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What makes a blog good, and what are the blogging mistakes to avoid? Blogs and Vlogs are everywhere. Celebrities have them, chefs have them, personal trainers and fitness coaches have them, even your lovable aunt with all those cats has one. But, what makes a blog good? That may be in the eye of the reader. The reason blogs are so popular is because there are so many topics to be explored and things that need to be said.
1. The Sound of Crickets
True, there is something to be said for leaving your audience wanting more. But you have to give them something! Before you start a blog you should make sure that you are invested. You need to be able to add some new content and interact with your readers on a semi-regular basis in order to really do well. Having no knowledge about the topic is one of the most common blogging mistakes. One hit wonders don’t often happen in the blog world. Stay on top of your blog and keep it interesting. Make sure that you communicate with your readers or on your website if there will be periods of time that you won’t be blogging. It is essential that you are not only active on your blog but that you are reviewing your comments and responding. If people see that you are interacting, they are more likely to put you on their favorites. The key to keeping them coming back is to make sure they have something to come back to.
2. No Connection
One great way to get people to read your blog is to draw them in from other blogs. They are already there reading; they just need that extra nudge. Linking to other blogs, especially popular ones or blogs relevant to your audience and subject matter, can greatly increase your views and readers. You can also link to older posts. Maybe you started out with only a couple of followers but now things are starting to pick up; don’t let those awesome posts go unnoticed. Link back to previous posts to bring more attention, loyal readers, and overall traffic. Make sure that you aren’t spamming other blog pages with comment after comment of “Read my blog here”. Most people will immediately write you off as spam or just plain annoying. Your linking should always be conducted in a complimentary and pleasant manner.
3. The Name Game
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Yeah, that may have worked for Romeo, but you are going to have to do a little better. Let’s face it, the title of your blog or blog post may be the one thing that either catches your audience’s eye or sends them packing. You want to avoid trying too hard. The reader should know what the blog theme or post is about when they read the title/heading. That means avoiding metaphors, cheesy one-liners, vague titles, or off-topic headers. Be honest with your readers so that they trust and depend on you to deliver. Keep it simple. Try to keep your title or heading direct and short when possible. Your blog and posts will speak for themselves if the content is substantial.
4. Structure
Last but not least, make sure your blog has an appealing structure. Short paragraphs, bullet points, bold text, and easy to read fonts and colors, are all things to break up the writing and keep it looking clean and pleasing to the eye. No one wants to feel like they are reading your college research paper. Long paragraphs may leave your readers feeling overwhelmed before they even start reading. The flip side of that is you don’t want to bring so many bells and whistles that your page loads slowly or the reader is too distracted to focus on the writing. Look around the web for formats that are appealing to you for ideas. Chances are if it catches your eye, it’ll catch your reader’s eye as well.
Looking for more great tips? Check out our other blogs here!