Let’s be honest, the thoughts of producing a blog from a lightbulb moment to a well-written piece of content (with great SEO) that everyone will want to share are a little overwhelming, to say the least.
There’s a lot more involved than people think – writing the post, researching, designing/finding visuals, adding backlinks and heading tags, to name a few!
However, I’ve found that getting into a routine makes the whole process a lot easier to handle (and less time-consuming).
Below is my step-by-step checklist for writing a blog:
Step 1 – Ideation
This might seem a little obvious, but the first thing you need is an idea. I keep a list on my phone of topics that I think would make good blogs – you never know when inspiration might strike, and you don’t want to forget a great idea.
Step 2 – Keyword Research
Keyword Research is a key part of SEO and is best done at the start of the blog writing process.
Step 3 – Plan & Research
A bit like baking a cake – you can’t just dive in and write a cracking piece of content. You need to have a rough plan of the structure. This is also an excellent time to do research for any statistics, etc. you might need
Step 4 – Write
Now that you have a basic plan, you can write your first draft of your blog post. Don’t worry about it being perfect; editing is one of the next steps.
At this point, I like to make sure I have included links in my blog post – to previous blogs I’ve written, the source of the data, or products/services mentioned.
Step 5 – Proofread & Edit
Proofread what you’ve written and edit accordingly. I often find it better to leave a day or two between writing and editing so that I read what is written and not what I thought I wrote. Don’t forget using spelling and grammar tools, like Grammarly, can speed up this step.
Step 6 – Add images
Depending on what your blog is about, you’ll need to set time aside to photograph items, create graphics or find suitable images online.
If your blog can use more general imagery, don’t be afraid to use stock images. I’m a big fan of Unsplash for free photos.
Step 7 – Don’t forget a conclusion!
There’s nothing worse than a story that abruptly ends. And the same can be said for a blog post. Your conclusion is the impression you leave your readers with – make sure it’s a good one.
Your conclusion is a great place to include a call to action. This will vary depending on what you’ve written, but if nothing else, asking the reader to share what they’ve just read is a good place to start!
Step 8 – SEO
Before hitting publish, double and triple-check that you’ve done everything you can to optimize your blog. Check out my previous blog for my top 10 SEO tips for your blog
Step 9 – One last check
Before hitting that publish button, take the time to do a final read-through and make sure everything is the way you want it.
Nothing like spotting a sneaky spelling mistake after hitting publish (although that’s not the end of the world either)
Step 10 – PUBLISH
This one is pretty self-explanatory – but hit that ‘Publish’ button and celebrate the win! 🥳
Step 11 – Promote, Promote, Promote
Now all that is left to do is promote all your hard work – promo it on social media, shout it from the rooftops, add it to your homepage or repurpose it by turning it into an infographic, a video for YouTube, a podcast, or even a presentation on Slideshare
And that’s it – 11 easy steps to take you from idea to final post! Next time you create a piece of content for your blog, use these steps to help guide you through it!