Here are a few quick tips from co-writer on planning a blog.

If you create structure around your blog, life can get a whole lot easier.

I’ve written before about the importance of understanding who you are writing for, and the need for research when planning a blog. And when I think about the interesting blog posts I read, they aren’t always quick tips and top 10 lists. Sometimes they are long and fairly detailed. Some are slightly amusing rants. Others are just a quick comment on a news item. The point is they vary in format. And it is a game we can all play when we’re planning a blog.

I read a tip recently that urged people struggling with planning a blog to take inspiration from the content of magazines. Great idea! Clean, simple, but I want to make it even easier…

Planning a blog? Pick up a magazine and have a browse

There are plenty of sections that appear regularly in magazines but I think these are most relevant.Here are some common magazine sections that could help establish your blog framework:

• News – short, pithy, up-to-the-minute info about the industry, new products, economic headlines etc
• Photostory – a picture that needs no more than a single line of text to explain why it is relevant to readers
• Features – longer pieces providing several opinions; often giving a balance of views, this combines words with images
• Help desk – quick entries offering guidance on key issues; designed for education; the home of the quick tips format
• Books and technology review – showing they read around their subject
• Guest opinion – letting others jump on their soapbox, designed to stimulate feedback

With these sections, think about the level of importance a magazine editor gives to them. Where are they in the magazine? How many pages do they get? Now this can be different by magazine and industry but a common structure would be:

• News – upfront, first few pages devoted to short news pieces, generally under half a page, many written in a column
• Photostory – single half or full page, often at the back offering light-relief to readers
• Features – generally the amount of feature content is on the up but it still almost always sits behind the news section
• Help desk – often placed in the middle or towards the back of a magazine and generally spread over 2 or 3 pages
• Reviews – usually near the back and with limited space
• Guest opinion – often the last page of editorial

But how can all this help provide a framework when you’re planning a blog?

Easy. Think of them like this:

• News – help your readers stay in touch with big issues in their industry, country, world. Short, easy to do, all about sharing news
• Photostory – maybe an amazing photo has caught your eye. It might not be purely related to business but it is worth sharing to demonstrate the personality behind the blog (just keep it appropriate and inoffensive though if you’re going for humour)
• Features – offer your insight on a key issue. These longer posts are about building your credibility
• Help desk – quick tips on business issues, some generic, some specific to an industry or location. Again, a credibility raiser, demonstrating the breadth of understanding
• Reviews – share knowledge and insight with readers. Be helpful, look worldly-wise
• Guest opinions – with the right level of editorial control, guest blogs can help maintain and build interest in your blog. It demonstrates connections and you can always blog for them in return, further adding to your credibility (try and link between the blogs to help your SEO link-building strategies)

Now take all this and plan the format of your blog entries for the next month. Decide the balance of news over features; tips over reviews; photostories over guest opinions. Perhaps go for two news stories and one quick tip post each week, adding either a feature, review, photostory or a guest blog every week to vary content…? It all depends on how much you want to write.

Now you just need to hunt down topics to educate, inform and engage your readers.

I’ve been blogging for a while but when you’re faced with starting a brand new blog, it’s all a bit daunting. So I thought I’d share some ideas on getting started.

Get planning your blog

Think about why you are blogging – is it for work, for keeping in touch with family, for generating leads etc? Think about how often you can write – if you are writing for business, and to generate leads, then you have to commit to at least two blog posts per week. And think carefully about what you are going to write about – try to avoid a scatter-gun approach to content and instead limit what you write about to a small number of issues. You need to keep it relevant.

Quick blog research ideas

If it is for your business, think about the industry you work in and industries you wish to interact with. What do your customers / audiences want to hear about? How can you add value to them? Look at similar blogs for inspiration and, if you haven’t done so for a while, jump onto Google Adwords to develop a list of keywords. You can use these to influence your choice of topics, making sure your content remains relevant.

Finally, get creative

There are plenty of brainstorming techniques out there to help relieve the strain of writer’s block. I’ll share some of my favourites on the co-writer blog over the next couple of months. But they all involve breaking away from your desk, grabbing some paper and a pen, and a high degree of random thought patterns (as opposed to staring at a blank computer screen getting grumpy because creative juices aren’t flowing).

Try and stick to the co-writer blog mantra – plan, research, get creative. It will keep you focused on delivering relevant content.

Of course if you can’t budge that writer’s block, drop co-writer an email and we’ll take the pain away – josie@co-writer.co.nz And if you fancy finding out more blog-specific tips, try visiting this excellent source:  http://www.problogger.net/