When I started my blog three years ago I had no idea how much it would bring to my life. I had looked at it as a creative outlet, a place for me to really explore all of my interests and share my findings. Since then, it's become one of my biggest passions. And over these last few years I've also picked up on a few things that really can help your grow blog, boost traffic, and improve your creativity (and who doesn't want to say goodbye to those nasty creative-blocks?)- and today I am excited to share them with you. Click through to find out more!
Write in Your Own Voice: You know that saying “Be Yourself, Everybody else is taken” well – it’s completely true. Find your own authentic voice and use it. Its fine to be inspired by other bloggers, but don’t try to copy their writing style. Trying to be someone else is a sure way to burn out and fail at blogging.
Have a Clean Layout: Nothing makes me exit a blog faster than a messy layout. Think of your favourite blogs – do they have a clear, clean, and bright aesthetic? Chances are, they do! Blog layouts which are clean allow you to focus more on the content and imagery in a post rather than all the other buttons and advertisements.
Use Quality Images: When you think of your images, think of them like the cover of a book - you want them to be eye-catching! Think of how they’ll look being posted as the first impression on Bloglovin, Facebook, and Pinterest – will your image grab the attention of readers?
Keep a Blog Schedule: Keep your posts consistent by picking days and times for your posts to go live. You don’t have to post every day to increase your traffic (though, it does help honestly) but picking out a schedule will help. If you’re looking to make your blog professional, I’d say post 3+ times a week (such as Monday, Wednesday, Friday).
Use Social Media to Promote: Schedule posts on your social media to announce new posts, and also to help drive traffic to your older posts. Hootsuite is an excellent tool to use to schedule posts on your social media outlets. I try to schedule 1-2 posts a day on Twitter, and 1 a day on Facebook.
Ask Your Readers Question: Create a conversation on your blog by asking for feedback and opinions. By being inquisitive you’ll be engaging your readers while also building a relationship with them!
Network with Other Bloggers: Go to events, comment on other blogs, and collaborate with other bloggers! Blogging friendships will benefit you and your fellow bloggers – it’s a win-win for everyone on the business side, and on the personal side it’s again a win-win because you both have gained a new great friend. You can help with photos; create collaborations and campaigns with companies together, and swap blogging tips to help improve eachothers blogs.
Be Grammatically Correct: You do not have to be a grammar whiz to have appealing content, but be sure to check your spelling and eliminate as many errors as possible.
Be Connected to Your Readers: Something I sometimes see with larger blogs is a certain level of disconnect from the blogger to their readers. When you lose your connection your content can come off as contrived and disingenuous. Read your comments, reply to questions, read the emails and answer them – don’t lose that blogger-reader relationship.
Be Personal: Don’t lose yourself in your content, sharing tips and stating facts is great – but be sure to add a healthy dose of you into your content. People are coming your blog for your perspective so have it shine through every topic you’re writing about!
The Don'ts:
Steal Photos: If you’re going to utilize someone’s photos be sure to check their disclaimer page out first to see if they have rules on their images. They may want you to provide a link back, or contact them before you use their images.
Copy Content: Unless you’re literally quoting someone, never steal another blog’s content. Getting inspiration from other blogs is natural, but taking anything word for word is just a huge no-no. If you’re in a creative slump than check out my latest guide on how to beat a creative block, don’t just steal from another blog!
Comment Impersonally: Every blogger has received a comment or two (or 10) that are completely copy + paste comments. The “Great work!” and “Nice Blog!” aren’t genuine comments, and by following up with “Follow me!” I can almost assure you that you have lost a possible follower. Comment genuinely, or don’t comment at all.
Overshare personal information: Your safety has to be a priority in any situation, and that includes your blog. A while back I saw a blogger post an image of a package she received and it showed her address – this really freaks me out. Share the city you live in, but be cautious to share more than that.
Use profanity: Nothing turns me off of a blog more than profanity. There are ways to make a point without using that sort of aggressive language.
Clutter your Layout: A messy layout is distracting and will take away from your blogs content. Be sure to eliminate unnecessary items from your layout to create a cleaner aesthetic.
Use Blurry Images: Poor quality images always distract from a blog. Your content could be great, but if your photography doesn’t match it than you could be missing out on a ton of readers + traffic. The images you post are used to promote your posts on social media outlets, so maybe sure they are good quality! Plus, many readers out there quickly scan a blog before actually committing to reading it, so if your images don’t grab their attention you’ll likely be saying goodbye to thousands of possible readers.
Post Impersonal Content: Engaging content is real + honest content, so make sure your content speaks to you before posting it. Read what your write before posting it. If something sounds off in your post to you, than chances are it’ll sound off and inauthentic to your readers too.
Ignore your Readers: A huge part of blogging is the readers who visit your online space, so be sure to pay attention to them. Listen to their feedback, see what they like based off your pageviews, and ask them questions. Ignoring your following will only hurt your blog in the end.
Try to Copy another Blogger’s Voice: Like I mentioned before, a copied voice will only lead to a massive blogging burn out. Accept your voice and your vision - and run with it!
Related Posts: 10 Traffic Boosting Post Ideas, How to Create Great Content, How to Increase Your Blogs Traffic