All common sense really but I couldn't have said it better myself, so I am re-posting this blog information from
socialmediatoday in hopes that many of my fellow iHCPL bloggers will read and heed the advice.
Kevin writes, There are many things a blogger should check before hitting the “Publish” button. One of the greatest mistakes a blogger can make is hitting the publish button too soon. I wish I could say I have never made that mistake but I have made it more times than I would like to admit!
1. Have I read the post in its entirety after finishing it? I know that sounds obvious but many bloggers don't read what they wrote before publishing it. When we fail to do this, our post may not make sense or we may miss an important point that we wanted to make. Take the time to read the entire post. It is well worth the effort!
2. Have I chosen my title carefully? I strongly believe that the title is the most important part of the post because unless the title grabs the attention of visitors, there is a good chance that they won’t read the post! A good title should draw people in. I have found that titles with numbers in them work well (i.e
23 ways to know it is going to be a really bad day). Also, compelling titles (i.e.
Kill your stress before it kills you!) and titles with questions (i.e.
Why can't we?) work well too.
3. Have I proofread it? Again, this sounds obvious but it is not! If I don't take the time to do a thorough proofread before I hit "Publish" there will be typos and spelling mistakes ... guaranteed! If possible, have someone else proofread it for you. I always find that helpful.
4. Have I linked to one or more of my older posts? If you are anything like me, you have many
great posts that haven't been read by a lot of people and it's a shame (to me anyway;). Linking to older posts inside your post helps bring those posts out into the light. It also helps to complement or expand on the information that you have written.
5. Have I made sure that all my links are working? I hate clicking on broken links! It frustrates me to no end! Unfortunately, it does not take much to create a broken link. All it takes is omitting a letter, a dot, or misspelling a word. Readers will get frustrated when the link they click on doesn't work!
6. Have I included a captivating image? They say a picture is worth a thousand words. If that is true then why not use one in your post? Images are a great way to entice people to read the rest of your post. I work very hard at trying to find the
perfect image for each post. I typically use
Google Images for this.
7. Have I included one or more ways to engage with my readers? Blogging isn't a monologue for me. I want to build community with my blog. I want to engage with my readers. To do this, I always ask a question or two or make a call to action at the end of each of my posts.
By asking these questions before I hit the "Publish" button I have saved myself and my readers a lot of grief and frustration.
Secret Asian Girl wrote these:
The video was alittle short, I was expecting more information? But I like TopTenReviews slogan, "We do the research, so you don't have to." I'll keep them in mind as a potential source for reference questions. I have heard of and am alittle familiar with 4 of the ten sites mentioned in the TopTenReviews article, Photo Sharing Services Review; Photobucket, Flickr, Webshots, and Kodak Gallery. Where's Snapfish? When it comes to online photo sharing services I use Kodak Gallery most often. I have a Facebook account though I don't use it as a photo sharing service.
"When looking at what students are required to read in school in 2010, it might as well be 1960. We need visionary educators who see bold purposes for school and who understand that what students read in school has profound, lifelong effects, both good and bad."
