From Tween Blogger to Now: 6 Blogging Tips

“That’s going to be great on my blog.”

“Have you seen my blog?”

“Wait!  Don’t take a bite yet.  I need to get a picture for my blog!”

“Can you get a picture of me for my blog?  No, not with you.  Just me…”

I’ve been immersed in the blogging world since I was 14, starting with Xanga and LiveJournal, eventually maturing to Blogger, and, now, on to WordPress.  And I’ve gotten way too very comfortable with saying the four statements above.

For a personal blogger, I feel that I’ve been fairly successful over the years in reaching followers and obtaining views, but it’s been a never-ending learning process.

If you’re hoping to launch a new blog, or even to revamp an existing one, here are the 6 best blogging tips I’ve learned over the years:

1.  Be personal.

The age of social media has turned us all into Peeping Toms.  And this is largely due to the fact that we all desire to feel connected to one another.  A successful blog will offer its readers that connection.  Sure, if your blog is strictly business, it might appeal to someone searching for immediate answers, but only a personal blog will obtain lifelong followers.

The best way to be personal is to incorporate personal opinions, experiences, and applicable day-to-day anecdotes.  And, most importantly, speak in your voice.  A successful blog should be engaging to its readers.   If your blog sounds like Ben Stein is the narrator…oh, sorry, I fell asleep just thinking about it.

Ben Stein, looking dapper.

2.  Use pictures.

Humans have an attention span of 10 seconds, which means…

Wait, what was I saying?

Jokes aside, opening a blog post that’s filled with nothing but paragraphs and paragraphs of words can be daunting, and we’re all busy, with [unless you’re me] lives outside of the blogging world.

Keep text concise and incorporate pictures, videos, and other forms of multimedia when applicable.

3.  LINK, LINK, LINK.

Let’s say you’re talking about your favorite brand of…I don’t know, candy.  Link to their website.  Link to an article about it.  Link to its nutritional facts and cry a little bit.

Linking will provide you with valuable outside sources AND is a great way of connecting to some of your favorite sites!

You don’t even need to explicitly say, “Here is a link to ___.”  Simply hyperlink the appropriate word(s).  Your readers will catch on; I promise.

4.  Be consistent.

Whether you’re going to be writing every day or every week, pick a schedule, and stick to it.  The more regularly you post, the more recognized, searchable, and respected your blog will become.  Maintaining a blog is like maintaining a relationship.  You can’t just disappear for months at a time and return like nothing happened.  YOU CAN’T DO THAT TO US.

5.  Proofread.

This should be more obvious than it is.  Never post anything with errors (guilty…do as I say, not as I do).  Proofread, proofread, proofread.  Ask someone else to look it over for you.  If your readers are like me (aka hypocrites), the second they see a typo, any chance of your blog being viewed as a reliable source is lost.

6.  SHARING is CARING.

Share each new post everywhere.  Facebook.  Twitter.  LinkedIn.  Pinerest.  Share, share, share!  Especially in the early stages, you can’t expect people to simply stumble across your blog and become crazed fans immediately.

Look at it this way…

When I first started housebreaking my puppy, I would take her out at certain times of the day (morning, after meals, before bed, every hour or so, etc.), without her even letting me know she had to go.  Now, about 20 minutes after breakfast, she runs to the door on her own and looks at me expectantly.  The same can be said of potential readers.  They aren’t going to simply check your blog every day, week, or month.  You need to develop the routine.

“It’s Monday again, so check out my new post on…”

And, if your blogs are relatable, personal, interesting, and engaging, eventually, your readers will be visiting your blog on Monday without you even telling them to (but, even then, continue to share).

[That’s the best example I’ve got for you right now, but you get the idea.  Consistency is key.]

What blogging tip would you give to new bloggers?