How to Write a Killer Blog Introduction (13 Tips)

80% of people will read a blog post headline, but only 20% will actually read the whole thing.

Hubspot

When I started freelance writing in 2013, I had no idea how to write a killer blog introduction. I would just dive right into the main points of my post, hoping that people would stick around long enough to get to them. But then, my bounce rate was high. People were leaving my blog as soon as they landed on it.

I did thorough research about content marketing, attended webinars, took courses, subscribed to hundreds of expert newsletters, and performed a/b tests for about two years to identify the issue. Finally, I realized that while I always had something that resembled an introduction, it was far less effective.

In this article, you will discover how to write killer blog post intros last. You will learn to restate the readers\’ problem, agitate the problem, and promise a solution. Expert content marketers like Neil Patel and Joe Pulizzi use these techniques in various forms to hook their audience right from the start.

It\’s now your turn to learn and apply them in your blog introductions.

Why is a Blog Post Introduction so Crucial

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But first, you might wonder why a killer blog post intro even matter?

Did you know that most clients reject writers\’ content due to poor quality. Well, the problem is usually poor engagement, which is easy to spot from your first sentence. If clients are not accepting your submissions or revisions keep recurring, chances are you have an audience engagement problem.

That is where a killer blog post introduction comes in.

Some psychologists also argue that the rise of technology has lowered human attention span to a paltry 8.25 seconds. That means your article should keep your audience hooked at least every 8 seconds they spend on your content or they will leave as soon as they land on it.

That said, here are the benefits of a killer blog post intro;

• First impressions can make or break your authority and reputation
• It sets expectations about the value to be gained from the article
• Reduces the degree of rejection that exists on your page (bounce rate)
• A killer blog post intro has the seed keyword, which is a plus for Search Engine Optimization
• It ultimately leads to increased engagement, leads, conversions, and sales

Key Elements of a Top-Notch Blog Post Intro

Note that there are more than ten best practices for writing blog introductions. So it can be difficult to fit all of them in a 100 to 150-word introduction even with an AI prompt. Therefore, be formulaic.

Use these blog-post introduction strategies in various combinations in your blog posts.

1. Understand your target audience\’s pain points

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Everyone is struggling with one problem or another and when they click to read your article, all they need is a solution. However, you need to revisit their problem in your blog introduction to compel your target audience to continue reading for your solution.

But how can you do this? If you are a multi-niche writer, you\’ve probably written for different audiences. Regardless of the niche, a killer blog post introduction must show an understanding of the target audience\’s pain points.

To nail it, put yourself in the reader\’s shoes and ask yourself;

• \”What if I was the one looking for information on this topic?\”
• \”What problem would I be having?\”
• \”How would I want it solved?\”

These three questions will lead you to your target audience\’s pain points and help you craft a blog introduction that resonates with their struggles.

Blog post title	Audience pain point
How to write a killer blog introduction	😢 I don’t know how to start my blog posts in an engaging and interesting way. 😢 I lose readers who bounce off my blog posts after reading a boring or confusing introduction.
Can AI writing tools replace human writers?	😢 I am worried about losing my job or income to AI writing tools that can produce content faster, cheaper, and better than human writers. 😢 I am uncertain about the future of writing and how to adapt to the changing landscape of the writing industry and profession.

2. Research ideas for your introduction

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You might think you know everything you need in order to write a killer introduction until you listen or read what others are saying about the same topic. Besides, without research, you could stare at a blank screen the whole day without knowing how or where to start.

Although researching and brainstorming ideas is crucial for writing the entire blog post, it is even more important for your introduction. The most popular research engines are Google and Bing. Gather ideas on Reddit, Quora, and dedicated social media groups and pages.

I always read, listen, and watch from three to five reliable sources before writing anything.

You can also brainstorm by asking your colleagues and your network what they think about the blog post title. What are they saying? What new perspectives are they bringing to the table that could make a killer blog introduction?

3. Use the PAS copywriting formula

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Deprivation sensitivity is a type of curiosity that doesn’t necessarily feel good, but people who experience it work relentlessly to solve the problem.

Harvard Business Review

In copywriting, PAS means Problem, Agitate, and Solution. It is one of the most effective ways to write a killer blog post intro.

First, identify and state the problem that your readers are facing. This shows them that you understand their pain points and challenges and that you have something relevant and valuable to offer them.

To agitate means to amplify and intensify the problem by describing its negative consequences, implications, or emotions. This makes your readers feel more frustrated, anxious, or curious and creates a sense of urgency to find a solution.

You finally present your solution as the answer to the problem. You explain how your content will help your readers overcome the problem, achieve the desired outcome, or satisfy their needs. Promising a solution creates curiosity, interest, and desire in your readers, and motivates them to read more.

To achieve this, you must create curiosity gaps in your introduction. This will create suspense and generate interest in filling in the missing information.

However, you must fulfill that promise in the body of your blog post. Don\’t make promises and fail to keep them. Even worse, don\’t make promises you can\’t keep.

Here is a blog post intro that uses the PAS formula;

You’ve spent hours researching, writing, and editing your blog post. You’ve created an amazing piece of content that offers tons of value to your audience. But there’s one problem: no one is clicking on it.

Why? Because your blog post title sucks.

And that means you’re missing out on traffic, engagement, and conversions.

But don’t worry.

In this blog post, I’ll show you how to write catchy blog post titles that get clicked like crazy. I’ll share some proven tips and tricks to make your titles more appealing and relevant to your audience. I’ll also give you some templates of catchy blog post titles that you can use as inspiration.

4. Craft an attention-grabbing opening line (The Hook)

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The attention-grabbing opening line is also known as the hook. It is the very first sentence in your introduction. A hook can take various forms.

Attention-grabbing opening lines may include:

• Quotes from popular people

\”Your blog title could have a high click-through-rate, but the introduction will determine whether your audience will keep reading or not\”

Neil Patel

• Interesting facts or statistics

Here is an interesting fact for an article about how to write a killer blog introduction;

\”Only 7% of your audience will read the entire blog post\”

Medium

• Questions

For example, an attention-grabbing opening question for this article would be;

\”Are your blog introductions denying you clients and Google rankings?\”

However, don\’t go for just any hook. For it to be attention-grabbing, it must match your content\’s title, tone, and style. For example, avoid serious hooks for a funny topic or vice versa.

It would also be best to include emotional trigger words such as discover, secret, or shocking in your blog post introduction to make your readers curious. You may also use fear words like danger, risk, beware, avoid, warning, and threat.

5. Talk directly to your reader in the second person

I also recommend that you use \”you\” at least once in your introduction.

It leads to what psychologists call self-referential encoding. In other words, your readers will remember your content better because they will feel like you are talking directly to them.

The other second-person phrase to use in your blog post introduction is\”your.\”

Using \”you\” and \”your\” in your introduction ensures that your copy is memorable and persuasive enough to pull the reader into the content.

However, there is a catch. Do not overuse \”you\” and \”your.\” If you do, your reader might suspect manipulation and leave your content for another web page.

6. Set the tone and establish your voice

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You also don\’t want your introduction to sound different from the rest of the article. Therefore, it is important to set the tone and establish your voice from your introduction.

If you are writing for audiences looking for authoritative, reliable, and professional information or guidance on an issue, set a formal tone and establish an expert voice in your blog introduction.

If your target audience needs personal content, start your blog post with a casual tone and friendly voice. Some blogs that need this kind of tone and voice include lifestyle, entertainment, or personal blogs. A casual tone and friendly voice can make your content more engaging and connecting.

However, if you are working on parody or comedy blogs, use a humorous tone and a quirky voice in your introduction. It will allow you to be engaging, and entertaining without sounding mediocre or forceful.

A consistent tone and voice will communicate and reinforce your brand identity and set you apart from your competition immediately.

Other tones and voices you might set and establish in your blog post include:

• Optimistic
• Inspirational
• Informative
• Professional

Remember that for you to nail the tone and voice from the blog introduction, you must know your audience, your brand, and your purpose.

7. Add social proof

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Today, the Google algorithm prioritizes content that follows the EEAT rule of thumb. EEAT stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. That means your blog posts must pass all four quality checks for Google to rank them at the top of the search engine.

That is where adding social proof in your blog introduction becomes crucial. Social proof is a psychological phenomenon that states that people are more likely to do something if they see that other people are doing it.

Social proof reinforces your experience and expertise. Including positive reviews about your business interaction with your audience will drive more engagement into your blog post like moths to a flame.

For example, can you identify the social proof in this blog post\’s introduction? Yes. \”Expert content marketers like Neil Patel and Joe Pulizzi use these techniques in various forms to captivate their audience right from the start.\”

Other examples of social proof might include the number of people in your email list, the number of hours you spent researching the topic, your years of expertise on the subject, companies or brands you\’ve worked with, and previous client reviews and recommendations.

Here is an example of a blog post introduction with social proof;

Are your blog post introductions failing to engage your readers? Do you want to capture their attention from the first line and compel them to keep reading? If so, you need to use social proof.

Social proof is a psychological phenomenon that states that people are more likely to do something if they see that other people are doing it.

In this post, we\’ll reveal more than ten proven strategies used by top digital marketers to craft compelling blog post introductions that convert. We\’ve gathered insights from industry experts like Neil Patel, Rand Fishkin, and Marie Forleo, who have mastered the art of captivating their audience right from the start.

Get ready to learn the insider tips, tricks, and techniques that will hook your readers, increase your conversion rates, and skyrocket your engagement.

8. Add a personal touch to connect with readers

Image source: Sales Progress

The quickest way to add a personal touch to your article is to use \”you\” to connect with your audience. However, you can also add a personal touch to your blog post introduction using anecdotes, stories, and examples.

Anecdotes are short personal stories that illustrate a point or make a connection with the audience. They are often used in blog post introductions to grab the reader’s attention, create interest, and establish rapport. Anecdotes can also make your blog post more memorable, relatable, and entertaining.

Research suggests that anecdotes are effective in persuading and influencing people, especially when they are relevant, vivid, and credible. Anecdotes can also appeal to the emotions and values of the audience, making them more likely to agree with your message and take your desired action.

Stories in your introduction can activate multiple regions of the audience\’s brain, stimulate their imagination, enhance their memory, and foster empathy. Stories and examples can also help your audience make sense of complex or abstract information on the fly, as well as change their attitudes and behaviors.

Here is an example of a blog post\’s anecdotal introduction;

I once wrote an article for an online publication that got over 100,000 views in less than a week. It was one of the most popular technological article on the site that month. It also generated hundreds of comments, shares, and leads for my business.

What was the secret behind this viral success? It wasn’t the headline, the topic, or the promotion. After running countless a/b tests, I realized the problem. It was the introduction.

The introduction was what hooked the readers and made them want to read more. It was what convinced them that my article was worth their time and attention. It was what set the tone and direction for the rest of the article.

9. Spell out your article\’s intention

Spelling out your article\’s intention in your blog post introduction will help readers to understand what your blog post is about and whether or not it\’s something that they\’re interested in reading.

Second, it helps to keep your blog post focused and on track. If you don\’t spell out your intention, you\’re more likely to go off track and lose your readers\’ attention.

It also helps to improve your blog post\’s SEO. When search engines index your blog post, they\’ll look for keywords and phrases that are relevant to the topic of your blog post.

If you spell out your intention in your introduction, you\’re more likely to use the right keywords and phrases, which will positively impact your SERP rankings.

According to HubSpot, blog posts with clear intentions are more likely to be read to the end and even get shared on social media.

How to spell out your article\’s intention in your blog post introduction

There are many ways to spell out your article\’s intention in your blog post introduction.

• State the purpose of your blog post in the last paragraph. For example, you can say, \”In this blog post, I\’ll show you how to write a blog post introduction that converts.\”
• Use a strong call to action. For example, you can say, \”By the end of this blog post, you\’ll know how to write a blog post introduction that converts.\” This will give your readers a clear idea of what they\’ll learn from your blog post.
• Use a question. You can ask a question like, \”Are you struggling to write blog post introductions that convert?\” This will help to grab your readers\’ attention and make them want to read more.

10. Use short blocks of text

Another important tip for writing a blog post introduction is to use short blocks of text. Break up your introduction into paragraphs that are easy to read and scan. Keep each paragraph between one and three sentences.

But why is this important?

From a cognitive standpoint, employing concise blocks in your blog post intros reduces cognitive load and prevents information overload. In other words, short blocks of text improve readability and comprehension.

Besides, a study by Nielsen Norman Group tracked the eye movement of respondents who were reading online content. They found that people tend to read in an F-shaped pattern. Readers scan the first few lines of text and then skim down the left side of the page as shown below.

Source: Nielsen Norman Group

Using short blocks of text in your blog introduction can cater to this scanning behavior and ensure that the reader extracts crucial information.

Short blocks of text also adds white space on your page, which makes your content less intimidating and more visually appealing.

They also create a sense of progress and accomplishment for your readers, since they feel like they are moving through your blog post faster.

11. Write your blog intro last

You might think that writing a blog post introduction is the first thing you should do when you start a new piece of content. However, that’s not always the best approach. First, writing the intro last helps you avoid writer’s block.

Besides, if you write your introduction first, you\’ll likely have to rewrite it later when you have a better understanding of your topic. To avoid these hurdles, many bloggers and writers recommend writing the blog post intro last.

Once you know intuitively what your main points are, you can write an introduction that specifically addresses those points. You\’ll have a strong understanding of your topic and you\’ll be able to use this knowledge to synthesize a killer blog introduction.

If you feel more comfortable having an introduction before you write the rest of your content, you can write a placeholder introduction first, which is a rough draft.

So, you don\’t have to worry too much about the details or quality. You will revisit and revise the placeholder introduction after you finish writing your blog post.

12. Edit and refine your blog post introduction

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“To write is human, to edit is divine.”

Stephen King

The final tip for writing killer blog post intros is to edit and refine them. This means revising and polishing your introduction until it’s clear, concise, and compelling.

Editing and refining your blog post intro can help you improve your readability, SEO, and conversions.

Here are some steps to follow:

1. Read your intro aloud

Reading your intro aloud can help you spot any errors, awkward phrases, or unclear sentences that might confuse or bore your readers.

Use Grammarly or Hemingway App to check your grammar, spelling, and readability score.

2. Cut the fluff

Fluff is any unnecessary or redundant word or information that doesn’t add value to your blog intro. Fluff can make it longer, weaker, and less engaging.

Remove any filler words, adverbs, passive voice, or vague statements that don’t serve a purpose.

3. Use power words

Power words are words that trigger an emotional response in your readers, such as curiosity, fear, anger, joy, or surprise.

Use power words to spice up your hook, problem, solution, or expectation statements. They can make your intro more persuasive and impactful.

4. Optimize your blog intro for keywords

Optimizing your intro for keywords can help you rank higher on search engines and attract more clicks.

Use keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner or Moz Keyword Explorer to find relevant and popular keywords for your topic. Then, include them in your blog post intro naturally and strategically.

5. Add a call to action

A call to action (CTA) is a statement telling your readers what you want them to do next.

A CTA can help you increase your engagement and conversions by guiding your readers to the next step of your content journey.

It can be as simple as asking your readers to comment, share, subscribe, or read more.

13. Leverage artificial intelligence

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) writing tools like ChatGPT, Bard, and Writersonic can also generate killer blog post introductions. Here is an example of a prompt to generate a top-notch blog intro using ChatGPT;

Hi, ChatGPT

Write a 100-word attention-grabbing blog post introduction for the article titled [How to write killer blog introductions]. Follow the best practices of writing blog post intros. For example, understand the audience\’s pain point. What problem could they actually be facing to even think about reading this article? Create controversy by agitating the problem and promise a solution. Find a way of adding my social proof, which is [5+ years writing blogposts for local and international clients and audiences in more than 20 niches]. Do thorough research and write like a content marketing expert.

Try the prompt with your own topic

Here is ChatGPT\’s response to the prompt above:

I strongly recommend that you gather adequate insights from your research and use them in prompt engineering. The depth of your research and brainstorming will improve the quality of your AI prompts significantly to produce an incredible blog intro.

Also, read: The Ultimate Guide to Becoming a Highly Successful Freelance Writer 2023

Avoid The Common Pitfalls in Blog Introductions

Here are four common blog post pitfalls many writers make;

1. Skipping the hook

Skipping the hook can lead to a lackluster introduction that fails to engage the audience. Without a hook, readers may quickly lose interest and navigate away from the blog. Including a hook not only grabs the reader\’s attention but also allows the writer to establish trust and authority by demonstrating their expertise on the topic.

2. Writing excessively long introductions

Long introductions can quickly bore readers and cause them to lose interest in the introduction. In today\’s fast-paced digital world, people have only eight seconds of attention span. They want to quickly grasp the main points. Excessively long blog introductions may also lack clarity.

3. Using overly formal language

When you use jargon, clichés, or vague statements, you\’re creating a barrier between you and your reader. Your writing will become boring, annoying, and difficult to understand, and your audience will be less likely to stick around.

Note that using overly formal language in your blog intro can come across as if you\’re trying to impress your readers with your vocabulary or writing skills. Instead, it makes you seem less approachable and relatable and hurts engagement.

4. Missing the keyword

If your blog intro doesn’t use the keyword that your readers are searching for, it might not show up in the search results. Therefore, use the keyword in your blog intro to increase your chances of ranking on the first page while staying relevant.

FAQs

How many words is a blog post introduction?

The recommended blog introduction\’s average word count is between 100 and 150 words. This is enough to give your readers a clear idea of what your blog post is about, without overwhelming them with too much information.

How should you make your blog interesting to readers?

• Use short blocks of text
• Use simple and easy-to-understand vocabulary
• Vary your sentence structure
• Add stories and anecdotes

How do you start the first sentence of a blog?

The best hooks are made of statistics, quotes from popular people, or engaging questions. You can also add words that elicit strong emotions in your readers, such as curiosity, fear, anger, joy, or surprise to connect with your audience at a deeper level.

The Power of a Compelling Blog Introduction

Imagine a blog introduction that gets a higher bounce rate than engagements. It won\’t matter how good the rest of the article is because it takes only 8 seconds for your readers to make up their minds about your content.

A killer blog post introduction can unlock new opportunities for your brand or business.

Use the PAS formula, short blocks of text, statistics, quotes, and engaging question. These will make your audience to read the rest of your article and take the actions you lead them to take.

Which strategies do you use to craft killer blog post introductions? Or do you need help with your blog posts? Contact us now and we will get back to you ASAP.