Creating a blog post is a great way to share your knowledge to audiences all over the world. They are looking for your content – it’s up to you to make it available! Successful posts have a few elements in common. The checklist below will guide you in writing a post that is impactful, reader friendly, and SEO friendly.
Before You Write
– Determine your topic. While the topic may develop over time, having a direction before you start helps guide your writing and content.
– Know your target audience. Knowing who you’re writing to (i.e. students, worship pastors,
youth leaders) helps keep your topic on course and can influence your writing style.
– Do your research. People love to know the facts. Include some interesting stats on your
topic. Be sure to include the reference to your sources. The reference can also be a good outgoing link from your post.
– Writers block? Here are a few ideas to help you out: use previous sermons and break them
up into 2-3 blog posts; interview church members; or highlight one of your church’s
ministries.
While You’re Writing
– The minimum word count should be 300 words. This is the recommended count for Search
Engine Optimization. Posts with fewer than 300 words can sometimes be deemed as spam.
– Outlines are important. Headers and bullet points make scanning easier for your readers.
– Write like you talk. It’s ok for blogs to be a bit informal in writing. Readers want to see
your personality and what makes you unique.
After You’re Done
– If your blog has the capability, determine the title, keyword, and meta description.
Keywords are used for search engines to help users find your blog post. A good keyword is
used in the blog title, meta description, and at least 3% of the total word count (i.e. the
keyword should appear at least nine times in a 300 word post). The keyword should be relevant
to the topic! The meta description is a short two-three sentence overview OR excerpt of the blog
post.
– Proof it. Read it a few times to yourself and have someone else proof it for readability and
possible errors. Any errors can cause you to lose credibility with your readers!
– Once it’s posted on the site, share the link to the blog post on your social media accounts. A
successful blog post is one that is MARKETED to your readers!
– Start thinking about your next post. Search engines love active, fresh blogs.
What are some of the steps you would add or that you currently do for your blog?
The post Blogging for Beginners appeared first on Georgia Baptist Mission Board.