25 Tips for the New Kid with the Blog
A lot of my friends are diving in to the blogesphere for the first time. I’ve been called in as a consultant (the world’s cheapest) on a few occasions, so I’ve decided to write down my suggestions for all of the brand new bloggers. Here are 25 Tips for the New Kid with the Blog:
1. Be yourself.
2. Be transparent.
3. Be interesting.
4. Talk. Don’t preach.
5. Offer your opinions and share what you’re learning.
6. Figure out who you are writing for — your friends, people in your line of work or with interest in a particular hobby. Think about that person or persons as you write. If the entry you’re writing doesn’t speak to the target audience you’ve chosen, don’t hit “Publish.” (And remember that the person you’re writing for could be yourself.)
7. Write about issues you know and care about.
8. Write well. Improve over time.
9. Read the comments to your entries. Listen. Learn from others’ perspectives.
10. Sharpen your thoughts and ideas. Challenge your beliefs. Grow.
11. Some bloggers stick to a particular topic. Others cover a range of subjects, including personal ones. There’s no “one right way.” But decide early if you’re going to stay focused on a particular subject area or make your blog more of a “stream of consciousness” journal. Choose a format that works for you. But never stray on rules one through ten in the process. These are the Ten Commandments of Blogging.
12. Also remember the Five B’s of Blogging (Be Brief, Baby, Be Brief). And I’m violating this rule terribly in this post.
13. Post regularly: once a week, once a day, or more.
14. Post in advance. Many blog platforms allow you to write a post and have it published at a later time. This is a helpful feature for covering the dry spells of “Blogger’s Block” when times are good and the ideas are flowing.
15. Create conversations. Allow comments and make sharing easy (include a “forward” or “share” option for people to distribute your content through email and on sites such as Digg, Facebook, and Twitter). In creating conversations the goal is to create a community — a group of people who come to your blog to read and discuss what you have to say.
16. Read what others are saying (preferably in a feed reader) and comment on other blogs.
17. Make it easy to follow your blog. Include RSS subscription links for various feed readers and email.
18. Pictures are worth 1,000 words. (I recommend Flickr.)
19. Videos are worth as much or more. (Have you heard of a site called YouTube?)
20. Track your numbers (I use Google Analytics and FeedBurner). Figure out what works. Which entries garner the most hits or click-throughs? Pay attention to the numbers, but don’t write for them. Write for your audience. And write for you.
21. Speaking of numbers, learn about search engine optimization and apply its principles. Your content is important and it deserves to be seen. Apply the techniques for making your blog more accessible in search engines (by the way, the two best ways to do this are to write well and to give your blog entry a descriptive title — hardly rocket science). Call this guy if you want professional help.
22. Choose a blog platform that matches your interest and investment level. Blogger is the economy car. TypePad is the Camry. WordPress is the Cadillac.
23. Blogging saves money but costs time. Being a good blogger takes time. Research what you write about, check and recheck your facts.
24. Have fun.
25. If you’re still on the fence about starting a blog, just go for it!
Note: these tips were inspired by Tiffany, Rheagan, Mary, Carey, Michaella, Sara, Fabricio and Claudia, with ideas and help along the way from Matt, Bill, Tony, Tim, Robert and Shel, and others.
Rheagan said:
I just found your blog! I really do appreciate all of the helpful suggestions. I will be sure to keep each point in mind as I run rampid through the waves of the blog world. You’ve been at it longer than anyone I know. (I must say, I never knew it would be so hard to stick to the 5 B’s)
Thank you for all of the feedback on my blog. I love knowing even in Nicaragua you guys are always there to listen.
Hope you enjoyed your night star gazing…what a beautiful world we live in.
Nathan said:
Thanks for the comment, Rheagan! I’m glad you like the site. And welcome to the blogesphere! The 5 B’s Rule is definitely the toughest — in blogging, writing in general, public speaking, meetings…everything! If everyone could just stick to the 5 B’s Rule, the world would be a better place.
I did enjoy the star gazing. They’re especially bright when the power is out.
Thanks for encouraging your readers to do that.
Can’t wait to see you all here in August!!! Happy blogging…