What a Good Article Has (+ Blog Post Writing Checklist)

Every blog post is a chance to give the most value to the reader. 

So, simplify concepts as if writing to a friend. 

Every word that you write counts; it adds meaning to the main theme of the article.

It’s not just an article; it’s a tool to solve the reader’s problem as they read the article.

You don’t exaggerate, and neither do you lie. You say it like it is. 

You rely on facts, not opinions.

Let’s dive into the features of a good article!  

1. Real-world and hypothetical examples

• If you’re marketing an app on women’s fitness, they are probably looking to lose weight, get fit or build specific muscle groups (hypothetical example).
• A Zappos sales rep sent a customer flowers after he discovered that the customer forgot to mail back the return order because she lost a relative. She became a lifetime customer! (a real-world example)

2. Details instead of vague adjectives

• For example, Involve.me is the best survey maker (vague and unimpactful). 
• If you have a survey respondent’s contact details, you can personalize the survey and even add GIFs on involve.me. And you can retrieve responses even if someone didn’t get to the end of your survey. (details show exactly why Involve.me stands out)

3. Backed-up arguments/advice with statistics/surveys/case studies/research data 

Don’t just say most marketers use Instagram to collect surveys; find a recent statistic that proves it. 

• For stats, it’s best to create a custom image (using Canva or another graphic design tool) or grab a screenshot of an infographic.  But make sure you link to the source of the image. See the example below.

• Always link to the original source of the stat, i.e., the website that conducted and published the survey/study (avoid linking to an article mentioning the stat – e.g., “24 marketing stats for 2022).
• Make sure the stat is recent. After the pandemic, anything before 2019 is obsolete.

4. Links

Internal links (links to other pages on the website you’re writing for) and external links (links to other websites that are not competitors). Competitors are either businesses offering the same products/services or ranking blog posts on the Search Engine Results Page.

5. Actionable steps

• For example, it’s not enough to write, “Companies can distribute customer polls to ask for customer input and their contact information. You can also use the survey results to create customer profiles and improve your services.” After reading this paragraph, can you create a survey? I don’t think so.
• Instead, show the reader exactly how they’ll create and send their first survey. E.g., Create an Instagram poll, collect results, then categorize these results to create buyer profiles. If you send out a poll on what’s the best way to receive your order, you might have results like XYZ. Categorize these results, etc.

So, you can use a hypothetical example, or find a real-world example.

Simply google “successful survey case study.” Using the word case study brings up real-world examples.

For hypothetical examples, create them based on how you understand the concept.

The goal of any article you write is to make the reader take the next step. That’s because you CARE for your readers.

6. Organized information from most important to least important

The first paragraph after each heading should answer the question in the heading. Then the following paragraphs expand the ideas outlined in the first paragraph. 

Below are some examples.

Takeaway: Avoid starting with background information after a heading. Instead, start by answering the question in the reader’s mind, then you can give the background info.

Which brings me to the most important step before you start writing …

7. Understood your target audience’s goals, perceived problems, and worldview

When you write your article for everyone, you write for no one.

You must have one person in mind – the person who would find the article the most useful. Seth Godin calls it the minimum viable market.

For example, someone googling “ways to collect customer data activity properly” is:

• Either a marketer or a business owner. So you’ll choose whether to address the marketer or business owner. For this, I’d look at the website I’m writing for. Who are they addressing? Or what are they offering? That should be your target audience.
• Worldview: They’re ethical and responsible. They believe that if they have correct customer behavior information, they can make better business decisions that satisfy the customers and the business.
• Goals: They want to scale their business and make more profits.
• Perceived problems: They don’t know what the customer wants/prefers, so they don’t know how to serve their customer best.

I just thought of these things by simply analyzing the topic.

What you can do is look for actual user sentiments on forums like Reddit, Quora, etc. 

Simply google your topic and add the word Reddit/ quora/forum/etc., to your search topic and see what comes up.

If you don’t find any useful results, you can also explore user comments on Youtube/Facebook, etc.

So, any examples you use should be relevant to the target audience profile you have in mind.

For example, let’s imagine you’re writing an article on “how to increase workplace productivity,” and you’re targeting the business owner.

So one of your tips is “Take frequent breaks.”

It’ll be inappropriate to write things like “Allocate frequent breaks in which you can water your plants or go shopping.”

It’s inappropriate because the business owner is within the business premises, so they can’t water plants. And going shopping is not the ideal break time activity during business hours.

Do you get it?

Let me know in the comment section if you need further clarification.

8. Finally, a good article is easy to read

Take the time to understand the subject matter before you write. You’ll explain things better when you know what you’re writing about.

If you are struggling to figure out what the topic is, do the following:

1. Google “what is [your target keyword here]” and look at the results on the first page of Google.
2. YouTube search your target keywords and watch one or two videos 
3. Quora search  your target keyword 

That should give you an idea of the topic.

So, what is the most important thing for a good article?

You should only worry about making your article valuable. That means you MUST understand what you’re writing about before you write it. 

Don’t just rewrite what a blogger said: question it, prove that it’s legit, then write it.

Keep in mind that a lot of the info on the internet is distorted because profit is the goal. 

Unless a blogger can prove their point (e.g., through a research/survey/case study), don’t trust it. 

That’s why as you write, you too have to make sure that you prove your point.

When I’m researching a topic, I like to look at what .edu (university), .gov (government), and .org (non-profits) sites have before I check what bloggers are saying.

Here’s a simple search string to filter your search results (site:.edu “your question.” E.g., site:.edu what’s the current global population?). 

Try it out!

But of course, this can’t apply to all topics (e.g., digital marketing topics). 

For digital marketing topics, start by looking for info on authority sites like backlinko.com, searchenginejournal.com, hubspot.com, etc.

Here’s a search string to filter your search results (site:backlinko.com “your question.” E.g., site:backlinko.com what are the best SEO strategies?)

Again, try it out! 

First, identify the credible resources, and if you rely on a blogger’s info, first prove that they’re right. 

That’s the most important thing.

Blog post writing checklist

I’ll divide the checklist into average and advanced.

Here’s the checklist for an average article:

1. Correct information (Please verify everything before you write it)
2. Answered the question in every way (ask yourself; is this guide enough for the reader to solve their problem without doing another google search? Maybe you need to add details? Or link out to in-depth guides?)
3. Short sentences (one idea per sentence, and no sentences with more than one comma)
4. Short paragraphs (1, 2, or 3 sentences long)
5. Organized information from most important to least important
6. Used meaningful headings (i.e., the headings are standalone such that, for example, I don’t need to read the Heading 1 to understand the Heading 2. Each heading should be a complete sentence)
7. Concise writing (no fluff, wordiness, redundancy, or common sense. Every word/sentence is vital for the reader to answer the question. Think; what does the reader need to know to answer this question? Don’t waste their time proving how well you can flower words – just get to the point. Consider this guide as a good example)
8. Grammar check + zero plagiarism

And an advanced article writing checklist

1. Original research; not wikigurgitation. (E.g., if I’m writing about X tips for baking a cake, I wouldn’t rely on tips from the ranking articles. Instead, I’d learn how to bake a cake, e.g., from Youtube videos, to see what actually matters when baking a cake. Then I’d look at user-generated content on baking a cake, e.g., from Youtube video comments, blog comments, Reddit and Quora threads, and other social platforms).
2. Strong internal linking (at least 5) + external links (at least 2)
3. Visuals (infographics, screenshots, etc.)
4. Tailor every sentence to the target audience (write for only one persona; not two)
5. Used examples to explain your ideas (real-world + hypothetical)
6. Backed up all your advice with research data – case studies/statistics/survey/etc. (I.e., if you argue that the best email subject lines are personalized, can you prove it?) 
7. Details not vague adjectives (e.g., Instead of saying email subject lines should be short, tell me exactly how short. So, email subject lines should be 6 to 10 words long. Then, of course, a study to back up this argument)
8. Actionable advice (show; don’t tell – you’re creating a tool, not an essay)
9. Easy to read (consider this guide as an example. It’s a simple one-way conversation between you and I. It doesn’t sound like a textbook or college essay)
10. Lively & creative (your article has some flow to it; it’s uniquely you)

Happy writing!