OPW on Writing Best Business Blog Openers

How better to wind up the week of Say it For You blog posts devoted to crafting opening lines than by serving up some OPW (Other People’s Wisdom) on the subject?

“Don’t even waste your time. No matter how good your blog posts are, if the intro doesn’t grab attention, it’s no use,” Tara Horner pronounces. After all, she notes, the opening line is the first thing readers see other than your title, and what’s the point, she asks, of tweeting a post if no one gets past reading the first sentence or two?

Like Horner, both Darren Rowse of Problogger and Hector Cuevas (blog.2createawebsite.com) suggest starting with a question as one way to engage readers.

• Did you know….?
• How do you….?
• What’s one of the most common problems that…..?
• Do you want to learn how to…?
• Have you ever…?
• Do you ever wonder if…?

A twist on the question strategy whick Rowse mentions, a tactic I’ve made use of on behalf of professional practitioners who are Say It For You clients, is answering readers’ questions.

Jeanine asked Atlanta chiropractor about what high back pain meant versus pain in the lower part of the back…

What Cuevas calls the “shock and awe approach” to business blog content writing involves starting posts by ”disagreeing with what is commonly accepted as the norm”. This, he suggests, “builds an instant sense of curiosity and brings up questions that your readers need answered.” The caution, he adds, is that your content needs to clearly explain your point of view.

As a corporate blogging trainer, the caution I’d add is that, while In many SEO marketing blogs the blog content writers focus on appealing to consumers’ fears, if the goal is to appeal to the “right kind” of customer (who buys for the right reasons and remains loyal), blogging for business should be targeted towards readers’ logic, with an eye to fulfilling those readers’ legitimate needs.

Opening with a quote is a technique recommended by all three bloggers. Quotes, as I explain to Indianapolis bloggers, can be used to reinforce your points, show you’re in touch with trends in your field, and (precisely what I’m doing in this very post), add value for readers by aggregating different sources of information in one spot.

In writing for business, suggests Tara Hornor, the goal is to have your opening statement “leap off the page” and “turn heads”.

The challenge, as every busy business owner, professional practitioner knows, is that sustained “feeding of the blog beast” can be daunting. Hopefully, a shot of Other People’s Wisdom every so often can help rejuvenate that blog content writing drive!