A blog post is more than a piece of content—it can be a major driver of valuable traffic, engaged audiences, and improved search engine rankings.
In this guide, I'll show you how to write a blog post that achieves these goals and share examples of blogs that have climbed their niche so that you can model their success.
What you will learn
- How to choose a blog topic and evaluate its ranking potential
- The importance of research and competitor analysis
- How to structure and format a blog post for readability
- Tips for keeping content engaging and optimized for SEO
- The best tools and frameworks for effective writing
1. Hone in on a topic
While you can brainstorm blog post topics based on industry knowledge and experience, you should think of your audience first. Specifically, you'll want to know two things:
- What your audience wants to learn about
- How much search demand there is for a given topic
You can find out both through quick keyword research. For example, if you run a personal finance blog, you can research the core keyword using Google Keyword Planner and see what comes up.
As you can see, Google Keyword Planner suggested many keywords that can be turned into topics, from financial planning to finance app reviews.
When choosing the keywords/topics to prioritize, look at three factors:
- Search volume—Showcases the audience's level of interest in a specific topic.
- Keyword difficulty—Tells you how much competition there is around your chosen topic.
- Business potential—Shows the topic's potential to move your audience further down the marketing funnel.
Choose a topic that balances these factors. Look for keywords with solid search volume, but make sure the topic isn't overly competitive so that you can rank for it.
A perfect example here is "good budgeting apps," which gets between 10k and 100k monthly searches without extensive competition.
Plus, this topic lets you feature your products (if they're related to it) or include affiliate links, which means it has a solid business potential.
Take a look at Lonely Planet.
Besides general travel guides and tips, the blog discusses niche topics like eco-tourism destinations and other sustainable travel topics, which lets it stay on top of industry trends and align content with audience interests.
If you need help finding topic ideas, connect your website to Surfer's Topical Map.
For instance, it gave us 2650 topic ideas, of which we've only covered 957.
2. Research your blog’s topic
Your audience and search engines expect helpful, well-researched blog posts. The content you include makes a difference between just another article and an authoritative source that ranks well and attracts the right users.
Luckily, you don't need any over-the-top analyses to figure out what to include.
- You can start by examining recent articles on the topic to see how they approach it, as well as industry news to ensure your article is up-to-date.
- You can also use generative search engines like Perplexity or ChatGPT's research models.
- Expand your search to social media and forums. Explore different channels and conversations surrounding your topic to identify the audience's pain points and burning questions.
Doing so also lets you gather useful information like first-hand experiences and unique insights, which add plenty of value to your piece.
For example, if you own a health blog and are writing about Ozempic, you could visit the Ozemic subreddit for results, questions, concerns, and a ton of other info you can include in the blog post.
Finally, tap into the People also ask section of the search results page. You'll find the most common questions related to your topic, which are worth covering to provide additional useful information.
In the Ozempic example, here are some of the questions that appear when you search for "does ozempic work?":
You'll find common questions from search results inside Surfer.
You can use these questions as secondary keywords and subtopics throughout the article to improve both the blog post's value and ranking potential (more on that later).
3. Analyze competitor pages
When you start writing a new blog post, use the top-performing results as a reference. These are the posts Google finds the most valuable and authoritative, so you'll know what you're up against if you want to surpass them in search results and provide more value.
Check out the first 3–5 blog posts for the given topic, and pay special attention to:
- The main angle and approach
- Key subtopics covered
- Content structure and format
The goal here isn't just to see what the top performers cover and how—you should also see what they don't focus on. Find and bridge any content gaps to ensure more comprehensive topic coverage.
The easiest way to do this is to use a dedicated tool that uncovers gaps in your competitor's content. The Topics tab in Surfer can help you research competitior's content at scale, so you don't have to do it manually.
This automated research extracts the most relevant information from competitor pages aiming for the same target keyword, and presents them to you in a way you can use while writing a blog post.
Alternatively, you can find gaps manually through keyword research.
List as many related keywords as you can (which reflect the potential subtopics), and then see which of them aren't covered by the competition.
Use your industry knowledge to consider the topics your competitors might've missed.
Surfer automates competitor content analysis for you so you can also see which types of articles work, their content coverage, and how authoritative they are.
Whichever way you go about it, focus on providing as much tangible value as possible.
If you need an example—you're reading one! We analyzed the most reputable sources of blog writing tips, after which we thought about the advice they don't include.
As a result, we outlined an article that goes beyond search engine results and includes additional value-adds.
4. Draft an outline before writing
After completing your research, you need to plan your article's structure. Specifically, you need to create a blog post outline and break down the key points into subheaders (H2, H3, etc.) to organize the content and make it more skimmable.
For clarity's sake, don't go beyond H3s unless the topic is complex enough to call for it.
Having too many heading levels makes the article harder to follow, so try to lay out your thoughts using H2s and H3s.
Pay attention to the article's flow. Each heading should naturally segue into the next one without abrupt shifts in the key ideas.
This should come naturally the more you write, as you'll develop a feel for the right flow.
Generally speaking, you should structure the blog post as follows:
- Answer the main question/topic early on.
- Discuss additional useful information
- Add a mix of educational, engaging, and promotional elements as applicable
Let's use this recipe for Louisiana red beans and rice as an example. When you open it, the first thing you'll see is the key information (prep time, cooking time, etc.):
The blog post then segues into the information and tips you should keep in mind before you start cooking. The article offers the actual recipe only after covering all the relevant aspects.
You might think it would've made more sense to jump right into the recipe, but that's not necessarily true. If it was laid out immediately, the reader might've missed the tips and additional useful info.
By contrast, this structure encourages them to read the extra information before looking at the recipe, which achieves two goals:
- Ensuring the reader has all the information they need
- Increasing the time spent on the page (which benefits its rank in search results)
This is what I mean by paying attention to the article's flow—keep the reader in mind while outlining the article, and think about the best way to keep them engaged throughout the blog post.
If you need help with your outline, take a peek at the Outline tab inside Surfer, and you should get some ideas from the Headings and Questions tabs.
5. Make your writing memorable with storytelling
Compelling stories aren't only for personal blogs—you can (and should) add a personal touch to each piece to make it unique and engaging.
A good blog post combines informative and creative aspects to keep the user entertained and motivated to keep reading.
As you outline your blog, look for opportunities to include:
- Personal stories
- Relatable examples
- Unique phrasing
You can find plenty of examples of how this is done by following influential writers like Darren Rowse and Tim Ferris, but I want to show you an example I particularly like.
Take a look at this excerpt from Scott Galloway's article:
Sixty years ago, my mother crossed the Atlantic in a steamship: It took seven days and cost 4x what flying does today. Commercial aviation has created enormous value. However, the vast majority of that value has been captured by consumers and society, vs. airlines. Since 1945 the industry has experienced years of low-margin profitability only to have its gains wiped out by periods of huge losses (e.g., $128b in 2020).
In a single paragraph, Galloway combines:
- A personal story
- A thought-provoking idea (about the value of commercial aviation)
- Data-driven insights
You'll see a similar style across Galloway's posts, which is what makes them so engaging and enjoyable to read. While you don't need to mimic it, figure out how to leverage storytelling in a way that fits your posts.
6. Repeat what’s important without being repetitive
Always make sure the reader leaves your article with a few valuable takeaways. To make this happen, you should reinforce the most important points several times—but you must do it without sounding too repetitive.
This might seem challenging at first, but there are many ways to do it. You can use synonyms, metaphors, and analogies to refresh the message without explicitly repeating it.
You can also reinforce the same point in different contexts—just like I'm doing in this article.
One of the main things I want you to take away from this piece is to keep your audience in mind while writing. That's why I mentioned doing so a few times already without being repetitive (hopefully).
If you need another example, see how Scientific American approached their blog post about new forms of psychotherapy.
As many methods are based on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), the article discusses its concepts many times to explain how they're connected to those treatments.
Doing so reinforces the value of CBT and outlines its core mechanisms, helping readers understand and remember them.
Of course, it's fine to be more direct with repetition, as long as you're strategic about it. For example, you can include Key Takeaways (like us) or FAQ sections at the end of your article to repeat the key concepts and ensure they stick with the reader.
7. Open with a compelling statement or statistic
A great blog post captures the reader's attention from the first sentence. There are several ways to do this, such as:
- Interesting/shocking statements
- Statistics related to the topic
- A direct answer to a user query
- Emphasis on the reader's pain point
The right option mainly depends on the specific topic and blog type.
For example, more technical or industry-specific content can open with a statistic that establishes credibility, while a personal or a more general topic gives you more freedom to use shocking, captivating, or simply creative opening statements.
If you need an example of a strong intro, look at the first paragraph of Mark Manson's blog post:
It immediately grabs the reader's attention, after which it maintains an engaging tone to keep them interested throughout the piece.
Of course, this intro has a unique style that won't work all the time, so you can go with something softer but still interesting enough.
You can rarely go wrong with citing reputable studies or real-life examples (yours or someone else's) because they tend to make readers interested in reading more.
A great example is this State of Ecommerce Report, which immediately jumps into figures and statistics:
Ideally, you'll come up with the intro ideas during the outlining stage. This helps prevent writer's block when you start writing the blog post.
8. Match your blog post format to SERPs
Each blog post must meet your target audience's search intent, which is split into four types:
- Informational: The reader is looking for knowledge or information
- Navigational: The reader wants to visit a specific website or page (e.g., "Netflix login")
- Commercial: The reader is investigating a product and needs more information
- Transactional: The reader wants to take action (make a purchase, sign up for a newsletter, etc.)
You must understand the intent behind the user's query and match your content to it. Generally speaking, blog posts primarily satisfy informational and commercial intent.
For example, if you Google a keyword like "find a co-founder," the search results will serve informational articles like this one from Carta.
Similarly, if you search for a commercial keyword like "iPhone 16 review," you'll see Man of Many's blog post offering an in-depth review.
Blog posts can also satisfy navigational intent, though the prerequisite for this is that the reader is already familiar with your brand and uses it in search.
For example, if I Google "common cold WebMD," the top-ranking result will be the post from the specific website I searched for.
The only type of search intent that blogs don't necessarily meet is transactional, which almost exclusively requires a landing page or a similar page with short copy.
To figure out the best way to meet the reader's intent, see how others have structured their content. Look at first-page results and pay attention to the predominant format.
For example, informational articles will typically be:
- How-tos
- Ultimate guides
- Informational listicles (e.g., "5 Ways to Treat Back Pain")
By contrast, commercial blog posts will be formatted as:
- In-depth reviews
- Comparison articles
- Commercial listicles (e.g., "10 Best Soundbars of 2025")
By ensuring alignment with search intent, you'll help the reader quickly find what they came for when performing a search, which is Google's main goal.
9. Keep your content moving
Keeping the reader interested and engaged throughout the entire blog post can be tough, especially when you consider the ever-decreasing attention spans of most audiences. That's why you should pay attention to how your article is structured and make sure reading it requires as little effort as possible.
Write clear, engaging section headers to compel the user to keep reading. Keep them short yet descriptive enough to hint at what the reader will learn.
You can use step-by-step headers to create logical connections between sections and make the article flow more smoothly. It's also a good idea to "announce" future sections so that the reader knows exactly what to expect.
Take this article by Experian as an example. In the section about the types of credit cards, it lists the most common types, which are later covered as subheaders. This way, the reader knows what they'll learn.
As for the body content, avoid monotonous blocks of text that make the article overwhelming and hard to follow. Instead, do this:
- Use short paragraphs (2–3 lines).
- Mix short and long sentences to vary the rhythmic patterns and make reading more engaging.
- Use bullet points and lists to break up the text and increase its skimmability.
- Bold key ideas and takeaways to highlight them and improve comprehension.
10. Show proof for your points
Whenever you make a statement, you should back it by credible sources like:
- Your own data
- Third-party research
- Claims or quotes by industry experts
Supporting your claims improves the blog post's credibility, which makes it more appealing to readers and search engines.
Google heavily relies on the concept of E-E-A-T (Expertise, Experience, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) when determining an article's rank in SERPs, so the more you demonstrate these components, the higher your chances of ranking high.
Data-backed content is especially important in the so-called YMYL (Your Money, Your Life) topics like health and finance. That's why blogs in these industries pay special attention to the accuracy and credibility of their content.
Besides citing their sources, some blogs use advanced strategies that allow users to see the data themselves.
A perfect example is Nerdwallet's Rent vs. Buy Calculator paired with the blog post about renting or buying a home. This helps readers plug in their metrics to see the point the article is making.
While you don't need to go as far as creating dedicated tools, try to make each piece as authoritative as possible. You can start by leveraging others' authority until you build yours.
11. Stay personable
No matter what topic you're covering, you must connect with the reader by showing some personality. Even if you're covering a more technical topic, the reader should notice a personal touch.
There are many ways to make this happen, depending on the topic and angle. Here are some ideas:
- Use lighthearted humor and jokes
- Take a conversational approach to the topic
- Address the reader directly instead of writing in third person
Shaan Puri is a perfect example of a writer who knows how to engage the reader. Take a look at this excerpt from one of his articles:
Besides pulling you in with the narrative, Puri uses a fun, edgy style to infuse his personality into the piece, which perfectly matches his online persona.
Adding personality to your blog posts is especially important if you use AI to write them.
While you can adapt the overall style of the output, it will likely lack the human touch that connects you to the reader. Make sure to edit your content so that it showcases your unique tone and style.
12. Use a writing framework like AIDA [and others]
Writing frameworks can act like blog post templates that structure and streamline the writing process. More importantly, the right framework contributes to an enjoyable reading experience to keep the reader engaged throughout your piece.
AIDA is a great example. It stands for Attention, Interest, Desire, Action—the four components of a solid blog post.
Let's use an example to show AIDA in action.
Suppose you were writing about the challenges of AI implementation. In this case, you could structure your article like so:
- Attention: Start with a captivating headline, and write an introduction that piques the reader's interest (e.g., a statistic about the percentage of businesses struggling to implement AI)
- Interest: Briefly outline the implementation challenges you'll cover to spark more interest in your article. For example, you can use a list to highlight the key challenges and takeaways the article will offer.
- Desire: This can go several ways depending on the article's goal. If the blog should promote your solution that can solve different challenges, you can elaborate on them and use this as a lead-in to introduce your product and create desire to buy it.
Alternatively, you can write about the solutions after elaborating on the challenges to keep engaging the reader. - Action: Similar to desire, action can reflect the blog post's purpose. You can include a direct CTA to check out your product, sign up for a newsletter, or read more about the topic. You can also conclude the article organically by encouraging the reader to implement the solutions you talked about in the article.
Another popular framework is PAS:
- Problem
- Agitation
- Solution
I'll use a real-life example for this one, specifically the Verge's article on airplane crashes. If you open it, you'll see it immediately jumps into the problem:
The article then creates agitation by drilling into the argument that the global aviation system is falling apart, and this agitation motivates the reader to stick with the article.
Toward the end, the article focuses on the solution and becomes increasingly softer, concluding that "the skies are as safe as they can be right now."
The PAS formula takes the reader on an emotional journey, which compels them to keep reading. It's an excellent option for various blog post formats, from exploratory topics like this one to the more marketing and sales-focused pieces.
13. Write for a mid-grade level
Never assume your audience has the knowledge or technical expertise to understand complex language and niche-specific jargon. Regardless of your topic, use clear and simple language as much as possible to create a smooth reading experience.
Keeping your content simple makes it accessible to broad audiences, letting you attract readers who might not have encountered similar topics.
This is crucial to expanding your reach and consistently drawing in qualified traffic.
Even if you're covering a highly technical topic, you can simplify it by:
- Replacing complex industry jargon with simpler synonyms
- Using examples to illustrate complicated points
- Clearly defining each term that can't be replaced but might not be easily understandable
Take OpenAI as an example.
Their article about Model Spec updates covers pretty complex topics but does it in a way most people can understand. Here's a short excerpt that outlines the principles and boundaries of the company's models:
As you can see, the principles are outlined as clearly as possible, which makes them comprehensible to most readers.
If you ever get stuck with simplifying your content, you can use plenty of online tools that can do it for you. For example, you can feed the text to AI assistants like Surfy or ChatGPT and tell them to rewrite it for simplicity and clarity.
This can come in handy if you're covering highly specific niche topics that can be difficult to translate into plain language.
14. Come up with an attention-grabbing headline
The article's headline shouldn't just tell the reader what they'll learn about in the blog post—it should also encourage them to read it. Creating such a headline requires a blend of art and science because you should know how to evoke specific emotions like excitement or curiosity.
Take a look at this article's headline as an example:
You can feel a sense of urgency in it, which is combined with a bit of curiosity because you'd want to know who else could be impacted by the drop in entry-level jobs.
A typical professional would be instantly compelled to read the article.
You can target many emotions with your headlines depending on the topic and angle. For example, this article by Oxfam International uses shock to raise awareness about global inequality:
Similarly, this blog post focuses on the fear of missing out (FOMO):
Whatever emotion you want to evoke, think about the phrasing that would trigger it in you. Use power words to make the headline compelling, and make it concise to avoid watering down its effect.
It's best to write the headline after completing your article. While this might seem unintuitive, it's an effective approach because you'll have a clear grasp of your content and can summarize it effectively.
Lastly, the line between engaging headlines and clickbait is often thin, so be careful not to cross it.
Overhyped and spammy headlines are highly off-putting, so avoid extensive superlatives, full caps, and similar stylistic choices. While the headline should promise an engaging read, it should never overpromise.
15. Use writing apps
While talent and skills are useful when writing, they're no longer a necessity. We now have plenty of apps that can do everything from writing the first draft to editing and optimizing articles for search engines.
These apps can be particularly helpful if you're writing your first blog posts and want to avoid issues like writer's block and extensive editing. For example, Grammarly is an excellent option for completing plenty of tasks like:
- Spotting and fixing grammar and spelling errors
- Tightening your content
- Adjusting the tone and style
You can also use Hemingway Editor to make the text more readable by removing/rewriting complex sentences, finding synonyms for technical jargon, and removing weakeners like adverbs and passive voice.
Unsurprisingly, many writing tools also leverage AI to take over mundane work and free up more time for creativity. For example, Grammarly offers personalized AI guidance, while Hemingway Editor uses AI to automatically fix the issues it highlights.
Still, generative AI is by far the most useful tool in your writing arsenal. If you want to leverage it to write content quickly and effortlessly while making sure your blog post is ready to rank, you can use Surfer AI as a writing assistant.
You can ask Surfer for more details, and to mimic your brand's voice.
16. S-E-Optimize to rank in search engines
If you put in the effort to write a killer blog post, you'll want it to reach as many people as possible—and that's where SEO comes into play. By optimizing each post for search engines, you can turn it into a long-term investment in your blog's visibility and business potential.
The first box you'll need to check is keyword optimization. Make sure the primary keyword is included in these four elements:
- Page title/title tag—Keep your page title under 60 characters (including spaces), and make sure it includes the exact primary keyword without variations.
- Meta description—Write concise meta descriptions within 140 and 160 characters, and add the main keyword to ensure consistency.
- Main heading (H1)—Besides ensuring your post title is captivating, add the main keyword to it so that it's aligned with the other key elements.
- Body content—Ideally, you should add the primary keyword in the first paragraph of the intro and throughout the text as needed.
You should also include secondary keywords wherever they fit naturally, but prioritize adding them to H2 and H3 headers. Doing so signals relevance to the main keyword/topic, boosting your chances of ranking high.
Besides keywords, you should focus on optimizing:
- Images—Use original images as much as possible, and write accurate alt text to help search engines understand their content and relevance to the blog post.
- Internal and external links—Use internal links to connect blog posts logically and group content into related clusters. Draw in as many external backlinks as you can to improve the blog post's authority.
- URLs—Write short, descriptive URLs that include the primary keyword.
You can do this manually or save yourself the effort and time with SEO tools like Surfer. Surfer's Content Editor panel shows you which keywords to use and to ensure your article is optimized for search engine visibility.
A perfect example of writing SEO friendly blog posts is this article on growing sweet potatoes.
The blog made sure that the seasonal plant guide ranks well in search engines by implementing many SEO best practices, from using keywords in all the right places to leveraging visuals and providing useful content.
As a result, the blog post draws in over 3,000 monthly visits, which isn't bad for such a niche topic.
17. Invite readers to more of your work
If your blog post grabs the reader's attention, use it to encourage them to explore other content on your website. While you'll do this passively through proper internal linking, you can also take a more direct approach by adding relevant CTAs.
For example, you can include a "Keep reading" section at the bottom of your article and list some related topics the reader might be interested in.
Alternatively, you can spread CTAs throughout the text with "Pro tip" and "Learn more" blurbs related to specific points.
If you need ideas, look at what Gadgets360 is doing. In the Realme P3 Pro review, they included several soft and hard CTAs, specifically:
- A "Further reading" section
- Links to articles published before and after the current one
- A "Trending products" button that encourages the reader to explore other posts
You have plenty of opportunities to guide the reader to additional content on your site, so explore those that fit your blog structure.
Key takeaways
- When writing blog posts, choose topics that your audience cares about the most. Conduct keyword research, use industry experience, and check out search results to find the right topics.
- Research your topic thoroughly to cover all the questions and points your reader expects. Browse competitors' articles, social media, and forums to understand everything your readers want to know.
- Before you write a blog post, create a comprehensive outline that structures the content and highlights everything you need to cover. Consider the word count, angle, and key subheaders the article will include.
- Leverage storytelling to write engaging blog content and connect with the reader. Use personal experiences, case studies, or otherwise interesting stories that will make your content more enjoyable. You should also let your personality show by using humor and a conversational tone whenever possible.
- The first few lines of your blog post can make or break engagement, so make them count by using statistics, answering the reader's burning questions, or making compelling statements that will pique the reader's interest. If you make any technical or data-driven statements throughout the piece, back them up with research to enhance credibility.
- Use pre-defined frameworks like AIDA and PAS to streamline your writing process and ensure consistency. Make sure all sections of the article flow well by using a logical structure that enables a smooth reading experience.
- Match your content to the search landscape to satisfy search intent, and optimize the necessary on-page elements to rank high. Use relevant keywords in headings, meta titles and descriptions, and body content to signal the article's relevance to the search term.
- Streamline and automate the writing process as much as possible with dedicated tools to remove mundane work and focus on the more impactful activities. You can find an app for virtually any writing aspect, so build a toolset that makes writing effortless and enjoyable.
