I admit that there are times I am so wrapped up in projects that setting aside the time to piece together a blog article is the furthest thing from my mind. Yet, when I do get back to blogging I often can put an article outline together in as little as 5 minutes. How can I do that? By mulling over a few points that I believe will translate into a readable, instructive, and helpful article. Please read on and I’ll cover some points to help you build a powerful blog article.

A Memorable and Click-able Title

Before I begin writing, I try to think up a title for the article. There are times when I simply put up a bland, three or four word title, but if I believe that my content is great and I want people to actually read what I wrote, then taking time to work on a title is essential. A smart title is the hook you use to reel your readers in.

LaptopWhat Is Your Topic Sentence?

As it was in your schooldays, a topic sentence is absolutely necessary. Without one, then you cannot build your article. Everything written from that point on must flow from that one sentence. If your topic sentence involves identifying a problem, then you need to list possible solution(s) within the body of your article.

The Article Body — A List Of Sorts

After you have written the introductory paragraph — which includes your topic sentence — you can write 3-4 paragraphs which should do the following:

  • Discusses the problem in greater detail by giving examples of people who shared a similar challenge. Empathy and sympathy are strong points to your readers — you want your readers to relate to the challenges faced by others.
  • Offers possible and effective actions to take to overcome the problem. Not every problem has one solution — discussing viable options engages your reader and causes them to weigh their choices. Of course, if you are selling something, then you want to persuade your readers that your solution (save it for last) is the one that makes the most sense.

Keep the writing conversational, do not berate your readers, and offer identifiable and easy-to-follow solutions to the problem.

Your Conclusion = A Call To Action

Once the body of the article has been written, a call to action must be given. For example, “join this social community to get valuable back links to your site,” appeals to readers who want to improve their blogs while giving clear instructions on how to do that. Just as your topic sentence is critical to forming your article, your conclusion should be clearly made and understood.

That’s All Folks!

This outline example will produce an article that is approximately 500-600 words in length. These are the same types of articles I wrote all through 2005 and 2006 that have appeared in various article directories, especially EzineArticles, and to this day have circulated all around the internet and given me thousands of juicy back links to this URL.

No, your article won’t take five minutes to write, but with a solid outline in place you can spend the next 30 to 60 minutes crafting something of interest that will get read, dugg, and stumbled.