Make a Blog Outline Template like a Pro with Easy Steps

Many people have the habit of jumping straight into writing a blog instead of planning about it first. However, it's a wrong method that only brings down the quality of your writing. When writing an informative post, it's essential to outline it. For it, you can use a blog outline template. It gives you a general picture of the content you will be writing ahead of time. In this article, you'll understand how to create a good blog outline template.

The Process to Create a Blog Outline Template

There is no rigid method to outlining. You just need to grasp the basic idea behind a blog outline. You can also use various blog outline templates to simplify your outlining process. 

 

1. Determine the major idea

Every blog is a collection of various points. They all relate to a big idea that the writer presents in the blog. The big idea refers to the one point your headline is based on. It's not a good practice to create a blog post with various big ideas. For more clarity, the post should have a single major idea and different points throughout the body that supports it. 

 

2. Know how the end result should look

You should use the blog outline template with not the actual content. Instead, you should have a good understanding of what you desire from a particular post. So, to determine the end result, ask yourself questions like 

• Who is the target audience who will read your post?
• What information do you want to give to them?
• Do you have certain information that you need to include in the post?
• Can you see that information from different angles?
• What kind of call to action should you use?

 

3. List down things to mention

As per your goals, there will be particular things you would need to mention. Maybe your team has collected data from your web analytics. You must decide the context to impart to this data. List it down. Perhaps you choose to include an infographic from a different brand. Whatever information you need in your blog post, you must list it down.

 

4. Find whatever you don't know

For writing detailed blog posts, you must be fully clear about all aspects of the topic. So, it's best to list down those questions on your blog outlines templates. A good practice is to list down questions on the topic you are unfamiliar with. It will also allow you to study more about the subject and structure the content well.

 

5. Find what you already know

An effective blog outline also requires you to be clear about what you already know or the things you want to promote. So, jot down all these things in phrases, headings, or sentences. These are the things that you are perfectly sure of, and you also have data to back them up. Remember that this isn't your actual blog post. So, keep it as short as possible. They will prove to be useful when you start the process of writing. 

 

6. Arrange the lists you made earlier into related groups

By now, you must have a lot jotted down in your blog outline template. Go through all of them and find your main idea. Write it down. Next, look at the various lists you've created and start compiling them into different groups. You will find that you don't necessarily need to use all the different groups. Use only those that fit in with the big idea and what you want to achieve with your post.

 

7. Make headings that summarize your content

After grouping all the content, assign a heading to every grouping. This heading will brief you about what a specific grouping is about. You won't need this heading in your blog post. But it will be helpful in finding the information that will remain and how to structure a specific section of the blog post.

 

8. Structure the groups logically

Now begin logically ordering the groups. It means the blog post should flow from the big idea coherently to the ultimate goal. You get to decide how your post will be written. It can be persuasive or informative. It can also allow you to showcase your data in a problem and solution or contrasting manner.

 

9. Review every heading group

By now, you must be fully familiar with what your post is going to cover. You have the big idea with you, along with other supporting points. You can now review each heading and write that again to give a better direction to your writing. It's not necessary that what you write now will also be the headings in your final blog post. But it will give you a clearer idea of what you have to include in it. 

 

10. Begin writing the draft

By now, you have a good idea of the direction in which you are headed in your blog post. You also know where you will be concluding. This long process will have also given you insight into your own ideas. So, you also know where you will be including them. You can now begin the process of writing your draft. 

Final Words

The blog outline will help you answer the questions about specific topics. After writing all the information in blog outline templates, you can answer your questions about specific topics. You won't feel the need to be terrified about something you don't know. The template will also give you a way to organize the ideas that come into your mind when researching a topic.