Most artists who start an artist blog jump right in and start to write. They do not have a plan or even know what their platform has to offer. In the long run, this becomes a problem. In this post, you will discover how to design a plan before your first blog post so you can be more productive with your time.

 

“Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort.”

~ Paul J. Meyer

 

 

Write a Plan Before Your First Blog Post

 

Disclaimer: Please note that some of the links on this post are affiliate links and will be clearly marked as so. I will earn a small commission when you purchase a product or service from an affiliate link at no extra cost to you which helps with the costs of operating Nevue Fine Art Marketing. I will only recommend products I have used, found helpful to my business and are companies I trust.

 

If you are ready to start your artist blog you should already have an artist vision statement, mission statement, and know what your niche is. 

With success there is planning. 

Knowing what you want is the first step. Deciding how you will get there is the second step.

Taking a few minutes to write a plan before your first blog post. 

What Are Your Blogging Goals

Before you start blogging you should have a clear idea of why you are blogging.

• What are you trying to achieve with your art blog?
• What will you be writing about?
• What type of audience would you like your art blog to attract?
• How will you monetize your art blog?

These are just a few questions you will want to be able to answer prior to writing your blog posts.

My first blog post was nothing to brag about. My second and third posts were just as bad.

When I started blogging I had no idea what I was doing. I knew that I had to start a blog if I wanted to build brand awareness and sell my artwork online.

The reason I struggled, in the beginning, was because I did not have a plan. I did not know what I wanted to accomplish with the bog.

I soon realized that I needed to have a vision and a mission for my blog.

From that point on I have written out goals and strategies that complimented my vision.

My blog now generates over 100,000 monthly page views and I am projected to reach 150,000 monthly page views in the next 4-6 months. I could have never accomplished this if I didn’t take blogging seriously.

You will have the same success as long as you write out goals, implement strategic content marketing strategies and don’t give up.

Here are some helpful tools to help you write out attainable goals:

How to Write Goals You Can Achieve Workbook

Artist Goal Planners in Light Blue

Artist Goal Planners in Light Pink

Month Goals Printable

Weekly Goals Printable

 

Time Management

There are many jobs that need to be addressed when you are selling art.

As a selling artist you will have to create art, photograph the art, upload the art to your artist website, write a sales landing page, share your art on social media, answer emails, package and ship products and the list goes on and on.

After you have documented your goals decide how many hours you can devote to your art business. The next step is to figure out what jobs will produce the best results for your unique goals.

The next step is to decide on how many blog posts you will be able to publish during a month.

I recommend publishing at least one blog post a week. Anything less than that will slow down the growth process.

Do you struggle with time management?

Do you always feel like you do not have enough time to get everything done?

If you do you will want to download Get More Done in Less Time The Part-time Artist

Decide on Topics to Write 

Create a list of the topics you will be writing about. 

Taking the time to do this now will save you hours looking at a blank screen or wasting time writing about something that will not help you to reach your goals.

Art Blog topics examples:

• Supplies that you use
• New artwork
• Artwork in progress
• Painting tutorials
• Supply reviews
• What motivates you as an artist

After you have decided on the subjects you will be focusing on, you will want to decide what to write about.

To do this think about what information will be valuable for your audience.

• How can you help your readers?
• How can you offer value to your readers?
• What problems can you solve for your readers?
• What will inspire your readers?
• What will motivate your readers?
• What will have your readers wanting to come back on a regular basis?

Keep in mind that you will be attracting both artists that will want to learn about your artistic techniques and potential buyers.

Blog post examples:

• What brand of oil paints do I use?
• What brand of brushes do I use?
• What size brushes do I use?
• What size canvas do I use?
• What do I protect the painting with?
• What do I use for reference photos?
• How to frame art?
• The best place to buy frames online?
• What colors work best for dark rooms?
• What colors work best for small rooms?

These are some examples of what you can write about that will offer value to your readers. 

The goal is to build your readers trust and have new readers see you as an expert in your field. 

 A reader will become your biggest advocate after you have built their trust. They will become a part or your tribe. Your tribe will help you to grow your audience by sharing your story with their friends and family. 

The more value you can provide in your blog posts, the better your chance will be to have return visitors.

When you have a list of ideas, start designing an Editorial Calendar. An editorial calendar will not only help you to stay organized with blog post ideas but you will also have a way to track the progress of the post. The information you gather will help you to determine what type of posts to write in the future.

For more information on your first blog post ideas visit 110 Art Blogging Ideas.

Are you looking for an easy way to manage your artist blog posts?

If you are you will enjoy this Weekly Art Blog Post Planner.

Download your Weekly Art Blog Post Planner today so you can be more productive with your time.

 

Decide How Often You Will Post

Now you have a good amount of ideas that you can write about. Keep that list that you have created in your file. You will be adding more ideas to it in the future.

Take some time to decide how often you will be writing and publishing your posts.

It does not matter if it is once a week, three times a week, or every day. Consistency is the key.

You will want to think of when you can put a couple of hours aside to write your posts. Be realistic and think about your daily activities and decide when you can squeeze it in.

If there is only an hour a week that you can put aside then you will want to shoot for posting once a week. 

You might hear that you should post every day or three times a week for more traffic. There is some truth to that but sticking to a consistent schedule is more important.

 

Editorial Calendar 

Before you write your first article you will want to plan out your first month of content that you will be writing.

Write down the topic and the post ideas on a calendar. 

For more information on editorial calendar read How to Write an Editorial Calendar that will generate traffic 

Your Editorial Calendar will save you time during the week. You will already have an idea of what you will be writing about. During the day think about what you would like to say in the post. When it is time to sit at the computer, you will be ready to go. There will be no more time wasted staring at a blank screen.

 

Write Your First Blog Post 

After you have done all of your planning, it is time for you to start writing your first post.

An extra thought, every week put some time away to update your blog idea list and editorial calendar.

Do you find it easy or difficult setting plans and staying organized?

 

Revise Your Old Posts

Just like anything else, you will be getting better at writing.

You will start to notice certain formats will work better than others.

Revising old posts is something that I have started a year after I have started my blog posts.

Adding extra content or fixing any mistakes that were overlooked has greatly increased the amount of traffic my blog generates.

You might want to consider taking some time to revise older posts after you have generated enough content. rt

Conclusion:

There is no better feeling than waking up every day knowing you will be doing something you love to do for a career. Stay organized and plan.

Every day you will encounter challenges you will have to overcome. However, if you have a plan you will be able to address the situation with a clear mind.

Are you planning on using WordPress for your Online Art Blog?

If you are you will need a hosting service.

I use and recommend HostGator (affiliate link) for a hosting service. I could not be happier with their product and customer service.

HostGator makes it easy to have your WordPress site up in minutes. If you need assistance, customer service is available 24/7.

Another popular hosting service used by many professional artists is Bluehost. (affiliate link)

Take a look at what each hosting service has to offer so you can decide what will be best for your goals.

 

You might also be interested in:

• Blogging Tip That Works Learn your Writers Voice
• Sell Art Online Startup Plan
• Art Marketing Basics: Pillar Content Generates Traffic
• The Truth About Growing Your Art Blog
• 5 Reasons Artists Should Blog