How to write great blog posts – fast!
Writing a regular, high-quality blog is a brilliant way to build visibility and differentiate yourself.
By consistently sharing fresh content (rich with your own thoughts and insights), you naturally grow your search traffic, build customer trust and ultimately, sales.
From humanising your brand and improving search visibility, to building authority, providing quality social media content and more – blogs have many business boosting benefits.
But not everyone likes to write. Plus, as a busy business owner, time is tight – right?
So, how can you write great blog posts fast?
We share five quick tips that you can put into action right away:
1. Build a bank of blog ideas
Having a bank of potential blog ideas readily available will save you oodles of time. When an idea for a post pops into your head, be sure to jot it down. Whether you carry a notebook, prefer to work online or use an app – try to note them down in the same place each time. A healthy pot of ideas will help prevent writer’s block when you come to sit down and create your posts.
Top tip: If new blog ideas don’t come easily to you, block out an hour in your diary each month for a concentrated brainstorming session. Coffee and cake are optional brain fuel (but come highly recommended!).
2. Be sure to plan ahead
Draft up a simple content schedule and your blogging life will instantly become a whole lot easier. Work out a frequency that you can commit to and start from there. (There’s no point in announcing your exciting new weekly blog to your community, if you can’t maintain that frequency). Use a planner – whether printed or online – to plug in your planned blogs for the upcoming months. Schedule time in your diary to get your blogs ready ahead of time – remembering to factor in sourcing images, creating your blog header and social media images also.
Top tip: If you tend to let your blog schedule slide, give yourself a fake deadline in advance of your diarised ‘go live’ date. Or check in with an accountability partner until you’re more in the swing of things. A sporadic blog is a big no, no if you want to reap the rewards!
3. Remove all distractions
Distractions are your enemy when it comes to knocking out blogs fast. Social media, emails, phone calls, piles of paperwork, nipping off to make a cup of tea…. Sounds familiar? Find a quiet, uncluttered place where you won’t be disturbed and turn off social and email notifications – make your cuppa, bash out your blog.
Work on your post without stopping or doing anything else. If you don’t like to work in silence, the hum of a café or co-working space can also work really well. Do whatever works best to keep you focused.
Top tip: Set a timer and give yourself 30 minutes for the first draft. It won’t be perfect but having the basic structure in place (introduction, main body and conclusion) will make you feel a lot more motivated to get on and finish it (versus staring at a blank page!).
4. Forget about being perfect
Your first draft may not be as you want it. But don’t stress – build the bones and you can improve it.
Keep the content concise, focused and the intention behind your blog top of mind. What’s the purpose of the blog? Is it to share expertise? Showcase new products or services? Other? Edit your draft so that your blog achieves what you want it to and doesn’t go off on a tangent (as this will then require a time-consuming re-work).
Top tip: When you want to write fast, consciously keep your target audience in mind to reduce editing. Why will they want to read your blog and how will it entertain, educate or inform them? Does your blog deliver on this?
5. Read other blogs
If you want to write great blogs, be sure to read others. Lots of them! The more you read, the more ideas you will generate for your own business. And not just ideas for what to write, but also thoughts about how to write – attention-grabbing headlines, engaging content types (e.g., list posts, ‘how to’ guides, infographics etc), use of imagery, selecting topics that will resonate, exploring different tones of voice and more.
Top tip: A time-saving tool like Feedly.com is a great way to pull your favourite blogs and online news sources into one central location. Organised and ready at your fingertips for you to read when time allows, forming a brilliant source of fresh blog ideas and inspiration.
So, there you have it! Five tried and tested tips that will help you write great blogs – fast! Do you have a time-saving blogging tip to share? Get in touch, we’d love to hear from you!
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