Blogging Basics: A Recipe for Blog Beginners

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How to cook up a simple blog post – serve with a side of patience

Some small businesses rely almost entirely on blogging to drive traffic, make connections, and sell their services. 

It’s their main marketing dish. 

For others, blogs are the cheesy mashed potato side dish. A special treat every once and a while but not the main meal in their marketing plan.

Before launching straight into blogging, it’s important to determine the role you want blogs to play in your overall marketing strategy and how much time, energy, or resources you want to dedicate to blogging.

If you’re still spinning your wheels on what website content is compared to website copy, why blogs make a difference for your small business, or if you’re struggling to come up with content ideas, be sure to grab those foundations first before diving into this ultimate ‘how to write a blog’ blog post. 

Now let’s get cooking (and by cooking, I mean blogging).

 

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Side-Dish Suggestions: Marketing and Repurposing

Blog content is perfect for cutting up and repurposing into other marketing materials. Some ways to repurpose your blog posts include:

• Creating bite-sized social media posts based on your blog post

• Transforming your blog idea into a graphic for social media

• Using blog content as the foundation for a podcast episode or Youtube video

• Expanding on a blog post and turning it into a downloadable lead magnet

• Repurposing a blog post into a guest post for someone else

• Creating interactive polls based on your blog topic

• Featuring your blog post in your email newsletter

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Serving Size Suggestions: Ideal Blog Post Length

When it comes to blogging, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all‘ approach. But there are recommended serving sizes depending on who’s coming to the table. 

The length of your blog post depends on the topic you’re covering, the purpose of your blog, and the amount of context, details, and examples you’ll provide.

All of this should be centered around who you’re writing for. 

Do your readers want to jump straight to the meat of the blog (like jumping straight to the steps on a recipe)? Or do they want background, context, and additional information? What do your readers need to know to feel content with your content? 

Take a look at this suggested blog length guideline to help you decide how long your blog should be. 

• Short posts – under 400 words – should be discussion-based to stir up conversations. These posts probably won’t show on search engines but are perfect if your audience engages with what you write. 

• Medium-length posts – 600-1,200 words – are ideal for covering specific topics, ranking on search engines, and creating shareable content. They’re long enough to provide context, advice, and stories but short enough to hold the attention of readers.

• Long posts – over 2,000 words – are the information-rich blogs that Google loves. They keep your readers on your page longer and offer in-depth solutions for them. 

No matter the length of your blog, the critical part is offering information that your readers actually care about and want to read. 

You could write three hundred 2,000-word posts, but if you aren’t appealing to your readers you won’t see the traffic you want. 

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How to Store: Creating a Blogging Schedule

For some, blogging sounds like an easy way to promote your services, share your knowledge, and connect with your curious clients. 

You might think to yourself, ‘all I have to do is share my unfiltered train of thoughts from the comfort of my couch, with a glass of wine in hand? Sign me up.’

But then the researching, writing, reviewing, formatting, publishing, and promoting kick in. 

Suddenly, your twice-a-week blogging schedule drops down to once a week, then once a month, and then you pretend you’ve never even heard of this thing called blogging before. 

Maintaining a blog takes time, resources, and a lot of effort. When you’re creating your blogging calendar and setting your blog goals, really reflect on the amount of energy you can devote to writing because it’s more important to be consistent than frequent. 

If you can commit to writing an impactful blog every week (or three times a week), then good for you. 

But if once a month is more your pace, then that’s something to celebrate too!

As you build loyal readers, writing consistently will position you as a reliable and trustworthy source of knowledge. If you post 6 blog posts in a mad rush and then drop off the face of the blogging planet, you’ll lose that trust and those readers. 

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Writing a Blog Recipe

Tools: Website, writing system, patience, time, online tools like Ubersuggest and Grammarly (optional)

Prep time: 30-60 minutes Cook time: 2-4 hours Total Time: 2.5-5 hours

Ingredients:

• A Cup of Business Goals

• 5-10 Blog Post Ideas 

• 2-3 SEO Keywords

• 1 Call to Action

• A Dash of Brand Personality

Instructions:

1. Prepare Your Goals

   Create your brand’s content pillars, your business’s long-term marketing goals, and the immediate purpose behind each blog post you’re writing. 

   
   

2. Stir Up Blog Ideas

   Think about your client, what they need to know, what they enjoy, their experiences, and why they’re coming to you in the first place. Keeping them in mind as you think about possible topics will help you focus your posts on subjects that your audience connects with and benefits from.

   Need some help getting started? Then check out these blog post ideas for your industry. 

   Blog Post Topics For Travel + Adventure Businesses

   Blog Post Topics For Website Designers

   Blog Post Topics For Wellness + Fitness Studios

   Blog Post Topics For Photographers

    

3. Uncover Your Keywords

   Keywords are the words or phrases your potential clients are typing into that trusty ole’ Google search bar. 

   When choosing keywords for your blog topics (2-3 per blog, please!) think about what your dream clients might search for. Are they Googling ‘how to look calm in a surf photography session’ or ‘outdoor wedding photography spots in Calgary’ or ‘blogging basics for a beginner’?

   Then incorporate these keywords in your blog headlines, text, and meta description. 

    

4. Mix Research, Ideas, and Keywords Together

   Now you have your goals, topic, and keywords, it’s time to bring it all together with a hefty blend of research and writing. 

   It’s tough staring at a blank page and getting started writing your blog. My tip is to brain-dump all your thoughts, facts, and ideas in bullet point notes or rambling sentences.

   Once your thoughts are on the page, you can start organizing them and turning them into coherent, personality-packed, and informative sentences. 

    

5. Break Content Into Bite-Sized Chunks

   Remember you’re writing a blog, not a university essay, so write for skimmers and not professors. That means:

   • Use headers, bullet points, and lists (like this!)

   • Write short sentences and paragraphs 

   • Include photos or graphics to keep readers scrolling

   • Incorporate links to other parts of your website

   • Show off your personality with jokes, side notes, or stories

     The goal is to make it easy for your readers to scan what you’re saying and find what they’re looking for, while still staying curious about what else you have to say. 

      

6. Top with a Call To Action

   The infamous Call To Action, aka CTA. Once your readers have scrolled through your blog, what do you want them to do next?

   Should they download your freebie? Sign up for your email list? Send in an inquiry? Book your services? Whatever it may be, you need to let your readers know what they should do next.

    

7. Sprinkle In Personality

   I find it easier to write my blogs with the information as the main priority first. 

   Then, once the words are on the page, I go back in and jazz it up with personal stories, specific details, powerful verbs, and other on-brand wording that adds personality to the page. 

    

8. Let It Simmer

   You don’t want to serve your blog so piping hot that it burns your readers. 

   After writing your blog post, let it rest for at least a few hours or even a day or two if you have time. Then return to it, read it all, and soak it in. 

   Is your blog post clear and understandable? Does it provide useful information for your readers? Does it sound like you and your brand? Is it truly saying what you want to say? 

    

9. Serve It Up

   Now the fun part. Tap that publish button to share your dish with your readers. 

   Remember what we talked about at the beginning of this post though with your side dishes. Here’s where you can repurpose your blog post into social media captions, email content, or other marketing content that engages with your audience and draws them to your website.

 

That’s all! Your perfect recipe for writing a blog that speaks to your readers, showcases your out-of-this-world business, and takes care of your marketing goals. 

 

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