How to Write a Listicle Blog Post
Updated June 2023Listicle blog posts are a simple method to provide a lot of valuable information to your readers. They are enjoyable to read, simple to create, and excellent for search engine optimization (SEO). The listicle blog post format makes it simple for your readers to follow along. A listicle is a blog post that features a list of items that are usually related.
When creating your listicle outline, consider your readers like you would when you create any other content. Get ready to learn all you need to know to create the ultimate listicle blog post.
Understanding The Purpose of a Listicle
A listicle article's objective is to give information or entertainment in a compact and easily digestible way. This format is popular because it allows readers to quickly scan the text and select the information that most interests them.
Listicles are frequently used for topics such as travel, lifestyle, fashion, business or any other subject that can be divided into a series of different points or ideas as well.
Choose Your Topic
The first step to writing a listicle is choosing your topic. Each brand has its unique process for going about this, but this is the process we follow when writing listicles for brands.
We look at the blog intake form completed by clients.
Based on the information provided, we use Semrush and Keysearch to do keyword research.
We create our blog outline, which includes the SEO-optimized title, the sections to create and points to discuss.
We do any other relevant research (if needed) from various source websites such as Statista.
We write a blog post.
We send the draft to the client for approval. (Most of our blogs are approved with the first draft, and we ensure that our clients know we welcome edit requests.)
Once approved, we send our clients the final copy via Google Drive (with full edit rights) with instructions to create their own copy.
Feel free to copy this process for yourself.
Create an Outline
The outline and format of a listicle is what makes this type of blog post so popular for many readers.
Here's an outline template that you can follow:
Title
Intro
Subheading with five bullet points.
Subheading with five bullet points.
Subheading with five bullet points.
Closing notes + CTA
A blog post (listicle) in this format can easily be used to create articles of 1000+ words. You can do fewer subheadings as well, depending on how many points you use. (See image for a more detailed outline.)
Alternatively, you can have less subheadings and more items to each list.
Edit Your Work
No matter how easy it is to write listicles, you'll want to pay close attention to detail and edit your work.
Things you'll want to look at:
Grammar
Flow and consistency
Length
Style and tone
Content (Niche)
Structure and layout
Listicles can be easy to write, great for search engine optimization (SEO) and fun to read!
Listicles are fun to write and can be great for SEO; we hope that you have found this blog post to be helpful.
Here are a few more pointers to help you.
You can make it personal. Although listicles that include statistics are great, you can also share information from your own point of view.
Don't be afraid to use numbers! Numbers are great at conveying information quickly and efficiently. Mix it up and use both bullet points and numbered lists.
Be clear and direct with your language—and make sure it's consistent throughout the article! It helps people follow along more easily if they don't have to keep flipping back through sentences trying to figure out what you mean by this or that word choice or sentence structure shift.
Hopefully, this post has helped you understand what it takes to write a listicle and given you tips for making your work stand out.
Don't be afraid of trying something new when it comes to blog writing—it may not always work out, but that's the beauty of experimentation!