9 Blog Hacks to Save you Time | Travel Research Online

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9 Blog Hacks to Save you Time

  1. You’ll have a 20 hour work week with a computer (circa 1989)
  2. A vacuum robot will make your life easier
  3. Blog writing can be easy

Which of these statements is true?

If you chose C, you’re absolutely right!  Whether you LOVE to write and can’t wait to write your next article or if you HATE to write and procrastinate, you’ll find some reassurance and tips here.

Did you know:  61% of US online consumers have made a purchase based on recommendations from a blog. (Source: BlogHer)

How can you save time and still have an effective blog that your readers will look to for advice?  Here’s 9 tips to get you blogging in no time.

Short Sells

Blog writing is valuable for travel & tourism pros!  Yet many people procrastinate as they think they have to write a long missive each time.

Great news!  Short sells!  That’s right, short posts with less than 500 words are popular today with time-starved readers.

Short sentences help break up the text.

Short paragraphs keep your readers alert and reading to the end.

Foto Fixes

Is that a typo?  Not exactly, yet it got your attention.  Photos grab people’s attention as they’re scanning and skimming.  Now I’ll bet you have a ton of travel photos lurking on your hard drive.  Turn those photos into a captivating blog post.

  • Simply choose 5-7 compelling photos
  • Write captions with each photo
  • Create a captivating opening paragraph
  • Design a killer closing paragraph

Now you have a blog post that tells your story in a format that time-starved, mobile-reading fans will love.  Bonus tip:  Many times I re-write my opening paragraph when I’m finished with my article. It helps me with clarity and tone.

Video adds Variety

If you hate to write, but love to talk then video is your key to success.  Embed a video or a live-stream video you’ve done, then write that all-important, attention-grabbing opening paragraph.  After your embedded video, close off with a thought-provoking closing paragraph.  Easy!

Bold Bolding & Bullets

43% of people admit to skimming blog posts. (HubSpot, 2016) (maybe you’re doing that now).  Bold face type gives those skimmers words to grab onto and holds their attention.  When writing your blog article, focus on bolding your key words and ideas.

Bullet points with bold face type:

  • accentuate your key points
  • jolt readers back to your great content
  • give the eyes and mind a quick vacation
  • Did it work?

Sub-Headings!

Shake up your readers with sub-headings that stand out and give some white space to your content.  Our eyes need a break from lengthy reads and sub-headings are the visual break we all need.

It gets better, your SEO will be optimized when you make your sub-headings H1, H2 or H3.  (Check your own blog dashboard for this formatting set-up).  Remember to include key words as your sub-headings.

Key Word are Key

Speaking of key words in your sub-headings, you can also maximize your SEO when you use your key words in the blog excerpt, tags and categories.

Block Quotes are Blockbusters

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Top-Notch Titles

Do you find the title the hardest part of your writing?  It may be the only thing a potential client reads, so making sure it’s top-notch is easy with a headline analyzing tool like this one.  I use this grader for every article and even some social posts.  It forces me to think succinctly! Research shows that titles with 6 words get the most click-thrus.   Bonus tip:  I like to write my title last!  That way I have my ideas together and the title better matches my content.

Embrace Editing

Clear, succinct, memorable!  Don’t get so attached to each and every word that you can’t edit mercilessly.  Give your red pen a workout and chop, move and edit till you’ve squeezed every excess word from the page.  Then do it again.  I’ve just started using this tool, Hemingway, and wow, is it ever educational!

While I don’t work 20 hours a week, nor have I invested in a robot vacuum, I do see the advantages of blogging and writing articles.  The SEO spark and the opportunity to put my thoughts and ideas on paper in hopes of helping other travel pros are the key reasons I keep writing.

What will you do differently in your next blog article?

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catherineheegCatherine Heeg, international speaker and trainer, focuses on social media marketing & communication for the travel and tourism industry. Join the conversation and connect with her at www.cmsspeaking.com and socially. Connect online for access to free social media resources.

When you ‘like’ her Facebook page you’ll have access to the latest social media news just for travel pros!

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