Top 9 ways to keep readers hooked to your blog

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Are you struggling to keep your readers hooked to your blog and make them stay as long as possible on your pages? You are then in the right place.

Readers expect to find what they want to read once they click on a link. They have millions of choices to select from, and landing on one of your posts should be considered an honor for you as a writer.

Think of yourself as the Chosen in the “Matrix” movie.

What if a reader starts reading, then moves to the second paragraph to find out that he’s been fooled and ended up with clickbait? Imagine this happening to you.

He will undoubtedly bounce out to choose another post, and he will never come back to you again.

So, what keeps readers attached to your blog posts? Are there any techniques that we can implement to keep users happy and come back?

Let’s dive in to see what you can do.

Readability ease

Yes, keep your post readable.

You need to write in a way that keeps your audience attached and hooked to reading from the start till the end.

I know this is not as easy as it sounds because writing is not something everyone can do even if he loves it.

Have you ever dreamt of learning how to draw but you have always failed miserably? I did.

Make your post melt like ice cream in your readers’ mouths so they finish reading the article without even realizing they are about to finish.

Keep in mind that even if your post contains all the information needed by people, still you need to keep grabbing their attention to the end.

Doing this requires writing in plain English, easy language, and a communicative way.

Always use easy words since you’re not addressing Nasa, you’re addressing ordinary people who are looking for information and answers.

Your blog post is not a place where you brag to yourself that you know complicated words. If that’s the case, we could all hold a dictionary and select the most complex words.

keep it easy, and hook your readers.

Keep your sentences and paragraphs short

When learning how to do technical SEO, one of the main things to make your priority is users’ experience.

It doesn’t only keep readers hooked to your blog, but also has a great impact on its ranking.

If you are using the Yoast plugin, you will notice that the length of sentences is recommended not to exceed 20 words and the paragraphs not to exceed 300 words.

Even if they contain valuable information, long sentences are overwhelming to most of us.

What to do in this case?

Split your sentences into smaller units and make them easier to read.

This is good for readers’ eyes and concentration.

Long paragraphs make the vision foggy for many people, so avoid stuffing words in long paragraphs and split them into smaller ones by using more subheadings.

Write in a conversational way

One of the best pros of AI writers is that they greatly help you write and cut down your time and efforts. The cons? they are robots that write with no human sense.

What do AI writers have to do with this title? They don’t write in a smooth, conversational way.

Needless to say, AI writers are invading the planet, and they make our jobs extremely easy and our lives more comfortable. The time when we can’t work without artificial intelligence is coming very soon.

You may like to discover how AI writers can write on your behalf.

Deal with your readers as a group of friends standing in front of you, talk to them from your heart, and make a nice conversation.

Now write your posts the same way you talk to people.

Let me tell you that when I write, I stand up lecturing in front of my virtual students using voice-to-text tools like Google Docs.

To keep your readers hooked, talk to them, ask and answer what you think they may ask.

Have you noticed me mentioning Google docs? This is because I predicted that someone might ask which tool I use to write.

A conversational way is a proven way of keeping your readers hooked and they’ll always come back to find answers in your blog.

Look at how my readers interact with me and write as if you are talking to your friends.

Use internal linking

Internal linking means putting many links inside your post that point to other posts.

We are not talking about fooling readers, but about giving them more opportunities to discover new topics while reading.

Internal linking keeps your readers on your blog as long as they find something interesting.

They’ll move from page to page spending more time and decreasing the bounce rate.

learn how to use internal linking to keep readers on your blog and boost SEO.

Keep your internal links relevant to your topic as much as possible so the readers will move smoothly as they feel they’re still reading the same topic but with additional information.

Use images

Using images is a way to break the monotony of a text, that’s right, but who wants to see an image that has nothing to do with the content? Say it, NO body.

This means that images have other roles to play in building your content and have a lot to do with user experience.

Learn where to find content ideas for your blog

As the teacher uses illustrative materials to help students understand an idea, a blogger should use images for the same goal.

Use relative images, and infographics to strengthen your ideas and make it easier for readers to comprehend the topic.

Another importance of using images is that they really count in the SEO process and help you appear in the search results.

Learn the best way to implement these techniques when doing on-page SEO.

Write about real-life case studies

We are all attached to reading about case studies. Think about the “make-money” titles on YouTube that are displayed in this way:

“This is how I made a million dollars.”

“Learn how to make $276,000 in six months”.

These case study titles attract you to read and continue reading to know the secrets of making money.

Although a high percentage of these articles are fake and clickbait, there are many of those who give you real information.

This is what builds trust between you and your readers; giving them a real case study that benefits them, encourages them, and keeps them reading till the end.

Keep your blog appealing to readers

When we want to buy fruits, we choose the shining ones. This is the case when we design our blog.

We need readers to fall in love at first sight because, once they do, they’ll come back again and again to ask you many questions about your design and content.

I get many questions about my simple design and the images I create to support it, as well as many other aspects.

You may have wonderful content that everybody needs to read, but if it is presented in a terrible way, it leads you to lose all the efforts you made when writing.

Start by choosing nice headlines and split your paragraphs with subheadings.

Arrange your thoughts in order so that you don’t put everything in the first paragraphs.

Also, using a bold and italic font to emphasize a phrase or a sentence is a way to organize your work first, then to tell readers how professional you are.

Using images is another way to enhance your design and support your ideas with visuals that people love to see.

Write for mobile phone users

Today, more than two-thirds of readers are mobile users.

What does that mean? Hmm yes, you got it.

Taking care of what these users need to see on their screens should be your priority.

First by using a responsive theme. Although most themes nowadays are responsive, it’s good to check your theme.

Even though you may have a responsive theme, you still need to preview your posts to see what they look like in the mobile version.

Another point is to use large fonts and I recommend a font size of 20, as well as using big buttons. Imagine that you want to zoom in to enlarge your text or click on a button.

Users may not know how much effort you put into it behind the scenes to thank you, but believe me, having them hooked on your blog for a long time is the “thank you” prize you get.

Ask people to subscribe to your blog

If readers like your content and want to follow up with you, why don’t you give them a way to subscribe?

You must first choose which choice will suit you the best. I personally think email functions the best. Social media platforms have their uses, but they don’t always allow you complete control over how you interact with your audience.

In the end, it’s up to you which one you choose. You could even opt to select more than one. However, if you want to do so, I strongly advise making one of them your main priority and encouraging everyone to subscribe via it. People will feel less overwhelmed and confused if there is only one distinct call to action.

Having a signup pop-up is the most used method to ask users to sign up.

Some will sign up, others will not.

Don’t worry, the more valuable content is added to your blog, the more visitors will come and sign up for your newsletter.

Final thought

Writing is not an easy job especially when you know that it’s not just writing and praying. Getting traffic is very important but keeping people hooked to your blog is what matters.

To do this, start with a nice design, use images and infographics, and don’t forget that most users surf the internet using mobile phones.

Choose big fonts and buttons and make your blog pages look appealing to users.

Write to humans as if they are your friends and start virtual conversations between you and them.

Ask them to subscribe to your email list so that you can reach them whenever you have something to publish.

So, there you have it: nine ways to keep readers hooked on your blog. So which ones are you going to try first? Let us know what you plan on doing in the comments.