Step 2 – Do intensive research, gathering data and scientific studies.
Effective research is critical to writing high-quality content.
Even if you’re well-versed on the subject you’re going to write about, performing research won’t hurt. You can discover a new angle to make your post more interesting or a case study that supports your arguments.
Have a look at ConversionXL. They are known to publish only high-quality evergreen content. The backbone of their articles is intensive research. Their posts are loaded with data.
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Want to carve a niche for your blog so a search engine loves you?
Then write research backed posts.
Start with Google. You’ll get autocomplete suggestions as you start typing.
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You can dig for more keywords from the ‘Searches related to’ section at the bottom of search results.
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Here are some searching tips by Matt Cutts.
You can dig deeper if you use these 25 search operators to deep-dive into any website.
Do you want to include different types of content in your post?
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Then use these other avenues.
You should reference scientific research in your posts, if possible as part of your content strategy. It will improve your credibility. Google Scholar is a good starting point for digging up scientific studies.
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Here are the search results for ‘improve memory.’
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Don’t believe everything written in Wikipedia articles. The information is not as reliable. Only use it for expanding your understanding of a subject.
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You can directly search for data around your subject by searching “[your subject]” + data. You’ll find websites for sourcing statistics.
Here are results for “online marketing” + data.
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It’s easy to get distracted, so time your research and don’t allow yourself more than an hour to gather information.
Step #3 – Create a robust structure: Outline your ideas
How can you write a long article without defining its structure?
It’s the obvious next step to ensure that your writing flows well.
When a reader jumps sections in your article (which he will), he must not get lost.
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So start outlining with a tool of your choice – WorkFlowy, Mindmup or Trello.
You can also use Google Documents for both outline and writing.
The outline should include these elements (choose relevant ones based on the subject of your article).
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And, it should follow an inverted pyramid structure.
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You can write the introduction and conclusion for your post in the outline itself. The introduction will establish context for your main body. The conclusion should end with a strong call to action. You can use ideas from the articles, studies and data collected in step 2.
Then, create sub-topics for your body and bullets to list your main points. Here is a rough outline created in Evernote by Michael Hyatt.
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Feeding irrelevant or outdated information is likely to create a bad user experience. It can tarnish your brand image.
Ask these questions before adding an argument to your outline. It ensures context.
Will your target audience be interested in the sub-topic you plan to cover?
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Does adding a particular research study in your outline present your idea convincingly?
Have a final look at your outline. It must follow your content creation goals and add value for your readers.
