If you’ve had any experience with health/fitness blogging, you know that the niche is unique for several reasons – the world always needs more educating on better health, there’s a lot of misinformation out there, and finally: there’s always a difference of opinions.
However, no matter what your stance is on eating meat or optimal exercising routines, here’s 5 top tools for health blogs whose mission is to make the world (and their blog) a better place.
1. Buffer
This one is purely social media benefits, but the benefits are big. Buffer is a free tool that thousands of bloggers rely on every day to manage social media. As you may know, social media (namely Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram, etc) is crucial for a well-rounded platform. Instead of spending hours each day trying to find interesting content to post to your readers every couple hours, buffer lets you schedule when you want to post on social media outlets. Finish all of it before you start the day.
2. Personal Schedule Apps
Speaking of apps, give your readers a better, more personal way to manage their health needs like subscriptions and daily fitness routines. Many health companies have found e-prescribing software and similar organizational tools to be a big hit with readers and clients alike. If you’re a smaller company, don’t spend an exorbitant amount of time and money on developing your own tools – use tools and apps that are already available.
3. Copyscape
Another tool that isn’t necessarily health-focused (but still extremely beneficial for a health blog), Copyscape lets you scan the entire internet for duplicate content for five cents a search. This is especially useful when you’re handling a lot of guest posts or write content that requires a lot of citations and source-checking. Don’t get penalized ever again for accidentally posting duplicate content that leaves you looking like a plagiarizer.
4. Askimet
Askimet is a premiere spam-blocker tool for blogs and websites. Once you start gaining traction on the internet and see more followers, subscribers, and traffic, you’ll invariably start to see spam comments and links coming in as well. Instead of individually marking each comment as “spam” and forcing your readers to solve “Captcha” tests to prove they’re not spammers, Askimet is a cheap service that catches spam before it floods your comment sections and emails.
5. Affiliate Links to Health Apps/Tools
If you’ve been blogging for a while, you’ve invariably had some experience with affiliate links. Many health blogs aren’t in a position (yet) to be creating and launching their very own health tools and apps, but they can direct readers in the right direction. If you know of some particularly beneficial, helpful blog tools and apps, send your readers the right way by including an affiliate link in posts to get a partial commission if they choose to buy. It’s a great way to benefit readers with more healthy information while making some money on the side.