When I think of batch work, I think of muffins. You mix up all the ingredients in one cache and then batch them out into individual “opportunities”. Can we call a muffin an opportunity? Let’s do it.
When I think of batch work in the context of blogging for SEO, it’s decidedly much less tasty but still makes sense.
You wouldn’t make just ONE muffin. How would you gather 1/12 of an egg for a single muffin?
Batch Work lets me approach blogging the same way. Making a batch.
As a spicy entrepreneur with ADHD, I need to follow my curiosity. Just like a “mood reader” reads what they like based on what mood they’re in at the moment, a mood writer can do the same.
When I’m in a writing mood, I write. I might write my novel, I might write blogs, emails, journals, or my website. Different moods dictate my medium.
I try to write something fairly regularly, which is pretty easy for me because I just AM a writer. It’s how I interact with the world. Even when I’m not physically writing something, there’s this pesky narrator voice in my head doing the heavy lifting of maintaining my identity as a writer.
But sometimes. I’m not in a writing mood.
- Sometimes I want to edit my writing.
- Sometimes I want to improve my SEO.
- Sometimes I want to stay in Canva all day and make pretty things.
But mostly I’m a writer.
And I find the writing the easy part.
Except for the times I’m writhing with what is the purpose of blogging vibes!
On a good day, I start my batches with writing. And leave the SEO and the pretty Canva graphics and the links out and the links in, and the headings and quotes for later.
But if you tend towards artsy, maybe the best way for you is to create pretty Canva graphics for 12 blogs you’ve already decided on the exact title for. Not me. I’ll change the name of the title later. When I’m changing the names of the titles to a batch of blogs. I’ll make the Canva graphic later, when I’m feeling artsy. Not today, Satan!
How to Batch Work Your Blog
The easiest way to batch-work your blog is to split all the tasks up into mini little parts.
- SEO research
- info research
- affiliate links
- writing
- editing
- fulfilling your template
- linking back to self
- title
- meta descriptions
- headings
- additional keywords
- authority
- visuals
- branding
- funnel
- freebie
- pointing to products
- backlinks
Track your Batch Work
I use Notion to track batch work.
Many times I get on a writing spree and I just write and write and write. Sometimes I write blogs to avoid writing my novel. And sometimes I write my novel to avoid writing blogs. It’s a love-love relationship I have with words.
My “Blog Post Master” database in Notion has all of the blogs I’ve written for the 3 main brands that I write for. I write two blogs in WordPress and one blog in Shopify. I like writing in WordPress better, because I’m not a psychopath, but I will not write by Shopify blog in WordPress because it DEFEATS the PURPOSE of blogging to create a subdomain on your site for blogging. A subdomain is a different domain than your main domain. Different SEO.
Pre-Work
Batch Work Session
Choose your angle
One of the hard things about entrepreneurship is that there are endless ways to spend your days. If you’re a mood worker, like me, then you might feel overwhelmed trying to do something you said you would do when you’re really feeling something entirely different.
- Are you feeling artsy today? Maybe it’s a Canva Day!
- Are you feeling inquisitive today? Query your SEO research tool for MORE keywords!
- Are you craving connection today? Let’s have a link day!
- Are you out of ideas? Might have to whip out the robots! (ai)
Did you know that each page on your website can rank for MORE than ONE keyword? There can only be (1) H1, but within your paragraph text, and on other headings, you can include multiple keywords. And they do not have to be super closely related. For instance, you can rank for a more diverse set of keywords than “batch work” “batching work” and “work batches”.
Post – Post Batch Work
When I’m “finished” with the post, I hit publish. Yep, even before it’s perfect. Truth is, if you don’t have 1000 people viewing each of your blogs every time you post, it doesn’t need to be perfect. You don’t need to be perfect either.
My Notion Blog Post Master database tells me when it’s time to update my blogs. I like to update each blog 3 – 5 times. I remind myself to go to each blog after publishing at a few different intervals.
Using Notion to Check My List
A Notion database is one of the most remarkably useful little ditties I’ve found on the internet this decade. There are a number of property types you can associate with your database. It is a blank slate of useful elements you can build in to help you track and stack any number of things.
One way I use Notion Databases is to track my batches for blogs.
Each blog post in the list has a number of properties that I eventually want all checked off and up to snuff. But if I were to have to wait to perfection in order to hit publish, I would be losing out on SEO.
Blog Follow Up
Use the Function Property Type in Notion to set a new follow-up date. I set follow-up dates based on the publish date of the blog. I can find the publish date of the blog at the time of publishing, because I know what date it is, or later, whenever the heck I’m ready to update my Blog Master Database in Notion, as a batch-work session. If I didn’t set the blog into my notion database when I wrote it, or before I wrote it, that’s okay. I can update it later when I’m updating my Blog Database in Notion.
My Blog Follow-Up Intervals:
- 14 weeks
- 8 months
- 14 months
My first follow up date comes up in Notion 14 weeks later.
As a writer, this comes from the old adage that “you can’t edit a blank page”, or the idea that you need to throw up on the page before you can make it good.
I can’t personally plan everything before I do it. The planning takes up all the energy I would have to do the task. I jump straight into the ocean if I’m going swimming at the beach. I don’t inch my way in.
8 Months later, I check out my blogs again.
Oftentimes, on my earthy home decor store blog, 4 months is “out of season”. This is a good time to add a few more keywords to the blogs I’m doing in my batch work session. But with Dobedo, my blogging blog, 8 months isn’t necessarily out of season. I don’t talk a lot about natural Christmas decorations or how to plant tomatos, here.
My favorite Follow Up Date is 10-14 Months after publishing.
Because I haven’t been in business for many many years, I don’t understand all the trends perfectly yet. I find myself writing blogs for things that are coming up too fast to gain a big foothold.
It takes 2 – 6 months to rank for a keyword on Google. So, writing about Witch Garden Books on September 15th isn’t going to be on the first page by October 1. But updating a blog with witchy vibes 10 months later, on July 15th? That’s going to come across pre-season by the time the SEO gets a boost.
Businesses that write about spooky season stuff before the people start looking for spooky season stuff win.
Your Blog Post is Not Set In Stone
That’s a good thing, for me, as I’m not a perfectionist. I release my woes before they are ready. I get to follow up. Notion helps me get that done.
If I’m feeling like writing I batch work writing blogs. When I’m feeling analytic, I update SEO. On create days, I make pretty things in Canva.
Hello, Humans. Check meowt. I came to update my blog. Just doing a fall equinox blog follow-up. Am working in my blog branding checklist in notion. Very happy i built this out and have a place to go where I can improve posts in batches. Today I am getting the squiggle in so it’s on all of my posts!
Try Something New Batchwork Blog Edition
You could take my signature program and focus on your blog. Each month, you would try batching something new every month for your blog.
Currently, I’m batching out the task of adding this banner for Try Something New. It’s a $27 program designed to get you through he year with a bit more curiosity than in your more mundane seasons.
