What to do Before Publishing Your Blog Post | Spill the TEA with Kenzie
So, you just finished writing your blog post and are ready to hit publish and send it off into the online world for thousands to enjoy. WAIT! Before you do, read through these 6 steps you should complete before hitting publish on your next blog post. These steps will take your blog post from just okay to absolutely phenomenal with little to no effort! Think of it as an ‘after writing your blog post checklist’. We also suggest saving this post so you can reference it after each and every post you write!
- Include Links.
You will want to include internal links and external links to your post. Internal links link back to pages or other posts on your own website while external links take you to another site on the internet. Adding links to your copy is important for two major reasons. The first is that it shows readers you are knowledgeable on the topic. If you reference a scientific study or share a fact, it’s good to link back to a credible site so readers can find out more information and to improve your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) score. Those would be your external links. Secondly, your internal links keep people on your site for longer. You can direct them to old blog posts that didn’t get a lot of traction or lead them to your contact page where they can sign up or call you.
- Use Keywords.
Keywords are how the search engines know what you are talking about and who would be interested in this topic. A good practice for keywords is to focus on one or two long-tail keywords per blog post. Once you have done this, make sure you mention the keyword(s) at least 3 times (preferably more) throughout the post. The better your keywords rank the more Google and other search engines will show your post to the appropriate audience.
- Add a Call-to-Action.
Once you finish writing go back and make sure you left off with a call-to-action. If not, ADD ONE! Your call-to-action will help remind your readers what to do next. This can be something like getting in contact with you to schedule an appointment, downloading an ebook, or joining your mailing list. See if you can spot our call-to-action!
- Make Graphics.
Don’t forget to add graphics or other visual elements to your post. Visuals are key to driving your following from social media to your blog post. No one wants to just look at a bunch of text on a page, and if we are being honest, they probably won’t. They will read the first two paragraphs and then click off. We want to make sure they keep reading and moving around on the page or site for as long as possible. Add images throughout each blog post to spice it up, grab their attention, and help tell the story you are trying to convey!
- Optimize Everything!
This is another biggie for SEO. You need to be adding a meta title, meta description, and meta tags. We use the Yoast SEO plugin to help manage these pieces. The Yoast plugin tells us exactly what is working and what needs improvement, like if we don’t mention our keywords enough, if our title is too short, or if we are writing in passive voice when we should be writing in active voice. Once we make the suggested changes, Yoast gives us the “green light” letting us know we are fully optimized and ready to publish!
- Promote on Social Media.
Don’t forget to PROMOTE your post! Using your social platforms is the best way to get the word out about your latest blog. You will want to make sure you have an image that is formatted to fit on whatever platform you are posting on and copy that intrigues your audience so they click your link and read your post! I suggest using a question or emojis to help pull attention to your text and to get people clicking! If you need help on deciding which social media platforms you should use, we’ve got you covered. ?
These steps will help maximize the effectiveness of your posts but there is still more to be done! Want more advanced tips? We’d love to discuss with you other ways to optimize your blog writing and maximize your efforts for each and every post!