Fresh Content – Creating and Maintaining a Blog

Copyright 2012 – Eric Bobrow
All rights reserved – do not reproduce or distribute

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— Eric

LESSON OUTLINE

INTRODUCTION – AGENDA FOR THE LESSON

 

Announcements:

• Press Release submission page now open
• Riva Slider Pro available for download in the Resources area of the website
• SEO Blog Kahuna will be set up shortly for download – requires us to add your site to list
• Website critiques will start soon

 

Why Should You Have Fresh Content on Your Website?

Ranking factor in Google – you’ll rank higher and get more visitors

Visitor experience – people will spend more time on your site, and return for more

 

What is Content?

Content is anything seen and “consumed” on your site – text, images, video

Basic content includes Home page, About, Contact, etc.

Portfolio / project pages and images are common on architect and design sites

Excellent additional pages include topic-oriented (e.g. green architecture, trends in kitchen remodels, descriptions of process or technology, etc.) and special purpose pages (e.g. testimonials, offers/opt-ins, awards, news / press releases, etc.)

 

What is a Blog?

Originally “web log” – a site with an ongoing sequence of short posts

Now often seen as part of a larger site, showcasing news, observations, comments, and short articles

WordPress is built on this concept; now supports pages (relatively static, with menu or navigation similar to HTML-based websites) and posts (dated entries with optional categories)

WP automatically adds posts to a blog page, has built-in features for excerpting (to show many short summaries on a page, with links to the longer entries) and pagination (it will add pages automatically)

 

Key features of blog posts:

• easy to create
• flexible in length and format – text, images, video
• easy to consume
• searchable / hierarchical (taxonomy)
  • scan through excerpts
  • categories
  • tag cloud
• great for SEO – each post can be optimized for different keywords – be sure to mention the city or area if the post is location-based (e.g. a project in a certain town)
• can easily include a Call To Action (CTA) – an encouragement for someone to contact you for more info, or download something (with or without an opt-in)

 

Topics for Your Blog

• News – what you’re working on or have just finished
• Observations – something noteworthy you have seen or read
• FAQ – pick something that people often ask you about, write up something about it
• SAQ – “should ask questions” – things people “should” think about and ask about
• Personal – what’s going on in your life, or with your staff – [“people buy from people”]
• Hot Topics – pick something like “sustainable design” and write up some notes
• Case Studies – describe a project and the design process – make it a story
• The Toughest Thing You’ve Ever Attempted – a story of challenge and triumph
• Nightmares – the things you worry about (professionally) and how you avoid them
• Mission statement – what you care about, why you’re in this business
• Comments from clients – can write this up as part of a case study, or while they’re fresh

 

 

Get More Ideas

Check out other architect sites with blogs: www.modative.com, www.sarcoarchitects.com

Read architecture websites, become better informed, share with readers

Pick a topic, do some Google searching, read about it for an hour or two, “become more of an expert” – pick an angle that you’re comfortable sharing with your visitors (e.g. “what’s important about…”; “what you need to know about…”; “common mistakes in…”; “myths about…”; “the latest trends in…”)

 

Fitting Content Creation into Your Schedule

Set aside time to brainstorm ideas – do it now (soon) and periodically (once a month??)

Develop an action plan – strategic areas to “fill in” for your site – built around keywords or a theme (e.g. Frequently Asked Questions)

Use Evernote (free app) or a similar system – make it easy to jot down ideas, write whenever the inspiration strikes; available on computer, smartphone, table – synchronized through cloud

Commit to a regular schedule – in the beginning, it’s ideal to do this once a week; but once a month is better than not at all

You can also write up more than one post – perhaps spend an hour or two on a Saturday morning – then schedule them to get posted over several days or weeks

Another idea – commit 5 minutes a day to writing, and after 3 or 4 sessions you’ll have a post

 

Other Types of Fresh Content

Create new portfolio pages over time – you don’t have to put up every project onto your site right away – dig through your archives

Create press releases – great for SEO – and post them on your site, either in the blog (use a Category to allow them to be seen in a group) or on a separate page

Promotional Videos – add more interactivity and visual appeal, develop these over time

Testimonials – keep going back to your clients, asking for quotes and reviews

 

Feature Fresh Content on Your Home Page and Via Email

How will people know when you have something new?

Place an excerpt of your latest blog post or press release onto the home page

Send an email to clients and prospects when you have something new for them to look at

 

Q&A