Five trusty tricks for high quality blog content

Blogs: still a great marketing tool

Blogs are what is referred to as “organic SEO.” When done correctly and with the right keywords linked to your online presence on a consistent basis, this one marketing tool can help your website move up the Google rankings and wind up on page one. The problem is that people seem to struggle with consistency. As great as blogging is, the only way you are going to see results from it is if you take the time to write fantastic content on a regular basis.

The issue that most run into isn’t that they have issues with posting great content, it’s that they struggle with the need to produce it on a regular basis. It takes some time, patience, and practice, but if you keep at it, you’ll get the hang of it. Here are a few ways you can get back into the blogging groove after you lose your motivation:

1. Think of your blog as a part-time job. Pick a posting schedule. Do you want new content once a week? Twice per week? Every day? Once you choose the level of consistency, stick to it and commit to it. Imagine that your blog is a part time job. You have to show up each day you’re scheduled to work and produce the best quality work that you can. If it helps, pick a shift on each scheduled day. Do you think you’ll only need an hour? Imagine that’s your work shift for each day that you have decided to post and stick to it. No exceptions. The sooner you do this, the faster your blog will become a habit and a necessity.

2. Create your schedule. Once you’ve decided this, use some time blocking techniques to ensure that you give yourself the time to blog. Mark your calendar with the day and time you’re choosing to blog each day or week and never schedule anything at that time. No appointments, no social commitments, nothing. Naturally, there are exceptions, but try not to make every little thing an exception. Commit. Take your blog seriously. That’s the only way you’ll start to see the results you want to see from blogging. If you hold yourself to this schedule, you’ll know that by that time, you’ll need to have an idea of what you want to write about or post.

3. Compose a list of titles on the go. I tell people this a lot: keep a notebook with you. When you’re out and about, at a dinner party, getting a coffee, and you hear a topic that might be interesting for your blog, write down a title you could use for the post. Come posting day, all you’d have to do is open your notebook and check your running list of topics. You’re less likely to get writer’s block if you draw inspiration from your day to day life.

4. If you sense you’re going to be busy, write more than one post at a time. It’s understandable that life picks up and that you may not have time to write a post once or twice per week. That’s why it could be a good idea, on days where inspiration hits, to write more than one post at a time. That way, you can get ahead of yourself and have some content to post when the time comes for another posting.

5. Use your published past as a guide. I’m not saying to use the same topics over and over again, but if all else fails, look back at your previous blog posts. What did you publish at this time last year? Can any of it be reused? Unless someone is an avid reader of your blog (which, let’s be honest, not many small businesses have that), they’re not going to know you wrote about this topic already. Don’t be afraid to reuse old content and make it relevant to the time frame you’re at today.

There you have it. The more you commit to your blog, the easier it will be to produce high quality content at the drop of a hat. Just remember to make your blog a priority, and you will start to see results. Now get writing!