Blogging can be a beast of it’s own! I am all about making things a little more simple. With these awesome tools it should help you to work smart vs. working hard.
Brainstorming content ideas
Most everyone is in need of a little inspiration when it comes to writing. So you start brainstorming to come up with topics. Now you need to turn those topics into real ideas.
Content Title Generator
This one is my favorite. You enter in your subject and it will come up with the title. BUT, that’s not it. It will tell you exactly why it gave you that title. Such as, using numbers in your title to get more clicks. If you don’t like the one it gave you, then you click the refresh button next to the search bar and you are on to the next.
Need help with your content titles? Check out Portent’s Content Generator here
Blog Topic Generator
If you are stuck and need a bit of inspiration you can use the blog topic generator by hubspot. You enter in your 3 main words you will be using, and it will give you 5 different titles. If those don’t work it is sure to spark some creativity.
Need help with an actual topic? Check out Hubspot’s Blog Topic Generator
Topic Generator by User Inquiries
This tool is all about questions. You can look around and see what people are asking and possibly answer those questions in a blog post. You can also ask a question. For instance, lets say you want to write about the top influential bloggers. So you pose the question, “Who is the most influential blogger?” Now you will not only get input but you can see if that will actually be an interesting topic.
Want to see what info user’s need? Check out Quora’s Blog Topic Generator
Headline Analyzer
I love this tool. Now that you know what you want to write about, you will want to make sure the title will catch the readers eyes and draw them in. This awesome tool will score your title. It analyzes everything from how common the words are, if you are using emotional and power words, word and character count, and what type of headline it is.
Want a second opinion on your blog title? Use this handy analyzer
Sitting down & getting the job done
Now that you have your idea and title, sitting down and just concentrating can be one of the hardest parts. Especially when technology offers an easy distraction, staying on task can seem impossible. I recommend working in sprints and these tools will help you do just that.
Toggle
With Toggle not only can you time your tasks but you can time full on projects. You can also check your dashboard for stats on how you spend your time. I find this very beneficial; when I am asked an ETA for a project I can give an actual amount of time instead of just throwing a guess out there.
Want to keep yourself on task? Make Toggle your new secret weapon
Accordion
This is a very simple but handy tool. You can set the time for how long you want to work. So if my average time for writing a post is an hour then I will set the timer for one hour. Once I hit my time, it will alert me with a pop up and chime.
Effectively time box your work with E.ggtimer
Finding images for your post
You would think finding images would be as simple as googling what you are looking for, saving the pic, and Voila! However, just because it was shared online doesn’t necessarily mean you can use it. There are always stock photos but lets be honest, those just plain suck. Here are some tools out there for free and usable photos, you will actually want to use.
Flickr Creative Commons
Flickr is a must for finding images. The pictures that are open for public use will be listed under the creative commons license and most just require photo credit.
Keep in mind if you’re searching for business use then double check the license for commercial use. To make things a little easier there are plenty of tools that allow you to search Flickrs Creative Commons photos for commercial and non commercial use.
Save a buck and check out Flickr photos available under a creative commons license
Picjumbo
This tool is another must for pictures. Similar to Flickr, however, I think it is much easier to use. All you have to do is search for the image. You will get beautiful photos that are free for commercial and personal use.
Don’t like Flickr? It’s good to have options, and here’s another
Sharing your hard work
Your work is not done yet. Distribution is key to having a successful piece of content, but managing several social networks (like you should) can be a huge time suck. These tools will help you share your creativity quickly and efficiently.
Buffer
I am a Buffer fanatic. Always have been and always will be. Social media marketing is a must however it can suck the time right out from under you. With buffer you can find and schedule your posts to send out whenever you tell it to. We recommend scheduling a few days or a week at a time. Buffer also provides insightful analytics and visual content creation and editing tools via Pablo.
Want to get a better handle on your social posts? Give Buffer a go
Click to Tweet
This free plug in download allows you to create click to tweet boxes with snippets from your article that you can hand pick. It then can be easily shared on Twitter by your readers and site visitors with just one click.
Want to create an army of content distributors? Check out Click to Tweet.
Could your blog use a makeover? Browse MOJO’s selection of premium WordPress themes and update your look
Blog Themes
