JUMP START Blog and Online Community

Are you blogging with little to no reward or measure of success? It's frustrating, right?

We know...we've all been there. But what if I told you actually writing and posting your blog is really only half the battle?

Want to know how to IMMEDIATELY make your blogs more effective and more engaging?

I'll be honest – there is a lot to learn, know and do, but I promise you this: if you follow these (read: very simple) 11 tips, you'll begin to see more results from your blogging efforts, virtually right away. And isn't that what it's all about anyway? 

Check out the full infographic below!

(and, if you want to read more in-depth notes on the topic, you can check out my full blog too). 

I recently posted a blog on how to write killer content. In it, I discuss the top five resources the Flair team regularly uses when we create content. I thought I’d keep the convo going and let you in on our top tips for what we do just before we hit publish. Think of it as your pre-posting checklist.

1. Don’t write in long chunks of text – a recent study by Microsoft Corp. shows the average attention span of most humans went from 12 seconds in 2000 to just eight seconds in 2015. (For comparison, a goldfish’s attention span is thought to be about nine seconds...but I digress…)
   TOP TIPS: 

   • Short blocks of text, bulleted lists, headings and subheadings (brownie points for bolding) are your best friends when blogging. 

   • Keep in mind - you basically have about seven seconds to capture your readers’ attention – ultra long paragraphs and chunks of text will lose ‘em.
     
     

2. Link – embed high quality links, both to your own content and to others'. Link to older content you wrote (hello, thought leader…), link to studies and research, quote people you admire, be a resource to your readers.
   TOP TIPS: 

   • Be sure to set your links to “open in new page” so readers aren’t leaving your post.

   • Make sure you check your links – you definitely don’t want to include any broken links.

   • Find balance – don’t over-stuff your post with too many links.

   
   

If you're into inbound marketing even just a little bit, you should know the name Tom Fishburne. Founder and CEO of Marketoonist, which parodies the world of marketing in the form of comics, Tom delights with his creative take on various marketing ideologies and subtopics.

But of my many favorite Fishburne-isms, it's something he says in a recent CustomerThink interview that rings truest of all for me:

"The best marketing doesn't feel like marketing"

I couldn't agree more. In a world of research-at-our-fingertips and Google-searches-galore, consumers are savvier than ever. In-authenticity reeks, and brands that aren't true to their mission (or those who haven't taken the time to explore what their mission actually is) are going to have an increasingly harder time finding marketing that works.

Worse? Those same savvy consumers are also unforgiving. Making the wrong move with your inbound strategy could just mean the death of your brand. Don't get me wrong, we all make honest mistakes, and the brands who make them (and get caught), if they're smart, will own up and charge forward. But the brands who think they can scheme their way into the hearts and wallets of their consumers are in for a rude awakening. 

Marketing, inbound marketing, is about taking the time to:

• Understand your audience
• Think about how you can help them
• Figure out what problem you'll solve
• Create content that speaks to them
• Publish on a dependable schedule 

If you're wondering how to post a blog in HubSpot...I have two things to tell you: 

1. You're not alone
2. It's easier than you think

Let's take a look at just how easy it actually is...so read on, and you’ll be Content-is-Kinging it all the way to the coveted page one in no time.

For digital marketers, HubSpot is a phenomenal tool. For content marketers? It’s a dream. It's robust, versatile, scalable and powerful, with analytics that will basically blow your mind. And, did I mention…it can totally change how your content gets out there and who ends up reading it?

Hubspot reports that "marketers who prioritize blogging are 13x more likely to achieve a positive ROI on their efforts."

Those are great odds and definitely worth pursuing.

If you haven't started a blog for your organization, now is a good time to do so. To get you started, here is a step-by-step guide to developing and posting a blog through Hubspot.