By now, you’re probably well aware of the benefits of blogging for your business, brand, or author platform. But there’s more than one way to write a blog post!
In fact, the list could really go on and on—but there is a handful of key prototypes you can use as formulas for success. By practicing with the different types, you can breathe new life into your content and grab your readers’ attention.
Types of Blog Posts
Below are 10 common types of blog posts you can feature on your site to boost your traffic and reader engagement.
1. Lists
List posts are among the most popular types of blog posts. You’ll see them everywhere, from Buzzfeed articles (“32 Things That’ll Make Your Messy Home Unrecognizably Clean”) to “best of” posts (like our very own 20 Best Books on Audio).
Lists are so popular because they offer an effective way to streamline information and make things easy for your audience to understand and apply. Instead of spending hours digging for information, readers can quickly find what they’re looking for in your curated list.
Typically, list posts feature a number in their headline (5 Ways, 10 Tips, 20 Best, etc.). Data actually shows that readers prefer numbered list headlines over any other type of headline.
If the list is organized into a hierarchy (i.e., #1 is best), then this also tells readers which options they should check out first.
Tips for writing list posts:
- Write a compelling intro. Readers will come for the list, but before they start scrolling, they’ll want to see that you understand their problem and what they’re looking for.
- Make sure your list is logically organized. Each point should flow logically to the next. Depending on the type of list you’re writing, you might organize it in order of importance, in the order the steps should be performed, or as a hierarchy (best to worst, or vice versa).
- Focus on curation. You may want to give people as many options as possible; however, it’s not always best to list every option. Include only the options that people will find helpful. For example, in a list of 110 font generators, at least 90 of them are probably repetitive in their features, or just not very impressive. And no one wants to scroll through a list that long just to choose one font generator.
2. How-To Guides
How-to posts are your opportunity to really deliver for your readers. After all, most people conduct online searches to solve a problem, and many of those problems involve not knowing how to do something.
Your how-to post should include everything they need to help them solve that problem. Clarity and thoroughness are of utmost importance here.
Tips for writing how-to posts:
- Write clear, actionable steps. Make each major step a numbered sub-headline. Be sure that each indicates a clear action that needs to be taken; don’t write vague steps that don’t really mean anything. Opt for clear verbs, such as “write,” “build,” “add,” “send,” etc. For an example of a how-to post, check out our guide on How to Write a Series.
- Know your audience. If you run a blog about advanced SEO strategies, then it’s probably safe to use more advanced jargon. But if you’re offering more general advice that could apply to a wider audience, don’t make assumptions about what your reader already knows. Explain things in simple terms, and if any technical words come up, be sure to define them early on. Also, don’t skip over important steps just because you assume readers know about them.
- Write the steps in order. This should seem like a no-brainer, but it’s very important that you present the steps in order to avoid causing confusion. If certain steps are particularly long or involved, break down the step into multiple sub-sections, to make the information easier to digest.
3. Reviews
Consumers rarely have time to test out every product themselves, which is why they consult online reviews.
Review posts usually focus on one product, or offer a side-by-side comparison of multiple competing products (like our Thinkific vs. Teachable comparison review).
Now, be aware that you may get lots of free handouts from companies in exchange for your review of their products. While you can accept those offers, don’t let the freebies keep you from being objective. You can only serve your readers by offering an honest, unbiased review.
Tips for writing review posts:
- Be objective. Your readers aren’t dumb; most can smell a phony review you’ve been paid to write from a mile away. Make sure you’ve actually researched and tried the products you’re reviewing, and if you see drawbacks, don’t be afraid to mention them.
- Write a comprehensive review. Try to think of everything your readers should know about the product or service, focusing on the features that will affect them the most. Again, if there are flaws or drawbacks, don’t neglect to mention them just because you want to write a “nice” review.
- Offer alternatives. Even if you couldn’t love the product more, at least mention a few alternatives, in case your description doesn’t meet a reader’s needs or they want to try out others for themselves.
4. Resources
Resource posts kind of overlap with list posts, but usually include outgoing links to other sources. If relevant, you can also include your own services on the list.
For example, we published a list of 31 Christian Book Publishers Accepting Submissions, and included our own publishing services at the bottom of the list, since we also accept submissions for Christian books.
Tips for writing resource posts:
- Be thorough, but organized. You might have a large list of resources to share with your readers, which is great! Just make sure that you present them in an organized matter that makes it easy for readers to quickly scan and find the information they need.
- Include the most relevant details in your post. While you can let readers discover more about each resource by following their links, make it easy for your readers by including the most essential info directly in your post (such as contact information).
5. Interviews
Even if you don’t have your own podcast, you can still host interviews with special guests who might have valuable insights to share with your readers.
You can choose to present the interview as text, video, or audio. Once it’s published, your interviewee might want to share it with their own followers—another bonus!
Tips for interview posts:
- Brainstorm questions in advance. Write down some questions in advance that will guide your interview and ensure you cover all the important points. However, leave room for the conversation to evolve on its own, too. You might end up getting into some good stuff you never could have planned!
- Look for subjects in unexpected places. Sure, you’ll probably want to target thought leaders from your industry. But don’t overlook people like your own customers, who might have some valuable and surprising insights to offer, too.
6. Personal Stories
Telling personal stories can help readers connect with you on an emotional level, which usually leads them to trust you even more.
Show how you and your brand are relatable. Share stories that convey who you are and what your mission is. But avoid indulging in meaningless self-promotion: your stories, while personal, should be easy to connect to larger themes about life, your industry, etc.
For example, our post 7 Life Lessons I Learned from Ender’s Game shares the author’s own personal experience reading the book, but pulls from that lessons that readers can relate to.
Tips for personal story posts:
- Make it relatable. Your personal story can of course be personal—but choose anecdotes that are relatable and that your audience will find value in, whether they’re entertaining, insightful, or inspirational.
- Don’t make it only about you. Connect your story to larger themes about life. While you don’t have to state it explicitly, make sure the point of your story is clear (i.e., why it matters or why your readers should care).
7. Case Studies
Case studies help to put abstract ideas into more concrete terms for your audience by providing real-life examples of the ideas you’ve discussed.
They can also build your credibility, as readers will be more likely to believe you know what you’re talking about if you can provide real examples.
For example, we published the post How We Sold 300,000+ Books without a Big Marketing Budget, which presents a case study of one of our most successful books.
Tips for writing case study posts:
- Spill the details. Without hard numbers and stats, your case study will be pointless. Back up the claims you make with data and examples.
- Use graphics. When possible, present information in a visual way by using infographics, charts, images, etc. This can make the information more easy to comprehend for many of your readers. (If you can make your infographics shareable, that’s a bonus!)
8. Pillar posts
A pillar post serves as a foundation for other other sub-topics, usually ones you’ll be covering in their own, more detailed posts. As an introduction to a certain topic, your pillar post should cover everything that someone new to that topic would want or need to know.
As such, these posts tend to be quite lengthy, and filled with clear, actionable content, as well as images, infographics, templates, and any other helpful resources your readers might need to better understand the subject.
You can also link to supporting posts from your main pillar post. For example, our pillar post on how to write a blog post is intended to teach a complete beginner everything they need to write a blog post, complete with a step-by-step guide, template, and examples. We can link it to this post, so those readers can also have the opportunity to learn about the different types of blog posts.
Tips for writing pillar posts:
- Be thorough. Before you start writing, create an outline with everything you think your reader needs to know about that topic as a beginner. Include examples when relevant, as well as any resources that might be helpful, such as templates or videos.
- Be clear. While your pillar post should contain all the key information your reader needs, don’t get carried away. You don’t need to try to cover all the nitty-gritty details that only someone with advanced knowledge of the topic would need or understand. Instead, you might briefly mention those sub-topics, but link to their respective posts where readers who are interested to learn more can read about them in more detail. This way, you won’t lose focus or create a cluttered post.
9. Infographic
Infographics are a great way to share information visually, and since many readers love them and find them useful, they tend to get reshared quite a lot (which is great for your site!).
You can create an infographic out of pretty much any information. For example, you might make a table that lists the pros and cons of a certain product, or a chart that shows the results of your research.
Tips for creating infographics:
- Know the basics of design. If you aren’t the best at creating visuals, you might want to take an online design course or two so you can learn the right skills for creating appealing images that people won’t be able to resist sharing!
- Make it shareable. Always make your infographics easy to share (and give credit) so you can enjoy more backlinks and clicks.
10. Video
Video blogs, or “vlogs” as the kids say these days, have gained popularity in recent years, because they allow you to cover a lot of content in a conversational style, without spending hours writing and searching for the perfect words.
You can upload your videos directly to YouTube, then embed them in some of your other written content, when releveant, for added value!
Tips for creating video blogs:
- Include contextual copy or a transcript. Make it easy for your audience to follow along by including a summary, outline, or transcript of your discussion.
- Mix it up. If you’re not comfortable being on camera the whole time, you can throw in some helpful infographics or slides. This is also a nice way to include variety.
11. FAQ
A great way to provide value for your readers is to answer any questions they’re likely to have about your topic. Whenever you Google a certain subject, you might notice a section that says “People Also Asked.”
You should definitely try to answer those questions in your post, even if you’re not making the entire post an FAQ page. Providing a clear, concise answer to those questions will help to establish you as a voice of authority in your field.
Tips for writing FAQ posts:
- Answer questions clearly and concisely. You can expand on your answers, but try to summarize the main answer to the question in 1–2 clear sentences so readers can easily pinpoint the most important information.
- Listen to your audience. Aside from Google’s suggested questions, you should also pay attention to your readers’ comments and see if there are any recurring questions. You should also try to answer those.
12. News Articles
News articles attract readers because of their timeliness. People want to be in the know, so if you’re going to write. a news post, you need to publish it fast.
Writing about newsworthy events or changes within your industry will help establish you as an authority in your field, and people will start to see you as a trusted source of information.
Tips for writing news posts:
- Move quickly. If you’re writing about a newsworthy event, make sure you’re able to publish it while it’s still newsworthy. No one will be looking for your post a week after the fact. If you can’t move that quickly, then you might consider writing an opinion piece or feature, which doesn’t necessarily break the news, but offers reflections or insights about an event.
- Check your facts. While it’s important to publish news posts quickly, it’s extremely important that what you post is accurate. Take enough time to fact check your information so you can protect your credibility and avoid spreading potentially dangerous misinformation.
- Consult multiple sources. To make sure your information is accurate, it helps to consult multiple sources. If possible, contact primary sources for direct quotes or interviews.
13. Podcast Show Notes
Do you also host a podcast in addition to your blog? Then you can turn your episodes into blog posts!
You can publish direct transcripts of the full episode, or summarize the key insights that were uncovered throughout your interview(s), like we did for this episode with Steve Alcorn.
Tips for writing podcast show notes:
- Include quotes. If you don’t include transcripts, at least include a few key quotes. They’re easy to share on social media, and great at eliciting emotions.
- Make your text skimmable. Your show notes should be easy to skim through, so organize the text with headings, subheadings, and short paragraphs.
Check out our guide on how to write podcast show notes for more tips and examples.
14. Blog Series
Sometimes, one blog post isn’t enough for your big ideas. In this case, you can create a blog series by breaking your big idea into different segments.
You can also create a series when you have one overarching idea, but you want to create installments with slightly different themes. (We have several “Life Lessons” posts like the Ender’s Game example I referenced above).
Tips for writing a blog series:
- Find a common theme. Your series might consistent of several posts that continue from one another (i.e., Part 1, Part 2, etc.), or you can build several posts around a recurring theme (like our Life Lessons examples I mentioned earlier). In any case, make sure the connection between your series posts are clear.
- Maintain a consistent structure. To make it clear that a post is part of a series, you might consider using a consistent structure for your posts, especially in your headlines and sub-headers (for example, if you have a “How to Be a Better Person” series, you can make that the first part of your headline for every installment, followed by a colon and the specific topic you’ll be discussing in that post.
Guest Posts
Another type of blog post you can write (or feature on your own site from someone else) is a guest post. We’ve put this as a separate category because your guest post can be written as any of the 10 types above.
If you’re the guest blogger, you can benefit by increasing your exposure and adding to your credibility. You can also include links to your own site, which can help grow your traffic.
If you’re hosting a guest post by someone else, you can provide your audience with a fresh, outside perspective while you also connect with a new audience.
For more tips on finding host sites, check our post on guest blogging.
More Blogging Tips
Blogging is an important marketing tool for your business and personal brand. If you want to brush up on your blogging skills, consider taking a free blogging course.
Once you’ve mastered the art of writing a blog post, you can work on new ways to promote your blog and grow your audience.
Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- How to Write a Blog Post: A 12-Step Guide for Beginners
- 12 Best Free Blog Post Title Generator Tools
- Easy Blog Structure for Fun and Profit: 5 Great Blog Post Templates
- How to Do Keyword Research for SEO: Tips and Tools for Beginners
As a blog writer for TCK Publishing, Kaelyn loves crafting fun and helpful content for writers, readers, and creative minds alike. She has a degree in International Affairs with a minor in Italian Studies, but her true passion has always been writing. Working remotely allows her to do even more of the things she loves, like traveling, cooking, and spending time with her family.
