A business can use articles as one form of written communication to share information with its employees or customers. Marketing and public relations departments can write articles to highlight an organization’s thought leadership and provide relevant industry information.
We provide helpful advice for writing an effective article and explain how to write an article in seven steps in this article.
How To Write an Article
What is an article?
A piece of writing known as an article is one in which the author presents a central idea that they wish to convey to their audience. The subjects of the articles can range from recent to current events. In addition, the author intends to produce content that distinguishes itself from other stories in terms of its ability to connect with readers and its human appeal.
A writer might also want to accomplish the following when writing an article:
influences readers’ current opinions, promotes technological and newsworthy stories, and provides advice and steps to take.
How to write articles
Review these guidelines for how to write an efficient article that’s likely to be read by your target audience.
- Select a topic to write about.
- Identify your target audience.
- Research facts that reinforce your story.
- Come up with an outline of your article.
- Write a rough draft and pare down your outline.
- Specify your subject matter.
- Read aloud until your draft is error-free.
1. Select a topic to write about
Make a list of the topics you want to write about before you start writing. You will have the chance to find your passion as a result of this. If you’re writing an article for your business, get the rest of your team to think of topics that might interest potential customers.
You might need to speak directly with your manager or executive team in order to get a better idea of the people you want to reach. On the other hand, it is highly recommended that you specify your article as soon as possible so that you can begin writing and determine whether or not this is the course of action you wish to take.
2. Identify your target audience
You must consider your audience from the perspective of the person reading your article in order to identify them. To figure out which readers would be most interested in the subject of the article, you might want to conduct a SWOT analysis.
Also take into consideration the following when looking for the ideal audience:
- Demographics: Using this factor, you can get a complete picture of a person’s age, location, and educational background. For instance, if you write an article about beauty products, you can target women in the tri-state area who are between the ages of 18 and 35. You can target suburban men between the ages of 35 and 54 if you write an article about shaving products.
- Behaviours and interests: You need to know what kind of content readers are interested in, so it’s important to study industry trends in marketing and advertising to see how people interact with brands even if they don’t sell to them. One example is a company that sponsors sporting events and makes a lot of money. You can learn a lot about how to get readers to take action by understanding what motivates them to do so.
- Buying habits: Trends in customer behavior distinguish between customers looking to make a purchase and those just browsing the internet. A company can get people to return to their website by using targeted ads. You might need to talk to your marketing team or read customer trends articles online to find out what motivates them to buy a product. If you know which aspects can be instructive, you will be able to write content that aligns with what your audience purchases.
3. Research facts that reinforce your story
When writing a compelling narrative that captivates the reader, having access to the facts is essential. You need a centralized location to store your facts in order to gather all of your story’s components in one place. Although it will be simpler for you to make notes digitally on a word processing document on your smartphone or computer, you should have a notebook where you can quickly write down ideas.
You can direct research in various ways, including:
Measures Quotations from sources related to the topic you’re discussing Definitions related to the topic of the article Short stories References to mainstream society or the media Local or public events Assets that a client might consider supportive
4. Come up with an outline of your article
Before you begin writing, your article should have a basic structure so that you can concentrate on the content rather than the structure. You can also get help from your resources to create a format that is easy for readers to understand.
The following are the four primary components of an outline that you should create:
- Title: When using search engines to locate content, the title of an article is typically the only thing people see online. To get more people to see your content, make sure it targets the rich snippet at the top of the search engine result page (SERP).
- First sentence: You introduce the central idea of what you want to say about a subject in the first paragraph. Because you are demonstrating value and persuading your audience to continue reading your piece, this is the most effective method for capturing their attention.
- The main paragraph: You can construct and arrange supporting information to support your argument in the body paragraph. Highlight your topic with examples from your research and inform your audience about new information and its relevance to them.
- Conclusion: The conclusion of your article can include a call to action or a suggestion for the reader to think about in the future. In order to get people to read your content and share it with their network, you want them to focus on the value they received from it. A focus group can decide what the company should do next if you write for them. This can help you decide how to end your article and encourage readers to anticipate more meaningful content.
5. Write a rough draft and pare down your outline
Write down everything before you start editing so you can let your creative process flow on paper. After that, you can edit everything and consider how the article can be made better and which subjects you want to expand on. Make sure to begin writing and editing from the top to the bottom of the article to save time on your first draft.
6. Specify your subject matter
Break down the key points for each section of the outline to keep your article on track. The reader should always pay attention to your article. You should always collaborate with an editor or a member of your own team whenever you have questions about the content or where to expand on it.
7. Read aloud until your draft is error-free
Before submitting your article for approval, the final step requires you to read it aloud several times. You need to make sure that will be clear and easy for the reader to understand. Read it over with a trusted friend or family member to get their honest opinion as well.
Tips for writing articles
Take into consideration the following suggestions to enhance the content of your articles:
- Check for grammatical and punctuational errors: Proofreading your articles for grammar and punctuation errors is critical. Additionally, having an AP stylebook on hand is helpful because articles for media publications typically adhere to AP style guidelines.
- When you write, take your time: Write your first draft and see how long it takes, if you have a specific word count. While keeping your manager or editor up to date on your progress, this is a great way to manage your time and consistently produce high-quality content.
- Make your points clear: Writing with clarity is essential to its success, and using fewer words to convey your message is preferable to writing more to meet a word count. The word count and content guidelines should be discussed with your manager or editor.
