There are many benefits associated with launching your own blog. For example, it gives you the chance to cultivate an online community, share your opinions with others, save money, and it can even be a great way to travel and still advance your career. However, the growing popularity of blogs means that competition is fierce from the get-go – meaning you have to find a way to stand out if you want to build a readership and succeed.
With that in mind, here are some top tips for aspiring bloggers.
Brush up on your writing skills.
The first step to running a successful blog is learning how to write the perfect blog post. This means far more than finding a suitable topic to discuss – you’ve also got to think about the tone and style of your writing and the audience you are writing for. Then, you’ve got to think about spelling and grammar too!
Get technical.
If you really want your blog to succeed, then you’re also going to need to brush up on your technical knowledge, too. For example, if you’re going to be using certain software, such as Photoshop, to curate content for your blogs then you’ll need a bit of program-specific know-how. For example, Photoshop often takes up a great deal of virtual memory – which is often taken from your ‘scratch disk’ (SSD or disk drive). When an error occurs here, it’s important that you know simple ways to solve it so that you do not lose any critical data or spend hours pouring over a problem that has a simple solution.
Choose a niche.
As mentioned previously, the world of blogging is one of fierce competition – which means you must build a readership sooner rather than later. After all, if you’re going to be putting a lot of time and effort into writing your blog, then it deserves to be read and enjoyed. One way in which you can achieve this goal (and build a readership) is by choosing a specific niche for your blog. For example, if you spend a lot of time vacationing you could write a travel blog. This way, you’ll be able to carve out a name for yourself within a certain community or industry – making it easier for others to find you.
Post consistently.
The key to succeeding on any online venture – whether that be blogging or posting Instagram picks is consistency. After all, if you do not post on a regular basis then readers will lose interest, or may even forget about your content entirely. However, on the other end of the spectrum, you should also avoid oversaturation and do not post too much – as this could again turn readers away. While posting every single day may seem like a good idea to begin with, it likely demonstrates that you aren’t putting a great deal of time, energy or thought into the content you produce. As a result, you should aim to post on your blog a few times a week – on the same day or time. This way, readers know when to check in!
Collaborate with other bloggers.
Another easy way to extend your readership (and even make new friends) is by collaborating with other bloggers. Keep an eye out for bloggers you admire or whose content is similar to your own and reach out to see if they will be willing to collaborate on a project. For example, you could write a guest post on their page. This will increase the amount of exposure both your writing and your blog gets and is often a mutually beneficial endeavor.
Learn about SEO.
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) practices are a great way to drive traffic towards your blog and increase your visibility. While this may sound a little confusing – don’t worry – it is much more straightforward than you think. SEO simply refers to a series of keywords and phrases that you can use that will increase your blog’s online ranking. When applied correctly, they will place your page at the top of Google (and similar platforms) searches as opposed to your competitors. There are plenty of SEO tips and tricks that bloggers can use – such as using free software to identify the keywords you need to be using in the first place. Ideally, you should determine which keywords or phrases you are going to use before you start writing the blog so that you can ensure they are incorporated organically – otherwise it may feel as though they were ‘forced’ into the text and disrupt the flow.
