Posts tagged blog

One of my favorite Sunday afternoon pastimes is watching NASCAR racing and, when not taking a Sunday nap, reading blog postings by some of the master bloggers like Yaro Starak, Darren Rowse and Chris Brogan.

If you want to learn how to make money by Blogging using WordPress I highly recommend that you find and follow successful Bloggers who have already learned the techniques and tricks.

Of course the main “trick� to building a successful business in blogging is content. When you post content that is useful to your readers you will attract not only the search engines but also real “eyeballs� to your website.

When you build a following to your blog you can then begin to monetize your website by adding affiliate links, ad banners and product reviews. You can also market your own products and services using your blog.

To be successful with any form of Internet Marketing and particularly with blogging, you need to stay focused on your goal and post good content often. Today I read a post from Darren Rowse where he talks about the, “16 Important but Potentially Distracting Blogging Tasks.�

Another great post by Chris Brogan gives us, “50 Ways to Take Your Blog to the Next Level� which I have reposted before by permission from Chris. Be sure to add to his list by posting your comments on his blog at www.chrisbrogan.com

[BTW, Jimmie Johnson can in second today in the first Race to The Sprint Cup, oh well]

50 Ways to Take Your Blog to the Next Level

Blogging is as varied in its applications as using the telephone or taking a picture. The tool doesn’t predict the output. You might be using your blog to post recipes, or to inform the local community about information you find elsewhere on the web. Maybe you’re just trying your hand at writing, and the web is as good a place as any.

If you’re looking to go beyond that, however, you’ll need to take steps to improve your blog from at least five different perspectives. In 50 Ways to Take Your Blog to the Next Level, I wanted to share my thoughts on how you should consider your goal, your design, your content, how you promote it, and the business aspects of your blog. Please add to these ideas in the comments, and let’s grow the list out.

50 Ways to Take Your Blog to the Next Level

Make Your Goal and Target Audience Crystal Clear

My point with this entire post, but most especially this section is to ask you to admit what your real goals are with your blog. If you’re not sure, that’s fine. You might not really want to take your blog to the next level just yet. But if you’re feeling as if you want to get serious (in whatever direction that takes your efforts), give strong consideration to the following.

1. If your goal is to be an entertainment or news blog, be very clear that it’s that and not a “fun� blog. Consider splitting off your personal or fun blog.
2. If your blog is to be your business, treat it like that. Get into stats. Get into building audience. Get into delivering something unique. Don’t straddle back and forth on this.
3. If the goal is to be a great community resource, mix your blogging time with time spent reaching out to the community you propose to serve. If that’s an offline opportunity, like something local, be there. Be active. Be a connector.
4. If you’re going to be a professional about your blog, carve out the time to do it right. Never, ever, ever post a “sorry I haven’t posted lately� blog post again. Ever.
5. Up the ante on delivering original material. Get outside the echo chamber. Writing a me-too blog isn’t the way to build your blog to the levels you seek to attain.
6. It’s okay to use a personal voice. In fact, there’s no point blogging if you’re going to write like a cold robot. But keep personal and useful in balance.
7. If you are attempting to do real business via your blog, look for ways to convert readers into customers.
8. If it’s just an ad revenue business, compete, and be honest about that. Compete with others in your space for audience, value, and better deals. My point in this regard is that going halfway into the water doesn’t make you less wet.
9. If your blog is the premier source of information for nonprofits, for photographers, for whatever, then be sure you’re scouring news feeds and finding information outside the blogosphere to keep that relationship informed.
10. Make a point of engaging your community often in the comments section, on their blogs, on the other social networks where you cross paths.

Beauty Is More Than Skin Deep

Consider the design elements of your blog. They do change the way people perceive your work. And, they can help you improve your potential business opportunities.

1. Get your own unique URL. It matters in the long run, especially should you choose to change hosts. For instance, if you move off a blogger account at *.blogspot.com , you lose all link equity and page rank for that domain. This means you’d have to start again from scratch. Already in that position? Make the switch now.
2. Consider moving to a hosted blog. You can get a hosted WordPress blog set up and running for only $10 USD a year at Bloghost.me. (Note: if you use code “brogan,� you can get it for $9 a year. Andy’s a friend.)
3. Consider using a professional theme. I am an advocate for Thesis by Chris Pearson. There are other premium themes out there, as well.
4. Consider getting a customized Wordpress theme. That link goes to Nico Pin, who designed [chrisbrogan.com]. There are others who do this kind of work, obviously.
5. Are there several unnecessary widgets on your blog? Review them and decide which add value to your audience.
6. Is your layout readable? Are your fonts clean and easy to read? Are your color choices all they can be? A little time with your stylesheet goes a long way.
7. If you have ads, are you choking your community with them? Do you actually endorse the products on them? How effective have they been?
8. Is your blog design and layout configured well for SEO? Several blogging platforms now have SEO plug-ins/add-ons to help with this. That doesn’t beat having a professional take a swing at improving your blog’s SEO, but it’s a good first step.
9. A logo and matching favicon doesn’t hurt. You can find various price points for this, and many different people offering the service. Mine was created by Justin Evans and his team at StressLimit Design. I also have friends in California that I highly recommend, as well.
10. Consider the graphics you post on your site. Do they add to the story you’re trying to tell? If not, seek upgrades. There are many freely available graphics at Flickr, if you search by the appropriate Creative Commons license level.

Make Your Content Top Notch

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