writing a blog post is like going to texas roadhouse.

Start with something catchy. This can be a little bit out of the box, but should still relate to the overall topic of your post.

Next, give away a small piece of that warm, fresh appetizer. Make it free. It’s like giving someone a few bites of your home-cooked rolls (with cinnamon butter) so that they’ll be curious enough about the rest of your food to stick around for more. They don’t know that the rolls may very well be the best part of the meal. Don’t tell them that.

The meat of your post should be exactly what they asked for. They think they know best, so this will be the information they were likely expecting. Try to make it better than that, but don’t feel pressured to go too over the top. Don’t forget the sauce and the sides. It still needs to be a complete meal. To be completely honest, it may not be exactly what you would order, but it’ll appease them because it was somewhat expected.

You decide to throw in a scoop of ice cream for free. They weren’t expecting it. You’re doing it for a good tip. This is the part of the meal that they didn’t even think to ask for, but you knew it’d be exactly what they needed. The thing that would make the whole decision to come to the restaurant in first place worth it. You didn’t have to work that hard for it. Honestly, you just had to sneak it past your boss so he didn’t realize you were giving food out for free.

Now, don’t get ahead of yourself. This is a blog post. Nobody is paying for this shit. Except you. You have to pay for the website and domain renewal once a year. If you’re writing a blog for a business, this is maybe where I’d suggest a call to action, but it must be subtle. If you get too crazy with it, people will realize they were just being sucked up and sold to the whole meal. It might leave a bad taste in their mouth and that’s the last thing you want when the check comes around.

Just when you think you’re done, you can add one more sentence as they walk out the door. Bonus points if you can bring it full circle from the catchy phrase you started with.

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