The pressure feels palpable. The pressure is palpable.
The intro is all thats required to write a typical blog post. Imagine writing an intro to a blog about writing blog intros!
Debilitating.
You must start somewhere. It must have a purpose, just like any other beginning: it has to be able to attract the readers attention. It is often said that each line of text should encourage the reader to read the next. The opening paragraph needs to capture the readers imagination in order for them to want read on.
The team has created thousands of successful introductions. Weve listed some of these tried-and true practices, along with examples, to help you produce introductions for which you will be proud. Lets get started!
1. Relevant tie-ins with recent events or news
Your blog should feel relevant and timely. What better way than to start with something thats been recently in the news. Try using something like:
Google has launched an update yesterday that it calls "helpful Content Update," which is meant to punish publishers for posting SEO-first material and to highlight "original, useful content written by humans, for human beings." What does it mean for your strategy?
2. A funny or entertaining anecdote
People love stories. Stories connect us with others and help us make sense of our world. Your blog can be more compelling if you begin with a relevant anecdote. You can use the following example:
Jane Smith asked her boss for the budget approval to implement a new cyber security solution. Her boss sat across from her and asked, "Why should I care if my employees fall for phishing?" "We have more important things to do," he said. Jane, however, knew something her boss did not.
3. A first-person tie-in
Sometimes readers want to know whos behind the keyboard. Its not always about being professional. Telling them about yourself will help you connect with your readers on a personal level. You could say:
Its not just you. I also struggle with writing good intros for my blog posts. The words will not sound the way I want. Ill rewrite and write it over and over again. After a thousand attempts, I finally get the words to align themselves correctly.
4. Facts that are interesting or relevant
You can get people to pay attention by giving them an interesting fact that is little known or surprising. You can, for example:
Did you know the first electric car was invented in 1832? Robert Anderson could not have anticipated that his first electric-powered car would reach the market nearly two hundred years later.
5. A completely unexpected connection between two unrelated things
Malcolm Gladwell uses a particular way to explain something by describing another thing. In this case, Gladwell would describe the flight of a group of birds in order to explain how people behave on social networks. Use techniques like:
The white rhino will use communal dung piles, called "middens", as a bulletin board for the community. They can post messages and share them with the other members. Middens can provide valuable lessons for your companys marketing strategy. We dont recommend that you do this to communicate your message.
6. Zoom out or in
You can put things into perspective when you introduce an article or blog post by presenting either a macro view or a micro view. Zoom in to examine how a problem affects one person or company, or zoom away to view the overall picture.
As an example:
People have used stories throughout history to connect with one another, make sense of their world, and pass wisdom from generation-to-generation. You might find it difficult to start your story, just as every other writer and storyteller has done.
7. Set the Scene
Setting the scene is another way to get your readers interested in reading your article or blog. Define where the readers are, describe what they can see, hear, smell, and how they feel. It is possible to use this method in order to draw the audience in.
Monday morning is very quiet at work. The uncluttered desk has a coffee cup next to it. Smooth, relaxing music is playing on the headphones. You stare blankly into a Word document as you wait in anticipation for the words that will make up your blog post.
8. Ask a compelling question
You can engage your audience by asking a simple question. Its best if your question has a difficult answer. This will make them want to continue reading to discover the answer.
What makes William Shakespeare a great playwright? What makes Shakespeare the greatest playwright of all time? His plots that bounce between tragedy and comedy? What about something completely different, such as his ability to reflect timeless human traits in his plays?
9. Highlight a common pain point
Many blog readers are looking for answers to specific problems. You can start your blog by addressing the readers pain and providing evidence of your companys solution to ease their suffering. For example:
Salon owners have little time left to manage their staff, make appointments, or track inventory. What if they could have a real-time software that would do all of this for them? They could then focus on what made them open their salons in the first instance.
10. Create an Emotion
Our list will end the same way that we began our article. You can also use your introduction to evoke a certain feeling or emotion that you know the reader will be able to relate to. In this example, we were trying to get you to understand the pressure experienced by writers when writing an introduction. It worked? Youve probably read all the way to this point, so well just assume it worked.
What are some other ways you introduce a blog or an article? Please share any other ideas you may have in the comments.
