One of the most excellent ways to make sure your blog post is optimized for SEO is to create a blog post outline. You may increase the chance of visitors seeking information on the issue will find your blog post by using the appropriate keywords and phrases.
Learn more about creating a blog post outline in the following sections to improve your search engine ranking.
What Is A Blog Post Outline?
Before writing any blog, you must have a blog post outline handy. Your blog post outline provides you with a guide to follow to get an idea of what content you should be working on before writing your blog post.
The outline can include things such as the relevant points you want to emphasize in the blog, the format you’ll be using to write it, such as a long-form or a list, and finally, how you’ll organize the points to make sense to your audience.
Creating a blog outline for SEO is especially helpful to writers as it allows them to list down their ideas, review them before writing to recapitulate their thoughts, help them when they are stuck during the writing process, and finally get rid of writer’s block.
What Are The Elements That Make A Good SEO Blog?
To make sure you have an influential blog that can help you with blog SEO optimization, you need to know the key elements that should be present in your blog.
An attractive title:
The title of a blog is the first thing that attracts readers to a blog and makes them click on your post. If the title of a blog is good and contains the relevant keywords, it will grab readers’ attention in no time, eventually leading to higher conversion rates.
Relevant subheading:
While the title gives readers a brief idea of what to expect, the subheadings give them a detailed insight into the topic. You can insert these subheadings between paragraphs to further focus on the topic. It also makes it easier for readers to grasp the information in the blog at a glance.
Engaging images:
Readers will not enjoy a monotonous blog; therefore, to make it more engaging, make sure you add images within your blog. A blog with text and images not only attracts the target audience but also ensures that your blog appears on top of the SERP. The images should be relevant to the blog topic, and the best placement for these images can be near the top of the anchor text in the later sections of your blog page.
Informative blog body:
The blog’s body is very important for conveying information to the readers; therefore, it should be written well enough for the readers to understand it. In addition, the body should answer every question that readers may have.
The post’s body should be properly organized, with separate headers and subheadings that divide the content into manageable sections. It should have high-quality internal links that encourage visitors to visit your other blog posts and increase organic traffic.
Reliable sources:
You should only cite reliable, accurate sources in your blog posts. Don’t forget to credit the source in the text or near the end of your blog. The readers will be able to review the actual content for more clarity if you do this, especially if you include a case study or an external research source.
Writer’s bio section:
Whether you or someone else is writing the blog, include a bio section for the person who wrote it. By doing this, you’ll urge readers to learn more about the writer and introduce them to their other blog posts.
Why Should I Create a Blog Outline?
Often, authors tend to write whatever comes to mind without considering the advantages of developing a blog outline. A blog outline should not be ignored because it helps writers write without distraction and work on their draft with greater ease.
It allows the writers to dig deeper into the subject:
By drafting an outline, authors may encourage themselves to think more logically and to conduct an in-depth study on the subject to mention the key aspects they wish to discuss. They will eventually understand the infographics, images, or links they can incorporate to make it more engaging for their audience.
It gives a practical and logical flow to the blog:
A blog outline makes it easier to plan out a path from beginning to end and offers a logical flow for writers to stick to when writing and for readers to follow while reading. In the end, it helps you understand which heading to place where and how to divide each group to organize the blog.
It helps you to be on track:
Even if you are working on a simple topic, it is still possible to forget some details, especially if you immediately start the writing portion while having multiple tabs open as sources. Building an outline for your blog can make it easier to stay on track and stay on topic while writing by noting down all the important points you plan to work on.
Gives an overview of the blog beforehand:
If you are working for a client, by creating an outline for your blog, you can give them an idea of the information they can expect in the blog.
You can use it to figure out if everyone agrees with the subheading you select, the blog’s layout and format, and the general content. Instead of providing your clients with a lengthy draft, you may offer them this brief outline for review to get their comments and feedback.
It helps you optimize your blog for SEO:
Creating a blog outline will help you determine the best keywords to use to optimize blog posts for SEO and meet the goal of the searcher by answering their most frequent questions. When you have a blog outline planned, you can structure your blog on the specific keywords you’ve decided to target to improve its search engine ranking and make it more visible to the audience you’re trying to reach.
Tips For Creating Blog Post Outline
Creating a blog post is easy especially if you follow these important tips:
1. Select a topic:
For, SEO blogging you must first choose a topic before you can start writing. Things will be much easier for you if you know your niche. Simply choose the target audience and what results they would be interested in inside that category. Brainstorm topics and make a list of them based on the user intent of your audience.
Another option for selecting a topic is by using Ahrefs’ Keyword Explorer and following a few simple steps.
Step 1: Use Ahrefs’ search bar to enter a suitable term for your niche.
Step 2: Select the Matching Terms report from the menu.
Step 3: Next, click the Questions tab to get a list of options.
Additionally, there are online AI tools that can help you in coming up with blog post topics. Hubspot Blog Topic Generator will generate high ranking titles for your blog by assessing online data and offering title you can use to complete your topic research.
2. List down the key points
Once you decide on a topic, you must know what to work on. You must list the key ideas you want to highlight in your blog. Choose the type of post it will be first—a list, a guide, a review, etc. It’s important because you’ll get an idea of the main idea that your blog wants to convey.
For example, if you are concentrating on the keywords “best SEO agencies,” you will realize that you need to present a list of the best agencies based on their search engine rankings, ratings, cost, and other aspects. You’ll have a better idea of how to approach your blog post if you list the subtopics you need to focus on.
3. Choose your targeted keywords
To have effective blog outlines, make sure you pick the right keywords. In SEO, content is the crowning glory, and the right keywords can quickly elevate a business’ name. You must be aware of your audience’s needs to choose appropriate keywords.
You can use long tail keywords that are usually long with more than three words and are generally detailed compared to short tail keywords, also known as head keywords. Long tail keywords are targeted, reducing competition on search engines and increasing conversion rates.
For example, “SEO agencies” can be considered vague, which will produce a generic result. On the other hand, the long tail keyword “best SEO agencies in America” is detailed and will show you more targeted results.
You can look up the keywords that will help you generate better traffic to the specific business using tools like SEMrush and Ahrefs to get the best keywords for the industry you are writing for.
4. Divide and organize the key points into larger sections
The next step is to group the major points into sections after you’ve written down all the important ideas. Your list may all fall under one theme, which can be used as a subheading. List down all the key points under one subheading to make it a larger section and make it easier for your readers to understand what your blog content contains.
Always begin with an introduction, followed by a body that includes various sections based on the type of blog you are writing, and a conclusion. Also, add images and links according to the content in the relevant sections.
5. Pick a strong heading
The headline should be strong as it is the first thing your audience will see on the Google search result. Select a headline that will immediately draw your target audience’s attention to the blog article. A catchy title can substantially boost your chances of receiving organic traffic because the catchier the titles are, the higher the click-through rate it will generate.
6. Go ahead and work on your first draft
You can start writing your draft once you’ve created a final outline for your blog. Start by selecting a hook or a catchy phrase, which will be the first sentence of your introduction, to draw readers in and motivate them to read the entire blog, increasing the user’s dwell time on the website. Finally, expand every point in the outline to give more detailed information, and the first draft will be over in a trice.
A Blog Post Example
So, for example, if you are creating a blog post with the title “Choosing an SEO agency to generate more leads,” your outline should roughly look like the following:
i. Introduction
• Do you want more leads and your business more noticed in the crowd?
ii. All about SEO agencies and generating leads
• What is an SEO agency?
• What does it do?
• How can SEO generate more leads for your business?
• Importance of choosing the right SEO agency
iii. How to Choose the Right SEO Agency to Generate More Leads?
• Define Your Lead Generation Goals
• Research potential agencies
• Check Their Experience with Lead Generation
• Evaluate Their SEO Strategy for Lead Generation
• Ask About Their Approach to Keyword Research
• Assess Their Content Marketing Strategy
• Consider Their Experience with Your Industry
• Discuss pricing and contracts
• Ask for References and Testimonials
iv. The success of a business after hiring an SEO agency
• What are the ways to measure the success of the business?
• Specialization of SEO agencies in optimizing websites
• Strategies they use to generate more leads
Free Templates To Build A Blog Post Outline
Whether you are just starting out as a writer or want to save some time for writing, you can use the free templates available online to get started with an outline easily. In these templates, you just have to fill in the empty spaces and expand the point to write your complete blog. Some of the most effective and easily accessible ones are:
Free AI Article Outline Generator by Surfer:
Writing a blog will be much simpler with the help of Surfer’s Free AI Article Outline Generator, which creates an outline with the topics that should be covered in the H1, H2, and H3 headers.
You only need to type what you want to write about into the search bar, select the location you are writing for from the drop-down list, and wait for the results. You’ll have a list of topics and subtopics ready to use in building the perfect blog.
Scalenut Blog Outline Generator:
Scalenut Blog Outline Generator is a tool designed to help bloggers create structured outlines for their blog posts. By simply entering the main topic or keyword of the post, the tool generates a well-organized outline with headings and subheadings that can serve as a guide for the writing process. The generated outline can help bloggers ensure that their content is well-structured, easy to navigate, and provides a clear flow of information to their readers. Additionally, Scalenut Blog Outline Generator is free to use, making it accessible to bloggers of all levels.
Copy.ai outline generator:
An outline generator is an incredibly useful AI-powered tool that helps you create organized blog post outlines quickly and easily. With just your rough notes and parameters, it quickly turns them into a well-structured and concise outline. This is a great resource for content creators who are short on time and have a lot of ideas to cover.
Be a better writer by building the blog outline the right way!
An outline can help you save time, improve your SEO, keep your content on the topic, and make it more lucid and concise. Your blog content can be outlined in a variety of ways and SEO-optimized. You can do it manually or using a template, but if you want a more polished result, you can always ask a professional to handle it for you. Just be sure that whatever method you choose benefits the company you are writing for, as content is a way to draw more leads to the company.
FAQs
What are the different types of blog posts?
One of the most popular types of blog posts is the “How to article,” which serves as a guide. Other popular types include “Reviews,” which tell readers about the best products and services, “Comparison Posts,” “Interviews,” “Listicles,” and long-form blog posts.
Why are examples important in an SEO blog post outline?
Examples provide evidence and support for the points being made in the post. Examples give your content more credibility and increase readers’ chances of believing the information you’re presenting.
What’s the use of adding bullet points in an outline?
Bullet points are an effective way to organize information in a blog post outline. They improve readability, make information easier to remember and help prioritize the most important information before writing the final piece.
