Content Mastery Guide

Editor and Ghostwriter

How to Spotlight Other People on Your Nutrition Blog

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© frog-travel - Fotolia.com
© frog-travel – Fotolia.com

Blogging consistently is a key to success, both for the marketing benefits and for your growth as a blogger. Yet not every article has to be in-depth like a how-to post. In fact I recommend you aim for just one of those every month.

In the weeks in between, choose from other types of posts that may be shorter, easier and quicker to put together. These include the personal post, the curated post, and today’s topic: the spotlight post.

Is there someone you think everyone should know about because they’re so brilliant, creative or knowledgeable? How about a food product, gadget or tool you keep recommending again and again? Use a spotlight post to spread the love.

Consider these three options when you want to introduce someone to your readers:

  1. Interview the person, and present their insights as a profile and/or a how-to post about a specific topic. You can use a simple Q & A format, or intertwine their answers with your own comments.
  2. Invite the person to contribute a guest post, either a reprint from their own blog or an original article for your readers. Include an author bio with a link back to their website. If a reprint, give the link to the original post.
  3. Write about the person (or product), with or without links to other blog posts, websites, videos or other resources. Even if you weren’t able to interview them personally, you can include brief quotes from their own writing or from other interviews they’ve done. And be sure to let them know you featured them!

Similar to a curated post, open your spotlight post by saying a bit about the person or product, how you first heard about or met them, and why you treasure them as a trusted resource.

With video or audio interviews, be sure to also provide some text for people who don’t want to just listen or watch. Offer a transcript, or at the very least a bullet list of highlights.

Spotlighting others on your blog lightens your load and creates more value for your audience. As an added bonus, you’ll build and deepen relationships with other experts in your field.

Now that we’ve explored the how-to post, the personal post, the curated post, and the spotlight post, which of these formats do you think will be easiest for you? Mixing them all will give your blog maximum variety and interest.

For help brainstorming topics for each of these four blog post types, visit http://www.contentmasteryguide.com/blog-topic-planning-worksheet to download your own topic planning worksheets.

P.S. If you liked this post, you might enjoy the Blogging Tips newsletter, delivered weekly to your inbox! Sign up here.

How to Write a Curated Post For Your Nutrition Blog

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© Milles Studio - Fotolia.com
© Milles Studio – Fotolia.com

Blogging is a very effective marketing tool for wellness services such as nutritional consulting. Prospective clients need to see that you have the knowledge to help them, plus a style and approach they can work with and trust.

Yet it’s not very likely someone will hire you the minute they discover your blog, which is why you need to keep publishing new content on a regular basis. Does that mean you have to slave over a comprehensive full-length article every week? Absolutely not!

This is the third article in a series about four different types of posts you can cycle between on your blog, some of which will be much faster and easier for you to finish.

The first type we covered was the how-to post, where you do go into more depth with concrete information that allows your readers to take action. Next, we talked about how writing a more personal post will help distinguish you from the sea of nutritionists out there.

Today, we’ll look at how to harness the efforts of those other nutritionists or related experts with something called a curated post. A curated blog post is one that is centred around someone else’s content, such as a blog post, video, infographic or slideshow.

How to choose the best content to share

Just like when you’re planning your own topics, be on the lookout for content that fits the focus of your blog and the interests of your readers.

Be very selective here. Anything you share implies your endorsement, not just of this item, but its creator. Take the time to carefully review a few of the author’s other posts, their About page, and their social media profiles.

To find quality content more quickly, build a list of respected colleagues who often publish valuable blog posts, videos, or links to other gems from around the web. Schedule regular times to check their blogs and social media pages to find the newest content they’ve created or shared.

How to share content the right way

To respect copyright laws and the original creator’s hard work, never copy and paste someone else’s text into your own blog (or their images, for that matter). You can use a sentence or two as a quote, but then link to the original.

Always use the “permalink” (permanent link) assigned to that specific page. You can usually find the permalink by clicking on the title on a blog post. The permalink will be something like this: http://ionc.org/2015/12/how-to-start-a-blog-for-your-nutrition-business/ versus a link like this: http://ionc.org/blog/.

An exception is when you embed content into your blog so your visitor can view it right from your site. You do this by pasting in a special code provided by the original creator. Click these links to learn more about how to embed a SlideShare presentation, how to embed a YouTube video, or how to embed an infographic into a WordPress blog.

How to write a curated blog post

You always want to add your own text before and after the link or the embedded content. Ideally, you’ll have at least one paragraph at the beginning of your post, and another at the end. At about 200-250 words, this is way less writing than you might do for a how-to post or a personal post!

As an introduction, write a little about why you chose to share this resource and how you think it will be valuable to your reader. This is your opportunity to demonstrate your own knowledge and expertise, and express your unique personality.

You can offer a short bio of the author, explain how you’re connected with this person or how you discovered them, or provide a brief description of their company and what they do.

At the end of the post, ask what your reader thought of the content, or how they will implement the information. Then ask them to stay connected with you, whether that’s to read a related post, visit you on social media, subscribe to your email updates, or contact you with comments or questions.

A curated post is an excellent way to connect with other experts, and most of all to keep sharing valuable information with your readers and prospective clients.

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How to Write a Personal Post For Your Nutrition Blog

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© taka – Fotolia.com

In a series of posts over at the International Organization of Nutritional Consultants (IONC), I’ve been writing about how nutritionists can use blogging to attract new clients.

First I showed you how to get started, and now we’re looking at four different types of blog posts you can use to keep writing week after week.

A weekly post? That sounds way too hard! I understand. That’s why I suggest you aim to write just ONE feature-length post every month, where you teach your reader how to do something.

In the other three weeks, experiment with other types of posts that may be quicker and easier for you to put together. Let’s start with the personal post.

There are a lot of other holistic nutritionists out there, but that doesn’t make you competitors. You each have ideal clients who will be drawn to your particular set of life experiences and personality.

Blogging is the perfect place to let your unique style shine through. Personal posts are the ones only you can write, as opposed to the generic topics you might find on dozens of nutrition blogs.

There is nothing wrong with sharing a personal story on a business blog. It’s important to show potential clients your human side, since we all do business with those we know, like and trust. This is especially true for intimate services like nutrition counselling.

Use your own stories of failure and success to form a deeper connection with your audience, and reinforce the principles you teach in your business. I once wrote about a mishap in the kitchen to remind readers to keep a pad of paper handy for new blogging ideas.

A personal post may incorporate elements of a how-to post, like this one where I featured my own beloved greyhound Patch in a post about blogging consistently. Or it could be purely personal, like how Joy McCarthy and her team share their personal resolutions in this New Year’s post.

If you missed the first post in this series, visit IONC to read How to Write a How-To Post For Your Nutrition Blog. Stay tuned to learn about two other types of posts, including one that lets you lean on other people to feed your own blog.

When you put them all together, you’ll have everything you need for an interesting variety of blog posts all month long.

P.S. If you want to receive my newest blogging tips by email, including the next two posts in this series about nutrition blogging, sign up here for the Blogging Tips newsletter, delivered weekly to your inbox!