Writing effective WordPress articles is a valuable skill that combines research, creativity, and technical know-how. Whether you’re a student, blogger, or professional, crafting high-quality posts requires attention to detail, originality, and adherence to specific guidelines. This guide will walk you through the process of creating engaging, well-researched WordPress articles that meet the Post Assignment Requirements outlined in your assignment. By following these steps, you’ll not only produce great content but also develop skills that are essential for digital communication and content creation. I also have some Writing Tips and Suggestions that you can follow for a more contextual look at getting good at this part of the class.
Post Assignment Requirements
Before you start writing, make sure that you understand all the basic requirements you will need to cover for each of your Posts.
Word Count: Your Post should be between 750 nd 1000 words. Too few or too many words is bad for blogging and SEO (Search Engine Optimization).
Title: Create a unique, descriptive, and engaging title for your Post. Your title should be clear, concise, and relevant to the content. Use keywords that reflect the main idea of your article to improve searchability and to make the post more engaging.
Content: Cover all the required writing prompts provided for each post. Avoid relying on a single source for research and use multiple references to provide a well-rounded perspective. You should also link to those sites used for research.
Categories: Categories should be an “overall” keyword for the entire Post. Example categories could be “Photoshop”, “Video Editing” or “Graphic Design”. Each article must have at least 1, but should not have more than 3-5 each.
Tags: Choose between 5 and 10 relevant keywords or phrases that describe the main topics of your article. Tags help readers find your content through search engines. Here is a guide on Tags for WordPress and why they are important.
Originality: Avoid copying content from other sites or using AI-generated text. Plagiarism will result in a zero grade. The DMMD AI Usage Policy page explains how use it responsibly without it raising ethical, originality or quality concerns.
Featured Image: Use a unique, properly re-named, and web optimized image with credit to the source. You can use any Royalty Free image you wish (unless you want to provide your own work, of course). Use royalty-free image websites like Unsplash, Pexels, or Pixabay.
Media Creation: When comparing design themes, or trying to explain the visual differences between various things, create your own media to be used in the posts. Take and edit screenshots, screen record yourself using tools, and create animated content for your work. It is literally the thing you are here to learn how to do… so do it! Make it from scratch!
Blog Post Writing Tips & Suggestions
Ready to level up your WordPress game? Writing great blog posts isn’t just about putting words on a page—it’s about creating engaging, visually appealing, and well-organized content that grabs your audience’s attention. Whether you’re writing about typography, animation, or the latest design trends, this guide will help you craft better articles. Here are some tips that I have personally learned over the years that help make blog posts much better and more effective.
Start with a good title!
Your title is the first thing people see (other than the Featured Image), so make it snappy! There are a few things that you can do to make your title stand out from the crowd.
Be Clear, and Specific. Tell readers exactly what your post is about. Instead of “Typography Tips,” try “5 Typography Tips to Make Your Designs Pop.” That is a much more approachable and interesting title.
Use Action Words. Make it dynamic and engaging by including words that are evocative. There are literally millions of posts put up every day about every topic (including whatever you are writing about), so having a title with action words helps… a LOT.
Keep It Short. Aim for 8–12 words. Too long, and it’ll get cut off in search results which ruins the title and might mean the reader just skips your article entirely. Womp womp.
Get suggestions. This is a good use for an AI system. Ask an AI to give you other suggestions for your titles after having it read the article. You never know you might get some good ideas from an angle you did see before.
Make your content actually engaging.
Hook Your Readers! Start with a strong opening sentence or question if you can. Try to come up with something that asks the question that you are about to explain or answer. “Ever wondered why some designs just feel right? It’s all about typography!” is a good way to start an article that is going into the idea of typography in design.
Break It Up. Use short paragraphs, subheadings, and media to make your post easy to scan. Long bricks of paragraphs looks like homework. WordPress already has headings and subheadings built in… use them!
Avoid Bullet Points. Bullet points are visually hard to make look good. It also just looks like a lazy list of things. Think of a better way than just a list of dots. Yuck. That being said, there are some times that bulleted list can’t be avoided, but do your best to find a better way.
Add Examples with Links. Use real-world examples to illustrate your points like “Take a look at Apple’s website—notice how clean and modern their typography is?” This does two things… adds context to your point, but also improves SEO because you have provided a relevant link. Win-win.
End with a Call to Action This is if you WANT to grow an audience, followers and subscribers. Encourage readers to engage with your post, so that you can grow a community. If that is your goal, then end a post with something like “What’s your favorite font pairing? Share it in the comments below!”.
Choose the Right Categories and Tags for each article you write.
Use Good Categories. Categories and tags help organize your content and make it easier for readers to find. Think of these as the main topics of your blog. Use 1–3 broad categories per post. If your post is about typography, your category might be “Graphic Design” so that readers can find other content you have written about graphic design.
Create Good Tags. These are more specific keywords related to your post. Use 5–10 tags per post (but don’t go over 15). Not only does this help organize your content, but readers are encouraged to click through and continue to explore more content you have written. For a post about font pairing, your tags might include “typography,” “font pairing,” “design tips,” and “multimedia design”, assuming you have other articles that touch on the same subject.
Check your “tone”.
Be Conversational. Write like you’re talking to a friend, or explain to someone as if your were talking face to face. This is one of the most crucial steps that can make your posts much, much better. This is easily one of the most powerful things a student can do to make better articles.
Show Your Personality. Don’t be afraid to let your voice shine through. If you are going to be doing a lot of article writing (which, you are for this class at least…) you will be able grow an audience. People will respond to your specific voice, if they like it!
Stay Professional. While casual is fine, avoid slang or overly informal language. While we are on the topic, stay away from politics, religion, or other topics that could be considered “hot button” issues. These articles are about Digital Media Design, so keep it that way.
Create your own images and animations!
Visuals are a huge part of digital media, so don’t skimp on them! First off, you are here to practice this exact thing, so practice, practice, practice! Use tools like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator to create custom images. Use OBS to get some screen caps, then use After Effects to put out short animations like GIFs to emphasize your points.
Stand Out. Original visuals make your post unique and memorable. Your entire portfolio should have your “brand” and your “voice”. Make it your own.
Show Your Skills: This is your chance to showcase what you’ve learned in class, and prove to future clients or employers that you can talk the talk and walk the walk. This is one of the most important things you can do if you are trying to break into the field.
Engage Your Audience. Again, if you are trying to get your voice out there to be heard… people love visuals! Your content will be more interesting and easier to understand if you take a little bit of time to put some polish on it!
Digital Media & Multimedia Design 