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Blogging 101: How to Write an Introduction That Hooks Your Reader · The Daily Writer

• 0:01
  SPEAKER_00: Have you ever written a draft of a blog post or article only to feel frustrated that you couldn't figure out a great introduction?
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: If so, I think you'll love this episode where I share three foolproof strategies for crafting a great introduction.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, thanks so much for joining me on this episode of the Smart Business Writing Podcast.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: My name is Kent Sanders, and I'm a ghostwriter and professor of communications.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: This is the show that helps you write amazing content so you can save time, stand out from the competition, and get more leads that turn into customers or clients.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_00: Well, today is the third episode on a series that I'm calling Blogging 101.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_00: In the first episode of this series, we talked about seven reasons why blogging can improve your business and writing.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: In the second episode, I shared how to write a compelling headline that'll keep your reader interested and engaged.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: And in today's episode, I want to teach you three directions that you can go whenever you're crafting an introduction.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: And by the way, this principle of introductions, it works in almost any type of content, including emails, newsletters, podcasts, blog posts, articles, book chapters, speeches, lectures, sermons, and pretty much anything else.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: In my day job, I'm a college professor, and one of the courses that I teach is speech.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: Now, speech is a freshman-level course, and in the whole last section of this speech class, we focus on persuasive speeches.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: We take about a third of the whole class to work on these, by the way.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: And in a persuasive speech, in this speech class, we don't call the first part of the speech the introduction.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: Instead, we call it the attention step.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: We actually use something called Monroe's Motivated Sequence, which is a basically a persuasive way to persuade people of something.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_00: It's kind of a five-step system for persuading people of anything.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: It's used a lot in sales.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: And in fact, if you look at a lot of commercials, they use several of these steps from Monroe's Motivated Sequence.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: Now, in Monroe's Motivated Sequence, that first step which we use in my speech class is called the attention step.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_00: And the reason is because the purpose of the beginning of the speech is to get the listener's attention.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_00: And the same is true for any piece of content that you write.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: You have to get the reader's attention.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_00: They're not there typically because they love us or they're trying to be nice or they're like, oh, I've got, you know, 10 minutes to kill.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: Let me read this piece of content.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: No, people are busy, and if we're going to entice them to read our content, we've got to do a good job of hooking them in.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: You can think of this as phishing.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: We've got to get their attention and we have to give them a reason to keep on reading through our content.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_00: Now, hopefully, we've already done that with the headline, which is kind of the initial hook.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: We also call that the title.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: But once they start reading the actual content, we've got to keep them interested.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I used to really struggle with this introduction part of writing content.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: I can super easily write main points.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: I was trained as a preacher in my undergrad uh studies.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: That's what I thought I was going to be whenever I was in high school and college.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: I thought I was going to be a pastor.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_00: So I learned how to put together sermons and lessons and so forth.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: And I've always just been really good at that.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: But I always felt like I struggled with the introduction.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_00: I couldn't figure out an effective way to get people's attention.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: And then I started studying introductions a couple years ago.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: I looked at a lot of book chapters, a lot of articles, blog posts, and other types of content, and I and I began to study the science of writing an introduction to a piece of content.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: And I boiled it down to these three main options, which I want to share with you in this episode.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: And these will work 99% of the time with virtually any type of content.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: Naturally, I wanted this to be memorable.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: So I call this the triple S formula.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: And each of these three options starts with the letter S.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: And if you've been listening to this podcast for any length of time, you know that I love alliterations, I love acrostics, I love memory hooks.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: So each of these options starts with the letter S.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_00: And they are a story, a switch, and a strange fact.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: Now, by the way, I'll give you two bonus options you can use after I give you those three, but let's focus on these three for now.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_00: These are a story, a switch, and a strange fact.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: Now, before I get into these, let's pretend we're writing a blog post on seven foolproof steps to write an amazing book.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: Let's say we're we're going to write a blog post on that topic.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: What I want to do for the story, the switch, and the strange fact is I want to create an introduction to this article or to this blog post using each of these methods.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: And you'll see what I mean as we get into this.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: So let's dive in.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: Let's talk about option one for creating an introduction, and that is a story.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: Now, this shouldn't come as a surprise to you at all.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: We love stories as human beings.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, just about an hour ago, I went downstairs to tell my wife that I was going to run to the convenience store and grab a drink, and she was watching the Hallmark channel.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_00: And I watched a couple of minutes, and I intended to just kind of say, hey, I'm going to run to the convenience store.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: Do you want anything?
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: And I was going to, you know, just say that and then leave.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: But I started watching this movie.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_00: And now, understand I'm not like a guy who watches Hallmark all the time.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: Not that there's not that there's anything wrong with that, but I don't watch the Hallmark channel that much on my own.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: Actually, I never watch it on my own.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_00: But she happened to be watching it, and I sat down and I kind of got sucked into this movie.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: And I started pointing out, hey, I think she's gonna fall in love with this guy.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_00: You know, he's like the construction worker in the small town.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_00: She's this big city girl who's coming home for something, and I think they're gonna fall in love.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, once you start getting into the story, you it's really hard to get out of it.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_00: And I sat there for about 15 minutes.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: Well, that is the power of storytelling.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: We love, love, love stories as humans.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: And you can use this same power of story in whatever content you're creating.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: All you have to do is share a story in the introduction that illustrates the truth you're talking about in that content.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: And let's take our example of a blog post called Seven Foolproof Steps for Writing an Amazing Book.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_00: And by the way, this blog post doesn't actually exist.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: I just made this up for the purposes of this podcast episode.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: So if I were going to use a story in the introduction to this blog post, it would be something like this.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: Have you ever felt like your dreams were just out of reach?
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_00: That's the way Joe felt for years.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: Joe is a school teacher who keeps very busy with his teaching responsibilities.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: Ever since he was a kid, he had dreamed of writing a book, but could never seem to find the time.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: At the end of every school year, Joe would tell himself, This will be the summer I finally write my book.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: But between home projects, a family vacation, and life getting in the way, Joe always began the next school year disappointed that his dream of writing a book was a little bit further out of reach.
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_00: Then he discovered the seven-step pathway to writing a book.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_00: By clarifying his audience and getting clear in his goals, Joe found his direction and was able to coordinate his schedule to get the writing done.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_00: Now, thanks to the simple system anybody can use, Joe is finally a published author.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_00: In this blog post, we will explain each of these seven steps so you can begin writing just like Joe did.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: Before long, you'll also be able to call yourself a published author.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_00: So you get the picture of this.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_00: All you have to do is find a great story that shows the change you want the reader to make.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, you want to show and not just tell.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_00: So that's option number one for a blog post introduction, which is telling a story.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: Let's go on to option number two, which is using a switch.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: Now, a switch is a very common approach in a standard article or a blog post.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_00: Basically, you say, this is the conventional wisdom about the topic, but I'm saying something else.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_00: So you spend the first paragraph of the intro talking about what everybody believes or what everybody does.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_00: Then you take the second paragraph and say, here's why the conventional wisdom is wrong.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_00: And really, when you think about it, this makes sense to do because why should they read your article if you're telling them the conventional wisdom?
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_00: Why should they read your article if you're telling them something they already know?
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_00: The whole point of creating content is to give your readers something they don't already know or to help them change in some way.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_00: So here's an example of a switch using our example of a blog post entitled Seven Foolproof Steps to Write an Amazing Book.
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_00: It's been said that eight out of ten people want to write a book, yet if you ask anyone on the street how to do it, they'll probably answer, I don't have a clue.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: This is because most people believe that writing a book is a torturous, complicated process.
• 8:53
  SPEAKER_00: However, and by the way, let me pause here to say that however is a really key word when you're writing this content.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_00: However, writing a book doesn't have to be complicated or feel like torture.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, writing a book is one of the most fulfilling and valuable ways you can use your time.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_00: In this post, you'll learn seven steps to write an amazing book.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_00: These are steps anybody can do, even if you've never written a book before or you don't think of yourself as a writer.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_00: So that's a way that I would use this switch technique in the context of that blog post titled Seven Foolproof Steps to Write an Amazing Book.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_00: This is this switch technique is really effective and it's very, very easy to do.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: So let's go on to option number three for how to craft an introduction for a blog post, and that is by using a strange fact.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_00: So we have a story, a switch, and then number three is a strange fact.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_00: Now, this technique involves throwing a weird fact or statistic into the works just to kind of shake things up and to do something unexpected.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_00: Never underestimate our human capacity to be obsessed with the weird, the strange, or the unusual.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, case in point.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: Do you remember Ripley's Believe It or Not?
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_00: If you're of a certain age, probably 25 or less, or third 25 or 30 years old or younger, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_00: If you're like in your 40s or older, maybe you remember this.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_00: So Ripley's Believe It or Not was this series of books, and there was a TV show, and there's even museums that deal with the strange and the weird in humanity.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: I absolutely loved those books as a kid.
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_00: And now that I think about it, I've been to the Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum in Branson, Missouri.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_00: That's been probably eight or ten years ago.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_00: And it was kind of fascinating.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_00: You know, as human beings, we're really drawn and sometimes we can be obsessed in an unhealthy way with the weird and the strange.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: So why fight that?
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_00: Just take advantage of human nature and use people's natural curiosity to your advantage.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_00: Appeal to their curiosity in your introduction.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_00: Now, when you're doing this, it usually starts out with a couple different phrases.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_00: You can say, Did you know that?
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_00: Or you could say, most people would be surprised to learn that, and then state whatever the weird fact is.
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: Now, you don't have to phrase it that way, but that's a couple of common ways to do it.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_00: Let's use our example of the blog post Seven Foolproof Steps to Write an Amazing Book.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: Here's how I would use the strange fact technique in that post.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: I would say something like this.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you've always wanted to write a book or know someone who has.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_00: But did you know that 97% of people who start writing a book never actually finish it?
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_00: Writing a book is hard work, and most people who begin the process get discouraged and don't ever finish.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_00: Why?
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_00: Because they didn't have a clear system for actually completing the book.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_00: I don't want you to be another statistic.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: And in this post, you'll learn seven steps to write an amazing book, no matter what your level of experience.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_00: Follow these steps and success will follow soon afterwards.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_00: So that's how I would use the strange fact technique in an introduction to a blog post.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_00: Now, the great thing about the modern age that we live in is that you can find all kinds of strange facts within a second, of course, thanks to the magic of Google.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: Just make sure that when you're using information or statistics that they're credible and they come from a trustworthy source.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: Don't say things like, you know, my second cousin Jimbo once said, make sure to use trustworthy and reliable sources.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_00: Once again, that's really important.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: The more trustworthy that your source is, the more powerful your argument will be in your post.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_00: So there you have it.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_00: The story, the switch, and the strange fact.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_00: Those are three very effective and simple techniques for creating an introduction to your content.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: Now, before I wrap up this episode, let me give you a couple more bonus options.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: These are ones that I like to use as well.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: Option number four is a question.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_00: Asking a question is always great.
• 13:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's almost always effective.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you noticed that I started this episode with a question.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_00: If you remember this a few minutes ago, this is how I started this episode out.
• 13:09
  SPEAKER_00: I said, Have you ever written a draft of a blog post or article only to feel frustrated that you couldn't figure out a great introduction?
• 13:17
  SPEAKER_00: If so, you'll love this episode where I share three foolproof strategies for crafting a great introduction.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: Questions are great because you get the reader saying yes right away.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_00: This is actually a persuasion technique that's often used in sales.
• 13:31
  SPEAKER_00: A question gets the reader agreeing with you and it also draws the reader in.
• 13:36
  SPEAKER_00: And if you think of stories, a question opens up a story loop that you can later close when you give them the actual content.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_00: So, option number four is a question.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_00: Those always work great.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: And then finally, option number five is simply a quote.
• 13:51
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I don't think a quote is necessarily the most powerful way to open your content, but if you get stuck, it's better than nothing.
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_00: You know, quotes are a dime a dozen.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_00: There's whole websites and tons of books focused on, you know, quotes by different people.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_00: But when you find a great quote that really fits, don't be afraid to use it in your introduction.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_00: I think quotes are typically best used in other places in your content, like the main body of the content, or perhaps a closing.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_00: But if you find a great quote that really just says something special, then go ahead and use it as the opening.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_00: Go ahead and use it in the introduction to your content if it really fits.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_00: So those are not just three, but five great options for creating a headline that hooks your reader.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: You have the story, the switch, the strange fact, and you also have a question and a quote.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sure there's an acronym that I can make out of that using SSSQQ, but I have no idea what it is.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_00: If you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, I hope this has been useful.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_00: I use these all the time in my own writing and content.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're sneaky, you can probably look listen back through a bunch of my podcast episodes, and you'll find out that I use one of these approaches almost every single podcast episode to open up the content.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, thanks so much for listening.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_00: As always, I appreciate you.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_00: You can find lots more resources for writers at KentSanders.net.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_00: And until next time, remember that your writing has the power to change people's lives.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_00: I'll see you in the next episode.