Tips for Writing Your 2nd Blog Post

It’s time to crank out your second article!

Check your list and find another article that excites you. Remember, we want to aim for at least 500 words, so pick something you’d have fun writing about.

The same assignment parameters apply here (see below), but there are some new aspects to think about now that you've already written your first post.

Linking Back to Previous Articles

This time, try to think about how this article will link back to previous ones.

Let's say you're a personal trainer. Wouldn’t it be awesome if, in your article on insane fitness workouts, you could naturally add a link in the introduction back to your first article on the importance of stretching and warming up? You’ll be naturally directing traffic back to your own articles -- and you’ll actually provide more value to the visitor.

This kind of natural interlinking is also important from an SEO perspective so it's a good practice to get into.

Want an example? Look what I did in the intro of this article :)

Tips to Keep Your Reader's Interest

First person writing helps to tell a story. Short, snappy writing is much easier to read than walls of text.

Focus as much as possible on providing value for your target audience and making that value easily digestible.

I love this quote by Neil Patel:

"Reading a sentence is like holding your mental breath. You can only last so long before you start to pass out. 

Shorter sentences help readers take lots of breaths -- and that keeps them interested."

Fleshing Out Your Brand

Write what excites you but be brand-aware too.

As you start to fill up your blog, you are fleshing out your personal brand. That's great!

I suggest that you remain aware of the types of posts you're writing. How are you portraying yourself? What do readers learn when they scan through your blog's titles? 

In one sense, it's good to write about what interests you. If you feel strongly about a topic, your passion will probably ooze off the page. If you don't give a shit, your readers won't either. 

But it's also good to be generally aware, in a meta sort of way, how you are portraying yourself with your posts.

Let's say you're still a personal trainer and you're trying to get the word out about your training services. You're not a nutritionist, but you feel strongly about great nutrition. It relates to your brand as a thoughtful personal trainer so you write a post about it. 

If you write a few more posts about nutrition, you've suddenly made yourself out to be more of a nutritionist to the online world than a personal trainer. It's a small shift, but one that could impact your business.

Here are your assignment parameters:

• At least 500 words (aim for longer if you can)

  • Why: Quality is the name of the game here. Length is just one consideration of a quality blog post, but it’s still a factor. If you can say everything in 100 words, then you probably didn’t choose an appropriate topic. Plus, all else being equal, longer articles are more likely to be shared on social media than shorter ones. I usually go for 700+ if I can, but again, quality is most important here.

• An engaging style that matches your brand

  • Why: You may know I’m a fan of conversational content, but this won’t necessarily fit everyone’s brand equally. Consider who you’re trying to reach with your content and write with them in mind.

• At least one interesting image

  • Why: Content with relevant images gets 94 percent more views than content without.

• An engaging headline

  • Why: A failed headline is a failed article. If your headline doesn’t encourage anyone to click it, then nobody sees your article and where’s the fun in that? Spend at LEAST a few minutes drafting up a few headlines and finding your most engaging one. If you need tips for writing a great headline, read my article, “Don’t Waste Another Headline -- 4 Psychological Tricks To Get You Clicks.”

Tips

• Need help finding free images? You can always use the Creative Commons filter when searching on Google, or just use this free image resource.

• Read your work over OUT LOUD as if you’re speaking to your target audience. You’ll be surprised at the things that sounded fine in your mind but sound weird as hell when you speak it out loud.

• Make sure you cite sources when appropriate. All you need to do is hyperlink to the site when you would typically footnote.

Activity Recap

→ Go through your list of blog topics from Day 7 and find one that you’re most excited about.

→ Spend the next 60m researching, writing, and editing your blog post.

→ When you’re done, go post it on your Blog! Remember to embed your image(s) and fill in the SEO information in your plugin.

The Anatomy of a SEO-Friendly Biography

Today’s a writing day!

Materials you’ll need:

• Your selling pitch from Day 1
• Your updated resume or CV
• Any honors or awards from Day 2
• Pictures from Day 2

Here are your assignment parameters (and why):

• One biographical narrative about yourself, at least 500 words

  • Why: A beefy bio filled with lots of relevant information about you is great for branding purposes and is more likely to rank in search results than a thin paragraph of garbage. Who would want that for their brand anyway?

• Must be written in the third-person

  • Why: Google doesn’t know who “I” am but they sure as hell know your first and last name.

• The reader must be able to sense your unique selling pitch you built on Day 1

  • Why: You spent time crafting a smart brand for yourself. Do it justice here.

• Make sure to include relevant and pertinent details that support your narrative

  • Why: These details are tangible ways to contextualize your experience for the reader.

How to begin?

There are a few different paths you can take for your biographical narrative. You can use a natural timeline that explains where you started and how you eventually got to where you are today. You can start with the present and then flashback to the start of your career and build your way back up to the present.

Or you can use my favorite, which is starting with the present and going backward in time. This one is especially useful if you’re really having trouble getting started, because it’s a natural way to think about what you’re doing now and how you’ve gotten there. Check out my own bio to see what I'm talking about.

Some classic problems:

• I’m transitioning into a new industry.

Start off by highlighting your experience. Being transparent about your new direction might help you find the opportunity you’re looking for.

Example:

John Smith is an entrepreneur with 10 years of experience in real estate development who is actively seeking collegiate teaching positions in the tri-state area. Smith is ready to help the next generation of real estate leaders make their mark.

• I’m a recent college graduate and haven’t started a career yet.

You can still frame yourself positively by highlighting your assets and being transparent about your current direction.

Example:

Jane Doe is a recent college graduate with a BA from Terrific University. With a passion for neurology and biochemistry, Jane is actively seeking...

• I’m still a college student and haven’t graduated yet.

Determine your assets and showcase them here. Be transparent about your direction if you have one.

Example:

John Smith is a current college student at Amazing College where he majors in Government with a specialization in International Politics. Smith is actively seeking a financial consulting position in the Greater New York City area. He is a proud member of the Varsity Tennis team, was recently voted co-captain for his senior year and is set to graduate with honors in 3025...

→ Spend a few minutes gathering the materials you’ll need.

→ Plan out the main bullet points you want to hit.

→ Write your bio. Go back and edit.

Picking Out Photos

Once you’re done, pick out a few pictures of yourself that you’d like to put on your website and social profiles. Try to find at least 2-3.

Optimizing Images:

1. Rename your picture’s file name to include your keyword.

   • If your photo is named IMG913523.jpg, then you’re wasting a perfectly good place to put your name. Google checks the file name for ranking purposes, so change it to something relevant like John Smith Graduation 2015.jpg or Jane Doe New York City.jpg.

2. Optimize the image size

   • If you upload tons of really big images, it can slow down your site for viewers. This is bad for the user’s experience and Google takes it into account as a ranking factor. Do yourself a favor and make your images as small as you can while still retaining the quality you desire.

3. Rename the Title

   • Once you’ve uploaded the image to your website, remember to rename the title to something appropriate, preferably with your keyword in it.

4. Rename the Alt Text

   • The Alt Text is the text that Google actually reads to figure out what your picture is about when it finds it on your website. Throw your keyword in here too: e.g., John Smith at Amazing College Graduation 2015

→ Optimize your photos.

→ When you’re done, copy and paste your bio into your website’s bio page. Insert the optimized images and you’re good to go.

Activity Recap:

→ Spend a few minutes gathering the materials you’ll need (selling pitch from Day 1, updated resume or CV, honors or awards from Day 2, and pictures from Day 2.)

→ Plan out the main bullet points you want to hit and the narrative path you want to take.

→ Write your bio. Go back and edit.

→ Pick out some photos and optimize them.

→ When you’re done, copy and paste your bio into your website’s bio page. Insert the optimized images and you’re good to go!