Last Updated on by Michael Brockbank
Having a schedule for blogging has a lot of benefits when it comes to driving traffic. Not only does it help with SEO, but consistency also keeps visitors coming back for more. So, what’s the best way to set up a schedule?
Actually, a large portion of it has to do with how committed you are to maintaining your blog. Your overall needs and wants are going to be crucial.
How Does a Blogging Schedule Help?
- Encourages visitors who enable push notifications to come back.
- “Teaches” Google when your content usually goes live.
- Promotes an active blog.
- Keeps the blog active on social media when enabling Publicize or another sharing plugin.
- Helps increase income if you monetize your blog.
- Alleviates stress when you’re ahead of schedule.
One of the keys to being a creator is consistency. Whether you’re blogging, uploading YouTube videos, publishing pics on Instagram, or hammering out a novel, success centers around consistent publishing or production.
Every point above centers around a continuous flow of content.
How to Create a Blogging Schedule
Creating a schedule for your content isn’t necessarily difficult. In reality, the hardest part is perhaps mustering up the motivation to keep writing.
I know several people who have the hardest time with that aspect.
Anyway, here are the steps I take to maintain a schedule for myself as well as my clients.
1. Know What You Can Commit to Writing
First, you’ll need to know exactly how much time you’re willing and able to put into writing blog content. Depending on the topics you want to cover, you also need to consider research time.
If you plan on doing shorter pieces of content based on personal experience, then you should be able to do more posts in a shorter amount of time. So, how many articles are you prepared to publish each week?
I’ll keep track of every piece of content I create. That way, I know roughly how long it’ll take me for anything I plan on writing. Then, I can compare how much time I have throughout the week for a certain number of articles.
In this case, I know I can commit to three posts per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
2. Find the Best Time to Publish Content
In Google Analytics, you can see when users are more likely to visit your site. The darker the color, the more traffic your blog will experience.
The idea is to prompt potential return users to come back for the new article.
Now, publishing when people are the most active can help draw attention to the new post. This is especially true if they have subscribed to push notifications, email lists, or follow your blog through other means.
As you can see from the example above, most of the visitors to this website arrive between 8 am and 2 pm. With my best estimations, I publish articles at around 10:45 am.
3. Use a Productivity App
Productivity apps can be of immense help to keep with a blogging schedule. Think of them kind of like a day planner and accessible through your browser from anywhere.
They can help you keep track of ideas, keep you on task when you want things published, and can help you optimize your time.
I use the free version of Asana. I can set up blocks of time throughout the day to help remind me of what needs to be done and when I need to get posts published.
In fact, Asana has been instrumental in my success over the past couple of years.
4. Use a Favorite Keyword Tool
Next, you’ll want to find a good keyword tool that you enjoy. Keywords are still important, after all, they are the subject of any search. However, you’ll also need to write for search intent.
The problem here is that it could take you quite a while before you find a keyword tool that is perfect for your needs. That’s simply because there are so many of them out there.
What I did was use all of the free versions of keyword tools for several weeks at a time. Then, I found the ones that I truly like using. There’s really nothing wrong with using more than one.
Lately, I’ve been getting quite a bit of use out of Rank Tracker by Link-Assistant.
5. Set Up Publicize in Jetpack (Optional)
If you use WordPress, you can connect Jetpack to a free WordPress.com account. This will let you use a myriad of tools in the plugin including Publicize.
Publicize will automatically send your new blog post to various social media accounts as soon as it’s published. This means you can remain active on social media without actually using social media.
I have WriterSanctuary’s Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts connected to Publicize. Whenever a post is published, even if it’s scheduled, a message and link are sent out to those social platforms.
You don’t have to use Publicize, but it does save time and helps draw visitors from those sites.
6. Use Push Notifications (Optional)
Adding push notifications is a great way to keep readers in the loop of your blogging schedule. This will send a pop-up to a person’s browser when a new post has been published.
You’ve probably seen push notifications from your favorite YouTubers, or even if you follow a blog. It’s a way to encourage people to come back for the new post.
This is why I mentioned knowing the best time for visitors. You can instantly get several hits as soon as a post is published just from your subscribers.
I use push notifications on all of my websites. However, this isn’t something you absolutely need to have in order to succeed. I just like the instant traffic from those who follow the site.
7. Write and Schedule Your Blog Posts Ahead of Time
Once you have everything set up and ready to go, all you need to do is write the post and schedule when it goes live. Of course, there is quite a bit that goes into writing for SEO.
You’ll need ideas, keywords, research competing articles, and much more.
If you want blogging to stay on a consistent schedule, it’s always best to set them to publish ahead of time. Remember when I said I like to have things out Monday, Wednesday, and Friday? Well, I actually write all those pieces the week before.
This way, I have plenty of time to make sure the next week’s blog posts are completed and ready to go. Instead of trying to crank things out that day, I can relax and take a bit of time.
WordPress will even show you when you have articles scheduled to publish by putting a little blue dot on those specific days.
Does Keeping a Blogging Schedule Really Matter?
I am actually in the middle of a case study to determine just how much a routine schedule for blogging matters. Though, I can say with a degree of confidence that Google loves consistency.
The more active your blog is, the more often Google will show your pages in search results. Hopefully, in the coming months, I’ll actually have some data to back up that claim. However, it is something I, as well as many SEO experts, have witnessed over time.
It’s not just Google that ranks your site better with consistency. What about your target audience? Many of them love the idea of relying on when new content is going to be published.
This is why many YouTubers, TV shows, and even bloggers maintain a set schedule. True blogging success comes from repeat visits. It’s all about building that fan base as they are the ones most likely to propel you forward.
Fans and subscribers are most likely to buy things, trust your opinion, and elevate you to “influencer” status. Well, that’s if you want to be an influencer.
At any rate, maintaining a good routine for blog content can work wonders for your success over the long term.
What Kind of Blogging Schedule Do You Have for the Week?
What kind of schedule do you have for creating content? How often do you publish new blog posts?
I’m getting back into making sure all of my blogs are on a regular routine. My biggest problem now is time. I’ve bitten off a bit more than I can chew as I am working on several sites, YouTube channels, and clients.
However, I’m at least making sure my flagship blog is back on schedule.
- Can a Blog Be Successful without a Social Media Presence? - October 11, 2024
- How to Get the Most Out of the Reedsy Planning Board - October 9, 2024
- Is it Worth Setting Up a Bookstore on Your Author Blog? - October 7, 2024