10 Reasons Why Your Blog Post Won’t Die

Do you have a post or an article on your website that refuses to die? Four years ago, Amanda Patterson wrote an article about cell phone contracts and how the power of plain language legislation can help consumers. It is one of the most viewed posts on The Media Online to this day.

In internet time, four years is a long time, so to say this article has done well is an understatement.

Last week I joined The Media Online for an interview to talk about what makes an article stick around. We often come across the term “going viral”. [Read The 18 Responses You Need For Content To Go Viral]

There are many different definitions of going viral. Viral is usually something that is insanely popular for a short amount of time. This is more about longevity. A post that grows slowly in popularity and stays around for a long time.

Any content that you put up on the internet should do at least one of these three things. It must:

  1. Inform
  2. Persuade
  3. Entertain

Let’s look at Amanda’s post: Yes, you CAN cancel your cellphone contract and analyse why it works.

Here are 10 reasons why people still read the post four years later:

  1. This article informs.
  2. It was written in the correct viewpoint: It is written in second person, using YOU – the most powerful word in advertising. It is used in persuasive writing.
  3. Timing is important. It was topical. The CPA had been around for about a year and people were figuring out it was for their benefit.
  4. The readability percentage was highIt was written in Plain Language. It simplified complicated agreements.
  5. It speaks to our emotions: It taps into an emotional trigger. We have strong feelings about our cell phone contracts. These emotions you evoke can be positive or negative.
  6. $$$$: It helped the reader save money. We love saving money.
  7. There is a call to action: It is action or solution driven. After reading it you know what to do.
  8. The layout works: There is a lot of white space and it was written using The Inverted Pyramid.
  9. The post speaks to the audience: This post directly benefits the reader. Often we write to get our message across instead of considering how this will improve the lives of our readers. What reward do we give them for clicking on our link?
  10. The headline tells you exactly what the post is about. It makes a promise and then delivers on that promise. Headlines can make or break a post.

Watch the interview here:

Happy writing.

TOP TIP: If you want to learn how to blog, join us for The Complete Blogging Course in Johannesburg or sign up for the online version.

 by Mia Botha

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