Even long-time bloggers sometimes have a hard time sitting down and coming up with the perfect blog post. There are two schools of thought and it’s kinda like the chicken and the egg question: Which comes first, the title or the post? Let’s take a look at both.
Write your titles carefully after you write the post
Some bloggers know exactly what they want to say in their blog post. They can sit down and start typing and everything just seems to flow. All of their points or steps are in order, they know which keywords they’re focusing on, everything is concise and cohesive and everything stays strictly on-topic.
If this is how you write then it makes perfect sense to write your post first and then cap it with the perfect title. By the time you get done writing you know exactly what your post is about so all you have to do is use your keyword and a few choice attention-grabbing words to build out your title.
However, don’t kid yourself. In most cases the only reason that blog post flowed so smoothly onto the page was because you already had a basic title idea in mind. It had nothing to do with your writing skill.
Here’s what really happens when bloggers leave the title for last. You’ve probably seen dozens of blog posts that ramble around from point to point, never really making any sense. The blogger starts out trying to tell you one thing and then goes completely off course.
You’ve probably also seen dozens of titles that promise the moon but when you read the article the information just doesn’t jive. These are all articles where the blogger wrote the post first, then slapped on a title.
When you write your titles carefully BEFORE you write your post it gives you an exact roadmap for your article. You know exactly which keyword you want to focus on and you know exactly what information you want to deliver in that post. There’s no second-guessing, no rambling, no jumping from topic to topic.
Writing the title first is like writing a mini outline. A good title lets the reader know what you’re going to deliver and how that information will benefit the reader. So there you go: Point A plus Point B equals Point C.
Writing your blog post without a title in mind also means you’re wasting tons of time re-reading, editing, and rewriting because you don’t have a clear direction in mind when you start. And, one of the biggest complaints bloggers have is that they have to spend so much time writing.
The next time you sit down and just start writing, stop for a second and check yourself. Chances are you already have at least half of a working title in mind. Finish fleshing out that title before you write and you’ll have a much more cohesive article that stays on-point and gets your message across much better than your usual, meandering blog posts.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments below!