So you’re staring at the blog that you jumped through a load of hoops to finally set up, and an empty page is staring back at you. The next hurdle: your first post. And because you are human (probably? 🦎), you want to smash it 👊 . And in order to do that, you need to know how to write a killer first blogpost.
Let’s get this out of the way: the first time you do anything right off the bat is destined to be absolutely awful. Cooking, essays, walking… If you are ever perfect at something first time, quite frankly, it’s a fluke and when you attempt a repeat performance, you’ll come crashing down to earth with well-earned bruises on your behind 🍑.
I speaketh the truth.
Anything that’s worth pursuing is at least a bit of a challenge. Keeps your mind nimble: brain botox, if you will.
🤸♀️🧠
An Ode on Overthinking
The very first thing you need to do is stop overthinking. You can read what you’re doing a gazillion times and hate every iteration. Guess what? Everyone does that. And if you’re like everyone else (🦎?), you automatically give others the benefit of the doubt.
Do you really read others’ posts with a critical eye? Ok, maybe you do sometimes, but what triggers it? Perhaps you don’t get along with the style (this includes things like spelling, content, image usage…) – fine; perhaps you are feeling bad about your own typistic (that’s a word now) prowess and feel the need to put others down. Or, perhaps you are an editor for a living and are analysing word choice left, right and centre (if so, you’re destined for a life of literary criticism, and I cannot help you. Maybe you should take up yoga instead, as the maverick internet may be a stressful place for you).
So we’ve boiled down the common reasons for negativity in blog reception:
- Personal preference
- Insecurity
- An editorial eye (which could also go under personal preference, but I’m calling out the professionals among you who won’t just relax and go along for the ride) 🌊
Oh look, none of those are things you can control! I hope I’ve waxed lyrical enough for you to get the point: seriously, stop overthinking it. 🤯
À quoi ça sert?
The next question you need to ask yourself is what’s the point of the first blog post?
Well, to fill the blank space for your second, and third, and fourth, et cetera. In a non-pressurised way, you’re building a foundation for your corner of the internet, but that doesn’t mean it has to be the pinnacle of your internet brand. Each time you post something new, that will be your shining example of who you are and what you stand for, so you have endless opportunities to continue to perfect your presence. Chances are, you’ll have feedback from other people as well in the form of comments, so you can confirm other people are (overall) receiving a similar message to the one you want to put out.
Those other people will probably scroll through your most recent posts in descending order, and they’ll interpret your earlier posts through the lens of your later posts. Isn’t chronology amazing? They might then get to your earlier work and wonder how they can also write a killer first blogpost!
So what’s the point of the first post? To actually start doing it. Take the pressure off, forget any phantom haters 👻, and get something down. You’ll never know until you give it a go.
But that’s all airy-fairy. Let’s look at some actionable points for you: I know you came here looking for answers (jeez, it’s like you’re cheating off my test…)🤔
Actionables 🫡
Let’s get right into it – here are some examples of things you could write about for your very first post:
- An introduction to you! This could just be a duplicate of your ‘About Me’ page, so if you’ve got one already, copy it, maybe flesh it out a bit with an interesting factoid about yourself (just nothing that can help people steal your identity because Internet security) and you’re done 🎉
- A bunch of cute animal pictures you’ve taken. You know what they say – if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em… And a picture is worth a thousand words, after all… 🫠
- You could also just jump straight into whatever subject your blog is about! You’ve probably pictured things you want to write about… Take the pressure off and start as you mean to go on! 👩💻
- Start off with some positivity and write a treatise on something or someone you’re super grateful for! Positivity breeds friends!
- To relieve the fear of writing a huge post, write a short one. How about Top 3’s: top 3 places to go in your home town; your top 3 meals; top 3 reasons to play your favourite sport; or, top 3 reasons to start a blog of your own!
- Bought something recently? Put that phone/watch/electric scooter (2023 people!), to extra use and try giving it a review: what features do you like? What could be better, and what is it missing to get it to the next level? Keep it light and friendly, with constructive comments that you clarify are personal preference – you don’t want corporations on your back from the first post!
Other Hints and Tips
- This might be an obvious one, but you don’t have to publish immediately: if you’re really having a wobbly, you can write a few draft posts before you commit to your very first one. This can help you find your voice and avert similar performance anxiety over your next post… You’ve already got your next one mapped out!
- There are free add-ons like Yoast and Headline Analyser on WordPress that can help point you in the right direction – how passive/active your voice is, how many words you have in your title… This sort of thing can give you a nudge and help you turn your blogpost from awesome into awesome and SEO-friendly 😉
- It’s been said time and time again, but a post that you think is a failure, but is out in the world is infinitely better than one that’s great and unpublished. Your blog is a journey: you will develop over time. In order to develop, you need to start.
- Always remember, ‘how to write a killer first blogpost’ is a totally subjective thing…!
Blogasphere: Kill or be Killed?
Ok, your brain has soaked up this amazing information – what should you do now? PUT IT INTO ACTION ON YOUR POST!! Remember:
- Don’t overthink it
- Stop being so critical
- Get it out the way so you can get to the point of your blogspace
- Secret note number 4… Remember, if you absolutely hate it in retrospect, you can always hide a post later 😉
There you have it – a guide on how to write a killer first blogpost – use your newfound knowledge wisely 🦎
Ok, then what?
Once you’ve done your post (homework first – don’t say I don’t care), you can have a nose at some of the other things we’re up to: head over to our About Us to… find out more about us! You can also have a nose at our Amazon affiliate page (if you purchase through the link, we’ll get a cut of Amazon’s profit at no extra cost to you). And, of course, check out our more recent posts because you know you want to 😉
Until then, peas (peace… geddit?)
✌️
