Blog Post Checklist - 7 Things I Add To Every Blog Post
Blogging is not just about writing your post and publishing, there are lots of little things that you need to do and this is why I love checklists.
This is my basic checklist that I use when publishing my blog posts to make sure I have not left anything out.
1. Add Adsense
I add Adsense ads to almost every single blog post that I publish. It does not bring in a huge amount of money, but it brings in regular residual income which is growing nicely. My monthly Adsense income is approximately $100 and I plan to increase that in a very big way.
Some of my websites I have added Adsense Auto Ads which means I don't actually have to physically add in any ads, Adsense places the ads automatically. For some of my websites I manually add the Adsense ads because I want complete control over where the ads are placed. I've now started using a plugin to create shortcodes for my ads which makes it so much easier.
How To Add Adsense Auto Ads To Your Website
How To Use Shortcoder To Easily Add Html Banners and Code To Your Posts
2. Amazon/ Affiliate Links/ Money Post Link
Every single post that I publish has an affiliate link in it, or an internal link to another post which is my money making post.
Alternatively I may link to a relevant post that is highly popular which in turn leads my readers to a money making post. Either way, with each article I write and publish I make sure that the post can either lead my readers to a place where they may buy or they can make a purchase directly from that post.
It is all about making money after all isn't it?
It is important to remember not to monetize every single post with affiliate links. I mix mine up where some have affiliate links and some don't.
How To Add An Amazon Banner To Your Sidebar
How To Add Amazon Ads To Your Posts
3. Featured Images
Every post I publish has a featured image because that is the image that shows up on my blog roll and I believe it makes my website look much more appealing to always have a featured image.
Some of my websites use my featured image automatically as the image that is shown on my social shares but some of my websites choose an image at random, often using my about me widget image plastering my face all over social media which I don't like.
For this reason for those websites I make sure to add a special featured image for my social shares too.
How To Add A Featured Image To Your Wordpress Post
How To Set Wordpress Image For Social Shares - Using All In One SEO
4. Pinterest Image
Pinterest has blown me away in the last year since i started really focusing on it. I can't believe the volume of traffic it is now giving me. I am now averaging 400 - 500 Pinterest visitors a day - when means it is essential for me to create a special Pinterest image for every blog post that I create.
In addition to my featured images and my Pinterest image I do try and add more images to my posts. I usually aim for 1 image per 300 words.
5. Headings
Headings are absolutely essential in my opinion. It helps search engines to understand your post, it helps to rank your post when you add keywords to your headings, plus it makes your posts more readable and easy to scan.
Imagine I wrote the post without any headings? I think we can all agree that headings make a huge impact.
6. Keywords
Keyword research and knowing where to put your keywords is absolutely essential for good SEO. You don't have to be an SEO expert either to start with good SEO for your website, here are a few places to put your keywords:
- In your URL
- In your meta title, description and keyword section in your SEO plugin at the bottom of every post or page you write.
- In your file names - yes name all your files properly with your keywords!
- In alt tags - be careful with alt tags don't put your keyword into alt tags if they are not relevant to the image. Describe each image in the alt tag and if you can add in any keywords great.
- In headings
- Underline, bold or italic keywords in text
- Add your keyword in the first and last paragraph of your article
It is also important to note that you should not stick to the one exact keyword - mix it up and write naturally - as you write you will automatically write different versions of the same keyword phrase. These are called Low Semantic Keywords (LSI) and you can rank for these too.
Make sure that above all your writing and everything you do on your post looks natural. If you cannot fit your keywords in naturally into all the above places - leave some of them out and go for your article looking natural over SEO. It will work in your benefit every time.
7. Internal Links
I can't stress enough how important internal links are - for SEO and to help your visitors move around your website. You want your visitors to move around your website and you want them to stay on your website for as long as possible.
Adding internaly links (ie links to other posts on your website) is going to be the best way to achieve that goal. In addition to that like I mentioned in the second point - you do not want to add affiliate links to every post, so when you write a post that has no affiliate links you want to send your readers to a post that does have affiliate links in it so you can make money!
Have a happy Sunday peeps :)
Recent Comments
50
Great post and great suggestions which I appreciate. Look forward to following your success.
Steve
Great training and thanks for sharing the links.
Can you show me how to had the image to my Facebook social shares?
I have been increasing my use of internal links, it just makes sense. AdSense? Strictly auto ads right now only because the convenience. As my site grows and I become more proficient with everything, I plan to customize better these sorts of things. Overall, awesome info and I have favorited this post for continual future reference. Thanks so much Lynne!
~Matt
Thanks for the checklist I am adding this to my favorites so I can use these guidelines when posting my content.
A great list of things to ensure you add to your posts. Do you leave your Pinterest pin in your post?
I create one then set it as featured image. Then I head over to Pinterest to pin to my board and group boards. Then I create another image to set as featured image for the top of my post. I find that the Pinterest image is quite large in a post.
Your input would be really welcome.
With Grace and Gratitude
Karen
Hi Karen yes I also felt the Pinterest image was massive in my posts in the beginning but now I always add into my posts. I usually add it just under my introduction and before I get into the meat of the post. It is working really well for me.
There's a wealth of information here that I will definitely use over and over! This should be a training, it's so great and helpful! Thanks for posting links after each check point. They add and confirm each topic. Well done! Bravo to you, Lynne!!
It's a pleasure :) Enjoy!
Yes maybe it should be a training but I like to publish posts too. It just ties up all the training I did.
See more comments
Lynne,
Thanks for posting this. Really good information and some gteat training. I will be copying, I mean making my own, your checklist and using it in the future.
Thanks again.
Sanders