So, you’re set on writing an awesome engineering blog.
You already know running an engineering blog is key to your digital marketing, you have an engineering technical writer on board, your on-page SEO is sorted, and you’re ready to create some top-notch engineering content for your audiences. You even have some great content ideas stacked up.
And now what? How do you write a blog post that’s geared toward engineers? And not just any blog post, but an amazing one that will keep your audience engaged and serve your company well?
Getting started in any blogging niche is difficult, but engineering blogs have the extra challenge of generally being ultra-technical and focused on an audience that tends to appreciate authenticity and facts yet still needs to be kept entertained.
Below, I’ll take you through some ideas that’ll help you create blog posts that’ll engage engineers and keep them coming back for more.
How do you write a blog that engages? Here are 5 expert tips:
1. Know your audience
Knowing your audience is paramount. After all, how can you create content your audience would enjoy if you don’t know who your audience is?
While much can be said about blogs tending to be more personable, an engineering blog is unlikely to follow the same structure as Jane the beauty blogger simply talking about her daily make-up routine.
Your company’s engineering blog isn’t about you, and your readers may not necessarily be interested in everything that you’re interested in.
So, in order to write content that lands well with your audiences, it’s helpful to create a reader persona.
Focusing on the following can help:
- Demographics, including location, age range, gender, income range, and education level
- Psychographics, including values, attitudes, and preferences
- How they would consume content
Once you have this information, you can use it to develop a character. And then, when crafting content, it’ll be helpful to keep that character in mind.
Say you’ve come up with a character, who we’ll call Mark, and Mark exemplifies your ideal target audience.
So when you’re sitting down to write your blog post, you can write it as if you were writing directly to Mark the Design Engineer. This will help you craft content that directly feeds his wants and needs.
2. Be specific in your writing
If you know your audience well, you’ll know that engineering audiences are unlikely to appreciate lots of waffling around. So, how do you write a blog that engages them and holds their interest?
Be specific and to the point. Engineers tend to be efficient and value their time, so you should treat your engineering writing — and the time they invest in reading your writing — the same.
Use simple, clear sentences, follow an excellent outline and blog structure, and guide your readers through your content with specifics. This also includes following up on promises.
If you introduce a topic in your headline and introduction, for example, be sure to stick to that and deliver on the promises you make. Blog posts with clickbait headlines and introductions may get you initial clicks, but they won’t do you much good in the long run.
3. Form stories with your data
Even though your posts need to be specific and efficient, there’s a big difference between writing a blog and simply regurgitating spreadsheet data.
Of course, you should include data and statistics, if relevant, but these become more interesting when you include the hows and whys behind them.
For example, instead of just explaining a product, perhaps you could present a problem and then introduce the product as the solution, explaining both why it’s a good solution and how it acts as a viable solution.
You could also use case studies to provide real-world examples or create characters that your engineering audience can identify with.
By relying on such story-telling techniques, you’re humanizing the content and making it more interesting for your engineering audience.
4. Focus on interesting, educational, and entertaining topics
Of course, you can use your engineering blog to promote your products and services, and there is a time and place for that.
But your main goal should be topics that are interesting, educational, or entertaining to your readers.
Whenever you’re about to work on something, ask yourself the following:
- Will my readers find this topic interesting, or is it newsworthy?
- Will my readers find this topic helpful? Can they learn something from it?
- Will the topic be fun, entertainment-worthy, or even humorous?
If the answer to any of these is yes, then you’re good to go. However, if you find yourself saying no, then perhaps it’s time to go back to the drawing board and find some better content ideas.
This doesn’t mean the topics you write about have to all fall into the same camp.
You can focus on topics that are directly related to the core values of your company or the products and services you offer, topics that are semi-related to you and your company, perhaps those related to your industry niche or certain engineering professions, or topics that aren’t really related but could still be helpful, such as something focusing on productivity or a funny story.
By creating a good variety of content topics, you’ll actually end up keeping your audience more engaged.
5. Get your technical terms right
Engineers tend to be very finicky about certain terms, technical jargon, and acronyms, so it’s important you get these right in your blog posts
In the end, if an engineer has the gut feeling that the post was written by somebody who actually has zero knowledge of engineering, he will quickly start mistrusting your material and lose interest.
That’s why working with a qualified technical writer, or even someone with an engineering background, is so important. But even then, if you’re unsure about a term, look it up or ask someone in your company to provide more insight. This will add further value to your posts.
Engage With Professional Writers
Hopefully, these tips will help you to create more engaging and successful blog posts for your engineering audience. Please be sure to download our SEO optimized blog post templates here for an extra helping hand.
If you find yourself short on time or lacking the in-house technical skills to create the quality and quantity of technical blog posts you need to hit your marketing goals, please reach out to us today.
Our team of writers and proofreaders are all qualified engineers, and we help many clients just like you to drive more traffic to their engineering websites. Reach out today for a no-obligation, free strategy session, and let’s get your engineering blog on track!
Blog Posts FAQs
Aim for a professional yet approachable tone. The exact tone of voice may differ depending on your brand personality, but generally, it’s a good idea to stay professional but personable, as if you were speaking with a friend.
All engineering content you produce should be optimized for SEO. Include relevant keywords in your title, headings, content, and metadata, and make sure your website is search-engine friendly in terms of page loading speeds and mobile responsiveness.
You can make the writing more interesting by including real-world examples, case studies, or even personal experiences, but don’t forget that visual aids like charts, graphics or infographics can also keep readers engaged and make your content stand out.
