December 26, 2015 | 17 Comments Blog Writing Workflow – Are you a blogger and do you have a blog writing workflow? This is blog entry Day 9 of my 30 day blog Challenge If you answered, “Yes” then read on. A blog writing workflow is a great way to stay focused on doing each task in the right sequence. It will help you produce quality content in a predictable and measurable way. Ever since I started the 30 Day Blog Challenge I have developed my own workflow. This blog writing workflow a work in progress. My 21 Step Blog Writing Workflow Today I will share my blog writing workflow which I developed and tweaked since I started the 30 Day Blog Challenge over a week ago. It really helps to use a timer to track how long I take to complete each step in my workflow. The following is a very generalised workflow document I follow for most of my posts. Some steps in this workflow deserve their own detailed sub workflow which I’ll share soon. Priming Idea Brainstorm Research Keywords Draft Introduction Main Copy Conclusion Subheadings Category Tags Headline Images Call to Action SEO Optimisation Linking Permalink Proofread Publish Share Priming Approx: 5 minutes The first step in my blog writing workflow is prime myself. I set my intentions for my new blog post. For example my intentions may be, to share a recent experience in a positive way to help like-minded readers. Idea Approx: 5 minutes Once I’ve primed myself the next step is to think of a new blog idea or look through my list of ideas. I manage my blog ideas with an app called todoist. Brainstorm Approx: 15 minutes Next step is to quickly brainstorm based on my idea. Usually I’ll brainstorm by creating a list or mind map. Research Approx: 15 minutes Sometimes I will research my topic to gain a deeper understanding or get clarity. My research sources are my collection of books, other blogs and websites, podcasts and youtube videos. Keywords Approx: 5 minutes After the brainstorm or mind map step I will do some keyword research. This step is important if I want my blog post to rank well on google search results. There is a real art to keyword research so I will create another post soon and delve deeper and share my keyword research process. Draft Approx: 20 minutes Next step is to convert my brainstorm ideas or mind map into a first draft. Introduction Approx: 5 minutes I organise my draft copy into an introduction. Main Copy Approx: 20 minutes Next is to group the remaining draft copy into the main body. Conclusion Approx: 5 minutes … and the remaining copy will form the conclusion. Subheadings Approx: 5 minutes Once I’ve organised my draft copy into the introduction, main and conclusion I will add subheadings. Category Approx: less than 1 minute Next is to select which category this blog post belongs to. Tags Approx: less than 1 minute Optionally I add a few tags to this blog post. Headline Approx: 5 minutes Then I work on the headline. This step is also very important in terms of quickly communicating what my blog post is about. Many readers will ignore or be attracted based on the headline. I will create another blog post to share my process for creating a headline. Images Approx: 10 minutes The next step is to add a Featured Image and any other smaller images that support my blog article. The rule of thumb is to add one image for every 300 words of copy. I source my images from StockSnap.io, gettyimages, Pexels and flickr. StockSnap is a great source for beautiful free stock photos. I use images that are royalty free or have creative commons license. Also make sure to credit the photographer in my blog post. Call to Action Approx: 5 minutes Next, I’ll add a Call to Action block of text. Usually this block contains text asking the reader to leave a comment and share the blog post on their social channels. SEO Optimisation Approx: 5 minutes In this step I will go through my copy and make sure that it contains the keywords from the Keyword step above. This is another important step to ensure my post is optimised for google search results. Linking Approx: 5 minutes Next I’ll add links from my blog post to other relevant posts within my blog or link to external websites or resources. Sometimes I will include a list of resources in a Sources section like the one at the end of this post. Permalink Approx: less than 1 minute Permalink is the URL or commonly referred to as the website address. For example the permalink for this post is https://peter.reginald.com.au/experiences/my-blog-writing-workflow. The first four words in a permalink after the .com or .com.au are keyword relevant, for example “experiences/my-blog/writing-workflow”. Proofread Approx: 5 minutes Next step is to proofread and make corrections. Publish Approx: less than 1 minute After proofreading and making final adjustments I will hit that ‘Publish” button and my new blog post will appear online. Share Approx: 15 minutes Finally I’ll share my new blog post on my social channels. This includes twitter, facebook, google plus and linkedIn. After sharing my post I respond to comments left by my readers. My Goal “Practice does not make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect.” Vince Lombardi I currently spend a little over 2 hours on each post. My goal is to become more efficient and reduce the time it takes me to work through my blog writing workflow. At the same time I want to increase the quality of my writing. I’m always learning from top bloggers. Previous 30 day blog Challenge Posts: 30 Day Blog Challenge Update After 1 Week Happy Christmas To You 2015 Communication is the Response I Get – Day 1 Did you enjoy this post? If so, I would greatly appreciate if you commented and shared Peter Reginald Skype: peter.reginald.com.au Email: peter@reginald.com.au “For business owners who have hit a glass ceiling, I deliver predictable transformation by improving and managing its processes.” PS. Do you have a blog writing workflow? Let me know by linking it in the comments below! Sources Key Steps On How To Structure a Perfect Blog Post WordPress SEO Where to Find Free Images Online
Excellent tips Peter for consistent blog writing – my favorite was (priming) setting what our intention is for the blog post. I also think one of the most important because every thing we do we want to have a clear purpose and intention for. Thanks for posting Reply
I love that work flow Peter!! It’s very effective, and when you do everything step by step, you will definitely spend less time writing each blog post! Reply