10 Questions Every Blogger Should Ask Themselves Before Posting

10 Questions Every Blogger Should Ask Themselves Before Posting

Reader Comments (68)

  1. Great post…..it’s sometimes easy to get lost in what you are doing and to forget that at the end of the day you have to provide a useful and relevant service to your readers…..
    Julie

  2. Your post is not only great in content, but it is also a prime example of your #6: it’s easy to read and very scroll friendly. I actually scrolled through the questions and was then hooked to read the details. Very well done.

  3. This is SO useful.

    I need to look at this every time I write something, then someday, maybe I’ll be an awesome writer.

  4. Damien, you did a great job (as always) of outlining important steps in delivering prime content. This essentially clarifies the importance of perspective in writing content. By taking a step back and putting yourself in the place of your reader, you can focus on delivering direct content that will have the reader glued to their seat (sticky content).
    Looking forward to more of your posts, both on our blog and other great blogs like CopyBlogger’s.

  5. Thanks for this information! I write a wine and food pairing blog and have used bolding and bulleted lists to make my posts easier to read. Great advice!
    Kathleen Lisson

  6. Great article and very true. I do wonder though…with more and more people not wanting to read, and so starved for time does it make sense to break that valuable content up into much smaller little bites.

    Today your post was well written and contained valuable information. Would there be value in having an introductory post that briefly outlined your 10 points and then 10 follow-up posts that provided the details for each point?

    I’m thinking the reader still gets the valuable information. And when that information is broken into little bites they can get it quick and then ponder on it until the next days posts. Is that on track or off the mark thinking?

  7. Believe it or not, I have read quite a few such lists, but htis one is more complete and more valuable than any I have seen so far. Cheryl is right, each one of these points could be a post of its own, but you have compressed it very nicely.

  8. Thanks for the advice. I know that personally I sometimes find it hard to go back to what I have just written and edit it, but 99% of the time it is necessary. Whether you’re asking yourself the above questions, or simply checking to see if your sentences are well constructed.
    It is definitely sound advice. Thanks

  9. Great post Damian!!!!

    Your ability to fruitfully, yet concisely describe the essentials of a great blog post is a testament to your own abilities and writing skills. I read a great deal of blogs, and I have not come across an article that articulates these points so well.

    Another great post!!

  10. Why do think it is so easy to jump from “inspiration” to finished product without going back to reflect and edit our work? I wonder if it hits as to the motive of our writing. If I am writing for myself I am tempted to post thoughts quickly and if I am writing for the benefit of others I am burdened by the responsibility to post worthwhile content. I do both and am learning as I go but I was just curious of other people’s thoughts.

  11. One thing I’ve been working on is going back and making sure my paragraphs are small enough and have logical progression.

    So if there’s a second step, I make a new paragraph.

    And making more bulleted lists.

    I know I find those easier when I’m reading.

  12. great advice for any Blogger. I know sometimes it is difficult to keep the information flowing, and have something readable at the end.

    I am going to be keeping this information in mind when I Post to my blog. Sometimes SEO can be a bit technical, and I will need to take the time to make sure my audience can clearly understand the points.

  13. Ah, cuts to the quick, this post. I think we all probably do very well at a few things on this list, and generally suck at others. I know I often need to get to the point quicker. I get wrapped up in my own musings, thinking I’m drawing the reader in, and I could be pushing them away. Thanks for the helpful thoughts !

  14. Thanks for the great post! Ka-Ching!

    One question that’s important for me personally, “Was that post a pleasure to write? Fun? A hoot?”

    If it was a grind to write, it might be a gruelling to read. Give it 24 hours to rest; then go back to edit or scrap it. Perhaps a total re-write!

  15. In the end I am just glad that I could answer all of them honestly and feel good about it .. sometimes one needs posts such as these to be sure about being on the right path..

  16. One of the things I’ve improved upon is stating the point of my post in the first 50 words. I figure that’s all I have for them to decide whether to stay or go. The first sentence or two has to be powerful and compelling. After I’m done editing the whole post, I go back and spend as much time editing just the opening. The rest of my post doesn’t matter if they never get to it!

  17. Oooh. Pretty bold, red font to leave a comment.

    Sigh. Your right. I need to polish up my posts. Now that I’m surfing the blogosphere, I can see what not to do.

    One of the things you do well (point 6) is how big your bold titles are. It does a great job of chunking the text for scanning.

  18. This is a great read – certainly it brings to mind a lot of things we have to look out for when preparing our posts and writing our blogs. I always try not to publish too early and fast and sit back to see if I can improve it further.

  19. Apparently, this kind of post should remind all bloggers to use their heart and common sense before they post.

    I remember myself writing about the same topic almost 4 months ago.

    But of course, your post is more profound and detailed.

    Thanks for reminding us again.

  20. Excellent article.Point #3 “how helpful is my content?” I think this is the most important part.People visit a blog often to find good and useful information.If you can provide that, you are half way there.

    Many people concentrate on the wrong things, like making their blogs pretty.

  21. These are excellent points to keep in mind. I’m printing this to tack above my desk as a reminder, sometimes we do get in to a bit of a hurry and forget our purpose! Thanks!

  22. Some awesome tips. I am sure each blogger can benefit from these points. 10% creation and rest 90% editing ratio you mentioned was something which need further elaboration. Thank you for sharing.

  23. Thoughts to ponder. I think one of my greatest weaknesses in my writing is not being thorough enough. In RL, I tend to get a bit long winded and I don’t want that to be true about my writing. I could always say more but I’m concerned that the reader will grow frustrated at the length of the post and miss the point completely. I guess it’s one of those catch 22. If the post is too short, they’re missing the point anyway…

  24. And 11 — does my post offer TOO MUCH info, no room for discussion, but hey, maybe that’s why you left that one out, so I’d leave this comment — you clever thing, you! 🙂

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