What Kinds Of Posts Get The Most Clicks?

Every blogger wants to right that one post that’ll go viral. You know, the post that’ll send you from middling blogger to web superstar overnight. It happens to most bloggers on accident: a rant gets shared by readers and trickles down throughout the blogosphere; a pitch-perfection satirical cartoon catches the attention of a bigger publication; or maybe you just simply wrote the one piece that shows your blogging voice in full bloom. We’re all waiting for that one great idea to come to us.

The fact of the matter is that there is no one right way to go about writing the perfect post, the one that attracts new readers or the one that will send your popularity soaring. While there is no set formula for writing the best post, I certainly can offer you some tips on how to write posts that tend to generate the most interest among readers, no matter what niche they follow.

Posts that ask the right questions

One reliable strategy to generate reader interest is to ask them the right questions about things regarding your blog’s niche. You might title a post with a provocative question, or include it in your post’s introduction. The question would have to be arresting enough to catch your reader’s attention, and interesting enough to make them want to read on to see where you’re going with it. An education blogger might ask the question: “Do you think college is overrated?” to stir up a little controversy before they get into the gritty details of their argument.

More to the point, questions turn your post into a two-way discussion. If you ask something of your readers, there’s a much better chance that they’ll respond through comments, emails, a like, or even by sharing your piece. In blogging, you can’t ask too many questions.

Posts that offer lists

There’s something so addicting about the list-style post. No matter what blog I’m on, whether it’s a serious news site or some sort of lowbrow humor blog, I’ll click first on the post that says “Top 5” or “Top 10” on any topic. These posts are perfectly designed to suit the short attention span of the typical web surfer. No one has time for long posts anymore—they just want to see a short list of ranked information, whether it’s the best or the worst. And bloggers have no trouble in giving their readers exactly that.

There’s no end to the kind of lists out there. I’ve seen posts that talk about the best cities to live in the world, lists that describe the best blogging habits, even lists on how to be a good parent. These lists are an easy way to get a few extra clicks out of your readership; I don’t see any reason why you shouldn’t use them to your advantage. Just write about some aspect of your niche that can be easily ranked and you’ll be well on your well to a list post.

Posts that promise something entertaining

More than anything else you want to keep your readers entertained. Like I said before, the typical web surfer has a low attention span, and it won’t take any effort at all for them to click away from your blog onto something much more interesting. This isn’t so hard with many niches that have built-in entertainment value: gaming, tech, movies, television, comedy, and art blogs all have some sort of entertaining aspect by their very nature.

It’s much harder to maintain a political blog or one based on small business ownership that’s entertaining and fresh enough that readers will come back for more. If that’s the case for you, then it’s your job to make every single post possess some novel or exciting angle that’ll draw people in. Otherwise you might be writing to a nonexistent audience.

A blogger and freelance writer, Melissa Miller specializes in sharing education tips with readers. For instance, even in this tough economy, did you know that job seekers will still find associate degrees in demand at all kinds of companies? Melissa welcomes feedback at melissamiller831@gmail.com.