How To Publish A Blog Post

Start and optimize your WordPress blog in 2024 with steps on niche selection, content creation, SEO, and publishing best practices.

Publishing a blog post involves more than just writing—it’s about optimizing for visibility and engagement.

This guide walks you through each step, from creating a catchy title and using keywords effectively to adding internal links and images.

Learn how to make your blog post stand out and rank in search engines.

Brett Helling
Owner, Bloggingtips.com

Brett Helling is a digital marketing expert with over 10 years of experience building, managing, and scaling websites.

  • Write and format your post, using keywords in titles and subheadings.
  • Add internal links to boost navigation and engagement across your website.
  • Use a featured image to enhance visual appeal and attract clicks.
  • Optimize for SEO with plugins and semantic search to improve rankings.

Add New Post

To start, log in to your WordPress dashboard and click on “Posts” > “Add New.” It will take you to the page where you can write your blog post.

Add a Title

The next step is to add a title. Create a catchy title that reflects the topic of your article.

Use the primary keyword in your title. Doing so will help people find your post when they search for that term.

Write the Blog Post

After you’ve added a title, it’s time to start writing the body of your blog post. Write about your chosen topic in an engaging and easy-to-read way.

Sprinkle the primary keyword throughout the post. Be sure to include other relevant keywords throughout the post.

Over time, it will help you get found in Google. Google will scan the article and rank it for several keyword phrases.

As you’re writing, be sure to break up your text with subheadings. Most people like to skim articles rather than read them word for word.

Subheadings make it easy to find the information they’re looking for. Include the post’s primary keyword in a few subheadings.

Add Internal Links

You should add internal links to and from your blog post.

Internal links are links that point from one page on your website to another page on your website. They help people navigate your site and keep them engaged.

To add an internal link, highlight the text you want to link and click on the “Insert/edit link” icon.

In WordPress, a pop-up window will appear where you can enter the URL or the keywords from the page you want to link to.

Using a tool like Link Whisper can speed up your internal linking process. It helps you easily find internal linking opportunities and add them with just a few clicks.

Add a Featured Image

Adding a featured image is optional but it’s something we recommend doing.

A featured image is the main image that appears at the top of your blog post.

It helps make your post more visually appealing and can help it stand out in search results.

Click on the “Add Media” button to add a featured image.

A pop-up window will appear with all of the images on your site.

You can upload a new one or select one already on your site.

Once you’ve selected an image, click on the “Set featured image” button.

Click Publish

After you’ve written the blog post and added a featured image, it’s time to hit the “Publish” button. Your post will now appear live on your website.

Optimize the Post

Optimizing a post using on-page SEO techniques is a must when you want to rank your blog post in search engines.

On-page SEO includes optimizing your title, meta description, and header tags.

You can also optimize your blog post for certain keywords.

Use Rank Math or Yoast To Optimize for On-page

If you’re not sure how to do on-page SEO, we recommend using a plugin like Yoast SEO or Rank Math.

These tools will help you optimize your blog post by making sure you’re using each keyword appropriately throughout your meta tags and content.

Optimize the Post for Semantic Search

In the last few years, semantic search has become a crucial element of SEO.

Semantic search is the process of understanding the user’s intent behind their search query.

To optimize your blog post for semantic search, you need to use related keywords and phrases throughout the post.

For example, if someone searches for “how to bake a cake,” you might want to use related phrases like “baking a cake from scratch” or “easy cake recipes.”

You can use tools like Clearscope or Surfer SEO to help you find related keywords and phrases as you work to optimize for semantic search.

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