Senin, 14 Mei 2012

Posted: 14 May 2012 04:30 AM PDT

Do your posts seem to be a loose collection of ideas, in no particular order?
When I'm coaching bloggers, one common problem that comes up is a lack of structure. During the drafting process, many writers simply sit down and type whatever comes into their head. That's fine for a warm-up … but it's not a very efficient way to create a blog post.
Think of structure as the underlying framework for your posts. With a strong frame in place, your post won't sag in the middle or have bits falling off at the edges: it'll be easy for you to create, and easy for your readers to take in.

How to Structure Your Posts

Every post needs three key elements:

Introduction – this hooks the reader and introduces the topic
Main body – this explores the topic, often with subsections or several bullet points
Conclusion – this rounds off the post and gives a call to action

When you edit your next blog post, check that your introduction is present, and that it does a good job of hooking the reader. (If you've written a list post, for instance, don't just jump straight in with the first item – give the reader some context for the list, so they have a reason to read it.)
Check, too, that you have a conclusion: bloggers often leave this off. Your conclusion doesn't need to repeat everything you've said in the post, but it does need to make the post feel complete. You could end by encouraging people to try out an idea from the post, or by asking them to leave comments about their own experiences.
The main body of your post is the section that needs careful structuring. Some simple ways to do this are:

Use subheadings to split the post into sections of roughly equal length
Use numbered items to create a list post
Use numbered steps to create a "how to" post
Use paragraphs that build up towards a particular point

As you're planning your post, think about what subheadings or list items you might use, and try writing them in different orders to see what makes the most sense for you and for your audience.
And if you get stuck … try looking at posts on some of your favourite blogs. See how they're put together: look at the introduction, the conclusion, and the main body of the post. You could use that framework for a post of your own.
If you have any good tips on structure, or any questions, just pop a comment below.
Author: Ali Luke writes a regular column for Daily Blog Tips. If you'd like to take your writing or blogging further, join her weekly newsletter, and download your free guides Ten Powerful Ways to Make Your Blog Posts Stronger and Ten Easy Ways to Attract Readers to Your Blog … And Keep Them There.