Blog is a four letter word

Whoa I’m getting pretty racy around here now! Just kidding, I’ll settle down now. In my previous article about how to keep the company blog from laying itself in a pine box and taking a dirt nap, I touched briefly on some good and bad blogging practices that even the most veteran blogger should probably keep in mind. I would like to focus a little more on that today.

The issue at hand is a common one that we face repeatedly; the creative juices run dry from time to time. For some reason, that last sentence made me think of one of those pill commercials on TV for some kind of dysfunction that you should be embarrassed about. Come to think of it, it is sort of a good way to look at it for the sake of argument; you were trucking along with no problems keeping up on the blog, then one day everything felt different.. you could no longer keep the blog going. How tragic.

Ok ok… let’s get back to the real meat and potatoes on this; your blog shouldn’t be a burden or something you dread doing. If you find yoursef in a fix for something to write about, I have a few pointers that save me from feeling like I’m slacking on the job.

Plotting the course

Like I said in my last article, it’s impossible and just foolish to think you’ll have something to write about everyday. If you do, then you’re one of the few people out there that have been blessed with unlimited creativity. And I hate you for it (just kidding).

On Sunday night, come up with 5 topics that you like to talk about. For me, it would look something like this;

1. Website marketing
2. Latest search engine news
3. Something about blogging
4. Business development online
5. A wrap up of the weeks events

Now obviously if I went about naming my articles anything close to this I would be about as exciting as mold. This next part needs to be done when you’re in that “creative zone” and you have found your blogging Zen. Have a look at how these topic titles are transformed;

1. 10 ideas to get website traffic fast
2. Google files patent for GToilet (no, this isn’t a real patent)
3. Essential Wordpress plugins for blogaholics
4. Company Profile Pages:Â Good Idea?
5. Weekly Shakedown (actually might use this one )

So as you can see, I’ve taken the topics and gave them a unique identity of their own now. The goal here is to make these new titles inviting and appealing. This is also known as “linkbaiting”, which may sound like something you do when you’re home alone, but I promise it’s not that risque.

Packing for the trip

Just having the topics assigned for the week ain’t gonna cut it. Now we need to actually write something about the topics. If you’re all about linking out to industry news then you’re job is alot easier. Quoting is good, but remember that duplicating their content excessively can be bad so go easy on it. Conjecture is welcome here, so spin your own opinion about it.

Now if you’re writing this from strictly your own point of view, then you need to tap into your blogging Zen and be ready to back up any facts you use.

I’m not going to tell you how much to write, or what kind of fact/humor/self-promotion formula to use; that comes with discovering your own voice and style. But I will tell you that you should try and bang out at least 2-3 of your future posts if you’re feeling particularly creative and have some free time. Seize the moment!

The goal is to have as many of the posts drafted out in as many days in advance as you can. No last second changes done in a panic, no throwing your hands up in frustration because the well was dry that day.

Saving the best for last

It’s Thursday night and you’ve got your weekly roundup post sitting there looking at you, empty and begging for your love. No sweat, you’ve got 75% of the content already done courtesy of the previous 4 posts. Summarize the best parts of those posts, link back to them, and if necessary update any of them if something has changed throughout the week. All you need to finish this post off is a few breaking news stories that you didn’t cover or maybe a funny story/video you can link to round it off.

Conclusion

Not too shabby huh? No point in trying to cram all of the posts into one creative burst or trying to come up with something new to write about everyday. Us Americans totally suck at moderation, but this is a good way to approach the blog.

Got any other tips?

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