How to Blog in Your Own Voice
Your readers need to feel like you’re a real person. Otherwise your blog will feel cold and impersonal. While your actual content might be great, the delivery makes a huge difference. Just ask Ben Stein from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
Of course, it’s easy for me to say you should write in your own voice. But how do you actually do that?
Formal or Informal Blogging?
First off, your blog articles don’t have to be informal. Obviously, the tone of your blog will need to fit the culture of your business. But they still have to be written in your voice.
On the other hand, your business culture could actually be informal. If that’s the case, then your blog entries should be as well.
Personal Tidbits
Many bloggers inject tidbits about their personal life into their blogs. This can help to make you seem more “real” to your readers. It does need to be done in a way that’s still consistent with your voice and reflects your business culture.
Recording Yourself
Another good way to jump-start blogging in your own voice can be to record yourself. Typically, it works best to record either a talk you’re giving, or record yourself explaining something to a client. Then once you’ve done that, you go back to your computer, listen to the recording, and transcribe it.
Here’s the specific process I’ve used:
- Record a meeting, making sure I get the other person’s approval first.
- Transcribe a section of the meeting that I feel might make a good blog entry.
- Correct my grammar and tweak to make a more shareable blog entry.
- Publish!
I certainly don’t do that with every single blog entry, but I do use that method from time to time. And it’s good practice when you’re getting started on writing in your own voice?
Still Having Trouble?
Writing in your own voice is a skill that has to be developed. Some people don’t have the time or desire to develop that skill. If you’d rather invest in having someone else do that for you, we do offer blogging services here at T&S. As one client put it, “you write like I sound, only better!”
If you’re frustrated with writing in your own voice, contact us to see if our blogging process is a good fit for you and your business.
Hey Tim. I’m really liking this series you are doing on blogging and it’s impact on website performance. I applaud the fact that number 3 of your process is to correct grammar. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve come across blog articles that aren’t spelled correctly, or are grammatically incorrect words like “to” vs. “too”. We all slip up occasionally – but your blog is posted live to your website. You need to take a few extra steps before you hit “publish” (or at least correct the error as soon as possible).
Thanks for the feedback, Nick. Because it’s so easy to hit publish, people frequently do it too quickly.