by Courtney Gordner
Creating a blog in this day and age, self-hosted or otherwise, is remarkably easy. Platforms like WordPress and Tumblr allow you to create a blog in minutes using their native content management system. Of course, you can also install WordPress or Drupal on an external domain to build a completely separate blog for yourself. There are plenty of guides out there that show you exactly how to do such a thing. There are also plenty of resources that inform you how to monetize a blog or website.
Problem is, with Google’s latest SEO updates, your blog is never going to see the light of day in terms of traffic if you cannot produce interesting and engaging content. Before you can even try to tackle such a thing, you need to draw up a blog publication schedule. Blogs are pretty much useless if you are not publishing new and useful content on a regular basis. There are several reasons for that, one of which has everything to do with SEO rankings. Perhaps the most important however, is that readers will stop visiting your site once the fresh content has expired.
It is for that reason one of the biggest challenges of maintaining a blog is generating frequent and up-to-date content. It doesn’t matter whether you produce the content yourself, or whether you hire a small group of writers to do it for you. Your blog needs fresh content if you want to keep it in the spotlight.
Outsource the Work
Even if you’re the world’s greatest writer, it’s easy to get burnt out while producing loads of content. Sometimes real life can also get in the way causing your blog to suffer. If you’re the only one producing content for a site or blog it can become very difficult to keep up. You’d be surprised what kind of things can deter you.
That’s why it’s a great idea to outsource the work by hiring one or two additional writers to produce content. Believe it or not, content production isn’t all that expensive. Though we would certainly recommend paying your new writers, it’s entirely up to you. Once the blog gets rolling and you generate enough traffic it could very well pay for itself and your writers.
At the very least, you could look into transcription services in the event that you’re not so great at writing, but still want to maintain a blog. Writers are the more efficient option, but transcriptionists can take ideas, notes and more and turn them into professional documents or content. Such a service is great if you’re running a niche blog that deals with medical, legal, or business related content.
Use a Framework or General Plan to Establish a Pattern
There are so many different types of content. It can be difficult maintaining a strict schedule. You can write news, editorials, reviews, personal accounts, and much more. If you don’t come up with some sort of framework or general plan you might find it very difficult to stay organized. It will be even harder deciding what type of content to produce day in and day out.
That’s why you should always come up with some kind of framework for your publication goals. Are Fridays going to be your editorial day? Are you going to cover one piece of news on a daily basis? Are you more interested in offering weekly product reviews?
Draw up a makeshift schedule that helps decide beforehand what kind of content you’re going to produce. You don’t always have to know the topic beforehand. In fact, it’s best if you don’t so you can keep up with current events. However, you should always know what type of post it’s going to be before you dive in.
A Schedule Keeps Everything Separate
If you host third party or sponsored content on your blog, you’ll want a balance on how frequently you post. You want just enough time between each post to maximize your return on investment (ROI). A schedule helps you keep this structure in order.
For example, let’s say you know you want to publish four articles a day and they will be released every three hours. You’ll know exactly when to launch the next piece of content if you have a schedule put together. It does sound incredibly simple, but you’d be surprised how many blogs ruin opportunities because they don’t follow a proper timeline.
Be Flexible and Experiment
It’s easy to forget how to be flexible and experiment with content when you’re trying to keep a strict schedule. Most importantly, remember that in order to understand the effectiveness of your blog and content you’ll need to pay constant attention to it. In turn, you’ll need to be willing to change up the game every now and then. If your reviews are getting terrible views and exposure rates in the middle of the week, you might need to push them back to a weekend or evening schedule.
The only way you’re going to know what works and what doesn’t is if you track of the information. Furthermore, you can use the collected data to try out new strategies and tactics. The next time you’re coming up with a publication schedule, remember to factor in time for some of these tips.
Courtney Gordner is a blogger with a passion for all things internet, social media and SEO! Read more from her on her own blog, www.talkviral.com.
Photo Credits
Eliazar Parr Cardenas | Courtesy of the author
