The Beginner's Guide to Getting Started with BlogOnDeck

You signed up for BlogOnDeck. Now what??

This guide walks you through everything you need to know to go from zero to published—without the usual AI content headaches.

If you're a first-time BlogOnDeck user—whether you're a solo founder, SaaS marketer, or content manager responsible for publishing blog content—this is the fastest way to get your workflow dialed in.

Direct answer

Getting started with BlogOnDeck takes about 15 minutes. Here's the quick version (most teams get their first post to publish-ready in 1–2 hours including review):

1. Complete your Company Profile in Settings
2. Set up your Brand Voice parameters
3. Create your first post using the New Post button
4. Review your draft through our quality gates
5. Hit Publish or export to your CMS

The platform handles the hard parts—fact-checking, voice consistency, and quality control—so you can focus on strategy instead of editing AI slop. Every piece of content passes through 12 quality gates before publish, which means you're not gambling with your brand reputation. In internal testing, users reduced their content editing time by 47% compared to using standalone AI tools.

Now let's break down each step so you know exactly what to expect.

Step 1: Set up your Company Profile

Before you write a single word, BlogOnDeck needs to understand your business. This isn't busywork—it's what separates generic AI content from posts that actually sound like you.

Head to Settings > Company Profile and fill out:

• Company Name: How you want to be referenced in content
• One-Sentence Description: What you do, stated plainly
• Website URL: For internal linking suggestions
• Tagline: Your positioning in a few words

This takes 5 minutes. Skip it, and your content will read like every other AI-generated blog on the internet. Complete it, and the platform tailors every draft to your specific business context.

Step 2: Define your Brand Voice

This is where BlogOnDeck separates itself from ChatGPT copy-paste jobs.

Navigate to Settings > Brand Voice and configure:

• Personality Words: Pick 3-5 adjectives that describe how you communicate (direct, friendly, technical, casual)
• Never Use List: Add phrases that make you cringe—we maintain a database of 100+ banned AI slop phrases, but you can add your own
• Always Use List: Terms, phrases, or stylistic choices that define your brand
• Example Sentence: Show the platform what "good" looks like for you

One content manager at a SaaS startup told us: "Finally, AI content I don't have to completely rewrite." That's because the voice settings actually work.

Step 3: Create your first post

Click the New Post button in your dashboard. You'll see a simple form asking for:

• Topic or Title: What you want to write about
• Post Type: Choose from how-to guides, listicles, comparisons, or thought leadership
• Key Points: Bullet the main ideas you want covered (optional but recommended)
• Target Keywords: Primary and secondary SEO terms (as a starting point, aim for 1 primary keyword and 2-3 secondary keywords)

Hit Generate Draft and give the system 60-90 seconds. What comes back isn't a finished post—it's a structured first draft that's already aligned with your voice settings and passes initial quality checks.

Step 4: Review and refine

Here's where the human-in-the-loop process kicks in.

Your draft appears in the Editor with several tools:

• Quality Score: A real-time rating based on our 12 quality gates (shown on a 0–100 scale)
• Fact Check Panel: Flagged claims that need verification
• Voice Consistency Meter: Shows how well the draft matches your brand settings (also on a 0–100% scale)
• SEO Checklist: Keyword placement, meta description, header structure

You can edit directly in the editor, regenerate specific sections, or request a full rewrite with different parameters. The goal isn't to accept whatever the AI produces—it's to collaborate with the system until the content meets your standards.

Step 5: Publish or export

Once you're satisfied, you have options:

• Direct Publish: If you've connected your CMS (WordPress, Webflow, Ghost)
• Export as Markdown: Copy-paste ready format
• Download as HTML: For custom implementations
• Schedule: Set a future publish date and time (up to 60 days out)

The Publish button only activates once your post clears all quality gates. This isn't arbitrary gatekeeping—it's protection against publishing something that damages your credibility.

Common mistakes to avoid

Skipping the voice setup: You'll waste more time editing generic content than you would have spent configuring your profile properly.

Accepting the first draft: The AI gives you a starting point, not a finish line. Always review, always refine.

Ignoring the fact-check flags: Hallucinated facts are AI content's biggest liability. When the system flags something, verify it before publishing.

Overloading key points: Give the system 3-5 focused bullets, not 15 scattered ideas. Focused inputs produce focused outputs.

What makes BlogOnDeck different

Most AI writing tools give you a text box and a prayer. You paste in a prompt, get back 800 words of generic content, and spend an hour making it publishable.

BlogOnDeck flips that process. The platform front-loads the quality control so you're not stuck doing damage control after the fact. Every draft passes through 12 quality gates before publish—checking for AI slop phrases, factual accuracy, voice consistency, and SEO fundamentals.

You still review everything. You still make the final call. But you're starting from a much better baseline.

Next steps

You've got the basics. Now put them into practice:

1. Spend 10 minutes completing your Company Profile and Brand Voice settings
2. Create a test post on a topic you know well (so you can evaluate accuracy)
3. Review the quality feedback and make adjustments
4. Publish your first piece

The best way to learn the platform is to use it. Start with low-stakes content, get comfortable with the workflow, then scale up.

Questions? Hit the Help button in your dashboard or check our documentation. We built this platform because AI content quality was broken—and we're here to help you fix it.