TechMiso

Are you an organized blogger, who methodically annotates links and takes meticulous notes to be used in the pursuit of an article? Or are you the unorganized type who hastily slaps an article together through chaotic machinations, like Monday rush-hour traffic? Not sure which realm you fall under?

No matter which workflow you use, or even if you use a hybrid of both, you do have a workflow of some sort, ultimately allowing you to focus on the important task at hand – writing quality content to share with your readers.

If your objective is to author valuable content for your readers, having a systematic blogging workflow is essential. Working chaotically and producing quality articles is the exception, not the rule. A logical workflow is vital because it allows you to break blogging down in to manageable tasks which can be easily focused on in stages. This process makes the ultimate goal of publishing far simpler.

So what exactly is a blogging workflow? It is the system used from the moment an article idea is conceived until the time it is published on a blog. Ideas do not suddenly appear on a blog – they take thorough research, insightful analysis and nurturing through the entire process. Like a highway, the post you are reading here had to start somewhere before exiting at the final destination – a publicly accessible blog.

So what is a blogging workflow specifically? Here are some tips for creating a blogging workflow based on the technique I use. It is important to point out that there is no right or wrong way to write. Different people are comfortable with different tools and it is important for you to use the tools you find most comfortable.

• Write in a Word Processor. Composition of a blog post should initially be completed in Microsoft Word or Google Docs because those environments were designed for writing. Although you can argue that, say, the WordPress compose page was designed for article composition, the fact is that there are a ton of extraneous distractions not conducive to a writing environment – distractions which are not present in Word or Google Docs. Another added benefit of using a word processor is the additional tools like spell check, word count, thesaurus and more. One of the downfalls of Word or Google Docs is that you can not merely cut-and-paste an article in to WordPress and publish without performing some relatively minor surgery.
• Compile Links In Single Window. If your article contains a fair number of links you plan to use, open a new Firefox window and in that new window open up tabs for each link. This way you can conduct a review of the sites you plan to link to while still having all those links handy. This is a simple way of both evaluating and compiling simultaneously.
• Publish Draft to Blog. At this point you should have a complete article written and a list of the links you expect to use. There are two ways to submit the story to your blog – using a dedicated software application like MarsEdit or via the blog’s web-based administration tool. For me personally, I use MarsEdit because I find the interface to be easier to use and less cluttered than WordPress admin. The basic idea is to paste the article from the Word Processor in to a “new post” window, set the title, set the category and tags and linkify the statements or words you desire to link to external web sites. Once you are satisfied with the results, publish to the blog as a draft. We do this so the article can be previewed and proofed prior to being published and shared with the world.
• Proofread. This is probably the most vital step in the blogging workflow. Before you perform the act of publishing the post you have been slaving over, you need to preview the article in a web browser to get a feel for how it reads and how it is presented. The goal is quality content – this is your last opportunity to remove potentially fatal flaws from the story before your readers lash out at your shoddy presentation or journalism skills.
• Publish and Share. If you are completely satisfied with your article, are one hundred percent content with the presentation, publish the story to the live blog, sharing your glory with the world. Pat yourself on the back for a job well done and be prepared to defend your opinion if your blog allows commenting.

So there you have it – a simple, easy and somewhat concise blogging workflow which gets your thoughts from your head and on to a blog. The aforementioned is merely an example to demonstrate one potential workflow method. The possibilities are endless. You must use a system you are comfortable with and one which is productive to be successful.

Do you have a blogging workflow? Have you found a system you find works for you? If so, please share your thoughts and experiences to help everyone learn better ways of doing business.