How To Make Blog Posts Planning And Writing Easier
Having a blog on your website is essential in expanding your reach across the internet. It is also a key to getting found by customers in search engines.
In one of my previous posts, I explained in more detail why having a blog is needed for business websites. But it’s common knowledge that coming up with topics that visitors of your site will be interested in is not always like a walk in the park.
It takes time. Especially if you want to provide high-quality articles which you believe will truly benefit your site’s visitors.
This is especially challenging if you run a small business. The blog on your website tends to be the first thing to be neglected. Because you’re more likely to prioritize business operations, customer service and product development.
But a blog is a great marketing tool! It helps generate awareness about what your company does and what you can offer. A blog can also influence other businesses to notice you thus generating potential business partners or referral networks.
So if you’re serious in marketing your business online then you need to really give blogging some time and focus.
Going back to the title…
How do you make blog posts planning and writing easier?
I’ve outlined the simple steps below:
1. Identify your company’s mission and vision.
Will you want the posts to center on giving product information or do you prefer to give more useful insights related to your niche? The latter is really recommended.
2. Brainstorm with your core salespeople or customer service agents.
These employees are at the forefront of your business so they would have a good idea of what potential customers would likely want to read on your site.
3. Think about what your customer’s common problems or better what their unique problems are which your product or service can solve.
Remember, blog posts for business websites most especially should be focused on the reader. I’ve heard this, or specifically have read this over and over again from marketing gurus. Make the focus of your post your readers, not you, not your product, not your business. Ensure that every blog post addresses a problem, concern or issue a reader may have in relation to your niche.
I’ve made this mistake in my past blogs and when I go back to check which posts got better site visitors, it always shows posts focused on solving or helping solve a reader’s concern like how to be happy at your job, how to beat stress, work-life balance tips. Readers on the internet are not only looking for updates about the latest gadgets or celebrity news but more on how they can improve their lives.
Personal rants are for personal blogs but now, we can also see more personal blogs having reader-focused posts.
4. Make sure to list all your topic ideas on a spreadsheet or other types of document you’re comfortable with.
I personally list my topic ideas and resources on a spreadsheet. This helps consolidate all information so when writing day comes, it’s easier to go back and remember all the ideas gathered for a post.
5. Before writing, you can either make a mind map of what you want to include in the posts or just refer to the spreadsheet while writing.
This will make writing faster and the flow of words would not be that hard anymore. Many writers have found mind mapping has helped. This is also a top advice from Publication Coach Daphne-Gray Grant. By the way, I will not get any form of compensation whatsoever from mentioning her site but she’s worth recommending
Ongoing commitment is really needed to maintain a blog and its contents at its premium. Make meetings with the people in your company who can help generate up-to-date topic ideas a regular entry in your calendar. Evergreen content will make your blog more valuable and convince potential customers why your product or service is worth their money.
Freelance online writers will also help ease the load of writing blog posts since their focus is specifically on writing content. You can brainstorm for ideas, make your topic and resources list and give this to your chosen online writer for writing and publishing. This is fairly easy in a WordPress blog. So do keep them in mind when planning your blog posts to lighten some load off your shoulders.