How to write good blog posts in less time!

In this post, I’m going to show you how to write good blog posts in less time!

I’ll be talking about:

• How to come up with content ideas quick
• How to set up the structure for your blog as fast as possible
• How to deal with distraction while writing content

Why content creation?

If you already have a blog you probably already know this, but it’s one of the easiest ways to earn money online.

It makes it easier to create trust by providing value with your posts and makes it able to create a passive income, but it can also be used to get more eyes on your business.

Take a look at these stats from HubSpot:

B2C companies that blogged more than eleven times per month got more than 4 times as many leads than companies that post blogs only 4-5 times per month. 

B2B companies that blogged more than eleven times per month had almost 3 times more traffic than those posting blogs 0-1 times per month. 

By creating content and ranking under different keywords you give yourself more chances to get noticed by potential leads.

This is why content creation should be the first thing you think about when trying to acquire new leads.

The problem with this is time. A lot of people just don’t have the time to create content on a daily basis. This is why I made this post. People sometimes spent up to 6 hours trying to create content which could’ve been made in 45 minutes if they knew how to be more efficient.

All it takes are a few simple strategies and you can drastically cut down the time it takes to create content and get 4 times as many leads just like a lot of other companies that use content marketing.

I’m going to show you 8 strategies that’ll help you with this.

1. Have systems to come up with new content

Almost 50% of the time creating content goes into coming up with ideas for your content. This shouldn’t be the case.

This is why you should have systems you should revert to when you don’t know what to write. I’ve made this change and I have to say it’s been a long time since I’ve had the writer’s block issues.

Know where to get inspiration from.

There are hundreds of people in the same niche as you that put out content every day. Some people see this as an extremely bad thing, but for those that know how to take advantage of it, it almost feels like a cheat code.

Know how to get yourself into the emotional state that makes you write the best content.

Ask yourself these questions next time you feel super motivated to create a post. What put you in that state of mind?

How can you re-enact those circumstances so that you can access this state all the time?

Want to know what kind of systems I use? I’ve written a blog post about it which you can find right here.

2. Use templates

Analyze your posts and try to find out if you can categorize all your posts. If you can find similarities try to create templates so you can save time. Examples of templates can be:

1. Lists
2. How-to tutorials
3. Profile
4. Essays
5. Reviews
6. Interviews
7. News

Set goals for how long the headline should be, how many headings you should have, How many paragraphs you should write, how long the paragraphs should be, How many words the post should have.

This way you don’t have to exert mental energy on things like coming up with an intro, transition from one point to another and ending.

3. Write with purpose Create outline first

The most inefficient thing you can do is try to write from a blank page. Writing without knowing where you’re heading is one of the most tiresome ways to write a post. With every sentence, you write you have to think like crazy while trying to adjust it to some vague idea you have in your mind. I’ve done this for more than two years with another website I have and I still feel crappy thinking about how much unnecessary energy I put into creating the content on that website.

To avoid that mistake write with purpose. Before you even think about writing a paragraph create an outline first.

Know what you’re writing about beforehand, split the text into subheadings and come up with a strong ending.

The only thing you have to do after that is to write the paragraphs and voila…. you have a blog with a strong intro, direction and ending.

4. Don’t try to perfect your post on the first try

The enemy of efficiency when it comes to blogging is micromanaging at the wrong time. Tim Ferris once said his goal for most days when he’s writing a book is to write two terrible pages. Lower the pressure on yourself to a minimum when it comes to the first draft.

Ever heard of David Ogilvy? He’s a legend when it comes to copywriting. They once asked him how he became so good at writing. His answer was “I don’t think I’m a great writer at all. I’m a good editor”. I highly advise you if you want to save time to put more energy into becoming a good editor. It also silences the inner critic that sometimes prevent you from getting into a good flow when writing an article.

It also helps when it comes to the quality of your blog posts. It’s easier to correct your content when everything is already written and it’s a 100% clear what kind of context you’re going for with your article.

5. Batch Blog tasks

I’m going, to be honest, there are only three things in this world I hate with a passion.

• The movie named the sound of music ( long story)
• DCEU ruining my favorite superheroes
• Feeling satisfied after typing out an awesome blog only to realize I still have to look for pictures and ways to separate my headings

To me, the third point feels like doing the dishes and when you’re almost done your cousin comes with three extra plates for you to wash.

This is why I try to batch all the separate tasks I have to do. This way when all is done the only thing you have to do is assemble the posts and you’ve multiple posts ready to go.

Tasks I personally divide the creation of my blogs in are:

• Photo’s
• Head & subheadlines
• Quotes
• Graphs/ Statistics

Try it out and see how much time it saves you

6. Write ahead of time

This probably the biggest time and stress saver of all the tips I’ve written down and at the same time it’s foundation to make all these tips work.

This is also the easiest way to up the quality of your writing because it allows you to take some time away from your work get some sleep and take a look at it with a fresh mind.

When we’re deep in the creation process it’s sometimes hard to see the forest for the trees and we can get romantic over our work which makes us blind to obvious mistakes in our writing. A fresh mind can prevent that.

Give yourself at least 48 hours so you can read it again the morning after you’ve written it.

7. Content Curation

Nothing is new under the sun. That brilliant idea you had has already been thought up by someone on the other side of the world and put on google two years ago, but just because it already exists doesn’t mean it isn’t of value when you say it.

People are very stubborn and sometimes won’t listen to solid advice just because it’s from a certain messenger. So they’ll appreciate the same advice more when it comes from you.

There are probably hundreds of blogs and YouTube channels giving the same type of advice, but they all got an audience; because they resonate with that certain content source.

So take a look at other blogs and use their content as inspiration instead of trying to come up with things out of thin air and save a lot of time.

Watch out for creating duplicate content though

8. Eliminate distractions with the Pomodoro technique

The most lethal time wasters, in my opinion, are distractions. You might be super motivated to create content and then that certain YouTube video comes up, a person calls you or NFL game starts and before you know it four hours have passed and you’ve only written 10 sentences.

With so much happening around us I can’t blame you for getting distracted, but this is why we have to be pro-active in solving this problem.

A method I’ve been using for the last 5 months to achieve that is called the Pomodoro technique. It’s a technique specifically designed to get you to focus on your tasks and manage your willpower so that you don’t burn out.

It’s been scientifically proven that you can work with max focus for 25 minutes after that you need at least 5 minutes rest to regain that focus.

The Pomodoro technique focuses on these time blocks and uses a ticking timer to keep you focused for 25 minutes while you’re working. It really works wonders.

Conclusion

So what have we learned today:

1. Create systems to come up with content
2. Have templates for all your different kind of blog posts
3. Create outlines to structure your posts
4. Don’t try to write the perfect page on the first try edit afterward
5. Batch blog tasks to save time
6. Write ahead of time so you can look your content the next morning with a fresh mind
7. Use content curation instead of trying to make posts out of thin air
8. Eliminate distractions with the Pomodoro technique

So there you have it! 8 tips that help you save massive amounts of time while writing content.

4X your amount of leads and get more money.

Let me know in the comments which tip you would try out.

PS.

Interested in earning money online through blogging check out the ”new? start here” tab on my main menu where I put three blog posts containing the basics of making money through blogging and the mindset you should have.
You can also check out the first blog post by clicking here.