Blogging 101 – The Content – Part 4

 Blogging 101 – The Content – Part 4

By Nikki Viljoen – Viljoen Consulting (Pty) Ltd 

We all look at newspaper headlines as we whizz all over town on our daily travels.  Many of them make us angry, many more make us very curious.  Some make us curious enough to even buy the newspaper to see what it’s all about.  Sadly though, often the heading is misleading and sometimes the heading doesn’t even have anything to do with the actual story.

Now the bottom line is that I am not a journalist, I have no formal training in terms of writing, but logic tells me that the heading for any story should, not only reflect the gist of what the story is about but also catch the eye of the person whose attention it is that you want to get. It has to make them stop in their tracks and want to read what you have written.  It has to make them want to read more of the story and it has to make them want to join in the conversation and at least have an opinion.

What it also has to do though is uphold the promise of what is to follow.  Having an absolutely “Knock Out” heading that is followed by non sickle ramblings of a boring mind, will not serve your purpose!  In fact, more often than not you will lose the reader – they may not come back and they will no longer be enticed by clever headlines and sweet promises of what is to come, that are then followed by stories that have no depth or substance.

Finally, always respond to the comments that others make, even if it is only to acknowledge their comment.  Think about how you feel when you write something and no-one makes any kind of comment.  They neither agree with you nor do they disagree and I guess in some ways that is not a bad thing.  On some level though, it worries me that many people do not have an opinion at all.  Sadly that is how many live their lives.  So respond, acknowledge, engage with people who have taken the time and trouble to engage with you.

Pick your topics, do the research.  Take the information that you have found, have fun with it – turn it into a story, and share that story in your blog.  Remember though, you have to take the first step!

See you next time, when we will look at some more issues around some of the content that should be in your blogs.

Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za or http://www.viljoenconsulting.co.za