It’s summertime, and your blog can help you catch some of that search-engine sunshine! Right now is a great time to build a strategy for your blog and plan how to keep it updated and fresh all year long.

Invite a guest contributor

You’re going on vacation but you don’t want the blog to rest, do you? Schedule a post for while you’re gone, or ask a guest writer to contribute to your blog.

A new point of view might add an interesting perspective. Reach out to someone with a unique specialty. Send out a request for possible contributors – you may be surprised at the response.

Before handing over those reigns, give the contributor some tips about how you usually do things –

• Do you use internal headings? How many?
• What types of photos do you incorporate into your posts?
• Include suggestions about using bullets and hyperlinks for greater clarity.
• Point them to the Web and new media blogging site for more tips and tricks.

Having guest contributors can work year round; just consider what level of access each person should have to your blog. You can request changes to author and editor permissions by visiting the blogs site.

Topics for summer

If you or the contributors are struggling for content in the summer, consider:

• Introducing new faculty/staff/graduate assistants for the new academic year
• Explaining some of the research/publication projects that have been keeping faculty busy
• Asking for feedback on programs, facilities, specific course work and seeing if change is feasible
• Talking about the impact of a recent alumni
• Probing into how your subject area touches the community or the world

Blogging tip: Media resources

Adding great photos and videos to your blog posts can make your posts more visually appealing especially when viewing on handheld devices (no one likes reading heavy text on a small screen). Tell your stories through photos (cell phone shots work great on a blog). If you need a picture quick, visit the Marketing Toolkit.

Points of pride

Feel proud of all you do for the campus community! This summer, consider highlighting:

• The number of students who are participating in an internship this summer
• The percentage of recent graduates who have gone on to graduate work
• The types of great jobs your recent graduates received

Upcoming dates

July 15: Short and Snappy: Writing for the Digital World

August 14: Social media boot camp

August 18: First day of fall semester