Feeding the baby
I’ve got a new baby! I planned and prepared for the safe arrival of my “blog post”… Now I have to take care of it. Like babies, blog posts need rest and warmth – but they also need feeding!
For every post I have written, I have “toyed” with the idea first. Will the concept work? Does the idea have legs? When is the best time to publish? What shall I call it? Once written, the post is proofread, polished, categorised, tagged, optimised, wrapped and bound with eye-catching photographs to bring the words to life. Only then is it time to schedule the delivery!
Within WordPress et al, posts can be automatically scheduled to broadcast across your social media. However, just like the first time you take your child to school, you cannot leave them at the school gates; posts need encouragement and introductions to help them settle into the world wide web.
Independent child
Once my blog posts are “brought into the world”, I take additional steps to introduce them to relevant LinkedIn and Facebook groups; I “tweet” under appropriate hashtags, then I let them rest. A while later, I warm them up again – perhaps give them a new coat – and “repackage” them for Twitter under new hashtags and with fresh tweets.
Like every mum with a child in the vibrant school playground, they are hoping their little ones will be “liked”, “shared”, interacted with and commented on. This feeds them and helps them grow into strong, healthy, respected and independent blog posts.
If you found this post helpful, and you think others would enjoy it, please click one of the sharing buttons. Comments, using the box below, also very welcome. Thank you.
Photo credits: abbybatchelder / Foter.com / CC and Digimist / Foter.com / CC BY-NC
This is certainly a well nurtured post. If you want what you write to ‘got that little bit further’, it is necessary to put into place a series of functions that will help you achieve it. Not to seem like a ‘pushy mother’, but give your child every possibility to thrive, and it will do so!
Thank you, Alice. That’s right! Blogs, like little children, need a little guidance when it comes to the big wide world.
Hi Alice, not sure if I understand your comment. Is there something else that Lindsay could be doing to improve her child’s chances to thrive?
By the number of comments received for this post, I don’t think Lindsay needs worry about how her child is coping in the big bad world. They are performing brilliantly!
Thanks, Alice. As you know… The blog’s mother had a very good teacher!
Great analogy Lindsay. They definitely need TLC all the way through. I could totally relate on all the agonizing that goes in to your posts. Thank you:-)
Thank you for your lovely comments A.K. I think blog posts should be gently “launched” rather than set adrift…
I really enjoyed reading this – and have learnt a few tips!
Thank you, Vanessa. Glad it was helpful. (Had great fun writing it!)
Hi Lindsay, I liked your post title, it grabbed my attention. And I enjoyed the analogy. I can relate. I go through the same process when starting to write a post.
Thank you, Darlene. So pleased you liked the post. It’s good to know it’s not just me that “nurtures” little blog posts!
“Does the idea have legs?” I love that! Great post, I really enjoyed it.
Thank you, Morgan. Really great feedback, and much appreciated.
I have a similar system for blogging. Some people believe bloggers just sit down, type up their thoughts and feelings and *bam* just like that they get followers and readers but it really isn’t that easy. You and I can both appreciate how much work must be down to get the response we want. I really enjoyed how you made this into a metaphor about children and no I would not leave my children at the front gate on the first day of school.
Thank you, Mary. Glad we all agree that children should not be left at the school gates – what a scary thought! Children and, um, blog posts need a gentle nudge…
This is such a neat comparison! It definitely makes it easier to understand. I’ve just recently started doing this, but when I first started blogging all I would do is write a post, and wonder why no one was viewing it.
Thank you, Cole. It makes it easier when you think of your posts as something to look after.
Great comparison that gets me thinking how I can encourage more sharing of my posts. Right now I’m focusing on improving my blog’s SEO. It’s so hard to balance all of the aspects of blogging successfully!
Thank you, Jeri. Good luck with the SEO – I like to think of it as knitting! Glad you liked this post.
Wow – Lindsay – you get lots of nice comments! The problem I have with comments is that people often leave them on Facebook rather than on the blog itself! I also wanted to ask you how often you tweet a particular blog? I tend to do two or three but sometimes worry about over-selling the content!
Hi Emma – Yes, this one really flew! I agree; it certainly helps if people leave comments on the post itself, but tweeting/sharing/commenting through the other social media is also really helpful. For me, the trick is to use Twitter/LinkedIn/Facebook carefully sharing at first, then repeating at different times of the day over a few days. With Twitter, you can certainly step it up! Introduce it with different captions and I love the “In case you missed it!” ones…
Definitely can relate! I have three young children and many projects all going at once. The analogy works!
Hi Laura – Thank you, and glad you like it!
Clever post. I’m embarrassed to say that once I post I leave my child at the school gates. Thank you for the tips. Think I’ll go tweet!
Thank you. I will visit your blog, along with everyone else’s, to see how all the children are faring…
Great Post Lindsay! I never thought of it like that, but It’s true, my blog posts are like my children in the sense that I am sharing apart of me for everyone in the world to see. I feel like I’m learning so much as I go along about everything that goes into blogging. If I wanted it to be, I could easily make it into a full time job, with the writing, the social media aspect, so on and so forth…..
Thank you for your kind words regarding this post. You are right; sharing blogs is a bit like sharing a bit of you. Isn’t the world wide web lucky to have us – and our little blog posts!
Thank you for such wisdom Lindsay! I loved your post, and I’m impressed by your process! I have a lot to learn from you, in terms of caring for my post in the ways that you share. Beautiful! And I love your analogy.. as the mom of 3 girls, I totally get it
Thanks for your kind comments. I, too, am a mum of three! Been at the school gates many times; blog posts just need a gentle nudge on the shoulder..!
Love this Lindsay…I like the way you think…
“When a child is locked in the bathroom with water running and he says he’s doing nothing but the dog is barking, call 911. ”
― Erma Bombeck
At least blog posts are not capable of turning on the water!
True… But they need to be shown how to call the emergency services. Thanks for your lovely feedback.
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