Content writing, it has to be said, is not for the fainthearted. Ever present at the back on one’s mind while writing is the fact that there are twin demons that need to be satisfied. First, there is the demon called Google. As a content writer, I am ever aware of the fact that I need to satisfy the Google Gods if my articles are to have any chance of reaching their target audiences. I think I was a lot happier writing before I ever heard about Search Engine Optimization. Now I think about keywords, links and other stuff, and it all distracts from the joy of creating pure content.
The other demon is the reader. I know that if I get over the Google hurdle, my content needs to be good enough to keep the reader engaged. Perchance I can keep my readers engaged for a bit longer on my site. That way, I have a much better chance of getting them to take one desired action or the other; such as signing up for a service using my affiliate link. So, what’s the best type of article to bring traffic to a blog?
Best type of content for a blog
I have been blogging for over 4 years now. It actually feels like I have been doing it forever. Before that, I had tried my paws at writing books with marginal success. I have a couple of eBooks wallowing on the Amazon KDP bookshelf somewhere. They remain largely unread. Those that have read them claim I could be a great writer, if only I bothered finding an editor. Well, I haven’t had much success with blogging either!
Not in the sense of becoming a millionaire like so many others. But at least here, I do get a steady stream of readers on a daily basis. My blog averages around 150 page views every day. That’s probably 100 people who read my work on a daily basis. In the time that I have been blogging, I have discovered that the following type of content is the best in terms of bringing readers to a site;
- How to articles. People mostly go on the web to get information. And the majority of them start their queries with “how to…” If you check out this site’s statistics as given in the above screenshot, you will notice that “How to,” articles are the most read on the site. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that they are the majority, but you get what I mean.
- Tips: People love to receive tips from writers. So, you will find people writing “5 tips to do this,” or even “50 tips to do that.” If you want to get traffic flowing to your site, then you will consider writing this type of content.
- Best… articles: This is another type of content that you can write to drive traffic to your website. Most people who go to the internet are looking for solutions to everyday problems. Maybe they are looking to buy something, or they need help with some issue. Let’s say someone is looking to buy a refrigerator and they are stuck in terms of choosing between various brands. If you write content that helps them choose, then people are going to want to read your articles. Just to give an example, the website Best E-Ink Reader Reviews has an article titled “Best e-ink reader 2020.” This article shows some of the (hopefully) best e ink readers that are available on the market at the moment. That is bound to attract traffic because; hey, it’s answering a need!
Keyword Research
Hanging over all this is the fact that you need to carry out proper keyword research if you are going to have any success with your content. I used to use Google’s Keyword Planning tool, which is part of Google Ads. Now I simply go to Google itself and carry out keyword planning through the suggestions that pop up when you make a search query. Anyway, which type of content has been the most successful for you? Feel free to leave a comment in the section below.
