{"id":16820,"date":"2022-11-10T11:22:37","date_gmt":"2022-11-10T11:22:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.searchenginejournal.com\/blog-post-planning\/452288\/"},"modified":"2022-11-10T11:22:37","modified_gmt":"2022-11-10T11:22:37","slug":"how-to-plan-a-blog-post-in-6-easy-steps-via-sejournal-searchmastergen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marketingnewsbox.com\/?p=16820","title":{"rendered":"How To Plan A Blog Post In 6 Easy Steps via @sejournal, @searchmastergen"},"content":{"rendered":"
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With more than a billion<\/a> websites across the World Wide Web, it\u2019s not hard to understand that it\u2019s tough to stand out among them.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why the best content on the web<\/a> has to be well-written, well-researched, and downright compelling to read, regardless of the subject matter being covered.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s not always \u2013 or rarely is \u2013 an easy task. But breaking this daunting task into more straightforward steps makes the job much more manageable.<\/p>\n

Creating content \u2013 not just blogs \u2013 should always start with planning. And that\u2019s often the difference between mediocre content and excellent content.<\/p>\n

To outline that plan, use these six steps for content-creation success and ensure what you and your brand is publishing is being found easily and digested by the right people at the right time.<\/p>\n

Readers won\u2019t just respect this content and the brand behind it but will seek out this content and hold the brand in high regard.<\/p>\n

Offering something valuable (high-quality content) to the people who matter most to your business (customers) is a no-brainer and a long-term-winning strategy that pays extreme dividends.<\/p>\n

Doing so is also the natural way to build authority through your entity (a brand, person, etc.) for readers and search engines like Google.<\/p>\n

1. Know The Brand You\u2019re Representing<\/h2>\n

There can never be enough emphasis on this.<\/p>\n

Too many times, when writing on behalf of a brand or business, writers forget (or never consider) said brand\u2019s overall voice and tone.<\/p>\n

This is a critical component for success regarding consistency, styling, and messaging.<\/p>\n

You want to ensure all of this is in line with general brand guidelines and its overall brand image.<\/p>\n

Larger, well-established brands typically have guidelines that should include brand voice and tone.<\/p>\n

But even if official brand guidelines aren\u2019t available, there are still many ways you can better understand a brand, its voice and tone, and its general messaging with goals in mind.<\/p>\n

R<\/b>ead Old Blogs By The Brand<\/h3>\n

A good starting point would be to look back and read older blog content published by the brand.<\/p>\n

Depending on how long the brand has been creating well-developed, quality content, you could deeply understand the general style and brand voice used.<\/p>\n

Work to recreate that with your insightful spin.<\/p>\n

Run A Content Audit (Or A Shorter, Modified Version Of One)<\/h3>\n

When in a position to run the overarching content strategy or consistently write content for the same brand, it would likely be worth a writer or content strategist\u2019s time to run a micro content audit<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This will help you get the best idea of not just the overall style and voice of the content but also the brand\u2019s goals and identify what works well in terms of traffic, engagement, and performance (and what does not).<\/p>\n

This will also help develop ideas for blog topics and identify content gaps<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Look At Competitors<\/h3>\n

Another way to better understand the brand a writer represents \u2013 and what not <\/em>to be \u2013 is to look at some of the brand\u2019s main competitors<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Competitors will likely publish their quality content, but the content produced on behalf of a competing brand like the one you represent should be unique to that brand.<\/p>\n

That is one of the main ways brands can stand out and are supposed to. Use it to your advantage.<\/p>\n

This is also a no-brainer when moving into a content role within a business or industry with which one may not be too familiar.<\/p>\n

You want to understand the brand you represent and its messaging.<\/p>\n

But it will also help to understand the brand\u2019s main competitors, how they work to separate themselves from their competition, and ways you can surpass them in educating and enlightening potential customers.<\/p>\n

2. Understand Your Audience<\/h2>\n

Understanding the audience<\/a> you\u2019re writing for goes hand-in-hand with knowing the brand you represent.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t understand your audience without knowing the brand you\u2019re writing for.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t publish quality content without fully understanding those critical variables.<\/p>\n

The means mentioned above to better understand both will help a brand\u2019s overall content strategy and execution.<\/p>\n

Remember to use topics that interest your audience and vocabulary that makes sense to your audience.<\/p>\n

3. Finding Topics To Write About<\/h2>\n

For many, this may be one of the most challenging steps of the planning process. But it shouldn\u2019t be.<\/p>\n

As a writer representing a brand \u2013 a brand that is an authority on specific topics and industries \u2013 there will always be valuable insight to offer current and potential customers.<\/p>\n

Think about Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)<\/a> on many websites; they are built from topics\/questions commonly asked repeatedly over time by those interested in the brand and its business. Those answers are sought out through search engines thousands of times per day.<\/p>\n

Offering people (the right) answers to their questions will always build trust in a brand and the writers representing it.<\/p>\n

Competitive Analysis<\/h3>\n

Aside from the Frequently-Asked-Questions exercise to explore content ideas, writers should also lean on competitive analysis<\/a> to develop more good topics to write about.<\/p>\n

Some brands will do a decent job of covering many different topics within their industry. In contrast, other brands will do a better job covering only specific areas within that industry they may specialize in or have more experience in.<\/p>\n

Use all this research to build out quality blog topics based on the abundance or lack of quality content on specific issues.<\/p>\n

Identify competitors\u2019 content gaps as areas to focus on, gain market share from the competition, and stand out in the areas that other brands lack.<\/p>\n

An analysis of your brand similarly will help you identify where your brand is lacking as well.<\/p>\n

Keyword Research<\/h3>\n

Conducting keyword research<\/a> around topics and ideas helps writers develop keyword targets but also helps shape blog posts in terms of:<\/p>\n