Are you clueless when it comes to writing a conclusion?

Many bloggers are so concerned with crafting captivating headlines and ensuring the body of the post has enough meat to satisfy readers’ hunger that they forget a critical part of a post: the conclusion.

Writing a conclusion is not easy

And because many writers fail to give it as much time and effort as the other components of a post, they don’t get the outcome they expect.

Conclusions must be well-written so readers can leave your page feeling inspired, informed, and happy with their investment. Take note that each time someone reads your post, they’re making an investment because they’ve set aside time to check out what you have to offer.

They could’ve used their time to other more things but they opted to read your work. That’s huge. The least you can do is make it worthwhile.

The problem is many of us (yes, I’m included) don’t pay more attention to conclusions. When you fail at writing a conclusion that rocks, your readers will walk away disappointed even if your post was stellar. Why? It’s because our minds are wired to remember the last thing we’ve read (Recency Effect).

To put it simply, we’re more likely to not remember much of the items we read first and remember mostly the most recent items (i.e. concluding paragraphs). It’s similar to the Primacy Effect wherein we remember words or items from the beginning more compared to those in the middle.

That sort of explains why headlines and opening sentences need to be written very well.

You must put into practice writing a conclusion that will give your post justice

Summarize

This is the most common way of writing a conclusion. You basically repeat what you’ve written. The reason why summaries work is not all readers are going to pay attention to the middle part of your post. They could be in a hurry and want to get to the end of your post.

They could also be overwhelmed by the time they get to the end, so it’s best to help them remember.

You can improve your summarizing skills by studying newspaper articles. The lead (or opening paragraph) is a great example of this.

Ask a question

What better way to make readers think than asking a question?

Post a question so they’ll go back to what they just read to force them to remember and consider your advice. For example, the question “what tactics are you doing to convert readers to subscribers?” can go well with a blog post on increasing email subscribers.

Remember to make the question relevant to the post.

Use a strong call-to-action

Simply put, a well-written call-to-action will push readers to do your bidding.

Sometimes, readers are just waiting for you to tell them what to do. When you post an article on generating more backlinks on your business blog, tell them to subscribe to your list or check out your services. Include a link so they’ll know where to go.

Or you can tell them to share feedback on the comments section below or direct them to any page you want.

If you’re blogging because you want to elicit any form of response, ask. Include a call-t0-action.

Appeal to their emotions

The best posts are those that appeal to readers’ emotions. You do that by being honest with your words and sharing experiences that they can learn from. But don’t just leave it at that. Make sure that when they get to the end, they’re reminded of how powerful your story is.

To be continued…

Ever watched soap operas? These are perfect examples of using cliffhangers to engage readers. Each episode ends with an unresolved issue so viewers tune in the next day (or next week).

This is great when you’re writing a series of posts. Because your readers want to know more, they’ll subscribe to your list to stay updated.

Use quotes

Blog posts become a lot more credible when you include quotes from experts and prominent personalities. When you include them in your post, make sure to repeat at the end of the article. It doesn’t have to be the same quote. It could be similar to something you already used that has a strong impact and is relevant to your topic.

Present readers the danger of not doing something

Fear is an effective tool to get you anything you want. As Rob Mariano from Survivor put it, “fear keeps people loyal.” He has been successful in using fear to control people’s decision and ultimately got rewarded with a million dollars.

You can use it to engage your readers and follow your lead. Let’s say you write about social media marketing. Your posts would then be geared towards helping business owners realize the importance of social media in growing their business. How do you get them to come to you for help?

Insightful posts will do but you can increase the odds by painting a scary picture of how it’s going to negatively affect their business if they don’t seek your help.

Writing a conclusion is another skill bloggers must master quickly because it significantly affects how readers respond to your post

Always remember: an exceptional conclusion can make a decent article remarkable while a poorly-written one will offset the awesomeness of your entire blog post.

Henneke Duistermaat, in a Copyblogger post, says

Don’t disappoint your readers with a bland conclusion. Try writing your conclusion first. Or write it the day after you’ve written your post.

Writing a conclusion that works takes time and effort.

Follow the tips above to improve your posts. Start now.

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7 Tips On Writing A Conclusion That Works