5 Reasons Why Listicles Are The Ultimate Form Of Writing (Kind Of)
If writing was a drug then Buzzfeed listicles are crack cocaine...
Juicy. Snackable. Addictive.
These are the 3 words that come to mind when I think of listicles.
Juicy because each point is like a delicious info-steak that blows away the reader.
Snackable because every piece of information feels effortless to consume.
Addictive because once you finish, you’re ready for the next one.
EVERY great writer should learn how to write a listicle.
Because if you can?
Amazing Listicles Lead to Amazing Articles
A bad listicle sounds like a grocery list. 🥱
Information
Information
Information
It’s boring. Repetitive. And it gives zero mindset shifts for the reader.
Imagine if you took each of those boring points and expanded it. What would you get?
More boring articles!
But an AMAZING listicle? 😲
Wisdom bomb
Funny story
Interesting takeaway
It feels like a barrage of new and exciting information.
Each of those points can turn into a longer form article that gives more context for the reader.
Listicles train you to be dangerously persuasive
Readers pick up a book because of the headline and put it down because of voice.
In other words…
Readers pick a book because of the content, they put it down because of the writing.
Another angle…
If the topic is interesting you’ll get a click. But if your writing is boring they’ll leave.
🐀🐀🐀
Better Headlines = More Readers
If you want your writing to be a sticky rat-trap that catches reader’s eyeballs… you need to get better at headlines first.
Luckily, I have just the solution for you…
*drum roll please…*
LISTICLES!
Writing a listicle is a master-class in writing multiple catchy headlines.
From the H1 to the sub points, to the sub-headlines, every piece of a listicle is optimized for maximum sticky-eye-ball-…ness
By the way, did you catch all 5 reasons why Listicles are the ultimate form of writing?
Here why listicles rule:
They’re Juicy info bombs that blow away readers💣
They’re Snackable advice bits that are easy to read 🍟
They’re Addictive word crack that keeps you coming back 🚬
They lead to amazing articles when you expand each point 😲
They train you to be dangerously persuasive via writing better headlines 🐀
See you next week,
Brian “Word Crack” To
Build In public
Should I turn my notion guide into an email course?
I recently read this article by Kevon where he talks about how the best products aren’t always notion docs or simple e-books. They don’t really generate conversations like email courses do.
What do you think?'
Would you rather have a comprehensive “Simple ChatGPT guide for Writers” all in one notion doc? ( It’s roughly 4000 words)
or would you rather have it in bite size chunks?
I’m also thinking about doing it in an email course over 5-7 days. And at the end you’ll have access to the notion doc.
As always, I would love your input!
One Dope Link
👉This was one of the most refreshing story-telling guides I’ve read so far.
No more hero’s journey, no cheesy frameworks. Just 12 killer actionable tips. This was a listicle done right.
I love bite size chunks because I know I’ll consume them and possibly take action in one sitting.
Great post!