According to WordPress, there are more than 164 million blogs (and counting). The harsh reality is that most of these blogs get less than 1,000 visitors per month, and the majority of them are, for lack of a better word, failures.
The number one reason that most blogs fail is the lack of consistency. It can be tough to get into a rhythm of content creation. Especially as entrepreneurs, when there are so many demands on our time and focus.
We don’t want blogging failure for you; it is one of the most powerful marketing strategies you can use to grow your business, and we want to make sure you’re doing it successfully.
So let us explain how one amazing tool can help you achieve consistency and capitalize on all the amazing opportunities blogging has to offer!
It’s called Trello. This awesome blog management tool is one of Neil Patels top tips for blogging consistently (and he has written over 4,000 blog posts in 10 years, so he knows a thing or two!).
How Does A Blog Management Tool Like Trello Help With Consistency?
There are 3 underlying reasons for the inconsistency that I’ve been able to identify so far whilst working with our blog management clients.
- Lack of prioritization
- Lack of a system
- Lack of assistance/delegation
Trello can help you with number 2; Lack Of A System
In our opinion, it is the best free project management tool out there.
Establishing a System With Trello
Achieving consistency as a blogger requires establishing a system that makes it easy to stick to your goals. You need to be able to set the pace, create the plan and execute it without any barriers.
Trello will help you to systemize your execution process so you are more likely to follow through.
The areas of focus for your system should include: managing your ideas, developing the content, preparing it for publishing and managing its distribution.
Sounds like a job for about 6 people, right? But with Trello you can take the thought out of these processes so they’re easy and straightforward, and streamline them so they take significantly less time.
It only requires you to become proactive about making your blog successful.
How To Blog Consistently With Trello
Using Trello, you can create a tailored blog management system that follows the exact steps you need to go through to produce an effective blog post.
By building your blog management procedures into the system, you ensure that every blog post is created methodically and with all the elements necessary for success.
Step By Step For Setting Up Trello
First, create your own Trello account by visiting the website, Trello.com, and completing the form.
Once you’re logged in, click “Create new board”; here, you will be asked to name your board. Your choice of name might be something like ‘Blog Content’, ‘Blog Production’ or even ‘Epic Blog Creation System’!
Next, open your new board and name your first list. In Trello, there are two main components; lists and cards. Your list represents the various stages of progress, for example: “To do” >> “Doing” >> “Done”.
In this context, your lists will represent the stages of the blog creation process. I’d recommend creating lists for the following:
- Upcoming ideas
- In draft
- Editing
- Graphics
- Ready to publish
- Published / ready for promotion
- Done
Cards are the basic unit of the board and each represents an individual task to be completed. In our example, each card represents one blog post. Create cards by clicking the “Add a card” link at the bottom of the list.
Name each card according to the title of your blog post (you can edit them later if you wish). As you progress each blog post, you simply drag and drop the card from one list to the next.
Managing your blog using Trello
Using lists to manage your posts is a great first step but, to take your blog to the next level and achieve consistency, we need to fully utilize the features of cards.
Clicking on a card reveals its “back”. This is where Trello really comes into its own as a blog management system. You can assign due dates, attach files and images and create checklists to break down every step in the content creation process.
This way, not only is all the information relating to a blog post kept in one place (making sure you stay organized!), but progress is fully tracked and a consistent process followed every time.
You can also easily collaborate with other team members by adding them to boards and individual cards and discussing the content in the comments. With your built-in procedure checklists, delegation and quality control are easy-as-pie!
Additional Feature: Calendar view
I love this feature; it allows you to view your blog posts according to their due date, in a calendar format. Super-useful for managing your content schedule!
The calendar feature can be added to your board by navigating to the ‘Power-ups’ area (on the basic Trello account, you can add one power-up for free to each board). Once applied, you will see a “Calendar” button in the top-right corner of the board; click it to view your blog posts in a beautiful calendar view. From here, you can drag and drop the cards to amend their due date.
With this feature, there are no excuses not to stick to your editorial calendar and achieve consistency!
How to blog consistently
Creating a blog management system in Trello can help you blog consistently by keeping you organized, ensuring a methodical content creation process and making it easy to collaborate with team members.
With a robust system in place, you will dramatically increase your chances of sticking to your content goals and reaping the rewards of blogging for your business.