5 Reasons a Blog Checklist Will Ease Your Frustration with Writing
How I get my Squirrel Brain to Focus on Writing
So you want to start a blog. Or, at least believe it would be beneficial, but don’t know where to begin. This article is for you. Keeping consistent content helps google know you are an active site. This is important, no matter what your business.
An attorney, accountant, or artist can benefit from having an optimized blog. If the word optimized has you raising an eyebrow, keep with me. We’ll get to that.
Service providers don’t have products to add routinely to their website.That’s where a blog can help. A blog provides valuable information to your readers. It’s also a long-term benefit, as the articles can bring organic traffic to your site, well into the future.
This article will help you get over your fear, or procrastination, (or both) of starting a blog. “The beginning is the most important part of the work.” Plato
Already have a blog? This will help you as well! Let’s review why a checklist is a great place to start.
IT’S FREE
Who doesn’t love free? I provide my clients with a checklist when we are working together to create a new website. I list my to do items, as well as theirs. (This can even be done in google.)
It’s a good way to keep track of next steps and is pretty satisfying to check off and see how many tasks are completed. It’s handy if you are sharing responsibilities, because team members can easily see what has been done.
Once you create it, you can pull it out every time you want to write a blog. I recommend creating a schedule and being consistent. (I need to follow my own advice!) But, even once a month can boost your rank on google and the sooner you start being consistent, the sooner you will see results.
MAKES WRITING EASIER
Once you start with keywords that you have researched, and want to use, (this is where optimization comes in) you can then come up with topics. These are literally the first two steps on my checklist. An article idea will not help much if no one is searching for the terms. Some helpful hints:
Use a keyword and longtail keywords (phrases) in your article
Keep a list of phrases in your list-keeping app of choice (Notion, Asana, Trello, ClickUp)
Note the search volume and the keyword difficulty, along with the search term or phrase
Once you have a list of possible topics, you can then begin to outline your article. (I use a template for this as well!)
HELPS PREVENT MISTAKES
The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right, written by Atul Gawande, explains how useful checklists are in preventing surgical mistakes. Gawande is a medical doctor, with impressive credentials. More about him can be found here.
Checklists have saved lives when used by airlines for flight checks. As a lawyer, I also used checklists for court appearances. I did a lot of the same hearings, with the same people. I created a checklist with the regular, routine information, and all I had to do in the hearing was circle my selection.
I typically had to prepare the Order, so having that all in one place was a time saver when I only had 10 days to complete it. And as much as you think you’ll remember, if you’re anything like me, you don’t, and a list is quite helpful. Grocery shopping list. Cleaning list. Errand list. If I write it down, it is more likely to be remembered.
KEEPS YOU ORGANIZED
At quick glance, you can see how many steps you have completed, and how many more there still are to do. On my checklist, I include a time estimate too, so I can see if there’s a small task I can complete, if I only have a short amount of time.
The other section I have, that I learned from Sarah Steckler of Mindful Productivity, is to allow for the energy required for each task. I know that looking for images is a fun activity for me, and I can do it in front of the tv, with other family members in the room, and even dogs barking.
Writing, however, for me, takes concentration. I am better in the morning hours, because I am more alert, and tend to fade fast after dinner. This is an individual assessment, but valuable. I know that I need a block of time in the morning in order to have enough energy to complete a writing activity.
I add a “do date” as well. I usually know the date of when I want it to be published. Working backwards, I can see how much time I need to get all aspects complete and add the date I can do it, based on my schedule.
I also include other platforms to my list. Once I have a blog completed, I need to let people know. I typically include Instagram, and Pinterest, but I am also looking into YouTube and Linkedin. Wherever you normally post content, is a good place to start. Include them on your blog checklist, including any other info you may need to create, like graphics, or captions, to let followers know there is new material.
EASY TO UPDATE
If you ever need to make changes, it’s easy to update. As you go through the process, you may realize that you don’t need all the steps you currently have. I love creating in CANVA. You can download it as a PDF and print it, and use a paper copy every time. And when you want to change something, you can fix it and download it again. There are a lot of free templates available. I am on the Pro version now, but started on the free version, and it’s a great place to learn. I am not an affiliate, just really recommend the program.
Or, if you prefer not to use a paper planner, you can add to goodnotes, or print it and put it in a frame (with glass) and use your dry erase markers to make checks. It’s easy to clean, and reusable that way. I have a large board I got at TJMaxx a few years ago, and I make a lot of erasable mind maps before committing to paper. Pen and paper work too. I’ve even been known to write ideas on my bathroom mirror with a dry erase marker. Doesn’t everyone have a dry erase marker in their bathroom?
Try launching a blog checklist for your website. If you’d like the one that I use, you can get my checklist below. Or, if you’d like individual help coming up with your own checklist and setting up your blog, get in touch!
