If you’ve been around here for a while, you know that writing has never come easy to me. In fact, I often struggle REAL hard with imposter syndrome, and some days find myself nixing ideas or avoiding blogging altogether just because I’ve seen other business owners that have shared something similar in the past.
However, what I’ve learned is that I need to shift my mindset and remember that my audience is different from their audience.
And just because I write about something similar to another wedding planner doesn’t mean I copied their idea. My take on the topic may look completely different from theirs, and can add just as much value, if not more, to someone interested in said topic.
So what did I do?
I created a blogging workflow that I follow every time I sit down to write a new post. From selecting topic ideas to scheduling and sharing the post itself. And I want to help YOU establish one too so that you can reach more ideal clients and share your wealth of knowledge with the world!
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD 72 BLOG POST IDEAS FOR WEDDING PLANNERS
So keep reading for a peek inside my blogging workflow!
What is a blogging workflow?
From the outside, blogging may look easy. But if you’ve been blogging for awhile or are simply in the midst of starting a blog you know full well that simply is not the case. Blogging is tough. And a lot of what makes blogging tough is the time that goes into it. Selecting a topic, writing copy, preparing and scheduling the post, sharing and promoting your content – it all takes a lot of TIME.
Enter the blogging workflow.
A blogging workflow is ultimately creating a system of tasks and perfecting it so that you can get the most done in the least amount of time. I love having a blogging workflow, and don’t know what I ever did without it.
Why you should have a blogging workflow
If you’ve been blogging for any length of time you know what goes into blogging – research, writing, editing, designing, scheduling, promoting, sharing, and so on – too many things to list. Now that’s just the work. The flow means establishing an order and system in which you do these things.
It should never be just a random bunch of things, and then you remember you forgot something, and then you forget to do something else. It should be a system that is established and tweaked to perfection, so that every time you sit down to write, you know what needs to be done and how to go about doing it.
Establishing a blogging workflow of your own
First, take out a piece of paper and make a list of all the things that go into writing one blog post. This includes everything big and small, from determining the topic idea to designing the actual post itself. Think about all the things you do when writing a blog post. And think about breaking down your process into smaller, simpler steps that are easy to check off!
Next, read through your list and write out the order in which you should be doing these things. Maybe you realize you’ve been doing something out of order that could be a lot more helpful somewhere else. So think about when each line item needs to happen.
Now, actually use that list. Keep it next to you for a few weeks while you write blog posts. Perfect your blogging workflow as you go – adding in steps you may have forgotten were necessary and taking out any steps that you don’t actually take (though you thought you might).
Once you’ve perfected your blogging workflow, type it out and turn it into a checklist for quick reference every time you blog.
Establishing a blogging workflow will not only increase productivity but it will also ensure you never forget a step again!
My blogging workflow
After blogging more regularly for about 3 years now, I’ve learned that having a blogging workflow is key to efficiently creating and publishing my blog content.
So without further ado, here is my blogging workflow. And be sure to download my FREE list of 72 blog post ideas for wedding planners to help get the creative juices flowing!
- Select blog topic from Blog Post Ideas document (I add to it all the time when I think of new ideas)
- Open WordPress and start a new post
- Think of a title and subtitle (though it might be edited and tweaked later)
- Research when necessary for the post. Make notes and brainstorm possible headings and bullet list items.
- Write the post
- Link internally when possible
- Link externally when possible (ex. link to a full wedding vendor list if blogging a real wedding)
- Site image credit as needed
- Add a CTA (call to action) when possible (ex. sign up for our newsletter, download our free guide, etc.)
- Add related article links
- Preview the post in true view and proofread
- Add a keyword and metatag description to Yoast SEO and make changes until I have a green rating
- Select a category
- Add a minimum of 10-15 tags
- Double check my title and subtitle, and make sure it sounds good and includes my keyword
- Edit permalink to be sure keyword is present and eliminate any unnecessary words.
- Open my feature image template in Canva. Change the template text to the title text and add a comment if necessary. Change the background color or add a background stock photo.
- Save the feature image and export as a PNG. Upload the image to WordPress and insert it into the post a few paragraphs down. Also set the image as the feature image for the post.
- Navigate to media in WordPress. Add relevant alt and title tags to the image.
- Preview the post and double check for any errors. Make sure all external and internal links are linking correctly and opening in new windows.
- Schedule blog post for the appropriate day and time. The posts are also automatically set up to publish on Facebook with the publicize feature.
- Open Planoly and schedule an Instagram post for the morning the blog post is scheduled to go live. Pull an image or stock photo that relates to the content being shared and always site the image credit.
- When each post is published I go into the blog post and pin the feature image to any and all related Pinterest boards via Tailwind. What I love about Tailwind is that it schedules the image at various times rather than pinning them all at once manually, and in real time.
- Check Google Analytics one week and again one month following publication to analyze the overall performance of the post for strategizing and planning future blog posts.
And there you have it – my entire blogging workflow.
If you want to – you can take my blogging workflow and build from it. Start with these steps and then change them as you need to to suit your own process. Maybe you don’t use Tailwind, or maybe you don’t have a list of blog post ideas yet and need to add a step for brainstorming. That is okay! Your blogging workflow needs to suit YOU. Your skills and your needs. Even though my blogging workflow works well for me, I’m always adding and improving as I learn things along the way.
Start today (or whenever you need to blog next) and take the time to put together your own blogging workflow. I guarantee you it will do wonders for your creative process and your overall productivity!
Xo,
Jess
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD 72 BLOG POST IDEAS FOR WEDDING PLANNERS
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