Amazing Blog Post Creation: The 9 Essential Steps

Published by Algorithmic Global on June 12, 2020June 12, 2020

Create higher quality content by spreading blog post creation over multiple sessions.

Deadlines make the world go round. Without deadlines, there would be no way to develop long-term plans for marketing, sales, or order fulfillment. However, blog post creation on a deadline can be a different kind of beast, bringing added pressure to create when the words might not flow.

Don’t get me wrong; some people do GREAT on deadlines. The ticking clock provides just the impetus they need to crank out the words or content, and they thrive under the pressure of needing to get the project done. Even these people could benefit from getting some of the work done beforehand.

The goal is to create high-quality content optimized for search engines. Everyone, regardless of affinity for deadlines, would benefit from splitting up blog post creation into two separate days. 

High-quality content requires wearing multiple hats.

Some of the hats blog post creators are required to wear: creator, editor, SEO expert. 

The creator is the persona who comes up with the post itself. The editor has to make sure those words get across the desired message without mistakes, with proper headers to ease readability. The SEO expert is responsible for making sure the keyword shows up in the correct places, at the right frequency, and has to optimize the post for search engine crawling.

Of course, there are other work requirements on top of these three roles. These additional requirements come with their time constraints, meaning the clock threat is always looming. Trying to do everything in one day is a surefire way to set yourself up to let something slip through the cracks.

Blog Post Creation Checklist

Use this list to make sure you are doing all that you can to create quality content. Tasks are split into two separate days, ideally 2-3 days apart. If you have the luxury of working with a team that takes some of these tasks off your plate, feel free to shuffle around the tasks as needed. 

Day 1

• Decide on a keyword phrase. Making this the first step is crucial. The keyword you choose should be one you want to rank for on search engines and ideally fits into a long-term strategy.
• Create your outline. Here at Algorithmic Global, we recommend using story structure to create your content. A quick rundown:
  • Problem: What issue are you trying to solve for your reader?
  • Desire: What does your reader want in the end? Desire is the throughline of your entire piece.
  • Opponent: What stands in your reader’s way?
  • Plan: This is where you give your advice.
  • Battle: What challenges will show up when your reader implements your plan?
  • Revelation: What did your reader learn?
  • Equilibrium: Talk about your reader’s new reality now that they have consumed your advice. This step can be as simple as saying something along the lines of, “Now that you know this information, you can apply to other situations you encounter!”
• Create your title and subtitle. It’s essential to do this AFTER your outline, so you know the direction of your post. Ordering in this way allows you to create the most appropriate title.
• First draft. Think of this as a brain dump. Get everything out on paper. Don’t hold anything back! This step is still with your creator hat on; wait until the editor hat is on to pass judgment on your words. Shoot for no less than five hundred words.
• Send it to another pair of eyes. Having someone else read your work gives you a chance to check if your message is getting across as intended.

Day 2

• Edit/Rewrite. Read through your post and make sure your message is getting across. Delete unnecessary sentences.
• Check for correctness. We advise you to use Grammarly to check for errors, but checking in Microsoft Word also works.
• Find pictures. Each post should include 2-3 pictures, in addition to a featured image.
• Create the post on the website. Use the Rankmath plugin to optimize for search engines. This plugin gives a score from 0-100 about how well your post adheres to SEO best practices; do your best to get 100.

Going Live

It’s not uncommon to have to make several changes to the post once Rankmath gives it a score. The snippet needs to be edited, including a 130-160 character snippet description. This description is what someone searching on Google will see, and it must also include the keyword phrase.

Some other common changes include editing the title to use more impactful words, tweaking the keyword frequency and distribution, and readability suggestions.

One day isn’t enough.

It’s possible to do an entire blog post in one day, but by spreading it out over multiple days, there is time to come back and look at your content with a fresh pair of eyes. Ask any professional writer about their process, and ten times out ten, you will hear they take time between the creation of their first draft and putting their content out into the world.

Remember, the goal is to create high-quality content first, then come back and optimize it for your website.

Now you know the best way to approach blog post creation without being overwhelmed by the amount of work required to create and optimize for SEO on the same day. It leads to an overall more manageable task, but it creates a better final product! If you have any questions about copywriting, please feel free to reach out to me at m.hernandez@algorithmicglobal.com.

Remember, the key is splitting the task into two days. Wear different hats and keep them separate. Ask yourself, how many days ahead are you going to create your next first draft?