There’s nothing worse than spending all this time writing a blog post that no one reads. Maybe people are finding your post, but then your analytics suggest they aren’t actually staying on your site long enough to finish it. If you’re going to spend the time on a blog, you want to make sure you’re writing an engaging blog post that provides value to your readers.

As a wedding professional, your goal is to engage your audience, but also get them to turn into a lead. Here are some basic steps you can follow to write an engaging blog post that will turn couples into leads!

Create a good hook

Your introduction is perhaps the most important part of your blog post because it’s what encourages your reader to keep going. It tells them what your blog post is going to be about and how you’re going to help them, whether you’re educating them or simply hoping to entertain or inspire them. Spend some time on your introduction to make sure it’s short and sweet.

I’m including the title in this section as well. Titles are essential because they’re typically the first thing the reader sees. It has to draw them in and encourage them to click, but it shouldn’t be misleading. Your title should include your blog post’s keywords as well. Blog titles that start with “How to” and “The Ultimate Guide to” always do well and provide good room for your keywords. Feel free to experiment a little with your titles and see which do well for you.

Start with story

Stories should be the backbone of your blog posts. They are an amazing way to show personality and draw people in. This is particularly true if you’re a wedding professional because you’re trying to inspire people to hire you for your services. Talking about couples you’ve worked with and things you’ve done is what helps people feel comfortable with you. You convince them with stories, and those stories make them feel more connected to you.

This is why real wedding blog posts are so important for wedding professionals. They tell the story of a couple you’ve worked with, your relationship with them, and how their day came together.

Stories not only give your readers a chance to connect with you, but they also provide proof of your abilities. They explain why you know what you’re talking about or how you’ve helped couples in the past. Stories can also provide a teaching moment. You can educate your readers through your experiences.

Stories are the cornerstone of engaging blog posts, so definitely feel free to share your stories and your couples’ stories!

Make sure your content is helpful

This especially goes for educational blog posts. The essential aspect of educational blog posts is that they’re, well, educational. When it comes to education and engaging blog posts, you want to solve a problem for your reader. They’re coming to you with an issue, and they’re looking to you for a solution. That important information is what makes your blog post engaging.

You also want your blog posts to have unique tidbits. The goal is to provide your reader with new information, even if the topic has been done before. The more unique content/tips you can give your readers, the better.

Even non-educational blog posts need to be helpful. Your real wedding blog posts, for instance, can still provide value. These blog posts offer inspiration and background to the images you’re showing the reader. If a reader is looking for ideas for their wedding in a specific venue, your blog post about a wedding in that venue might be exactly what they’re looking for. You’ve provided them with inspiration and put your work in front of them. Then, they might hire you! (Psst! This is why SEO is so important too. They need to be able to find you!)

Show personality

We touched on this a little when we talked about stories, but blog posts are a great way to show your personality. If you’re trying to convince someone to buy into you, showing them who you are is important. A lot of people think their blog posts need to be formal, but they really don’t. They need to be well-written, but they’re not a school paper. You can show enthusiasm, and you can write how you talk. You want people to get to know you and your brand through your blog post.

This is also why you should always blog about what’s important to you. It’s a lot harder to demonstrate passion when you don’t care about the topic.

Pay attention to readability

Readability isn’t something we talk about too much, but it’s important to both SEO and creating an engaging blog post. Readability refers to how easy your blog post is to read, and there are many ways to improve readability. The most important thing is to pay attention to structure.

When I say structure, I mean how the blog post is broken down. You’ll want to include headings and sub-headings that title every section. Notice how this blog post is broken down by topic using a heading. This makes it easy to see what each section is about and makes the blog post easier to skim. Incorporating keywords into your headings also improves SEO.

Then, there’s the actual writing itself. You’ll want to keep your sentences short, but sentence variation is good too. If you have a long sentence here and there, it’s not a problem. Just try and make sure your work is as concise as you can make it.

Programs like Grammarly can help with this. We use Grammarly for all of our content for our clients, and it has been a great addition! We love how easy it is to use, and lets us make sure the voice is on-brand with our client.

Avoid making your paragraphs too long as well. If you switch topics or ideas, you need a new paragraph. Too many long paragraphs negatively impacts readability.

In general, to create an engaging blog post, you need to think about your reader. What are they looking for? What problems are they hoping you’ll solve? You’ll want to answer those questions before you start writing, so you understand what the goal of your blog post is. Then, you can focus on following all these tips, so you can create an awesome and engaging blog post!

Outsource Your Blogging As a Wedding Pro

If this all sounds exhausting to you, no worries! You could always hire a blogging expert (like Ava and the Bee!) to take care of your blogging for you. We don’t just focus on writing blogs – we work together with our clients to create a quarterly content strategy so we can follow the trends and seasonality of the wedding industry in their area.

Our blogging packages include not just a write-up, but all SEO! It includes: culling the top 30-40 images from a gallery, Keyword research, add Alt Tags, Meta Description, Meta Title, crediting all vendors and external linking to their website, as well as an internal link and call to action. We also format and place it right into your blogging platform, that way you don’t have to do a thing – just read it, approve, and we schedule it all out.

We have worked with over 90 clients, and written hundreds of blogs, so we know how to make this outsourcing a breeze. Reach out and let’s get your blogging perfect!