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The process of outlining your posts can be difficult, especially if you're not used to doing it. However, it's an essential part of writing a blog post, and will make the process much easier in the long run if you take the time to do it right from the start. While some people are able to write their posts without any kind of outline, many others have found that outlining their posts makes them more organized and efficient, ultimately resulting in better content as well as less stress while writing. Here's how to outline your posts so that they're easy to write and less stressful!
Finding the time
Finding time to create daily content, much less outline it,
can be difficult. It’s important that you find a schedule that works for you
and your team, whether it’s every morning or every evening before you go home.
It’s important that content creation becomes part of your daily routine so your
work doesn’t feel like work; instead, it should feel like second
nature—something you do without even realizing it. And once you get into a
groove, chances are you’ll start to enjoy creating your posts more and more.
When you write in a focused way each day, at least some of what comes out will
be good. That alone is motivation enough to keep going when inspiration runs
dry. You never know when one idea will spark another idea—or when one post will
help another come together better than expected. Sometimes an inspired post
helps others write well too (just ask any writer). If nothing else, daily
writing forces us to pay attention to our own ideas and focus on communicating
them clearly. The discipline required helps improve our writing skills over
time, which means we might eventually produce something worth reading after
all! That's pretty cool...
Narrowing down your topic
Before you even start an outline, it’s important to make sure
you are narrowing down your topic. When I say narrowing down your topic, I mean
that you need to ask yourself what exactly you want to write about before you
start writing. It is also very important that if there is any decision or
choice on what type of content/format/tone should be used. This will help you
decide where your post would be most effective and also come up with different
titles for your content because each title could have their own purpose. For
example, if you were writing about stress relief techniques then instead of
focusing just on how yoga is one of them then focus more on why yoga helps in
decreasing stress levels. In short, try to define every aspect of your content
by asking yourself questions such as: What is my audience? What do they already
know about my topic? Where can I find information that is relevant and helpful
to my audience? What tone should I use while communicating with my audience
(formal/informal)? Will graphics work better than text when presenting
information on my topic? etc. By answering these questions, you'll get a better
idea of what direction you should take your post.
Choosing
Keywords
There are a few steps you should take when choosing keywords
for your post. First, consider what people are searching for when they try to
solve your problem. If you're writing about business ideas, someone might
search how to start a business or how do I make money. In each of these cases,
what they really want is more specific: they need help figuring out how to
start their own company or how they can turn their idea into an income stream.
Make sure that you target very specific keywords rather than broad phrases like
how to start my own business. It will be much easier for readers to find your
content if it's relevant directly to them. To choose good keywords, ask
yourself questions about what potential customers are trying to accomplish and
then create a list of those words as possible topics. For example, let's say
you run a dog-walking service. You could ask yourself What would someone who
wants to start their own dog-walking service want to know? That question gives
you a list of potential topics: where to get started with pet care, marketing
strategies for pet services, etc. Then all you have to do is use those terms in
your post title and body text. By answering common questions in your posts,
you'll also ensure that anyone who comes across your site via search engines
will see information tailored specifically toward them—and not just general
advice that won't answer their needs exactly.
Brainstorming with Google Docs
Most of us probably didn’t grow up with Google Docs as part
of our creative process, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be an effective tool
for creating an outline for your posts. In fact, some people find that working
with a specific program like Google Docs helps them focus and come up with
ideas more easily than using their mind. First off, start by jotting down
everything you think your post should include—don’t worry about formatting or
wording yet; just get it all out there. Then, use these questions to guide you
in creating each section: If I were reading about topic, what would I want to
know? What are some good subtopics for topic? Will topic have any exceptions/
variations? Finally, once you’ve got your outline created, feel free to add
details and information on topics within each section. That way when you begin
writing, you won’t feel lost or overwhelmed because you already have a clear
idea of how your post will flow.
Take action
Now that you have you’re what (your topic or content area),
start taking action on those ideas. Begin creating an outline for your content
by writing down three main points about your topic. These three points should
be what you are going to cover in each of your topics. It could look something
like: Point 1: What is social media marketing, really? Point 2: Why does it
matter/why should I care/what do I need to know about it? Point 3: What tools
do I need, where can I find them, what kind of learning curve is involved in
mastering them? Then, write one more point with just one sentence. That will be
your intro paragraph. After that, write two more points—one per paragraph—that
will make up your body paragraphs. The last two points will serve as your
conclusion paragraph(s). Remember to keep it simple; don’t try to write all of
these at once; just focus on getting through one point at a time and then move
onto another point when you feel ready to tackle another piece of content. When
you’re done with all five points, go back over everything again and ask
yourself if there’s anything else missing from any part of your outline. If so,
add it in now before moving onto formatting and editing!
