You dream of spending your days sharing your words with the world. Working from coffee shops and maybe even your couch. Sounds like a dream, right?
Well, there’s more to it than just writing some words and clicking publish. I’m going to tell you what I’ve learned over the past seven years since becoming a full-time blogger.
A few of these lessons are really simple, but that doesn’t mean they’re easy. Ready? Here we go.
1. Blogging is never just about writing words.
Blogging is mostly about marketing, networking, and the way you present yourself. If your blog looks terrible, not many folks will subscribe.
If you’re not very active on the blogosphere, you are also facing an uphill battle of sorts.
Content is king, yes, but there’s an awful lot of other factors to consider as well. Keep that in mind.
2. It’s not just what you write, but how you write.
Blogging is not about being smarter than everyone else. Blogging is about sharing ideas in such a way that most folks can understand them.
It’s how you write that determines your success as a blogger. Folks want to be entertained by your words, so let your personality shine through.
3. Publish less. Edit more.
I’m not saying don’t write a lot — you should — but don’t hit the publish button as often. One great or even good blog post is better than 20 mediocre ones. In fact, content rated as a 7 never, ever, ever gets read by anyone online. There’s simply so much great content that mediocre stuff never even gets a chance.
Don’t try to compete with other writers putting out more posts or words than you are. You’ll never win. That being said, you should write as much as possible every single day. The more you write, the more you’ll learn and grow.
4. Headlines are critical to your success.
Without a brilliant headline, only your mom and a few of your friends will read your articles.
And don’t ever hesitate to experiment with your headlines. If a post doesn’t get the desired response, change the headline.
5. Break a few rules here and there.
Don’t be afraid to break the rules. Or bend them a little to suit your needs and style.
See what works for you, and discard the rest. Blindly following all the advice you stumble upon on the web is a sure path to having no readers at all.
Develop your own sense of what great blogging looks like, and always remember that there’s no substitute for passion.
6. Your blog posts should be about the reader.
If you want to write for yourself, that’s fine, but let’s be clear — that’s really more of a journal or a diary. Unless you’re some huge celebrity, no one is interested in reading about your day to day life.
Always ask yourself this question: what is in it for the reader? Why would someone read your posts?
Also, be honest with yourself. Don’t rationalize it. If the answer is vague, it means you are not adding much value to the online community.
Write to help the audience. Even if you keep an online diary of sorts, you want to take the audience on an adventure and entertain them (which means you are solving the problem of boredom).
7. If you want to be a blogger, you have to be a marketer as well.
It often makes people feel sleazy somehow. After all, most folks seem to be going around begging others to read their blogs.
But the truth is that if you do not promote your blog, no one will read it. It’s as simple as that.
Also, you’ve got to be smart about it. Commenting on other blogs is an art. It’s about offering insightful feedback, entertaining, and never, ever being a jerk.
The stakes have never been higher. The competition has never been tougher.
But the great news is that a lot of folks are making a ton of mistakes.
Those who genuinely care about their content and their readers are few. Those who are willing to be patient enough to develop genuine relationships with fellow bloggers. Those who are willing to work day after day after day on their blogs.
I have been enjoying your post. And this post is also helpful for me like others of yours to improve my blog, thank you!
Thank you, Grace.
This is great advice! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you! My pleasure.
Thank you for this post! It helps me to understand things a bit more.
My pleasure. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment.
Great tips as usual.
Now I understand a few of the tips you gave in your previous posts.
Thank you!
I’ll tell you the headline drew me in and answered my problem, so you crossed off at least two right there.
Thank you, Joe!
Have you written about what defines value for the online community? Maybe a tad too esoteric. Just something I been thinking through, and your blog mentioned added value. Thanks for what you do.
Hi Matthew,
Interesting idea. Value is defined by the reader, I think. I depends on your niche. Value is not just useful information. It can be entertainment, which means you are solving the reader’s problem with boredom.
Value is also self-defined. If you feel that you are adding to the community, to the conversation in your niche, not just aggregating content or repeating what others have said, then I think that you add value to the community.
Great post. I basically have a food blog, wherein I review restaurants. So how do I get more people to read it?
Well, network with other food blogs. Naturally.
Also, try to figure out who your target audience is. Then go where they are. What kind of folks would be most interested in your reviews? Go on blogs and websites where they go.
Thanks for the advice.
Thanks for the advice and keep sharing more of this.
My pleasure, Samuel. And I will!
Great advice! I think number 4 is the toughest for me so I appreciate the link.
I never considered changing the titles of older posts, especially as I’ve got a better idea of what works well now. Thank you.
You’re welcome, Joel!
It’s always a good thing to tweak things a bit, especially when it comes to headlines and introductions. Sometimes, the post is brilliant, but the headline or intro don’t work. If you feel your post didn’t get the feedback you felt it deserved, you can always change those things.
Your comments and advice are always practical and insightful. Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
Thank you, Nancy! I appreciate the feedback.
your posts are amazing and helpful
Thank you!
Thank you, Joe!
Great tips. I find it pretty hard to reach out on WordPress but I will try to work on that.
I’m impressed.
Thank you!
It’s not just what you write, but how you write.
I totally agree with this. If I can present an old idea in a fresh way or explain a complex or deep concept in a way that the average person can understand then I have succeeded in providing something valuable, even if it’s only to a few people.
Publish less. Edit more.
I’m not sure what you mean by “less”. I’ve read that weekly is the minimum frequency for blogging. I have no intention of posting more often than that. I intend to write a lot more often so that I can have posts ready for weeks when life gets in the way too much.
Break a few rules here and there.
This is inevitable since many rules you find online directly contradict each other! The ideal length of posts is a perfect example. My posts average between 200-400 words.
Your blog posts should be about the reader.
Since I don’t have a niche, I obviously have no idea who my readers will be. I’ll discover that as people follow me and I’m in no hurry for that to happen. I’ve only got 5 posts on my WordPress blog so far. Once I have a few more, I’ll go back to the posts I’ve used as sources to see which allow comments. I’ll post comments letting the blogger know that I found their content helpful for my post and post a link to the post. This may draw readers. I doubt I’d bother posting to Facebook or to any of the image-focused social media platforms. I haven’t decided about Twitter and I plan to explore some of the newer platforms.