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Blog Writing Guideline Template

TLDR: Research keywords (2-3 per post), draft with subheadings using "How to" or "What is" where possible, add affiliate tags to partner links, use 500x250px JPG headers under 100KB, keep titles under 47 characters, and share via Twitter with UTM codes after publishing.

Overview​

The blog serves as a place to publish relevant content with these goals in mind:

  • Help drive new traffic to the website
  • Convert users

In addition to the above goals, content also exists to inform and educate visitors while increasing the time spent on page.

Historically, content has been focused on longform articles for SEO with a publishing frequency of 1x/month.

All current drafts and published articles can be found here.

The blog tracker can be found here.

Metrics we care about​

  • Impressions
  • Average time spent on page
  • Bounce rate
  • Conversions

Content is published and maintained through WordPress.

Standard operating procedures​

In summary:

  1. Create the content
  2. Content is reviewed if necessary for fact-checking, grammar and accuracy
  3. Publish the content to WordPress
  4. Review the content on desktop and mobile

How to create a blog post​

Start by identifying the concept or idea and the target audience. Why is this content important or relevant to our user?

Search for keywords using Mangools, identifying opportunities and noting keywords rated with high vs. low difficulty to rank. There is no “diminishing returns,” and we can incorporate as many keywords as we like. In general, it helps to focus on 2-3 and use those keywords as much as possible.

Draft the content outline, incorporating as many keywords as possible while ensuring content remains cohesive and easy to understand. For longform articles, use subheadings to enable users to skim content and find what they’re looking for quickly. Ideally use “How to” or “What is” in at least one subheading where it makes sense to do so.

Identify backlink opportunities by including links to tools, other blog content, or links to partners wherever possible.

tip

To ensure we're following best practices for SEO, any links to partners should include an affiliate tag rel="sponsored". Links to neutral third-party publishers, such as CBC, Bank of Canada, Government of Canada, or regulatory bodies, do not require an affiliate tag.

<a style="color: #f7704f;" href="URL of affiliate link" rel="sponsored">view article here. </a>

Identify opportunities to convert, either with CTAs or text links to sign up.

Create any applicable images or tables for embedding within the article as needed, incorporating alt text for any unique image (non-stock photo).

Once the content is written, identify the category filter and knowledge level, if applicable.

  • All articles require a category filter. Only one category filter can be assigned.

Depending on the content and how technical in nature it is, it may be reviewed by a mortgage advisor to ensure accuracy. Wherever possible, link to neutral, reputable sources or media articles.

Citing sources:

Neutral, reputable sources include federal and provincial websites (Government of Canada), crown corporations (CMHC), governing and regulatory bodies and links from major news outlets with a Canadian-focus. We do not link to or cite our competitors in any of our content. Depending on the content, banks may be an acceptable source.

Publishing a blog post​

Select a stock image or create a header photo. The image should be 500W x 250H, or a ratio of 2:1, in JPG format. Ensure the filesize is less than 100 Kb to ensure fast page loading times.

Ideally, the blog title should be 47 characters or less to avoid getting cutoff. However, we recognize this isn’t always possible. Titles with “How to” or “What is” or using a listicle format tend to rank well in Google.

Estimated reading time is automatically populated by WordPress.

Adjust the author if needed. We will sometimes ghost write articles for people on the team, especially if they are considered an expert. This gives the impression that we have many content contributors.

Once the content is published to WordPress, check the formatting in desktop and on mobile to ensure everything looks good and links are correct.

Next, publish the content to Twitter by sharing the link in a tweet along with relevant hashtags. For SEO purposes, sometimes content gets republished by third-parties with a backlink which helps our website.

When sharing to Twitter or any other site, we use UTM codes so we can track traffic sources in Google Analytics.

Notify mortgage advisors and Realtor Partnerships of the new content. This can be done as a one-off, or in small batches. They’ll use this content to share with clients, realtors or potential future partners.

Creating a new author page​

From time to time, we may need to create a new author page (e.g. for new employee contributors or guest posts from partners and content exchange).

An author page will require a photo. Ideally, for individuals we use a high quality headshot. For companies, we can use their logo. All photos must be cropped into a circle, 320x320 in JPG.

To update your author photo, go to “edit account” and scroll down to the “Author” section.

Key people to consult​

Images​

Free stock images can be sourced from Pexels and Unsplash.

Generic stock photos such as patterns or vague shapes are sometimes used as the header image, as it can be difficult to “illustrate” a mortgage. We are not limited to only the stock photos linked above, however we should ensure we have the rights to use them.

Questions to ask when selecting an image:

  • Does this photo fit with the overall style of other stock images I see on the site?
  • Does it look like a very stereotypical stock image, or has it been used recently by a competitor? If yes, we should avoid.
  • Does it feel like this scene could be in Canada? Avoid American flags.
  • Do we have a diverse representation of genders, ages, ethnicities?

When in doubt, consult one of our designers for feedback on the image selection.

To resize images: https://imageresizer.com/ or your preferred editing tool

Technical blog specs​

Header images:

  • Ratio of 2:1, ideally 500W x 250H
  • JPG or PNG, GIF can be used as a header image sparingly
  • Image file-size 100 Kb or less, if possible, to maintain reasonable quality and retain faster page loading times

Titles:

  • Character limits can vary, depending on “roundness” of the letters
  • In general, 42 characters before it truncates
  • If you must go longer, ensure the truncation makes sense

Embedded photos:

  • 750W, height can vary
  • JPG, PNG and GIF are all acceptable formats

Keep in mind the first 190-200 characters of the article will be pulled in automatically on the blog archive.