10 Tasks to Improve Your Blog in 10 Minutes Each

What would you do if you had 10 minutes to spare on any given day? If we're being honest I really wish we could tack a few hours onto each day, but when I find myself with a few minutes in between events/errands/work/etc., I try and get little things done as much as possible. My brain is constantly running with the little things I want to get done for my blog - and while a lot of things require a longer time frame (like writing a post in full or shooting pictures) there's definitely a long list of things that you can accomplish, even when you only have 10 minutes to spare. I like to spend these 10 minutes being as productive as possible, so I put my phone aside, turn the TV off and even set a timer for 10 minutes. These 10 minute tasks are a great way to get you back on track when you're feeling unproductive. Here's 10 great ways to help your blog when you have 10 minutes to spare:
1. Make graphics for your posts

If you're making Pinterest/Facebook graphics after your post is finished or published, you already have the image(s) and can make your graphics in no time! It's even easier if you stick to branding fonts and colors for all of your graphics (which you should!). Then, add your pin to your blog post so that your readers can easily pin it. A great way to spend a few spare minutes!

2. Refill scheduling apps

Whenever I find myself with an extra few minutes, I add to my queues on Buffer/CoSchedule/Tailwind. These are my favorite social media schedulers but as you likely know, there's a TON to pick from! Tweets' life spans are extremely short so it's important to make sure your Twitter is constantly putting out new content. The same goes for Pinterest, especially when it's the platform where so many of us have the most traffic to our blogs! It seems tedious when you try to schedule a weeks worth of content to your social platforms all at once, so doing little bits at a time is less annoying and keeps things relevant.

3. Do research for future content

This is something you're likely always doing depending on your niche, because news is everywhere and it's so easy to read about new things when you're on the go or when you have a few minutes to spare. When you're planning content, it can be really important to know the ins and outs of what's happening around you. Also, if you have content ideas and need to research them in depth you can take these spare 10 minutes to gather facts and plan how you'll get your ideas onto paper.

4. Brain Dump for 10 minutes

One of my favorite things to do and definitely the ONE thing that helps if you're having a writing block or just don't know what to write about next. Open up a word doc, a notebook, whatever works best for you - and just WRITE for 10 minutes. Without stopping. I learned this technique from one of my very favorite high school English teachers and it works every single time. Throughout college I did this when I had to write a paper (and procrastinated it to the last minute, naturally) and every time I do, it works! It helps you get everything out of your brain and onto paper and gets your thoughts flowing. Try it - I promise it'll help!

5. Update old posts

It's tedious and can take a long time, but updating your old blog posts is so important. To keep them relevant, to boost your SEO and to keep readers coming, update your posts as often as possible! A spare 10 or so minutes is a great time to go through one or two posts and update links, add some back links to your blog (HUGE for SEO purposes!) and change anything to make it as relevant as possible again. You only have about 7-10 seconds to grab a reader's attention, so if they're clicking on your post, you want to make sure it lasts.

6. Edit your editorial calendar

Take your spare time and put it toward content planning! Whether it's finalizing posting dates with a brand or moving things around for the next month, taking some time to pre-plan in your head what's to come and visually see what looks best on your calendar is something you can do in no time.

7. Interact with bloggers in your niche

Networking is a huge part of blogging but it's also a huge part of life! Finding people in this blogging world that you can relate to and have to share anything and everything with is so important. Some of my best friends were brought to me through blogging and I'm forever grateful for that! You can spend as little as 10 minutes finding some new blogs in your niche to interact with and it'll only be positive for you and your brand. My favorite way to find new bloggers to follow along with is by going to someone's Instagram account and clicking the little "down arrow" next to the follow/unfollow button. This brings up bloggers with similar interests and I find so many amazing girls this way! You can also spend your extra few minutes networking by commenting on other blogs and posts that are relevant/that you like. This is one of my favorite things to do and the best part is you can never, ever do too much of it!

8. Schedule blog posts onto your Facebook page

Facebook is one of those social platforms (but really, which isn't these days?) that a LOT of time is required to succeed with. There's lots of ways to schedule posts to Facebook (see #2) but Facebook has it's own post scheduler also, which I use for my Facebook page. Come up with a strategy (AKA posting times, content, etc.) and work on scheduling your posts. It's a great way to get your posts seen by a whole new audience! If a post does particularly well, consider boosting the post for a few dollars to reach an even bigger audience. More engagement on your Facebook page = more eyes on your blog.

9. Share your latest post across your social accounts

This one ties in 100% to #8 - take this extra time to share your latest post everywhere you possibly can! You want as many eyes as possible on a post you worked hard on, so when you have extra time to share, take full advantage of all of the places out there that you can share to.

10. Work on your email list

We've all been hearing about the crazy changes Instagram has been making to its platform and algorithm; Twitter has been down on and off for the past few days and same with Pinterest. These major traffic outlets for us are great, but they aren't OURS. On the other hand, our blogs are. It's the one thing that you own and when I hear of a social platform having issues, it only makes me want to work harder on my email list. Whether it's coming up with a new newsletter idea, gaining traction to start your newsletter or figuring out ways to grab your readers attention, it's never too early to start!

Is there anything you'd add to this list? I'm always looking for ways to be productive at all times! ;) XOXO -A