# Blog post checklist

Below is a checklist for blog posts published in <https://mattermost.com/blog>.

* **Does the post have an exciting title?**
  * Make sure it’s in sentence case
* **Does the post look good on mobile?**
  * Shrink browser to make sure content is mobile-optimized, including images and videos

![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/WIELsHJPuq0gOQuuNDgv-JxtuIp1ek0W7n42ECDdIK7sr2xxPRTDPfgRuVAQAU6Jh-lT9VA-19r_qJJAisffbhAM0UdpV85vZEMKCk357uoOwl7ue5lfP6iYjHjcdEtSQ4x0lINo)

* **Does the post have the author’s name?**
  * Make sure bio and headshot have been added to WordPress profile and [follow the guidelines below](https://handbook.mattermost.com/operations/messaging-and-math/checklists-for-m-and-m/bio-checklist)
* **Have you selected the most appropriate category?** Click the link below each category for examples if you are unsure. You can select more than one category when applicable.
  * **CIO/CTO** -- posts that appeal to the C-suite
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/27-things-enterprises-can-learn-startups-increase-productivity/>
  * **Community** -- posts about our community
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/thank-you-to-our-open-source-community/>
  * **Company** -- news about Mattermost, Inc. (e.g., Series B announcement or industry report)
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/yc-leads-50m-series-b-in-mattermost-as-open-source-slack-alternative/>
  * **Compare** -- comparing Mattermost to other products
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/popular-slack-alternatives/>
  * **Customer stories** -- case studies that appear on the blog
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/category/customer-stories/>
  * **DevOps** -- posts about DevOps
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/connecting-remote-devops-teams-with-mattermost/>
  * **Dot releases** -- dot release announcements
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/category/dot-releases/>
  * **Guest posts** -- posts written by people outside of Mattermost
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/category/guest-posts/>
  * **Learn** -- posts that teach readers something
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/category/learn/>
  * **Partnerships** -- posts about partnerships and partner companies
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/mattermost-gitlab-chatops/>
  * **Press releases**
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/mattermost-raises-20m-series-a-funding/>
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/mattermost-named-a-cool-vendor-in-employee-engagement-and-enablement-in-the-digital-workplace-by-gartner/>
  * **Pricing** -- posts about pricing changes
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/mattermost-enterprise-edition-e10-price-change-for-new-customers-effective-october-1-2017/>
  * **Product** -- news about the Mattermost product
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/mattermost-plugin-marketplace/>
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/introducing-mattermost-chatops/>
  * **Releases** -- regular monthly release announcements
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/category/releases/>
  * **Security updates** -- security release announcements
    * <https://mattermost.com/blog/category/security-updates/>
* **Are all of the links working?**
  * Make sure that there aren’t any broken links
  * External links should open in a new tab (see below)

![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/n_EAEjsAGHio9eY9pSAD6fIGBj6UOS4KJKoxswsA_Hv8VfJ4vKC-kD6csaYvEMT1W61LqxCttx70z0gC7WARidhvz2vT6Rs-aICE5HfxlxH6scr-HDZz19aufB7ENEm-s83poa3N)

* **Does the post use sub headers?**
  * In H2 style
* **Does the post have meta data?**
  * Make sure each post has a meta tag
  * All posts need to have an OpenGraph image that automatically populates on social shares
  * When you don’t have a specific image, [use this](https://mattermost.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/MM.png)

![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/3jq9w3jsd6fnqLBV3ja6i2xy44c5JJKNTiWwLkKNa3BmUB7j66ucfUKkZn60hYVuhaagD4hpeUznh7LIdPVjTG16SsfAL2cMfQdWyC9wUBkXKS5qOwluV5tlkZeGtTVUFZGoCeHC)

* **Does the post have a call-to-action?**
  * Make sure the reader’s desired next action is clear&#x20;

![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/kZj5mfRAnV7PsopwRN7MrBkYjaM-zo8QTv0UtsKichuTDUyCXz6br0l1rm6aR3i8obtDZ_fm40mVg0rKhqZwFQNOXT9trFUJTZJMqD1R7OhPPLBFbRcfD4gLrXBf4U4xg2Ivrwp5)

* **Is the post written by someone not affiliated with Mattermost?** If so:

  * Add an editor's note explaining that at the bottom of the post:

  ![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/VACI-alAyjH5LnpHdcvlN1EoGahWfiNW9sfC1fnT5wMg7Y3FW3EkjP9zXlVZ6GOGL3cI1Advodm1Lx1cxEXFAY_znfvA-ouEm2N7nH4aDt36p0Qi2o2yTxfHGbvWjuMdsQFLrT81ve3PV7Yb7bwG96t2UW2Ve8nWB6ioB8rG5PH3z56rO_3Hmz1vBjZMowFJuJD1XoPRQpXUPkx2rOQ40JVLdO1Uyt9JBoeZjExbxS-AToJeavd7G_OIzSLnn4UeO2Rl8wsomEZfRuysdmRovM9c6xsvG24WXK5GlxmD7rp0r5D6hFH1M8TeJmlYJKX1rjORaG02QpGbk6Ua7-IKnQAU5FTf1KV-JKlcQ3WsC0DJPsqcnoltKBcJmFerYEzPBuu0Z3OdVYHodUlX90mDEB_tBRw13FT-81MvKDReTtUtg6eEkrq7GM_F3SdmK97RVGNLYF7TU2jkpQw5mBx6SxQbDkfWLD0tSNSX9KzJBSsyLfLry0LFGFOblr78bLHPdK9T-elCx9OOOvDiMAiOYwgqzuP3e5tiNMrVkSo7lYjXNuT2WD99K9zYIoQd7yX_GeyF0UVGr0L99c1fV_bCFn8OTWhoamMBkAG10v6WVOB08It5Y6eo2EmFJ10rDKET4Ys9qKGsjofidXP0BBY3b0tziAcZ5F3GMCJ5BwVV02qSorAlzTdyHaQ=w707-h150-no)
* **Does the post have images?** If so:
  * Images should be crisp and clear (see: [Screenshot and GIF guidelines](https://handbook.mattermost.com/operations/messaging-and-math/how-to-guides-for-m-and-m/how-to-create-screenshots-and-gifs))
  * Images that “bleed” into the whitespace should have a grey (#F7F9FA) 1px border on all four edges