The cost of starting a blog is its greatest strength and weakness. The truth to the matter is, anyone can start a blog, but not everyone can take their blog to the next level. According to statista, there are currently over 409 million blogs on the internet as of 2018.
As many blogs as there are, most of them would fail and that’s why I don’t fear my competition, but instead, I use them to motivate myself to do better. In this article, I will go over tips that will help take your blog to the next level. Without further ado, let’s dive right into it!
How To Take Your Blog To The Next Level
Tip #1. Tell A Story In Your Content
Stories are what keeps the readers engaged. Do you recall reading a small novel when you were still in school? Was it much easier to read compared to academic textbooks? That’s because stories are fun to read.
When you’re blogging, you should always write for your audience, not for yourself. I’ve seen many bloggers focus on writing masterpieces. Ones that you wouldn’t be surprised to find in textbooks.
I’m not implying that you shouldn’t care about grammar, spelling, etc. What I’m saying is write it in a captivating way that would keep your readers wanting more.
Tip #2. Write High-Quality Content
There should always be a purpose when you write a new blog post. If you’re an information blogger like myself, you’re writing to help people solve problems. Don’t be the typical click-baiting blogger that is overpromising and under delivering.
Your readers will only stay if you provide accurate and informative content. Once you break that trust, they will never come back to your blog again. Check out an article I wrote on how to write high-quality content.
Tip #3. Make Sure Your Blog Is Easy To Navigate
There’s nothing worse than trying to navigate through an unorganized blog trying to find the right content to read. It’s very unappealing and most people wouldn’t be hesitant to just leave and search elsewhere.
It’s like having a desk with paperwork everywhere. Do you think your client will trust you? Probably not because you’re super unorganized.
Keep your blog simple! Your readers will appreciate it more if it’s easy on eye. One of the biggest mistakes I’ve seen bloggers make is overdoing it with advertisements. For important blog posts, I purposely turn off my sidebars, so my readers can focus on the content. — My blog is powered by the Genesis Framework, one of the most popular WordPress themes available.
Tip #4. Know Your Audience
One of the most important factors to the success of a blog is by having traffic. Not just any traffic though! By understanding who your audience is, you will have a better way of building a connection. It’s like trying to sell a product without understanding your customer’s needs.
By surveying your audience and joining communities that relate to your niche. You’ll have a better understanding as to what your audience is looking for. What kind of information would be helpful for them? What kind of product(s) are they seeking?
Tip #5. Make It Easy For Your Readers To Follow You
If you take a look at my blog, you’ll notice that I have Social Media buttons everywhere. It allows my readers to follow me and share my content. By doing so, I am opening the door for more returning visitors. You see, Social Media is one of the most visited websites in the world.
Mostly everyone has at least one account on Social Media. When you post a new article, share it on your Social Media accounts, so your followers can get notified.
Tip #6. Plan A Consistent Posting Schedule
Consistency is very important as I’ve mentioned this probably a billion times by now. If you plan on writing every day, write every day. If you can only write once per week on a Saturday, just make sure you write at least once per week on a Saturday. By having this level of consistency, your readers will know when to expect new content from you. Naturally, they will know when to come back, assuming you are writing high-quality content.
Tip #7. Use Your Google Search Console
Google search console is a tool given to you by Google. It allows you to see your search analytics. It displays what keywords you are getting search traffic on. This will help you pinpoint the blog posts that are getting the most attention from your audience. What I like to do is to go back to those blog posts and revise it to make it even better.
Tip #8. Encourage People To Leave A Comment
A blog is not a one person’s world. It is open to everyone, so it’s a good idea to allow your readers to share their thoughts. Don’t be afraid of negativity because the more successful you are, the more haters you get.
Sometimes, negative comments can be used to your advantage. It’s how you answer to those negative comments that make a difference. Trust me, lots of people read comments after checking out a blog post.
You can encourage people to leave a comment by encouraging them to leave a comment. You can do so by asking a question at the end of your blog post.
Tip #9. Use Tags and Categories
This should have been under tip #3, but I feel like this is important enough to be discussed separately. By adding proper tags to your blog posts, you will help your readers find what they are looking for. This will allow your readers to find older blog posts, so even your old blog posts can bring in traffic.
Tip #10. Email Your Readers
Email is a great way to alert your subscribers to come back and visit your blog. It can also be used to promote a product and service. Very few people would bookmark your blog and even fewer people would visit your blog periodically to see if you have new content. However, most people do check their emails.
I use Aweber to collect email addresses and it automatically informs my subscribers when I publish a new blog post. It’s one of the best money making tools I have to date.
In Conclusion
By following the tips above, it should help boost your blogs user experience. With better user experience, you should also get an increase in traffic which will help drive your blog to the next level. Are you ready to take your blog to the next level?
If you have other tips and secrets on how to take a blog to the next level. Please share it with us by leaving a comment down below.
Kind Regards,
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