Blogging Tips

You’re not dumb. Your readers aren’t dumb either. But it’s easier to comprehend what we read when things are put in a straight forward manner. A clear message can be slam dunk for your blog–it can keep your readers interested and it can keep them coming back. So dumb down your message and you’ll be surprised how much of a resource you become.

Don’t overstate your message

This is something to be particularly careful towards. It’s easy in conversation and in writing to just keep harping on the same point, but it’s unnecessary and it gets old after a while. Don’t make your readers work too hard to read through your entire article by clogging the flow with reiteration. Make sure your readers will make it to your next main point by just keeping things moving. Try giving yourself a word limit for your article or an entire paragraph. Write what’s on your mind, then scale it back to fit within your self-assigned word parameters. This will help you become more concise in your writing.

Use key buzz words

Interjecting main points with buzz words lets your readers know that you know what you’re talking about. It also indicates that you’re on top of trends and current events. Key buzz words will also help you obtain better search engine optimization, especially given the real time search trends that can get your blog in front of a lot of eyes rather quickly.

However, be careful to choose your words carefully. Fluffy vocabulary distracts from your message and overworks your readers. Don’t make them think too hard just to get through your blog post. Lastly, don’t use too many buzz words. Now you’re just trying too hard.

Create videos or podcasts

Hearing or seeing someone explain something can be much more effective than just text. Between voice inflections, hand gestures and facial expressions, you can really drive your point home just by talking about it. This can be a great way to “dumb down” your message because listening or watching you speak may be a great way for your audience to consume your message. Perhaps they’re unable to read your article right now, but they can listen to the podcast while they commute to work. Making your content more accessible means that more people will be able to get your message.

Be very careful with videos and podcasts, however. It’s easy to begin ranting or to go off on a tangent while speaking on a topic of interest. As I mentioned earlier, it’s often best to remain concise with your message so as to not distract your audience.

Create a worthy title

A worthy title consists of something attention-grabbing as well as conclusive. Put as much of your article’s main message into your title so readers know what they’re getting themselves into. Making your title catchy is another way of “dumbing things down” because it lets your readers know what your article will be about without being boring. If your title isn’t boring, then your article probably isn’t boring either.
It’s important to create a worthy title that summarizes your article because if you can do this, then you really understand what message you’re trying to get across to readers. Consider this an exercise in effective writing, which will ultimately help you hone your skills.