How to Write a Blog Post Quickly

Many consider writing a blog post a daunting task. The structure needs to be clear and the writing needs to be persuasive.

It does not need to be a daunting task! A blog post can be drafted quickly using a structured persuasive communications approach.

So, how can you write a blog post effectively…..quickly?

The answer is to use Persuasive Communications and Top-Down Thinking!

How?

Begin with a single persuasive message and follow a proven ‘top-down’ structure:  S-C-Q-A!

• Situation
• Complication
• Question
• Answer (single persuasive message)

Begin by understanding your audience and developing your single-minded persuasive message – what do you want the audience to take away? What would you like to convince the audience to do or learn?

This persuasive message can be adjusted later, but it is helpful to start with the overall theme or the governing thought of your argument.  This single-minded message becomes the ANSWER in your S-C-Q-A . Then you can reverse engineer and put the pieces together with a draft question (Q), complication (C), and situation (S). Of course you will want to see the flow and logic fall in place from top-to-bottom.

Persuasive Communications

Persuasive Communication is a methodology that helps deliver a key argument or message and deliver it in a logical way.  You can capture the essence of the situation or problem,  ask the key question your audience has on their mind, and deliver a single-minded message and supporting evidence.

Persuasive communication is a structured way to position and communicate that ties your answer – or proposed idea –  to the situation and complication that must be overcome by your audience.

I learned this method in strategic management consulting roles and it always comes in handy for me when I am structuring communications or presentations. You might find me asking our team members, “So, what is the S-C-Q-A? ”.

Let me guide you through an example by introducing the model to convince you that you should embrace this approach within your organization. To do this, I will use “S-C-Q-A” or Situation, Complication, Question and Answer, which is the structure that will help guide the delivery of your messages. S-C-Q-A can also be used in more subtle ways, but to illustrate the logic, I will apply the structure in the following argument:

Persuasive Communication SCQA Illustration

Situation

Communicating a clear and persuasive message to your audience is critical – whether in a sales or service delivery situation or presenting a solution or new proposition to the marketplace, people and organizations need to deliver their content and ideas in a clear and directed way that speaks to the key issues and challenges that your audience wants to fix. If you can more effectively communicate your message and persuasive argument, you will be much more likely to convince your audience that they should take the action you propose.

Complication

Unfortunately, too many of our communications lack the clarity and structure of good top-down thinking and problem-solving. Bloggers of all quality and experience make arguments without tying together key issues, sales teams meander through client conversations without delivering a clear and persuasive argument backed by logic, and corporate presentations miss the mark in delivering a single-minded message and instead offer only a reflection of the company itself – without a focus on the audience and the opportunities they seek to address.

It is critically important to differentiate your message and deliver it in a clear and compelling way. In order to use a more persuasive communication technique, your writers and presenters need better tools to apply structured communications in their day-to-day activities. It is difficult to ensure that teams learn and apply an understandable approach consistently across the organization.

Question

How can we change the way teams engage their audience and deliver messages that drive results?

Answer

Build structured communications into the fabric of your organization by helping communicators deliver compelling arguments. 

You can do this by following three strategies:

1. Formally introduce Structured Thinking and Delivery using workshops that use hands-on practice, case studies, and real-world examples.
2. Reinforce the approach by applying structured communication techniques across all your interactions day-to-day – including presentations, emails, blog posts, and marketing communications
3. Ensure adoption across the organization by recognizing the impacts of applying the approach.

Write Blog Posts Quickly Using SCQA

Persuasive Communication and the S-C-Q-A methodology can also help you write a blog post effectively and quickly… resulting in a better, more organized post. Articulate each element of the SCQA and ensure logical reasoning is in place in order to make your post more persuasive.