What makes people actually read a Medium post?

Is it the title? The cover picture? Is it because of how long the article is, or the number of words used in counting all of its sentences?

No. It’s none of these — on their own. You see, there are posts with really cool covers and posts that are so short they fit inside a tweet, but people still don’t read those.

The one thing people actually read is…the article’s introduction and conclusion. That’s it. You can have a post that has no words and just pictures, but if the intro and conclusion are really good, people will still read through it — and even share it!

So how can you make sure that people will actually read your introduction and conclusion? How do you structure your article or blog post to make it compel someone into reading it?

Here are some tips:

1. Make the opening line (and paragraph) catchy enough to get people’s attention.

Ways of doing this are by using a metaphorical or simile, a question, the headline of the article in three words, and/or a statement that intrigues someone. Here’s an example:

“The room was dark.” It’s just stating the obvious…so what? Do I care about a dark room? Unless it’s a darkroom, I really don’t care.

“The room was blacker than the blackest pitch at midnight.” It’s a simile, because it uses “as” implying that it’s comparable to something else. Now we’re intrigued about what could be darker than pitch at midnight. And since the sentence is structured in comparison mode, it’s interesting to read.

2. If you can’t make the opening line (and paragraph) attractive, then try to grab someone’s attention through the cover image.

There are two ways of doing that: with colors or contrast.

What do I mean? Here’s an example:

A black and white picture with a single blood drop in it. You might think, oh…gross, or disturbing? Maybe you’ll click on the cover if your curiosity is triggered to find out why. Or maybe you’re going to despise it and not bother to read the article.

On the other hand, a black and white picture with a white flower bouquet speckled with blood-red rose petals in it. It’s the same black and white picture, but this time you’re drawn to it because of what it portrays.

3. Use headings and subheadings if necessary.

Make sure that each heading is catchy and represents a topic within your article — –and make sure that the topic fits with the following text.

4. If you really want to make sure that someone will read your article, include a graphic or an infographic about what you’re writing about.

Images and graphics are interesting and informative at the same time — so readers can get all their information in one go!

5. Be consistent with the headings you choose, and make sure that the article breaks are placed in logical places.

Don’t try to take up half the page with an entire paragraph of text! Not much more to say here, this one explains itself.

6. If you have a quote in your article, make sure that it has sufficient spacing from the rest of the paragraphs.

This will make your quotes more interesting to read! It will also be visually easier for readers to process.

7. If your introduction and conclusion are short, then make sure that you’re consistent throughout the rest of the article.

Keep in mind that people won’t bother reading an essay-length blog post. They’ll only read if it’s worth the while.

That’s all for now! If you like this article, go ahead and click the fan button below. And leave a reply — I look forward to reading your responses :)

Conclusion

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