My Favorite Tools And Resources For Blogging

By Matt | March 5, 2015

And Some Tips About Doing It More Effectively

I’ve been blogging for a while now and I’m a huge tech geek. So naturally I’ve found quite a few useful tools, tips, and tricks for getting the most out of my time.

So here we go!

Brainstorming

  • Quora: This is my favorite social network at the moment. It’s basically Yahoo! Answers but more serious and smarter. There are tons of different industry leading people on here actively answering questions. From doctors and lawyers, to high-level business executives and investors.
  • Buzzsumo: Search your topic and find out how many shares it’s getting on a variety of social networks like Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.
  • Trending topics: This one is simple. Follow the trends on Twitter and Facebook and you’ll have a pretty good idea about what people are talking about or wanting to know.

Organizing Your Ideas

  • Evernote: This is my favorite and I use it everyday. To-do lists; Random notes;  Content curation;  Notebooks. Evernote keeps my life organized.
  • Pocket: Similar to Evernote I use this more for focusing solely on content curation. Super simple to use and makes finding things later very easy.
  • Google Drive: My life is in here; Literally. Documents, Excel spreadsheets, Pictures, Music, Videos, Presentations and Life plans. Everything is in here.
  • Chrome Bookmarks: This I’m not using quite so much anymore because of Evernote and Pocket, but I still find it useful on occasion.

Productivity

  • The Pomodoro Method: I’ve tried a couple different productivity tactics but this is the one that’s worked best for me. Focus on work for 25 minutes, take a 5 minute break. Work for 25 minutes, take another 5 minute break. This may seem like you can’t possibly get any work done if you’re always taking breaks, but I get more done in 25 minutes than I would working an hour straight.
  • Get Things Done: Whereas the Pomodoro Method is a tactic, Get Things Done (GTD) is a strategy. And when used together, you become a powerful force of productivity. I highly recommend this.
  • Pomotodo: This is an that can be installed on your phone and it combines the above techniques. It’s wonderful. This keeps my life on tracks. Drags me out of ruts. And drives my day.

Creativity

  • Canva: This is the only resource I’m going to share for this category because I think this is so important. I shared this one with Sofia a couple weeks ago and she loves it. It’s the easiest tool for creating beautiful images for Facebook posts, ads, cover photos, blog pictures, etc. Basically anything you need without having to learn design (pssst they also have a mini design academy so that you can learn design and I suggest that you should).

My 2 Tips For Blogging

ALWAYS REMEMBER TO SAVE! The worst feeling in the world is when you’ve just written an amazing 1000+ word post and it just disappears into cyberspace. Trust me. You don’t want to know that feeling.

REMEMBER TO HAVE FUN! Don’t take yourself so seriously. Be friendly. Be authentic. Be you. It’s ok to loosen up and add humor to your posts. Your readers will love it and you’ll build a stronger connection with them. And that’s what blogging is all about: building a relationship.

That’s all for now. Stay awesome Tracy!

Matt Higa is the founder of Pineapple Club Designs. A consultancy and creative agency focused on branding, inbound marketing, and social media. He can be reached at: mhiga@pineappleclubdesigns.com.

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