Hi guys! I’m doing something a bit different on the blog today – I’m blogging about blogging! If you are a blogger who needs help streamlining your posting process and organizing your workload, then this post is for you. If you’re not a blogger, but have ever been curious about what I do “behind the scenes,” then this post is for you too.
For me (and many others) blogging is about so much more than just making fun DIY or craft project and sharing pictures. That’s just a tiny part of it. There’s editing, and social media… and planning.
Let’s talk about planning. Up until recently, I didn’t really use an editorial calendar. I didn’t plan out my posts with much thought at all. I just created a project and posted about it when it was finished. This left me with a sporadic posting schedule, at best.
Well, that’s all changing! I finally started using an editorial calendar. It’s nothing complicated – just a simple spreadsheet that helps me track ideas for future blog posts, as well as when I share those completed posts on various social media sites. Right now, I have my next 6 months of blog posts roughly planned.
I know what you’re probably thinking: 6 months! That’s quite a few posts to keep track of and manage. Maybe you should think about streamlining this process.
Well, it’s your lucky day! I have started to streamline that process, and I’m sharing it with you today in the form of a FREE printable!
Scroll to the end if you just want the printable without my analysis!
The Blog Post Checklist
Every post starts with an idea. Or a keyword that you want to focus on for SEO. Fill in the top section, and then come up with a killer post title (that also uses your SEO keywords).
Plan
Take a minute and think about what your process will look like. If it’s a craft or a recipe, think about the steps. If it’s a DIY, do your math and think about dimensions and how everything will come together.
Also make a supplies list. This will serve two functions. (1) You can make sure you have all of your supplies together when your start your project, thus saving time and unplanned trips to the craft store. (2) When it’s time to write your tutorial, this section of your post is already complete. No need to take the time to try and recall everything you used in the project.
Do
Notice how this is the smallest section of the checklist? It took me quite some time to realize that the actual project is such a small part of blogging. Do it well, and photograph everything, obviously. But this isn’t where I spend the bulk of my time.
Edit – Photos
Editing your blog photos is a big deal. I look back at some of my early blog posts and cringe (white balance, Aimee!).
Now that you have beautiful, bright photos. You’re good to go, right? Wrong!
Your photos also need to be the right size and have the right title. Pick various photos that will work for social media (vertical, horizontal, and square) as well as your blog’s WordPress theme. For example, my blog’s theme has is designed for feature images that are 670 x 450 pixels, and then scaled down for feature images. I have to make sure each and every post has social media images, as well as one that is 670 x 450.
Also – you want to save your images with the name of the post title (or some variation) to your computer before you upload. Trust me. Your SEO will thank you later.
Edit – Your Post
Drafting your post is pretty self-explanatory, but you also want to make sure you are linking properly. Are you adding affiliate links for any supplies you used? Are you adding links to other relevant blog content?
Then there’s SEO. My final check before I schedule any blog post is SEO. If you’re not using the Yoast SEO plugin, go download it now. I’ll admit something here: I don’t really understand SEO. It just doesn’t naturally make much sense to me. But I do know that it is important, and that the Yoast SEO plugin has made it idiot-proof. Instead of taking the time to become an SEO expert, I use the plugin and move on with more exciting blogging things… like social media!
Promote
Promote. Promote again. Then do it again.
Promote your new post across your social media platforms. Did it do well? Add it to your rotation of your “evergreen” content that you promote over and over again.
Download Your Blog Post Checklist
You can either save the image above, or click the download button below for the PDF version. Enjoy for personal use. If you want to share the checklist with a friend, that’s awesome! Please do share a link back to this post where they can download a copy for themselves. I would really appreciate if you didn’t upload the file or distribute it directly. Thanks!
