Everyone is bloggging! At least that’s what it seems like sometimes. That can make starting your new blog a bit daunting. But it needn’t be. Karin from the popular Cafe Bebe blog (follow her on Twitter at @CafeBebe) knows a thing or two about successful blogging. Here she guest posts her top 10 tips for getting started and making the most of your blog. Even if you’ve been doing it a while, these tips are valuable back-to-basics advice. Over to Karin:
Parent blogging is a wonderful opportunity to share your experiences, to find a sense of community and to create something that stimulates your brain that is yours and yours alone. Starting a blog is the easy part but growing your blog and moving forward are slightly more challenging. Here are 10 Top Tips for Beginner Bloggers. Good luck and most importantly, have fun!
1) Investigate the various blogging platforms: You can use Blogger, WordPress, Typepad and other forms like Posterous. Have a look at each platform to decide which is the most user friendly and allows you the creativity you are looking for. Blogger and WordPress.com are free platforms, as is Posterous. You can also look into self-hosted WordPress but this will cost you money as will Typepad. If this is simply going to be a creative outlet for you and not a mini-career, you should be perfectly happy with the free platforms. If you are hoping to make some income from blogging or use it as a vehicle for bigger and better things, you may want to consider investing in a self-hosted platform which allows you to create whatever you like.
2) Choose a theme or a background that’s easy on the eyes: It’s fun to pick a funky or entertaining blog theme that very well may mirror your personality. However, some blog themes or backgrounds can be too busy for the eyes.Aanimation or flashing graphics can also cause your blog to load very slowly, which is frustrating for the reader. Also think about the layout of your blog to allow it to be easily readable for your visitors. Your post should stand out from the other items in your sidebars or background as it’s obviously the reason that people are visiting. Once you settle on a theme, stick with it. Many bloggers change their themes to reflect the seasons, which is quite refreshing. But if you’re changing themes every other week, your visitors are going to get a bit dizzy. Take the time to visually plan out your blog to get it right before officially launching it.
3) Content is king: You can have fancy bells and whistles, pretty designs and layouts, and lovely advertising but the only way you’re going to attract readers who will come back on a regular basis is to have consistently good content. Blogging about your grocery shopping list is not terribly inspiring; however, blogging about a particularly amusing or horrific trip to the grocery shop is. Get out and live your life and the blog posts will naturally follow. Don’t squire yourself away in a corner struggling for things to write. Keep a notebook and jot down ideas for posts. Take pictures along the way to accompany your posts. A picture or video will really draw the reader in and make the post that much more personal. Write from the heart and the readers come back for more.
4) Give credit where credit is due: If you are using images or material other than your own, credit where you got them from. You do not want to be caught out by using someone’s image without their permission or without giving appropriate credit. If you’ve received an idea or inspiration from another blogger or post, give a link credit to that individual. They deserve to have a pat on the back and for others to know that they inspired you. A sure way to draw others to your site is to link to theirs in your post. Read other blogs and mention related items in your post with link credit to that person’s blog/post. It’s a sure way to make others aware of you and potentially draw them into visiting your post and your site.
5) Make your site STICKY: When visitors land on your site, no matter where they came from, you want them to stay a while and have a good old read. If visitors are popping by and then running away immediately after visiting your site you need to give them a reason to stay. Having pages or categories on your site is one way to show visitors that there is more than just the post of the day to peruse. Also, having your categories listed will encourage visitors to have a browse through posts that might be similar to the one they’re reading. Be sure to include an “About” page or “Contact Me” page where you tell your readers who you are, and perhaps include information about your family. This will help readers to know more about you and potentially allow PRs to target a pitch more specifically. If you are willing to accept items for review or will entertain offers of advertising, state your case in a page for “Advertising/PR”. You’re encouraging people to read on but also making your terms clear upfront.
6) Comment, comment, comment: Visit other people’s sites and have a read on a regular basis. A great way to catch all of your favourite bloggers is to subscribe to their blogs through their RSS feeds. Their latests posts will appear in your Google Reader or in your email and you won’t miss a thing. Don’t just be a “lurker” who never joins the conversation! Comment on people’s posts and share your experiences. Leave your name, blog and url so they can find your site as well. The more you comment, the more that people become aware of you. That will drive traffic to your site. You can get to know other bloggers, find similar personalities and strike up online friendships, which can help to involve you in the community. You will also learn about regular blogging events like Carnivals, The Gallery or The Writing Workshop which are additional outlets for your creativity and for more exposure.
7) Join social networking groups: British Mummy Bloggers is but one social networking site where you can gain exposure and meet other parent bloggers. Google “parenting social networking sites” and you’re sure to find other areas where you can explore and become involved. You can also create a Facebook Fan Page for your blog which will draw in friends and family and create additional avenues to be seen and found. Twitter is an exceptionally good way to gain worldwide exposure for your blog. Again, you will need to interact with other bloggers and individuals to build up a following but Twitter is a popular and easy way to promote your blog and events on a regular basis. Most blogs allow you to add plugins which, when set up, automatically Tweet your latest posts. You can also schedule tweets to post well ahead of time so you don’t have to be tied to your computer in order to promote your site.
8) Anonymity or Not?: You will need to decide, before you publish your first post or create your “about” page, whether you want the whole world to know who you are. Many bloggers are not anonymous but keep certain aspects of their lives secret. Perhaps their partners wish to remain anonymous or perhaps you’d like to keep your children’s identities a secret? Some bloggers use their children’s names or nick names but do not use children’s photographs. If your children are older, it’s reasonable to ask them how they feel. Do they want you to be writing about their playground fight? Do they want you to write about their latest birthday? Perhaps not. Depending on how you feel, you may want to remember that if you wouldn’t say something to someone’s face, you shouldn’t be writing about it for the whole world to see. If you wrote a scathing post about your mother-in-law and she happened to read it, how would she feel? Consider the feelings of those around you when you begin writing about your life. It’s your blog and your right to do what you like but you may want to consider how much of your life you want out there for the general public to read.
9) Indexes, Competition and Rankings: There are various rankings and indexes in the blogging world which rate the popularity, engagement and power of parent (and other niche areas) blogs. Every index and ranking measures blogs based on different metrics in order to rank blogs. Some value certain aspects more than others but every index does it in a different way. If you’re bound and determined to reach the upper echelon of these rankings and indexes, do your research and understand what they are looking for and how to get it. Comments, visits, links and engagement are all factors as well as social networking influence. If you do choose to involve yourself in the indexes, try not to take it too seriously. It’s simply a way of ranking blogs and by no means takes into account the depth and breadth of your writing or how much your readers love you. Reaching the top of any index is not going to bring wealth and riches nor will it secure you that book deal you’re so desperate for. Being a conscientious blogger who blogs from the heart and gets involved in the larger blogging community is much more important than any ranking or number.
10) Be yourself: Blog with integrity and blog for yourself. After you’ve been blogging for a while, you may start getting pitches from PRs who would like to shower you with the latest, greatest product and want you to blog about it. Those first offers are very flattering and enticing. To feel that your opinion matters is a wonderful thing. But don’t let it cloud your judgement. Don’t start grabbing at everything that comes your way. If there’s something being offered that will really work for your family and will be of great interest to your readers, then by all means, take advantage of the opportunity. Don’t be afraid to say no, however. You can always be gracious in doing so however and maintain a professional relationship with the PR for future possibilities. When reviewing products, be sure to fully disclose how you came to review the item (did you receive a free sample?) and what your honest opinion is of the product. Make sure you are aware of what the PR expects in return for your review and deliver in a professional and upstanding way. Never sell out for the sake of getting something for free.
Follow these tips when you begin on your blogging journey and you’ll find the road to blogging bliss much smoother. Good luck and happy blogging!
– Karin from Cafe Bebe
About Jennifer Howze
Jennifer Howze is the Creative Director and co-founder of BritMums. She blogs about family travel at Jenography.net, tweets at @JHowze and Instagrams at @JHowze. Previously, she wrote the Alpha Mummy blog at The Times and as a journalist has contributed to The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Wall Street Journal, Travel & Leisure, Budget Travel, CNN.com, Allure, SELF and Premiere, among others. She won The Maggie Award from the Planned Parenthood Federation of America for a health article in Seventeen magazine.
Vicky
Wednesday 17th of August 2011
Really useful advice have bookmarked this for future reference!
Elle
Wednesday 9th of February 2011
Great tips, some really good advice in there. Thank you!
Tamsin
Tuesday 7th of September 2010
Awesome post! With my daughter starting school I've been crazy busy juggling life and not visiting other blogs at all, and it shows in my rankings massively! It just goes to show that visiting other people is so important. Thank you!
Susanna
Saturday 28th of August 2010
Great post Karin!
Jennifer Howze@jenography
Saturday 28th of August 2010
@TheMadHouse Thanks for the reader tip. And you're right about the grocery list and what will strike a nerve. I always say, run it up the flagpole....