[News] WordPress Plugin Taking the Pain Out of Blogging

Are you struggling to create new content for your business blog? 

As we’ve written about in the past, a blog can be a useful thing for your business. Among other things, Google loves to see new content on your website, and a blog can help establish you as an expert in your field. Having a blog gives you relevant content to post on social media that points back to your website, and can extend your business visibility through people sharing insightful content. 

But let’s face it: you’re busy running your business, which means it can be tough to find the time and inspiration to regularly create new articles for your blog. 

Of course, you can hire a freelance writer to generate original articles for your website, but that means posting jobs on writing job boards or networking to find a good writer, and then you have to review portfolios and set up contracts and payments. And if you have a small business, hiring someone to write for you might not fit your budget right now.

If you need a little help getting content on your blog, we just learned about a new plugin for WordPress called Launch with Words. It might be just what you need.

There are two versions of the plugin: a free version and a paid content version that’s coming soon. 

The free plugin comes with a starter pack that provides monthly prompts in the form of blog drafts to help you write a monthly blog post that ties into the season. You’ll see the prompts listed as drafts under Posts > All Posts, as below:

For example, December’s prompt suggests you think back over the year, or about the origins of your business (see below screenshot for a portion of the prompt). It also includes a blog checklist that suggests how to handle images, headlines, changing your category, adding your SEO bits, and other housekeeping that comes with generating a new blog post (in case it’s been a while!). 

Here’s the first part of the December prompt:

In addition to the monthly prompt option, we’re intrigued by the idea that Launch with Words is planning a premium service that will provide industry-specific content that you can tweak to fit your specific business. These will be short (300-word) blog posts that you can edit with your own services, location, and anything else you want to add.

Some of the initial offerings will work for businesses in real estate, web development, building construction, and heating and air conditioning (HVAC) services.

Launch with Words is brand new but it offers a lot of potential to small businesses on a budget. 

Also in the news

• Facebook weirdness. On Friday, January 22nd, many people, mostly on iPhones, found themselves unexpectedly logged out of the service. Was it a hack? Not according to Facebook. As The Verge reports, Facebook claimed that it was simply a “configuration change.” If you’re concerned, it might not be a bad idea to change your Facebook password and make sure you have 2FA turned on. 

• Give feedback on Jetpack. WP Tavern announced that Automattic, the company that runs WordPress.com and is behind the popular plugin Jetpack, is looking for people willing to provide feedback on the plugin. Sign up for a customer research interview (and earn a $25 gift card, according to WP Tavern). 

• Net neutrality’s back on the table. New US President Joe Biden has appointed a new acting Federal Communication Commission (FCC) chair. Jessica Rosenworcel was first nominated to the FCC in 2012 and has supported net neutrality from the beginning. President Biden still needs to appoint one more member to the FCC and select a permanent chair, but we remain optimistic that net neutrality will be in safe hands for the foreseeable future. 

• Stock market shenanigans. Users on Reddit (/r/wallstreetbets) decided to use the stock trading app Robinhood to purchase shares of GameStop and AMC stock, causing havoc for other investors. Their actions demonstrate how apps are changing the nature of investing, which is becoming increasingly gamified. In retaliation, Robinhood and other platforms restricted the purchase of additional GameStop or AMC stock, causing political outcry from both parties in Congress. For one perspective of the issue, check out CNN’s interview with Jordan Belfort, infamously known as the “Wolf of Wall Street.” Providing a different perspective, Stephen Colbert breaks the issue down using Beanie Babies.

Tip of the week

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