In recent times blogging yes become a very popular thing. That's probably the case because blogging is one of the most effective methods to market your product, business, or service. Another reason could be that people are using their extra time to be expressing themselves more. No matter what the reason, starting your own blog should be taken rather seriously.
The problem with most blogs is that they are started without the blogger thinking through it. Below are a few pointers the blogger needs to keep in mind before he starts blogging.
Focus on a specific topic
Before starting the blog, zero in on a specific topic to write. The topic you decide to write on should showcase your passion, area of expertise and skills that will let you share your knowledge with others. After determining kind of content you want to blog on, it is important for all your articles to revolve around the topic you choose. If you write about topics your audience is not interested in, you would just be losing traffic and readership, that too rather rapidly. Select a topic that no one is writing about and audiences would be interested in reading about. The topic should be good and niche because if you take up a subject that everyone else is writing about, then it will be difficult for you to stand out. Be exclusive and have your audience’s pulse for your blog to succeed.
Investing your own money in the blog
Blogging is a means of making money for a most people but they are usually not willing to shell out any from their pocket. Give it a good thought before starting your blog. You need to yourself fork some moneybout before expecting investment from someone else. If you wish for monetary returns from your blog, you need to see it as a business and spend money on it.
You’re a lone ranger
You will be handling all the aspects of your blog single-handedly, whether it is design, development, or online marketing unless you can afford to give it out to a third party. You will also be responsible for uploading new content and new information, uploading images, editing, cleaning up the website and taking care of marketing campaigns. You won’t do too well as a blogger if you are a shirker because blogging needs commitment to your craft.
Dedicated time
If you do not have time to dedicate to your blog, then avoid starting it. This is a very common and frequent mistake made by most marketers. Starting the blog, writing a couple of blogs for the first few weeks and then putting it on the backburner is a rookie mistake; blogging actually has a science behind it and you must begin only if you can give it adequate time. It’s important to update the blog at least every other day in a week and one post a day is the ideal way to begin. It will work really well for you if you can commit to your blog. You need to set aside a time and place to work on it every week.
Your blog host should be reliable and competent
The success of your blog critically depends largely on how reliable your blog hosting service provider is. It is important that your blog can be accessed from anywhere and anytime with fast loading time. The security of your website data and user data can be guaranteed by only a reliable blog hosting provider. The server security configuration should be high level to prevent hacking. A good blog host will also back up your blogs frequently, maybe on a daily basis, so that if you lose data it can be restored from a specific date that you need.
No blog becomes a success overnight
Your blog will not be successful instantly. A lot of people give up blogging sooner than later when they do not see positive results. But this is a part and parcel of starting a blog. You need to give it enough time to do well just like you would to a business. Any successful blog that has been around for years will tell you that the initial stages of blogging are the most difficult also. Increase the traffic to your blog slowly and new audiences will discover your blog gradually. Don’t give up even if you see very less traffic even after a few months.
Publicise the blog on social media platforms
If you want maximum returns from your blog, then promote the blog as well as the content regularly wherever you can. Social media platforms are actually the best place for doing that. You need to spend enough time on social media outlets to consolidate your presence and proof there. This will help in telling the visitors that you are influential in your area of expertise. It is possible to drive in hundreds or even thousands of visitors to your site over a period of time if you use it properly and regularly.
Write for readers first then search engines
For the benefit of your blog, it is important that you understand search engine optimization, use relevant keywords and write Meta titles other than implementing Google Authorship so that you can gain search engine traction for your blog. But you cannot limit your efforts to just driving traffic to your blog. Your readers must come first when it comes to writing content, optimizing should follow.
Blogging can be as big a challenge as it is exciting for you to embark on. You will not only have fun writing the blog but it will also be a gratifying experience if you get all these tips right.
