What Key Elements Do You Need to Make a Gaming Blog Post Perform?

With more than 4 billion people connected to the internet worldwide, there has never been a better time for you to include blogging in your marketing strategy. The humble blog is a place to establish authority in your industry, drive website traffic, and promote your products.

The practice of business blogging has been gaining popularity lately, with 53 percent of marketers having it as their top inbound content marketing priority. It has also been established by OptInMonster that marketers who have blogs get 67 percent more leads than those who don’t.

In this article, we will share the benefits of blogging for business and guide you on creating amazing content that drives inbound traffic to your site. Let’s get started!

Why do you need a business blog?

As a game developer, your business blog is a video game marketing channel (just like email marketing, direct mail, and social media) that supports your company’s growth. Modern consumers take time to research the brands that sell the products they need, and a blog is the perfect platform for you to educate them about what you’re bringing to the gaming industry.

One of the main goals of a blog is helping increase audience engagement efforts. Your loyal customers log into your blog for the latest product and industry news, and a well-maintained blog will help you engage and educate them on important (and fun!) matters.

Why? Because blog marketing presents you with an opportunity to show your authority on the issues that matter in your industry. By sharing valuable, expert information on your blog, potential customers get to see your knowledge and experience, and this will help you stand out as an industry leader.

Blogging is also an effective outlet for news and product updates. You can write about the latest events shaping your industry and the changes players can expect when they download the updated version of your video game.

Another benefit you stand to gain from blogging is effective link building. Backlinks are one of the critical factors for search engine optimization. Publishing informative pieces makes it easier for you to earn relevant links from other websites, which signals to Google that you're a trustworthy expert in your industry. As such, your website will show up when customers (both potential and current) are looking for it, which means more players for you!

Now that you understand how blogging enhances your content marketing strategy, let’s look at the essential elements of a great blog post.

The winning formula for a fantastic gaming blog post

A plan

Before writing any blog, sit down with your content marketing manager to create a plan to guide your efforts. You could be the most creative copywriter in the world, but your blog post will lack direction without a plan and fail to deliver the expected outcome.

To develop a plan for your blog, you need to choose an appropriate topic, create the blog outline, and research to get the right information for your blog topic. The outline specifies the issues you will cover in different sections to give the blog a natural flow. Some bloggers skip the planning stage and head straight to writing, but the result is usually shallow articles that add no value to the reader.

• Tip: Even if you don’t have a content team, be sure to still map out a plan!

A powerful headline

Headlines are often the make-or-break moment for most blog posts. This is your audience's call to click and read, and you need a great headline to attract prospective readers to your article.

Your headline should be specific to the interests of your readers. Online users have specific needs they need your blog to address, and your headline should demonstrate that the blog has all the information they’re looking for.

Make sure the headline has the relevant keywords to help search engines find it. Fix the keywords naturally to make the headline readable and to encourage visitors to click on it.

Lastly, ensure you don't use weasel words to confuse your readers and lead them to false conclusions. Select your words carefully to ensure they convey the right message to your readers.

• Tip: The optimum headline length is anywhere from 50 to 70 characters. We recommend trying to fit your headline into 60 characters. But remember not to cut out any important information or keywords from your title!

The right images

Any content marketing specialist will tell you that images are a vital ingredient if you want to make your blogs readable. Your blog should contain several images to break the content and make it easy for your readers to understand what you're talking about.

You can use images to make confusing topics more understandable. If you’re sharing tips on how to navigate your video game, use screen grabs from specific sections of the game to guide your readers effectively.

Besides making your blogs more appealing, images make people spend more time on your website, which will help you gain favor with search engines that want to provide the best experience to their users. Work with a video game marketing agency to create appealing visuals for your blog.

• Tip: As a game developer, you have a wealth of exciting creatives up your sleeve already. Don’t be afraid to repurpose them!

Proper backlinking

Never publish a blog that has no internal links. When readers click a link to read one of your blogs, direct them to other articles on your website through internal links. This has the effect of increasing your page views and making visitors spend a little bit more time on your website.

When linking to other blogs on your website, make sure the content is related to ensure a smooth flow of information. Your internal links should provide more information on the same topic or provide additional information you think the reader will be interested in.

Don't go overboard when adding links to your posts. Stuffing links will drive your readers mad, and they will leave your website. Add links naturally and sparingly to ensure your readers aren’t distracted when reading your posts.

There are times when you will need to add links to external sites to show where you’ve found your information. The sites you link to should be authoritative and qualified. This adds credibility to your posts and boosts your search ranking.

• Tip: Read Improving your Video Game's Website: Link Building for SEO to learn how to use links to improve your search performance.

Keywords

Keywords are a key component in any content marketing plan. Your customers use certain keywords when looking for your video game online and in app stores. As a marketer, you need to identify these terms and include them in your content to improve discoverability. Your blog will appear among the top spots in search engine results pages when you do this, and more people will get to know about your fantastic game.

Data comes in handy when you need to identify the best keywords to use for your campaigns. Google tracks how users query terms in the search engine, and it can point you to the keywords that are popular with your customers. Work with a content marketing agency to find low competition keywords that will take you straight to the top of search rankings.

• Tip: Long tail keywords are some of the best at getting results. These are usually longer and more specific than regular keywords, and thus get less general traffic, but tend to attract people that are more likely to want your content.

A good CTA

What action do you want readers to take after reading your blog?

Every blog should have a powerful call to action that guides readers on what to do next. Do you want them to read another article on your website or check out some of the products in your store? Add a link that takes them to these resources to make it easy for your readers to perform the desired action.

A CTA can also help you earn valuable client contacts for effective nurturing. You can offer exclusive content such as an eBook or a downloadable guide that interested users can access in exchange for their email addresses.

• Tip: Your CTA is the main goal of your blog! You want your audience to click it, so try out putting it in different locations in your blog (e.g. the middle or end) and look at which positions get the most clicks with website heat mapping.

Your posts should be data-driven and audience-focused

The key to a successful blog article is to have your readers in mind when developing your blog plan. Don’t guess what your audience wants; use data to identify their needs and interests.

What type of articles do they want? What's their preferred length for blog posts? Which CTAs appeal to them? Do they like long-form content, or do they want you to get straight to the point and tell them what they need to know?

The answers to these questions will inform you about your reader's preference, and data plays a vital role in this discovery. Analyze all your blog posts and identify the most popular ones. These are the articles with the most views, shares, and comments.

What do these posts have in common? What’s the style used in content delivery?

With these insights, you will create blogs that directly reference pain or interest points from your audience. This will help you pull more readers and boost brand awareness by making more people aware of your game.

Don’t be too salesy and talk about your business the whole time since your ultimate goal is to provide value to your users. Work with a blog marketing agency for effective audience analysis to ensure your blog appeals to your target users.

• Tip: Our whole world is built on data and your blog should be too! Use insights from tracking tools, your sales team, frequently asked questions, the gaming industry and current trends to find out how to deliver the right content to your audience. Learn more in Data Storytelling: What It Is and Why Your Game Marketing Needs It.

Creating content doesn’t come easy. There’s a lot you need to do to ensure your blogs appeal to your audience. Working with a content marketing agency is your best bet if you want to create blogs that convert.

Today’s your lucky day! Game Marketing Genie has got you covered on your quest. We will help you create engaging blogs to increase the time visitors spend on your site, boost newsletter sign-ups, increase social shares, and earn valuable links for your SEO.

And our final tip, get in touch for expert advice on how to create content that builds a connection with your audience!