In Summary: Many people will take you that a good blog takes a lot of work but what they won’t tell you is that a good blog requires a lot more than thought-provoking content., keyword research, and links.
There are roughly 30.6 million bloggers in the United States alone and every one of us wants to enter the magic kingdom of being a top visited blog.
The average blog post length is 1,050 words but how is your audience supposed to find the time to read your blog without first understanding “what’s in it for me?”. Here are some essential elements for your blog:
1ne: Always include a short summary. You’re fighting for time and attention so let your audience know up front if your content is relevant
2wo: Use a simple theme. All blogs should have a white background and be free from distraction as possible. Forget “magazine” themes that lump all your stories together.
3hree: Beware of guest bloggers. Guest posts can contain links to bots or be poor content that can affect your blog’s ranking.
4our: Keep the ads out. OK, I know, you want to make money but accepting too many ads can ruin your efforts to produce high-quality content.
5ive: Talk to your audience like you would talk to a person standing next to you.
6ix: Let people know a little bit about you but don’t go overboard. There are too many people trying to enhance their personal brands through blogs and act like they are stars. I can’t count how many social media “experts” there were 4-5 years ago who have since dropped off in popularity due to declining social media marketing.
7even: Don’t believe the rubbish that it takes 3-4 hours to write a blog post. This is about you, your expertise or passion. It should be fun not thought of as a lot of work.
8ight: Beware of “paying” to promote your blog. I have tried them all and frankly they were, for the most part, a waste of time.
Success in blogging is often defined by page views and social shares. I feel that if I help one person learn and become better at what they do than I have done my job. Above all, don’t give up.
