Organization is crucial when embarking on a new blogging journey. It’s all too easy to overlook some of the most important aspects of blogging while rushing to publish content. That’s why every aspiring blogger needs a blogging checklist.
Your checklist may differ from mine, and my checklist may differ from other larger bloggers in the industry, but what remains are items that should be on everyone’s list. Here is my take on 8 things every blogging checklist must have.
1. Set publishing and writing dates
There are many reasons to be precise when planning a content schedule, often called a content calendar. They all boil down to one thing: efficiency.
Scheduling and planning can be a hassle, I know it and you know it. However, setting precise dates for content creation and publication can go a long way. Even if you end up rescheduling appointments, they need to be set more or less in advance.
Creating a content calendar and filling it with appointments is a great exercise in blogging or any other type of content creation. If you know when to achieve your goals, it will be much easier to do so when the time comes.
2. Iron out your big three
This item may be the most important item you put on your blogging checklist. You need to make sure your Big Three are written effectively and accurately. The big three are your headline, your sublime, and your metadata.
A good writer should go through these three things at least three times. This is a practice that was adopted from copywriting, where these texts do the main work. It’s almost the same way that your article will sink if it has no headline to hook readers, no subheading to draw them in, and no metadata to keep the whole thing going.
Once you are confident in these three points, it will be much easier to successfully complete the rest of your writing tasks.
3. Make sure the blog stays focused
Remember how you spent all that time making sure you wrote down a great headline? Well, this is where it starts to pay off. One of the most important things to keep in mind when writing for a blog setting is to make sure the article focuses on the headline.
Your headline did the amazing job of attracting viewers; Now you need to make sure you lead them to your call to action at the end. The best way to ensure this is to keep the blog’s focus under control.
4. Keep the format consistent throughout the piece
Formatting can determine the success or failure of a blog and therefore an entire website. If a blog post doesn’t look right or doesn’t remain visually consistent, readers will immediately notice it, even if they don’t notice it themselves.
Don’t be afraid to write a little style guide for each blog style. It doesn’t have to be massive; All you need to do is ensure that the bolding or font change is done evenly and consistently.
If you have an article that looks consistent and visually appealing, readers are much more likely to finish reading the article and keep coming back. If you need additional help in this area, check out our guide on using HTML to accomplish this.
5. Make sure keywords are used properly
Here is another crucial point when it comes to blogging; SEO. SEO can be a pretty scary topic for those new to online writing. It’s a lot less complicated than many people discussing it online make it out to be.
The key here is to keep your keywords in mind when writing your article, especially when it comes to metadata and image descriptions. These articles should simply introduce your keyword. Giving a search engine every opportunity to find your content is incredibly rewarding in the long run.
Knowing where not to put your keywords is almost as important as knowing where you should use them. Overusing a keyword falls into the realm of keyword stuffing and should be avoided at all costs. If all of this still seems a little daunting, check out our SEO best practices for blogs.
6. Use links wisely
Effective use of links is what differentiates an amateur blog from a professional one. Having a good number of well-placed links in your content is a good way to ensure engagement, but Google also takes this into account significantly.
Linking to your own content is a great way to create synergy between your existing blogs. This approach can keep readers engaged with your blog by moving from one post to the next. It also increased the likelihood that they will return.
Making sure you link to external sources can be a good way to ensure the audience is well-informed. After all, informing the audience is the main purpose of a blog post.
7. Check your ending
Your headline was perfect and attracted your audience. Your article was compelling and informative and made the audience want to finish your post. You don’t want this all to be in vain, do you?
Of course not! That’s why you need to support your article with a high-quality call-to-action at the end. This may seem like a plug for the website or a nudge for an email list, but it always comes at the end and is always aimed at engaging with the audience.
The best way to achieve this is not to be too pushy; After all, you’ve already made it to the end of your post. You’re simply giving them something to do after they’re done, and by the way, it benefits you too.
8. Editing of the last round
After all, editing is something that can be almost as boring as scheduling, especially the final round of editing. You may think you’ve read it enough times, but you’re wrong. A final, careful and comprehensive pass is still required.
This is where you go through your newly created blogging checklist and go through each line carefully. It may not be the most exciting part of writing, but it’s definitely the most rewarding. This step is best done earlier in the day, after you’ve had a chance to walk away and let the mail breathe.
Final thought
Which of these tips did you find most useful? Which of them made it to her?
Personal blogging checklist? Let us know below.
