New Media for the Networked

Creating Great Content for Blogs

E-Mediat is funded by the Middle East Partnership Initiative of the United States Department of State with support from Microsoft Corporation and craigslist Charitable Fund and administrated by the Institute of International

Education

• To understand how to develop topics from editorial calendar into blog post ideas

• To understand different formats for blog posts

• To understand the elements of the a perfect blog post

Learning Objectives

Content Strategy: Organize

• Instructional• Informational• Research• Interviews• Case Study• Lists and Links• Tips• Guest Posts

Blogging: Types of Blog Posts

The Perfect Blog Post

POST TITLE

Keyword Caption

Opening paragraph What is post about?

15 words or less

Image to illustrate post

Keyword phrases

Body of the PostTopic sentence for each paragraphSensible linkingUse headersUse images or videos to support text

ConclusionLesson LearnedEnd with a question to encourage comments

Related Posts

Respond to all commentsConsider follow up posts

The Perfect Blog Post

Images Are Important• Six ways the right photo can

increase readership and blog views.

Photos can:

• Convey the overall feeling or emotion of your post

• Illustrate a metaphor or analogy that is part of your main idea

• Evoke surprise or curiosity• Complement your headline• Make your reader smile• Readers are visual learners and

images can help people take in and retain information better.

• 250-750 words, sometimes longer• Use creative commons images or your own

photos to give interest• Descriptive title, questions help encourage

interaction• First paragraph to state what you’re writing

about• “Chunk” your text, use headlines• Make it scanable

Blogging: Style GuidelinesBlogging: Style Guidelines

Steps

1. Review the ideas you have for blog post topics.

2. Write a description of what the post will be about and the format

3. Identify if you need to do research for additional information

4. What image can you use to illustrate your post?

Focus Areas

1. Youth

2. Women’s Issues

3. Education

4. Poverty Reduction

5. Civil Society

6. All Other

Small Group Exercise: Flesh Out Your Blog Post Ideas

Reflection: Share Pair

What is one blog post that you can write when you get back to your organization?

Reflections: Share Pair