One of the things that I find really helps me to plan out my days and weeks in my business is to assign a timeframe to a task. The problem is that there are some things I do that I never used to have a clue how long they would take. For instance, I’d write ‘Send email/newsletter to my list’ but then I’d schedule an hour and wonder why it seems to take me all flipping afternoon and the other things on my to-do-list didn’t get done.
So, one day I decided to write out EXACTLY what ‘Send email/newsletter to my list’ entailed and I was shocked to think I could do all that from scratch in one hour.
It was the same for my blog posts. I’d wanted to add regular posts to my website but since I’d never looked at all the action steps involved, it always felt like an overwhelming task (that I then put off!) because I didn’t get why writing a few paragraphs and then hitting PUBLISH seemed to take me sooo much longer than I expected.
Sound familiar?
Here’s what I recommend you do:
Sit down with a pen and paper and write out all the steps involved BEFORE you even hit ‘publish’ on your site.
Then write out all the action steps involved AFTER you’ve published it. There’s no point creating great content if no-one gets to see it so sharing and marketing your blog are just as important as actually writing it.
Assign a time to each task to give you a much clearer idea of how long it will take.
Now, everyone works differently so your list of tasks may look very different to mine. But I know I love to see how other people work and my clients tell me it really helps them to hear how I plan out content and implement the actions steps in my business.
So, here’s my list.
(By the way - I’m NOT adding/sharing my timeframe for each task because we all work differently and I don’t want you to think that is the optimum time…it isn’t…it’s just how long it takes ME.)
Things I need to DO BEFORE publishing a blog post:
ONGOING = Come up with ideas – keep a constant list of ideas in a book for when inspiration strikes.
1. Decide on idea/specific content for blog post.
2. Set aside time and a quiet space with no distractions (turn phone onto airplane mode).
3. Write out main points to the blog post.
4. Add detail to points.
5. Create title for post with keywords for SEO.
6. Decide which opt-in/service/blog will be the best to share so people continue reading on.
7. Write a clear CTA (call to action) linked to #6.
8. Ask for comments/shares.
10. Decide on tags/category relevant to blog.
11. Record reading of blog post.
12. Change any typos noticed when recording.
13. Final spell check and proofread.
14. Send recording to Dropbox.
15. Decide the day it will be published.
16. Add blog text/copy to website (if not already typed into it).
17. Sort layout of blog and choose text colour/size.
18. Choose and add image that will relate to post.
19. Upload blog recording to website/blog.
20. Create Pinterest size graphic for people to share from the blog.
21. Set date to publish.
22. Set alert on phone/calendar to remind me of date.
things to do AFTER published blog post:
Create copy for email to be sent out.
Decide on subject line for email linked to blog.
Create copy for social media.
Create tiny url (or bitly) link.
Create email in Mailchimp.
Email out to my list.
Share in FB group.
Share on Pinterest.
Share on IG story.
Share on FB page.
Share on Twitter (if you use it).
HERE’S A BONUS TIP
Highlight the tasks that can be outsourced to a VA (virtual assistant), even if you aren’t ready to hire someone yet. It will give you a really clear idea of where YOUR time needs to be spent and where you’re spending time that could be given to someone else.
Here’s my list of items that can be outsourced:
Are there any other steps that you do (or think you need to do)? I’d love to hear them. Please comment below and share with anyone you feel would benefit from these tips too.