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How to Write a Blog Post Using Pillar Content

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Learning how to write a blog post may seem easy enough. It is just a matter of throwing together a few paragraphs and grabbing your readers’ attention, right?

We’re sorry to tell you that is just not the case.

Truly writing compelling content on a blog doesn’t usually “just happen” – it takes time to find your writing voice and establish a style of writing that connects and engages.

Learn how to get more traffic to your blog by finding your writing voice and publishing evergreen content on your blog. | Blogging Basics

How to Write Blog Posts Using Pillar Content

When it comes to how to write blog posts, we turn to Problogger’s Guide to Your First Week of Blogging where he discusses the concept of pillar content and how it is vital to writing compelling content.

Coming up with post ideas can come easily to many bloggers. However, figuring out a way for that content to relate is vital to the success of your blog. Not only will it help your readers to understand what to expect from you, but it is also critical in optimizing your blog for search engines.

Your goal is to use the primary focus of your blog, such as food, photography, family, frugal living, etc, and build sub-topics around that category. Doing so is a process known as creating pillar content.

What Is Pillar Content?

Pillar content is foundational or basic content that is essential knowledge for anyone in your niche. It’s evergreen content – it never dates or loses relevance – and it’s the kind of information that people within your audience would search for using Google, Bing, or another search engine. As you can imagine, pillar content is an important aspect of many blogs.

An example…

how to write a blog post using a mind map

In Problogger’s example, he uses a mind map to illustrate the various sub-categories that can be built around a topic for a pet and grooming blog. It is an easy and efficient way not only to organize your thoughts, but also to create a writing schedule! Just think as each of the sub-topics, e.g., Exercise, Finding a Breeder, and Housing, as a separate post.

Write a Blog Post Using Pillar Content

At its most basic level, blogging is the art of putting together a puzzle. This can happen many different ways online, from writing a post, to posting pictures, to making a video. What’s exciting isn’t so much the method you use, but how you bring everything together.

Writing Assignment

Your challenge today is write a blog post covering one of your pillar content areas. In other words, explain one of your core concepts for your blog in a post that you can later link back to again and again.

Here are a few questions to consider before you get started:

  • What is your blog about?
  • Why are you passionate about what you write about?
  • What is unique about who you are? In other words, what stories, tips, experience, etc do you have to share that would interest your readers?
  • What type of information do you have to offer that readers might be searching for on Google?

More From Our Problogger Series

Get caught up on all of our posts in this series from Problogger:

About Francesca

Francesca has an extensive background in content marketing, public relations, and social outreach. She oversees all Operations at Sway Group, including our robust metrics capabilities. Prior to joining the online world, Francesca oversaw viticulture and oenology at various wineries in both California and Italy, and managed regulatory affairs and facility approvals at the biotech company, Genentech. Francesca has been featured on CBS Sacramento and Food Blogger Pro’s podcast. She has also hosted an AMA webinar and spoken at Social Media World.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Erin @ His and Hers says

    My favorite part of having a blog is that I CAN tell stories through my writing, and I rarely get a chance to have a voice in my writing any other time. (College papers=not so much.) Good questions to think about; thanks for sharing!

  3. KateW says

    This is amazing. It puts a system and name to what I always try to do. Having it laid out like this will really help!

  4. When Pigs Fly says

    I think it’s always a great idea to rethink what your blog is about. I’m going through that right now and keep meaning to create an agenda. Blogs evolve and change over time but there always needs to be a consistent thread. It’s so easy to lose the plot when you lose focus.

  7. Joanna says

    This is fantastic. I’ve tended to be a “whatever is on my mind” kind of blogger, which is not what I want to be. Pillar content is exactly what my blog is missing. Thank You!!