Are you asking yourself the right questions before you publish?
(Special note: if you have been directed here for the first time from Tamar Weinberg/Techipedia’s Best Internet Marketing Posts of 2009, welcome! Please check out the About Broadcasting Brain, About Me, and Best of pages for more information about Broadcasting Brain!)
When you create content, whether it’s a blog post, article, podcast, video blog, etc., are you considering the following?
- What is the central theme, meaning, or message that your content is communicating on your behalf?
- Does your piece of content have:
- a beginning
- a middle
- an end
- Are you selecting relevant, valuable references to cite or link to?
- Are you using images, video or audio that add to your work?
- Are you finding and using valuable quotes from experts, authorities, etc. to support your point?
- Do you have living, breathing examples that illustrate your point?
- Are you writing in a positive, encouraging, motivating tone? If not, does the tone support the call to action of your content (see the next point…)
- Have you identified any action that you want your reader to take and have you clearly stated it to them?
And finally…
- Do you create your content using only the necessary number of words (re: The Elements of Style by Strunk and White)?
If you answered “No” to any of these questions, you should reconsider and see if your content would be better if you made the necessary changes that would allow you to answer “Yes”.
(Note: I realize that I’m answering “No” to a few of these questions, but the purpose of this article is to make you ask yourself some questions, then point you towards other valuable resources that have already put together some valuable information for your education).
Other references:
Tamar Weinberg’s 2008 Best Internet Marketing Posts List – check out the blogging section for great resources, which also includes a link to an post which links to Liz Strauss’s Blog Review Checklist.
Corvida:
Why so many questions and things to consider to just ask 1 question or inform others? Is all this really necessary?
12 January 2009, 3:46 pmMark Dykeman:
It's a kind of checklist
12 January 2009, 6:07 pmAre questions getting in the way of publishing something? | Broadcasting Brain:
[...] Raven asked an interesting question about yesterday’s content creation questions: Why so many questions and things to consider to just ask 1 question or inform others? Is all this [...]
13 January 2009, 8:21 amMalcolm Bastien:
That's a really nice breakdown/checklist for blog posts. What I miss out on doing sometimes is Beggining-Middle-End structure, and providing good examples.
Another thing that I do try to do when blogging though is try to not repeat 100s of other posts on the same topic. I always spend most of my time trying to discover a new or interesting angle that's worth writing about that's unique.
13 January 2009, 1:01 pmMark Dykeman:
New and unique angles are always good!
13 January 2009, 2:41 pmBest Internet Marketing Posts of 2009: Social Media, SEO, PPC, Small Business, Web Design, and More » Techipedia | Tamar Weinberg:
[...] A Short List of Content Elements for Your Consideration (Broadcasting Brain): Before you publish your blog, ask yourself the following questions. Due diligence, my friends. [...]
5 January 2010, 9:10 amBest Internet Marketing Posts of 2009: Social Media, SEO, PPC, Small Business, Web Design, and More » Techipedia | Tamar Weinberg | Business-Blog-Consultant:
[...] A Short List of Content Elements for Your Consideration (Broadcasting Brain): Before you publish your blog, ask yourself the following questions. Due diligence, my friends. [...]
6 January 2010, 2:00 amBeste Internet Marketing berichten van 2009 « Narrowcasting & Digital Signage weblog:
[...] A Short List of Content Elements for Your Consideration (Broadcasting Brain): Before you publish your blog, ask yourself the following questions. Due diligence, my friends. [...]
12 January 2010, 9:40 am