Are you rushing to publish your content to generate leads and increase traffic?

We all know that publishing content on a consistent basis is fundamental for our marketing purposes. However, due to lack of time, we often overlook the Editing part.

Editing is an essential step before publishing anything you Write. You put a lot of energy and time to create your material, so you want to take the time to go through the editing process to make sure your writing represents exactly what you want to communicate.

In reviewing my training notes, I found six essential rules for effective editing that I would like to share with you:

1. Re-Read your Content and Your Personal Story

When you finish writing your content, read it carefully and eliminate any unnecessary wording. If you can, detach from your document and do something else to clear your thoughts. When you come back to it, and you reread it, check if it feels right for you.

2. Add, change, and shuffle it around until you are happy with it.

The more time you spend refining it, the better it will get. Eventually, you will get to a point where you know it can't get better.

3. Eliminate big paragraphs of text

When you begin writing, it is fine to write all the information you need, but during the editing stage, separate your ideas, write your most important information first, and adjust the length of your sentences.

4. Re-type it, and make sure to check grammar, spelling, typos and punctuation.

It is easy to miss simple errors especially when you are in a rush, sadly this will turn off readers who are looking for trustworthy content.

5. Read your content out loud, record it, and then play it back to see if it sounds right.

Once you are happy with your writing, read it out loud. It is an easy way to detect and correct mistakes. Record yourself if possible and play it back. If you are satisfied, then you know you are ready to upload it to your site.

6. Test it by reading it out loud to friends and family.

Reading your content to someone else is the next step from just reading your work aloud. Constructive feedback from other people can help you improve your work.

Other Useful Points to Keep in Mind

Unless you are writing on a very specialised subject, write in ways that people can read and understand.

• Write for a 5th-grade reading level in your summaries
• Write for an 8th-grade reading level in the majority of my content
• Write for an 11th-grade for supporting information

Guide your Visitors in the Right Direction

• Headline - Tell your readers what they'll get. Don't write teaser content.
• Summary - What is the article about? It is okay to give the key points, facts in summary
• Subheading - What is in this section? Helps readers to skip parts. Give this more emphasis.
• Links - What will I get if I click? Link the descriptive words.

There is no such thing as a perfect content. You will find yourself modifying your site content from time to time, or adding to it. But, it is essential that you review your work and make it as good as it can be before you publish it to the world to see.

Hope these simple but effective rules are of benefit to you as they have been to me. In just over a year I have learnt a lot thanks to my training.

If you would like to find out how a private community platform which provides tools, training, coaching and mentorship to support their members are doing in creating a life and business that you love, check this free 7 Day Video Series.

What other steps you take to refine your blog posts? Please share them in the comments below.

With much appreciation

Luci