So you’ve set up a blog on your website. What next?
Have a view; be short and punchy; be topical; invite (and make it easy for) people to share your blog. Pictures too. Readers love those. Particularly ones of cuddly cats…
What else? Oh yes:
They also like links to other useful sites.
And like a well functioning digestive system, good blogs appear regularly and often.
Oh, and don’t go on. In the digital age, attention spans are notoriously short…hello? Anyone still there?
Imagine Usain Bolt (it is Olympic year so forgive the gratuitous sprint metaphor I’m about to indulge in – hopefully the IOC won’t get me for ambush marketing either) exploding from the blocks, shattering the opposition as he disappears in a rocket fuelled haze of power and pace.
Somewhat disappointingly, despite leading all the way down the track, he fails to dip for the line and Seb Clarke, a surprise late entrant to the GBR team, pips him for Olympic gold.
My point?
Well, it is a truth universally acknowledged that a good piece of writing always starts with a good opener. But that shouldn’t mean the finisher can’t be a blinder too.
Finish with some pace; a call to action perhaps, a firm or controversial conclusion; or another question. One tip is to try and tie the conclusion back into opening – it’s sort of a reward to the reader for making it to the end (like the comedian’s punch line).
But whatever you do, don’t slow as you approach the finish line – put your hands in the air and dip for glory (can you see what I did there) and take the acclaim for a piece well finished.