You publish a blog post and crickets? No one clicks on your headlines and your blog post is loading excessively slow? I know that feeling and let me tell you I bet you are making at least three mistakes described in my blog post!

In this post I am covering:

No CTA
No storyline / engaging story
No value
Boring headlines
Poor structure of content
No images / not optimizing images (save for web)
No links internal or external
Not using keywords
Ignoring meta tags
Not using alt tag on images

Missing CTA

Taking the time to craft a perfect blog post without including at least one call to action is like preparing an elaborate meal without anyone eating it. The main point is you have to include at least one call to action or short CTA in your post. Your reader is not taking any action unless you told them to.

Place your call to actions strategically throughout your post. My recommended placements are the middle part of your blog post and the end. If your reader makes it all the way through the end, that means they are interested in your content. Let’s capture the reader by placing a CTA to join your email list. In return, you should offer a free incentive such as an infographic, e-book, report, or guide.

Stylewise you can create a graphic promoting your freebie, or a word/sentence that’s hyperlinked. You don’t have to give away anything for free you can also direct readers to read another blog post, give you a follow online, or schedule a call with you.

2. No Storyline

The most efficient way to build trust and connect with your readers if you tie in emotions. The days for salesy copy are over, in the 20th-century people want to connect with you on a deeper level.

You can achieve this by telling a story in a relatable way, choose something broad that your readers can relate to such as a movie reference, then mention something that happened to you to tie it all together. Paint a picture with your words to set a scene.

In your writing, you want to be as explicit as possible. A good story should have an introduction, tension that builds up, and a surprising/unexpected item.

3. No Value

Everything you put out in the world wide web should have value. Stop asking your customers to buy your stuff if you do not offer anything in return.

So here’s the definition of value according to Meriam Webster “a fair return or equivalent in goods, services, or money for something exchanged”

The emphasis lays on “a fair return.” You want to give before you take and the best way to establish that is by providing your knowledge. Share the “what” in your free content and the “how” in your paid content.

4. Boring Headlines

Boring Headlines.png — The main job of a headline is to attract the user to click. If your headline fails to do the one jobs it’s supposed to do you are doomed.

Your headline should be short, precise, and evoke curiosity. How to, numbers and opinion headlines are great at attracting viewers. Here are a few examples:

How to write better Instagram caption
8 Tools marketers swear by
10 Mistakes to avoid when writing Instagram captions
5 Steps to make you a morning person

5. Structure your post

No one wants to read one big blob of written form content especially not Google! Keep in mind to structure your post so it is easily scannable by the reader and search engine. Include headlines, subheadlines, bullet points, and paragraphs.

6. No images / Not optimizing images (save for web)

Why is my website loading so slow? Ugh, I have heard this comment many times before and 99% of the time it’s your images you are using on your website. A high res image shot with a professional camera can easily be four megabytes. Yikes, that’s a lot!

Before you upload your images you want to make sure you either use Photoshop to optimize your images and save for web. This allows the image to maintain its quality while saving the image as a much smaller file. You can also use Optimazilla, this website lets you compress your images online for free.

7. Not using alt tag on images

When uploading your image to your blog, you want to make sure you name the file correctly. Also, don’t forget to add the alt tag so it’s search engine friendly. Search engines are using the alt tag to identify the content on your page. The alt tag is also used when the website browser is disabled to show your images and instead your alt tag will be shown.

8. No links

Linking from one blog post to another will help to keep the visitor on your site. Linking to external sites will signal authority to search engines. Linking to external websites that are well established on google will show the algorithms that you did a fair amount of research.

9. Not using keywords

Using keywords in your blog post, and headlines is essential to rank in search engines. Strategically place long-tail keywords in your post. You can use tools like Moz and Ubersuggest to find keywords and their search volume. Google keyword planner, a free tool, can be used to determine the keyword forecast.

10. Ignoring meta descriptions

Meta descriptions are little snippets of text that show as a preview on search engines. When writing your meta descriptions include keywords that you are also using in your blog post. Meta descriptions also help you to lure in visitors.

If you follow this checklist, you have a better chance to rank online, get more eyeballs on your content, and provide value to turn visitors into loyal customers.