Writing blog posts takes time, effort and commitment.
You need to think up an engaging topic and headline, write an outline and the actual post, proofread and edit, then publish and promote your post before starting the entire process again.
But there are unconventional ways to hack the writing process and speed things up. Here are five ways to write your blog posts faster:
#1: Write On Your Smartphone
Just to clarify, I always prefer to write blog posts using a computer, but that isn’t always an option.
In fact, I’m writing this post in TJ Maxx. Why? Well, it’s not because I enjoy shopping (I find what I need and get out as quickly as possible), but today I am in the company of people who like to browse.
So instead of idly slouching against a wall, I decided to slouch against a wall and write the post you’re reading now. This way, the time I spend inside the store is actually productive.
Now I’m not saying to go shopping just so you can write blog posts. However, you can use moments of waiting as opportunities to begin, add to, or edit a post.
Certainly I could write much faster on my computer, but if I finish the post here in the store I won’t have to write again later today.
I could go on and on about this method because it’s the one I’m using now, and use often when I’m waiting, but let’s move on to the next hack.
#2: Get Your Videos Transcribed
Some people may be natural talkers but not natural writers. It takes more brain power for them to write than to talk. Just talking about your topic will help it flow out quicker and easier.
Not only that, but you can spend a few minutes dictating content that would take 30 minutes or more to write.
Talk about a time saver! And you’ve also got a YouTube video to boot. You can even turn it into a podcast episode using the MP3 file.
#3: Hire A Ghostwriter
Sometimes the fastest way to get your blog posts written is by not writing them at all! You can have one writer, or a team of ghostwriters, write your content for you.
I still haven’t hired ghostwriters for content creation, but I learned a lot about how it works after hosting the Content Marketing Success Summit.
Bascially, you can give a ghostwriter an outline of your blog post’s topic and he or she will write it up (you can also ask that they make suggestions for topic ideas).
Keep in mind it’s important that ghostwriters are familiar with your blog and writing style so they can write in a similar voice.
This ensures your content is consistent (without having to write it yourself). Why not focus more of your time on other areas of your business?
#4: Accept Guest Contributions To Your Blog
When you are first starting out, you may not have a budget for ghostwriters. To remedy this problem, you can invite people to contribute your blog.
You basically get free content. All you have to do is give credit and let the contributor link to his/her site and other essentials at the beginning or end of the blog post (whichever you prefer).
The best way to find contributors for your blog is by looking at blogs in your niche that accept contributors. Then ask the same contributors to contribute to your blog.
The people who contribute to your blog will naturally share their posts, so you’ll get more exposure for your blog.
Also, as more people contribute to your blog, other contributors will contact you and ask if they can contribute content for your blog.
In the beginning, getting contributors to your blog will involve sending many emails to bloggers. But as you get more contributors, the snowball effect will eventually kick in and new contributors will contact you with their ideas.
#5: Memorize The Keyboard
Do you know where the “q” key is on your keyboard. Did you have to look down to find it?
Looking down at the keyboard takes time. Although it may only take a second to look down and look up, that action makes you type slower and temporarily removes your focus from writing the blog post.
The seconds you spend looking down at the keyboard as you write each sentence and each blog post quickly add up to minutes and hours.
To make up that time, you must memorize the keyboard. Your WPM (words per minute) will skyrocket and you will be less susceptible to distraction.
Any moment that your fingers aren’t moving quickly on the keyboard, you are susceptible to distraction.
So now that I’ve sold you on the benefits (or, at least, I’m hoping), here’s how you master the skill.
Start by memorizing all of the key placements for a single 4-5 letter word. If you can type the word “blog” with your eyes closed, you have memorized the locations of 4 of the 26 letters on the keyboard.
If you then memorize the word “each,” you have memorized 8 of the 26 letters on the keyboard.
Now typing a word like “beach” comes second nature as you’ve memorized the placements of those letters.
This is a simple exercise that will allow you to write blog posts faster. This one method has saved me countless hours of time.
In Conclusion
I’m wrapping up this blog post in yet another store. I didn’t bother looking for a table or taking out my computer. I simply wrote all of it on my iPhone.
Since the keys are located in the same places, I had no problem effortlessly typing words by memory.
Think about how many blog posts you can write while waiting for something or someone.
Think about how much time you can save with ghostwriters and contributors.
Think of how cool it is to not write them at all!
What are your thoughts on these hacks to writing blog posts faster?
Have any hacks for us? Sound off in the comments section below.
Until next time,
-Marc
I love your idea of blogging on your phone. No sense sitting idle. Isn’t that tiny keyboard an issue for you? Personally, I’m a transcriber and like dictation too. HUGE time savers for me!
I’d rather type away on a computer and transcribing saves the most time. However, there are plenty of circumstances when you can’t type with a computer and transcribing isn’t possible due to the social setting. This is where typing on a smartphone rocks.