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The 30-Minute Blog Post: How I Quickly Craft Content That Ranks
Who needs AI, anyhow?
AI writers are all the rage lately, but I’ve made no secret of my dislike of and skepticism about them.
They simply pump out content. And, like sewage, that content requires extensive treatment before humans want anything to do with it.
But what if you could rival their speed without the continual revision, incessant fact-checking, subtle errors, or recurring fees?
With the right process and mindset, I believe knowledgeable writers (working in their native language) can sometimes do all the above with their own two hands.
In fact, I regularly write useful blog posts that rank and get traffic in about half an hour from beginning my outline to hitting Publish.
Here’s how.
1. Stick to topics you know well
I wish I had a hack to write masterful pieces on obscure, technical subjects in minutes.
No such luck.
I can’t write a good 1000-word article on the history of masonry or the comparative advantage of Cameroon’s textile industry in the next 30 minutes. I’ll go out on a limb and assume that you can’t, either.
But neither can AI. I’ll grant that it could beat you to the punch by spewing out content that contains relevant keywords, but I think we’re all aiming higher than that.
Anyway, the point isn’t to somehow bypass research. The point is that your lived experience, years of study, and general subject matter expertise mean you’ve already done the research. That’s all yours to draw on—no googling needed, besides perhaps a 15-second search to fresh your memory or double-check some number here and there.
2. Write for a friend
Sometimes it’s worth coming up with a full-blown customer avatar, but that’s going a little farther than we need to for the moment.
For now, we’ll just pretend that a friend asked about whatever we’re addressing in the article. That helps us save time in a few ways:
- No need to stress over the perfect words; simply make the point.
- We don’t bother coming up with fluff or filler.
- It’s easy to guess what else they’ll want to know and where those answers will lead.
This not only saves time, but nudges us toward content that’s uncomplicated, human-friendly, and legitimately useful.
3. Headings, intro, body, conclusion (in that order)
I know we all have our different workflows. Some like to dive in by the seat of their pants and refine it all later. Others prefer to save the introduction for last, usually for the sake of cohesiveness.
Whatever works.
That said, I suggest at least trying the order I’ve mentioned above. After plenty of experimentation, here’s why I find it fastest for casual, blog-style articles:
- Headings keep you from going off the rails with fun but irrelevant information. Whether you construct these from common sense (always start there!), SEO tools, Google auto-complete suggestions, or some other means, it’s important to build this roadmap first.
- The intro doesn’t have to be perfect yet. It’s probably the one section you’ll edit heavily as a last step. But I recommend starting by summarizing whom you’re addressing, why they should care or may benefit, and a brief overview of the sections that follow. I find it harder to write a succinct but excellent summary than a detailed article. By making myself do the former first, I’ve clarified my thoughts before elaborating on them.
- Now, the body will take care of itself. You’re simply elaborating on each heading while tying it back to the introduction as appropriate. Treat each section as a mini-article of a couple hundred words—or whatever—rather than part of a longer narrative. (By the way, this is where your familiarity really expedites the process. Anyone who actually reads this far is expecting details, and ideally, you can share them off the top of your head.)
- Naturally, it’s time for the conclusion. You can quickly recap the content (which might mirror the intro but in fewer words), suggest next steps, or do whatever else is appropriate…all off the top of your head. Don’t turn this part into rocket science. It’s worth extra attention if you expect the conclusion to drive conversions…but then again, any sort of conversion optimization is beyond the scope of our 30-minute window!
4. NOW you can edit
Up until this point was not the time to edit or even proofread. The goal was to get complete and structured thoughts onto the page in as little time as reasonably possible.
Editing is another mindset, and switching in and out of it generally slows you down. For the sake of time, resist the urge to correct yourself until it’s all laid out. Unless something is garbled beyond recognition, it can wait.
Pro tip: try to edit the next day. When your mind has had some time away from the content, it stops subconsciously papering over your errors and inconsistencies.
Who needs AI, anyway?
Speed isn’t about bragging rights. It’s about results, and all the more so if you’re new to blogging.
How so?
SEO is largely a numbers game. Obviously it’s not that simple, but at the end of the day, I’d wager you’ll do better with 50 adequate article than 5 terrific ones as a beginner.
The key to publishing those 50 (or 500 or whatever you’re aiming for) in a reasonable time frame is straightforward:
Combine your expertise with a simple writing process, like the one laid out above. Skip AI for the sake of speed. You don’t need it, plus the constant babysitting may slow you down.
Two important reminders
Firstly, this where I need to reiterate the importance of expertise (as if it wasn’t clear already).
Seriously: I cannot emphasize it enough. That’s why I strongly recommend following your expertise — not passion or profit — when choosing a first blog topic.
Secondly, there’s one caveat: speed comes with practice.
In fact, even as a long-time freelance writer, it still took dozens of posts on my side project before I could churn out 1000-word posts of decent quality in the ballpark of 30 minutes. It’s less about stylistic prowess than about getting a feel for the most efficient way to communicate your subject matter.
Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, you don’t need to settle for subpar AI output (or waste time cleaning up that detritus) just to get your articles out quickly.
Your personal knowledge is a gold mine than even the best AI writers can’t dream of accessing—not yet, anyhow. By choosing topics that align with it, and following a simple but clear workflow, I can all but guarantee you’ll create totally decent content in record time.
You won’t get a Pulitzer for part of an hour’s work, but you will get output that leads to feedback, iteration, and ultimately results.
