover. His blog is an excellent source of inspiration for those who are looking forward to revamping their content strategy and putting their talent and excellent writing skills to good use to supplement their income.
Posts like What I’ve Learned about Email Marketing after Losing $135,000a Day are educational, information-rich and tailored to the needs of readers who wish to reduce their losses and boost their productivity in the content industry. Whether you want to learn how to grow your email list or improve your writing, Kagan’s expert advice will guide you in the right direction.
2. Darren Rowse. As a former minister with a plethora of interests, including food, reading, movies, wine and photography, Darren Rowse has what it takes to fit the profile of a successful blogger. Rowse is the founder of multiple blog networks and blogs, including ProBlogger.net and b5media.
3. Pat Flynn. Pat Flynn from www.smartpassiveincome.com can teach you everything you need to know about foolproof ways of making passive income. If you also want to hear the ka-ching sound effect while resting on your couch with your laptop on your lap, follow Flynn and find out how he managed to make 3 million dollars over the course of six years by creating websites that target different niches. An interview published by Forbes reveals some of his well-kept secrets: he surprises his audience with well-written informative materials that answer their daily questions. By providing digital books and other freebies, Flynn keeps his readers coming back for more time after time.
4. Neil Patel. Neil Patel is a Seattle-based angel investor, entrepreneur and analytics specialist. As the founder of Crazy Egg and KISSmetrics, Patel gives SEO/blogging tips meant to help small business owners succeed where others have failed. Patel takes his relationship with his readers/potential clients to a whole new level by introducing a new option: Reserve Neil Online. At a touch of a button, you can schedule a confidential discussion with Neil Patel and discover the secrets of the entrepreneur who has turned multiple blogs into a successful online business.
5. Seth Godin. Godin is an overall genius: author, entrepreneur, marketer, and public speaker.The sky is the limit when it comes to inventorying the number of things that you could learn from this extraordinary multitasker. Land on his website, check out his blog, fall in love with his newest bestseller entitled What to Do When It’s Your Turn, and don’t forget to take a glance at the section entitled “Free Stuff.” In this corner, you’ll be able to download and analyze manifestos, PDFs and ebooks for free. For instance, The Bootstrapper’s Bible is available for free for a limited period of time and teaches you for to start a business when you have no money in your pockets. Download, read and apply.
6. Matt Marshall. Matt Marshall is the Founder and CEO of VentureBeat. For almost a decade now, VentureBeat has made a name for itself as a leading source of information delivering fresh news that can help tech enthusiasts, entrepreneurs and executives make smarter decisions. Basically, this premium resource that attracts around 7.5 million unique visitors each month gives you the chance to discover and understand all the novelty factors associated with various technology trends, ranging from games and health tech to mobile and social media. Marshall signs a series of interesting must-read articles that will automatically catch your eye, especially if you’re interested in the tech innovation and entrepreneurial field.
7. Rand Fishkin. Fishkin is the Founder of Moz and Co-Founder of Inbound.org. His blog gets thousands of views and shares, besides all the traction his amazing company Moz has had. He’s also a celebrated speaker at events like PubCon, and a well-read author.
His Whiteboard Fridays are some of the best visually done weekly vlog-casts on the web.
8. Matt Cutts. Everybody knows Cutts as the voice of Google. He isn’t the most awesome blogger (sporadic posts, all over the board on topics) but he is definitely highly followed and read. Maybe because he works at Google—just a guess.
9. Gina Trapani. Gina Marie Trapani is the CEO and Founder of Lifehacker. She is also a reputable web developer, writer and tech blogger and the author of several bestselling books that deserve a spot on your nightstand, including Lifehacker: 88 Tech Tricks to Turbocharge Your Day and Upgrade Your Life. She is constantly active on social media platforms and spends most of her day podcasting and coding. Trapani is also the proud co-founder of ThinkUp, a brilliant app allowing you to picture your online self by offering you daily insights that you wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else. In case you’re interested, note that this handy tool comes with a 14-day free trial.
10. Pauline Cabrera. Pauline Cabrera is the founder of www.twelveskip.com, a popular blog on all things Internet Marketing. TwelveSkip is a top-rated resource whose purpose is to address the problems and concerns experienced by small business owners striving to boost their online visibility. Delivering a mix of quality information on content marketing, blogging, affiliate marketing and visual marketing, this blog also provides countless practical tips, educational information and step-by-step tutorials.
11. Timothy Sykes. Sykes is a wildly successful blogger who knows more than a thing or two about stock investment. He writes one of the highest earning Internet blogs in the entire world! He makes about $180,000 a month just from his blog, proving that turning a website into a profitable business is far from being a mission impossible. Born in 1981, Sykes is a highly esteemed educator, financial activist, entrepreneur and stock trader. He is currently sharing his wisdom with no less than 2,000 students from 60 countries. His blog comprises a collection of interesting posts that will help you rethink your moneymaking strategies. Most importantly, remember that you could always signup to start or improve your trading education by getting Sykes’ free 7 video lessons.
12. Amit Agarwal. This influent Indian blogger is the founder of Digital Inspiration. As a bold promoter of freedom of speech in his country, Amit made the first steps towards becoming the first Professional Blogger in India. Digital Inspirations, one of his most ambitious projects, is the go-to resource that users land on when they need expert advice on the efficient utilization of web-based technologies, services and tools.
13. Ileane Smith. Ileane Smith is not your average Social Media Diva. As an active blogger, YouTuber and podcaster, she provides free expert guidance allowing her followers to improve their relationships with their audiences and maximize their earnings the easy way. Her website lets you uncover the secrets of the digital media, craft better content, find your own voice and keep your audiences engaged and entertained.
14. Enstine Muki. Why do most companies blog? Because they want to sell faster and better, reach their audiences and stay one step ahead of their competitor. EnstineMuki, the founder of www.enstinemuki.com understands this basic need and shows people how to make money online the easy way. Informative posts such as How I Turned Rejection into $230+ in Affiliate Commissions do raise your curiosity as a reader and convince you to click on his links. At the end of the day, the tips and success stories that he shares with you let you solve problems that may be impacting the visibility and effectiveness of your blog/website. All in all, this resource proves once again that quality content can make you richer and wiser at the same time.
15. Jon Morrow. Morrow’s Twitter account counts 28 photos/videos, 7960 tweets and 33.4K followers. You may be wondering: what lies behind his smashing success? Morrow is the former editor of Copyblogger, one of the most reputable resources offering fresh tips on how to master SEO copywriting and explore your full potential as an online marketer.
As the CEO of Smart Blogger, Morrow signs a series of bold, attention-grabbing posts with shockingly on-point headlines, such as:
Does he have your attention now? We bet he does! However, if you need one more reason to follow his blog religiously and stalk him on Twitter, you should know that all his tips are absolutely free and help you unlock a whole world of new opportunities.
16. BONUS: Daniel Scocco. As a reputable programmer and entrepreneur born in Brazil, Scocco manages to answer different types of questions that you may also have on your mind at this point, as a newbie trying to conquer an overly competitive digital market. Posts such as Should You Really Move Your Startup to San Francisco, Why Startups Fail and There Are 3 Ways to Deal with Rejection. Only 1 Works are an invaluable source of knowledge and let you step up your game in today’s blogosphere. As the founder of Kubic Technology, a company specializing in mobile apps, and the provider of premium consulting services, Scocco is an influential blogger who can satisfy your appetite for quality information on various web content-related topics of interest.
5 Strategies to Consider When Turning a Blog into a Business
Let’s face it: it’s hard to make a name for yourself in a sea of more or less remarkable blogs, especially when you’re sailing without a compass. As a new blogger, you need more than a few standard tips to enhance your level of influence and increase your number of followers. Here are five key aspects that you should factor in to facilitate your transition from rookie to worshipped blogging superstar.
1. Team up with Fellow Bloggers
Are you intimidated by your main competitors? If your answer is affirmative, then you should know that this is the main difference between people like you and successful bloggers. Influencers know how to turn foes into friends and competitors into collaborators. Guest posting is only one relevant example backing this theory. Therefore, if you truly want to boost your popularity and target a broader audience, choose to abandon your comfort zone and establish beneficial relationships with industry experts who could become a part of your content strategy.
2. Invest in the Tools That Contribute to Your Success
In 2015, all categories of content creators get the chance to test and use a great variety of free and almost free tools available online, designed to help them stay relevant and competitive on their niche. From indispensable tools and apps such asPocket, BlogJet or ScribeFire to an awesome-looking, user-friendly blog and website, all these assets supports your growth and maximize your productivity.
3. Stay Active on Social Media Platforms
These days, influential bloggers know how to explore the tremendous power of social networking websites to their best advantage. They tweet, share stuff on Facebook and Google+,post edited pictures and original captures on Instagram and add pins on Pinterest to save the best creative ideas that could inspire their future masterpieces. Blogging is a full-time job and these people work around the clock to promote their content on social media platforms. If you want to witness similar positive results, you should start by employing the same tactics.
4. Find the Perfect Combination of Tactics, Mindset and Vision
Novices can get free blogging tips online with just a few clicks. But in order to become successful, you need more than a few patterns. According to entrepreneurs-journey.com, the ones who get excellent results in this field count on a mix of personalized strategies, a unique vision and a productive mindset.
5. Become the Best Version of Yourself to Achieve Recognition
Above anything else, stay real and use your originality as the most powerful weapon of seduction that is a part of your current arsenal. Perfect your writing style and make it recognizable. Neil Patel’s approach is completely different than the one embraced by Jon Morrow, despite the fact that they both operate in the blogging/SEO sector. Both are exceptionally gifted experts offering you a constant flow of words of wisdom that you can rely on to optimize and promote your blog in an effective manner; and still their styles are unique and easy to recognize by readers who are familiar with their work. Bottom line: raise your own voice and be yourself, simply because everybody else is already taken.
So, Why Blog?
Now let’s go back to the first question that we’ve launched: Why Blog?
As Hubspot points out, the list of benefits associated with blogging for business is virtually endless and includes a simpler method to generate traffic, a great opportunity to establish authority and the chance to witness long-term positive results, in terms of site traffic and new leads. The success stories revolving around strategies that you are now familiar with prove that you can turn a blog into a thriving business. So what now?
Create, innovate and contribute to a flawless user experience through your best content. It’s the only way!
[clickToTweet tweet=”If your ship doesn’t come in, you should swim out to meet it. – @ExpWriters on blogging” quote=”If your ship doesn’t come in, you should swim out to meet it. – @ExpWriters on blogging”]
Need great content? Request well-written, engaging blogs today through our Content Shop!
There is definitely some Matrix-like inception going on in today’s blog.
We’ve created the Ultimate Guide on, well, how to write an Ultimate Guide.
Here’s a fun fact: in this information age, it’s relatively easy to find guides on anything you want.
The results are good, but then there comes a showstopper that immediately makes you pause in your random clicking and reading, and absorbs and holds all your attention.
You’re actually learning something, and you don’t want to click away.
This is the benefit of building an ultimate guide on the internet.
We’ve all seen these pieces. They are referenced repeatedly, get tons with traffic, and see non-stop shares across social platforms.
From how to groom your Labradoodle, to the entire guidelines for changing guitar strings, a mind-boggling Javascript tutorial, or the ultimate whammy guide on creating great social media posts.
The ultimate guide that truly adds value could be called the holy grail of content pieces.
They’re some of the most comprehensive, authoritative, and popular pages you’ll find. If you’ve ever turned to cyberspace to learn something, chances are you’ve used one at some point.
Today, I’m sharing tips on how to create an ultimate guide of your very own.
This will cover it all. Starting with strategy and brainstorming all the way through revising and updating, this comprehensive guide will teach you everything you need to know to get started.
7 Steps on How to Write An Ultimate Guide
1. Why You Should Create an Ultimate Guide (and What it Means)
2. Topic Research: Study Your Topic, Audience, and Competitors
3. When Writing, Start Off with a Format – or Better Yet, a Template
4. Conduct Keyword Research AFTER Your Outline is Created
5. Go Heavy on Examples, Images, and Statistics if Applicable
6. Get a Designer Involved
7. Do Ultimate Editing and Tracking for Your Ultimate Guide
All of these are coming in our blog topic today, complete with a visual infographic on the topic. First, let’s share a story about why and how ultimate guides work so well.
The Story of an Ultimate Guide That Helped Put a $7 Million Business Together
We will start with strategy – but first a little preface on exactly why you should get excited about building your ultimate guide.
Creating an ultimate guide means giving your readers a comprehensive content piece they can’t find anywhere else.
There’s another advantage to that – you’re associating your name with that outstanding piece.
Many readers will have already heard of Unbounce. While you may know them for their landing pages, popups, and sticky bars, you might have also seen the ultimate guide that skyrocketed their brand to success.
The year was 2011. Oli Gardner created a free six-month guide to marketing for Moz. Between the great content and the massive infographic, it racked up views in no time. Below is the top part of the graphic – we won’t show the whole thing here, but recommend checking it out in its entirety.
Nice, huh?
The piece clearly told readers what they wanted to know. It took an already-talented brand and strapped a rocket to their back.
The results? This guide was downloaded over 150,000 times and earned thousands of backlinks. Blogging was their survival, and epic content put them on the map, according to their lead Content Strategist Dan Levy. Just five years after the company’s founding, Unbounce went from nothing to over 9,800 paying customers and $7 million in annual revenue.
How’s that for the “ultimate guide success story?”
A good guide is as useful to you and your brand as it is to your readers.
One look at that graphic shows the main reason why this guide was so successful. You can tell the people behind it knew their subject matter – they didn’t just know it, they lived it and breathed it. When you’re creating this type of piece, you need to be a knowledgeable, trustworthy authority on the topic.
This takes years of work honing a craft, tons of practice, and hours upon hours of research. You’re doing this so your readers don’t have to – that’s why they’ll appreciate it and you.
Your Ultimate Guide on How to Write An Ultimate Guide (The Infographic)
Scroll below this guide for our more in-depth written guide on the topic.
Beginning Stages: Research Your Topic (and Other Ultimate Guides)
Content creators know all about preceding their creation process with strategy. If you’re looking to build a piece that’s more informative and in-depth, you should expect a research period of the same complexity.
The amount of time you spend on a piece isn’t always proportional to its quality – but if you’re doing things the right way, it should be.
This stat is just for blog posts, but if it works for those, you can imagine how much better it works for an ultimate guide.
The interesting observation is the lack of significant variation between the 1-6-hour mark. Yet, when you go beyond that, results tend to be much better.
As for specific research strategies, a lot of your research will come from doing. Your ability to give someone a guide to something is related to your knowledge of it.
That isn’t to say you shouldn’t search the web for additional insight. When you’re in the strategy phase, think about the following:
How to Explain Things You Already Know: Don’t fall into the Dunning-Krueger Just because you are an expert on something, doesn’t mean everyone else is. In an ultimate guide, you want to explain everything. The fundamentals, the nuances, the maybe-you-should-know-this-too parts. The more comprehensive your resource is, the better. It should be a one-stop piece.
How to Explain the Same Thing in Multiple Ways: Searching for insight about your chosen topic isn’t just so you can explain it. You need to explain it in multiple ways, if need be. If the same advice can be given from two different perspectives, make the effort to cover both. Remember, you may be talking to beginners, too. The ultimate guide to content writing, for example, may be used by people other than expert copywriters and career marketers.
How to Explain Things Your Competitors Don’t: Researching your topic also means researching competing ultimate guides – or other comprehensive content types like eBooks and white papers. See how other people are explaining it, and know whether your insight could provide something the competition doesn’t. This is the key to having the ultimate resource that ranks the highest.
Take our agency for example – one thing we do is create a table of contents to start our authority pieces and ultimate guides. This is something that not everyone does, so it sets us apart.
Extra Resources for Fine-Tuning Your Strategy
Your strategy process should be comprehensive, and that means covering all those FAQs. If you wonder about the questions people ask but don’t always get answers to, try visiting sites like Quora.
Yes, using it as a source of answers is about as reliable as using Wikipedia – we don’t recommend it, especially in an authority piece. But while it isn’t great for answers, it’s awesome for questions. See what people ask about your topic, and you’ll know what answers to include in your piece. It can also help you understand common misconceptions so you can clear them up.
You should also aim to make your content evergreen – this type of content never goes out of style. To do this, focus on the fundamentals and points that transcend time-relevancy. You can also adhere to this style by updating your ultimate guide periodically. But, more on that later.
As for the keyword research, we’ll cover that in the section after next – first, let’s work on crafting a format that helps your readers realize they’re in the right place.
Formatting Your Guide and Picking an Ultimate Guide Template
For the sake of example, I’ll be putting together a sample format (with some sample body text as well) to show you how to create an ultimate guide based on a great outline.
This is where things start to get exciting. You’ll be seeing your ultimate guide take form in the early stages. You’ll also get an idea of how to bring everything together. Every format will be different, so don’t think you have to make yours like every other guide on the same topic.
For this format, we’ll go with one of the examples we mentioned at the beginning – how to change guitar strings. To make it a little more specific, we’ll make it “How to Change Guitar Strings on a Floating Bridge.”
Your Guide: How to Change Guitar Strings on a Floating Bridge
Gather the Tools You Need
Sub-points about the right tools
Prepare Your Instrument
Preparation sub-points
Remove the Old Strings
Sub-steps on how to do this
Replace the Strings
Sub-steps on how to do this
Tune the Guitar
Sub-steps on how to do this
Relock the Nut
Sub-steps on how to do this
Whew! Remember, formatting your ultimate guide isn’t just about making steps – it’s about making steps within your steps. Remember, we’re aiming for a thorough, detailed, comprehensive piece that tells your user everything they need to know.
Formatting: Steps Within Steps
So, under the first of our headings, we could have a few sub-categories. The copy could look something like this:
Gather the Tools You Need
After you’ve got your guitar and a fresh pack of your preferred strings, make sure you have the following: a set of Allen wrenches, wire cutters, and a blanket or large soft surface to protect your instrument from harm while you change the strings.
3 Recommended Tools
The following tools aren’t mandatory for getting your strings swapped out on a floating bridge system, but they can definitely make things easier:
String Winder: Whether you go for manual or electric, a winder can help you avoid the tedium of turning your pegs dozens of times by hand.
Fretboard Cleaner and Polishing Cloth: Changing your strings is a great opportunity to clean your fretboard. Make sure you use a cleaner specifically made for fretboards – don’t use things like rubbing alcohol, as they could pull the oil out of the wood and cause it to crack.
Neck Cradle: This nifty invention rests the neck safely so you can work with two hands, giving you just enough elevation so you can maneuver comfortably and have easy access to the tuning pegs.
Troubleshooting the Floating Bridge System
The floating bridge system is notorious for making string-changing difficult. It’s not as hard once you understand the process, but some people wonder whether they should block the bridge to make it “fixed” as they change strings.
We’ll cover how to tune, adjust, and retune your guitar in the tuning section – so you don’t have to block it to use this guide. Many people have said blocking is dangerous to the bridge system. Do so at your own risk – but if you do choose to, a block of wood or a stack of picks could do the job.
If you want to make your guitar’s floating bridge fixed (temporarily) the safe way, consider investing in a locking system like the Tremol-No. Note, this requires its own installation, which is not covered here.
From our sample, you can see that each heading from your table of contents can have subheadings, bullet points, and sections for common questions associated with each part.
If you’re still not sure about how to create your format, try drawing inspiration from others. You can even use ultimate guide templates or examples – simply plug in your own information or alter the existing entries to fit what you’re creating.
Creating or writing a how-to guide template or ultimate guide template may take some trial and error. You may get part of the way through and find you need to go back and explain something else a little more thoroughly.
Formatting is the first part of the actual writing process, and the more work you put into the content the more detailed and precise your format should be.
How Long is Too Long?
When we’re talking about ultimate guides, we’re talking about detailed pieces. However, everything is subject to diminishing returns – water, money, and yes, even great content can lose its value or even become detrimental in too great a volume.
According to one study, the answer actually depends on what you’re writing about.
To be fair, how-to guides could fall into the category of personal development – or maybe a hybrid between that and another field. Simply make sure your content centers around the main points of your format, and you should stay on track without delving too deep into unnecessary specifics. Typical ultimate guides end up around 3,000 words or more.
Just remember to stay on point with your main topic. For example, in our sample piece, we wouldn’t necessarily go into steps about how to check the guitar’s intonation – such a topic would warrant its own piece, despite involving some similar terms and tools.
Choosing Keywords For Your Ultimate Guide
Keyword research is something every content creator is (or should be) familiar with. In the internet age, understanding SEO is great for making sure the people who could benefit the most from your content can find it easily.
Need help with SEO basics? Download our 15 SEO content on-site ranking factors along with 8 steps to accurately optimize your content.
When we’re talking about how to write an ultimate guide that is properly optimized, you should keep the following in mind:
Longtail Keywords Work Best: If you go with a word like “content strategy,” you could attract people who are searching for things like “average cost of content strategy” or even “content strategy statistics for 2019.” If you’re writing a guide on “how to build a great content strategy” use that as your keyword. Longtail keywords are more specific, and they’re great for making sure you attract the optimal traffic.
SEO Best Practices Still Apply: Even though the type of keywords you use will be a little different, you should keep the same principles in mind. Make sure you have your keywords in the right places – headers and sub-headers, especially. Don’t forget to keep frequency in mind. Even in longform authority pieces, don’t resort to keyword stuffing. Use them organically and conversationally to rank higher and create more valuable content.
Look to Your Format for Example: The reason we covered formatting first is that it is a great place to find keyword ideas. Going back to our own example, think of all the relevant keywords that could be used based on the headers. They include: “how do I remove strings from a floating bridge,” “do I take all guitar strings off at once,” and “how to keep a floating bridge guitar in tune.” Longform, yes – but that’s the idea. They’re specific, and you can use them as sub-headers in quote format if necessary.
Also, the same tools can be useful in guides just as they are in blogs. The tried and true go-to options like SEMrush, KWFinder, and Ahrefs are still great choices.
The ultimate guide meaning, or purpose, is to answer questions – so your longtail keywords can become your primary keywords. The opposite is also true. Those smaller, shorter keywords are still good – but in this case, you will use them as secondary options.
Power Up Your Guide with Examples and Media
One of the main traps guide writers fall into is being so focused on having all the written content they need that they end up with a text block. Yuck.
Detail is good, but you should break up your copy. Images or even videos are great for making your guide look better. The best part is they also strengthen the guide’s ability to convey information. Many people learn better from seeing things rather than reading them.
Approximately 60 percent of the population are visual learners – the graphic below shows that stat to be even higher according to some estimates.
People are also compelled by the stories of others, and by numbers. Therefore it is wise to use examples and figures when applicable. To make sure your content stays relevant (we’re almost to that section) make sure you keep your stats up to date.
People trust statistics for everything. From our evening weather report to medical studies that eradicate diseases over generations, much of the important information we rely on (and benefit from) is based off hard data.
Examples can also come in the form of real-world stories and popular cases. You don’t want to get too personal when it comes to your ultimate guide, but if examples fit, it is great to put them in.
Consider Getting a Designer to Create Unique Visuals for Your Ultimate Guide
Design is critical to a thorough ultimate guide. While you want to include screenshots, graphs, and images for anything that lends itself to a visual, going a step further can bring even more traffic and growth to your site. For example, you could have a simple infographic designed for your guide – just like the one we designed, above!
This is a great example of a value-added design that is 100% original and unique to the ultimate guide where it was posted within.
You can find awesome designers through resources like freelance platforms, LinkedIn profile searches for “freelance designer”, or you could talk to us about the custom blog header sets and ebooks we design for our content marketing clients as part of our content writing packages.
A True Ultimate Guide Requires Ultimate Editing & Tracking
If you’re a content creator looking up how to write an ultimate guide, you’re probably already familiar with the most basic revision best-practices, including:
Using plugins like Grammarly to check your grammar and diversify your word choices
Reading your copy out loud as if it were a script to see if it flows properly
Having a separate editor/co-author check over your work to bring a fresh perspective
I won’t tell you that these don’t apply here – but I also won’t tell you that this is enough. Because, for an ultimate guide, you simply have to do more.
The editing process for an ultimate guide can take a full week. Make sure you have an outside eye assisting in the process.
Then, when you finish your ultimate guide, set up a reminder to monitor and update it after publishing.
It’s easy to assume that when you finish your ultimate guide, you may be fine with how it looks. But, how will you feel about it in a week? A month? A year? Remember – these are pages that will bring in millions of views over the years if optimized properly.
Our story about Unbounce is a perfect example. Such a piece kept getting clicks and circulated through content marketing circles across the globe. If your piece is to have that type of a lifespan and continue generating returns, you need to make sure it is updated regularly.
Luckily, if you’re learning how to create an ultimate guide on a particular topic, you probably already know that topic fairly well. Which means you’re also researching it constantly and keeping up on any changes to it.
If there are new developments, new studies, or any new changes at all, you should put them in your guide if they fit. I know what you’re thinking – what if a development happens and you aren’t able to find it quick enough?
I recommend using proven research tools – like Google Scholar, for example.
With access to plenty of university repositories, this tool is fantastic for finding stats as they come out. The best part is you can set up an alert whenever new articles are published. You can also see which papers have cited which, so you’ll know if you’re bringing in a fresh perspective.
Other popular tools for researching new studies and stats include Trello, Mendeley, and Scrivener.
Don’t forget to promote your ultimate guide again and again. Especially after you’ve made some updates – your readers will thank you for keeping your guide fresh and relevant.
How to Write an Ultimate Guide Your Readers Will Love
Every content marketer, copywriter, and creator dreams about going viral with that piece readers just can’t get enough of.
It’s the one they keep coming back to, share on the regular, and still view years after it is released. There’s arguably no content type that fits this description better than a well-crafted ultimate guide.
Remember, to create an ultimate guide, you should:
Research your topic from multiple perspectives, understand common questions, and see what others are missing from their own guides
Craft a format that is organized to cover all major topics in a step-by-step format with the proper amount of detail for each
Conduct your keyword research by drawing inspiration from your format, and leaning toward longtail keywords as your primary targets
Integrate plenty of visuals, examples, and statistics where applicable
Revise your content regularly – update it is as needed, and promote it after each update
Your ultimate guide, like any long-form authoritative piece, will take a lot of work. You’ll be putting in a lot of hours (and days, really) to get everything together.
But it will be worth it. An ultimate guide is the type of piece readers will breath a sigh of relief upon finding. A content marketer’s ultimate goal for building a content piece is to tell the reader everything they need to know. You want to tell them things they always wished they could find – things they couldn’t find elsewhere.
When you create a piece like this, you’ll be glad you put in the work – your readers will be glad, too.
Need an authoritative guide written but don’t have time to create it yourself? Trust us — we care about each and every one of our clients’ content projects.
In content, there’s not much worse than bad writing.
Bad writing can turn a great idea into muddled gibberish.
Bad writing can make you sound silly or unintelligent – even if you’re a smart cookie.
Bad writing is easy to spot but notoriously difficult to fix if you don’t know what you’re doing.
As it turns out, writing clear sentences is both an art and a science.
When you get it right, your content sings.
On the flip side, when you get it wrong, you end up complicating simple ideas. You lead your readers down confusing paths and lose your overall impact.
What’s a writer to do?
Learn how to write clear sentences. Learn how to cut the fat from your writing to improve clarity, but keep your unique voice intact. Today, we’re sharing our best tips to help you do it. Ready to tighten up your writing?
Your Guide to Writing Clear Sentences: Our 6 Top Tips
1. Beware Meaningless Filler Words
If you’re not paying attention, meaningless filler words can sneak into your writing. Like so:
If you’re not paying attention, there are meaningless filler words that can sneak into your writing.
These bloat your sentences with useless gunk. The most common perpetrators include the phrases you see in bold above, plus their variations:
“It” or “there” + “be” verbs:
There are
There is
There were
It is
It was
Relative clauses:
That
Which
Who
Generally, most sentences can live without “it” or “there” + a “be” verb (is, are, was, were) followed by a noun and a relative clause (that, which, who). These types of phrases are called expletive constructions.
In other words, they have no meaning. They don’t help your sentences. Get rid of them!
Another example:
It was my favorite time of year because ofthat crisp weather and falling leaves.
Slash those filler words, and you get a sentence that’s much more concise and to the point:
My favorite time of year has crisp weather and falling leaves.
Once you’re cognizant of filler words, you’ll start catching yourself using them. Pretty soon, your reflex will be to nix them altogether. You’ll be writing clear sentences unconsciously rather than cluttering them up.
2. Self-Edit & Bring in an Outside Editor
The best ways to catch and eliminate those filler words from point #1? Self-edit AND bring in an outside editor to check your work.
Why both?
Because ruthless, constant editing is one of the best methods to clarify and simplify your writing. Multiple editing passes help distill your thoughts and ideas down to their clearest forms.
This is also a top tip from one of my copywriting heroes, Henneke Duistermaat.
In my interview with her for The Write Podcast, she mentions paying attention to the corrections your editor makes. Listen to their feedback! That way, you’ll learn as you move forward and avoid committing those errors again.
You’ll be writing clearer sentences in no time.
3. Write Shorter to Write Clearer
Do your sentences tend to go on… and on… and on?
To write clear sentences, write shorter. Slash your sentences in half. Insert periods instead of commas.
Take this example from a fashion blog:
I’ve been wearing a lot of old favorites and remixing closet classics this season, but if there’s one thing I can’t resist buying every autumn it’s a cozy knit!
It’s unnecessarily long. The main idea gets lost along the way (she can’t resist a cozy knit). If we shorten this up, we can make it clearer and more impactful.
For instance, we can start by splitting the sentence in two. All we have to do is look for the comma and add a period, instead:
I’ve been wearing a lot of old favorites and remixing closet classics this season. But, if there’s one thing I can’t resist buying every autumn, it’s a cozy knit!
Better. Now we can omit filler words and cut this down even more:
I’ve been wearing lots of old favorites and remixing closet classics this season. But, every autumn, I can’t resist buying a cozy knit!
The shorter sentences help us follow this train of thought better. The whole thing is clearer and less meandering, so we get to the point quicker. (This helps hold your readers’ interest!)
Speaking of the main point, that’s another great tip to remember:
4. Don’t Bury the Lede (The Main Subject of Your Sentences)
In journalism-speak, the “lede” is the main subject of your writing. (Copy editors and journalists started spelling it “lede” to help distinguish it from the “lead” in typesetting.)
When you “bury the lede,” you unintentionally hide the main point of your writing.
Not good. Why?
Because clear sentences begin with the main subject.
This is a good example of burying the lede from The MLA Style Center:
“Known for her unmatched skills as a hostess – after all, she had been a debutante who became a socialite whose husband sat on the boards of half a dozen of the city’s most prestigious cultural organizations – Mary felt right at home discussing her plan for the summer fund-raising luncheon with the museum director.”
The subject of this uber-long sentence is Mary. Where is Mary? We can’t find her in the sentence until 209 characters have gone by.
She’s buried.
Another good example of burying the lede in a sentence: using the passive voice.
For instance:
Her plan for the summer fundraising luncheon was discussed by Mary and the museum director.
Passive voice buries the subject of the sentence at the end. We have no idea who is discussing the plan for summer fundraising until the very last words.
Instead, we should put the subject at the beginning:
Mary and the museum director discussed her plan for the summer fundraising luncheon.
That way, our readers won’t have to play detective to figure out who (or what) we’re talking about. This is a major key to writing clear sentences.
5. Avoid Redundancies to Improve Sentence Clarity
Redundancy can be a clear sentence killer.
It happens when you add different words with the same meaning to a sentence, or repeat words or phrases unnecessarily.
The above example of redundancy is obvious. However, it can be subtle, too:
We’re planning to meet at 12 o’clock midnight.
Don’t revert back to your old ways.
She will briefly summarize the report.
All of the above sentences are short, but they can be clarified by removing the redundancies.
We’re planning to meet at midnight. (12 o’clock and midnight both refer to 12:00 a.m.)
Don’t revert to your old ways. (“Revert” means to return or go back to a previous state.)
She will summarize the report. (A summary is brief by definition.)
This chart from the Speak Good English group on Facebook is a great resource to help you avoid common redundancies:
6. Use Writing Tools to Hone Your Craft
Final tip: Don’t forget to use all the writing tools at your disposal. There are plenty of great ones out there that can help you craft clearer sentences.
I regularly recommend Hemingway Editor because it focuses on simplifying your writing, Hemingway-style.
To check out the readability score of your writing, plug it into Readable.io. It tells you what education level a person needs to be able to understand your work. The lower the grade level score, the easier it is to read.
Adding the Grammarly plug-in to your word processor or browser is a good way to catch usage errors while you self-edit.
Writing Clear Sentences: It’s in the Bag
The key to writing clear sentences is recognizing when your grammar gets sloppy. It’s knowing what filler words look like and how passive voice sounds.
The best way to learn all of these concepts is to edit, edit, edit.
Self-edit all your writing. Then, hand your writing over to a trusted editor. Listen carefully to their feedback and add it to your writing toolbox.
If you’re still struggling, enlist high-quality editing and grammar tools. They’ll help whittle down your writing further.
Don’t worry: You CAN and WILL improve. It just takes practice! ✍️
