image courtesy of SalvatoreVuomo/freedigitalphotos.net
Have you noticed a certain rhythm to World Cup play? Next game you watch, check out the form these world class players use to build momentum. It can help you write better blog posts. That's right, momentum toward the goal is a beautiful thing to watch and it’s the same force you hope your readers feel as they make their way “down the field” to the end of your post.
Get the Power of Momentum in Your Posts by Thinking Like a Soccer Player
The players in possession often move up the field in a three-player triangle passing forward, side to side, back, and forward again. Momentum always forward with explosive power (and flopping with imaginative and quite hilarious fakery. We’ll leave that part out of our discussion today!).
So how does this relate to your writing? Well, it isn’t about writing with speed, it’s about form and editing your first draft so that each sentence quickly leads to the next. Each idea makes sense relative to the one before it and the whole point is to score a goal at the end.
How to Use the Game to Create Fast Moving Posts
- Get the Ball
You can’t move forward without the reader’s attention; you’ve got to get the ball. You do that with a headline that grabs your reader and allows you to take possession of their time for long enough to read your lead.
- Gain Momentum
The first thing the player who gets the ball does is to either pass it forward or keep it himself to run the ball up the field. The lead, or first few sentences of your post, starts your momentum forward. The point of your opening sentences is to get people to read them, that’s it. Just get them moving towards the goal.
- Move Up the Field
Write a subhead that sets up the post with a promise to the reader that they’ll benefit by reading further. In this post, it’s the one above, “Get the Power of Momentum…” Soccer players set up their forward motion with the standard 3-player triangle.
Then the text connects the reader emotionally to what you’re writing. You go side-to-side and back and forward moving your ideas further along. Just like the players moving the ball towards their set up in front of the opposing net, keeping possession, racing down the field.
- Get Ready to Score
As the players get closer to the goal, they set up their scoring positions. You start the action phase of your post with a second subhead telling the reader how to do the things that will help her. See, “How to Use the Game…” above.
Then in your text, give her practical, easy to implement advice. If you can get people results, they’ll love you for it. You’re leading your reader to the Call to Action. Get set to score!
- GOOOOOOOOOAL!!
I do miss this announcer, the one who dragged out “Goal” for all it’s worth. But scores are just as exciting without him in this World Cup. Here’s where you “finish” with a boot or header to the back of the net with your call to action: Buy Now, Subscribe, or Contact Me.
Soccer at the World Cup level is beautiful to watch. They’re so good, to me it’s basically a game of mistakes. But as you watch, check out the rhythm and flow of each team when it gains possession as the best in the world move the ball forward and finish with a spectacular score.
Until next time,
Nick
Nick Burns is a Web writer specializing in persuasive copywriting and content marketing. Nick’s services include SEO Web writing, website information architecture, content marketing, consulting, and publishing. He provides clients a winning online strategy plus the content writing to make it work. You can contact him here.
