I know I’m not the only blogger who regularly puts off writing a post.

There are just so many things to do, and putting a (good!) blog post together is a major investment in time and energy. You know this, I know this. It can take days to craft the perfect post, because in 2017, we know blog content is about quality – not quantity.

Aside from writing the content itself, there’s a rocket launch sequence of tasks that go alongside those pretty, pretty words. Images, SEO, keyword optimization, social sharing. The list goes on and on – even when you automate parts of your process.

There's a rocket launch sequence of things that go along with new blog posts. Click To Tweet

Anyways – this is my long-winded way of saying that I had an epiphany tonight.

Picture me, sitting unshowered at my desk and drinking a Diet Dr Pepper. With more Carly Rae Jepsen playing than is probably healthy for a 28 year old woman to listen to, I thought: wouldn’t it be fucking rad to have a pre-made workflow you could just duplicate for every blog post?

Just write the content, and not have to worry about the rest?

And then, because I was jacked up on Dr Pepper, I thought:

I SHOULD MAKE THE MOST ELABORATE BLOG POST RESOURCE EVER.

I’LL INCLUDE GRAPHICS,

AND IDEAS,

AND SPREADSHEETS,

AND TEMPLATES,

AND SHOULD I MAKE A VIDEO?!

And then I reigned myself in. But I still made the graphics. And I brainstormed a bunch of cool ideas. And then I had a few moments to myself in Excel, crafting the mother of all spreadsheets.

I probably would have recorded the video, too, if it wasn’t for my two day hair and questionable outfit choice.

In the end, I came up with this:

Which brings us to now, where it’s very clear that I hit peak productivity in the middle of the night. I’ll probably schedule this post for Tuesday, but you should know it’s currently 2AM on a Friday (I’m very cool.)

You can download THE RAD BLOG WORKFLOW PACK(!) right there ^^ fo free.

If you like it, please consider sharing her on Pinterest!

And since we’re already on the topic of blog posts, let’s talk about the art of crafting them in the meantime:

1 / If you don’t mean it, don’t say it. Don’t hashtag shit just to fit in with the latest trend, and don’t write about topics you don’t care about. I can find anything I want on the internet with one Google search. If I’m reading something on your blog, it means I (really really really really really really really) like you. I want to hear what YOU have to say, not whatever the latest blogger buzzword is.

2 / Please promote your content. Consistently. Don’t let it fall into the black hole of the internet. Use the spreadsheet I included in THE RAD BLOG WORKFLOW to track your blog posts + social media tasks if it’s something you struggle with, or invest in a fancy tool like Buffer, CoSchedule or MeetEdgar.

3 / Find out what your most popular blog post is, and write three more posts on the same topic. Spread them out over the next three months, and link them all together. I call this a sweet, sweet link crumb trail, just like Hansel and Gretel. So I guess what I’m saying is, be the witch.

4 / Aim to write one MEGAMAN post a month. When I say MEGAMAN in caps, what I mean is: a post that clocks in at a thousand+ words long that has loads of good info, and a content upgrade for your readers. Posts like these go viral on Pinterest all the time, and are a great way to funnel new readers into your content.

5 / If you’re stuck, don’t force the unsticking process. If you’re not feeling your current creative task, move onto another one. Tweak your web design, check a few tasks off in Asana, or answer those emails you’ve been ignoring for days. Give yourself room to be creative.

6 / Improve your craft. You don’t need to be a copywriting expert, but you <em>do</em> need to have your own voice. Take an online writing workshop, or enroll in one of those free multi-week email challenges. Keep your workshop writing to yourself, so you don’t feel pressured to perform + be “on.” You never know what kind of great idea will grow out of nothing.

I have a lot of feelings about blog posts, ok guys.

I hope that THE RAD BLOG WORKFLOW helps you streamline your process, and maybe even inspires you a little bit, too.

PS: It’s almost 3AM and I’m still listening to Carly Rae.