As I write this (May 11th), it is EOTM’s 2nd birthday! And it’s crazy to think that at 11 pm, bordering midnight, I hit launch on the website for the first time with my handful of small posts and barely any clue what on earth I was doing. And now here we are, with over a hundred posts (actually 192, with this one) and doing fairly well in terms of stats.
So in the spirit of this, I am writing about my five tips for creating a blog, based on the last two years XP. It’s gonna be short because hey, May is VERY busy for all of us, but if you have any questions about blogging or starting a website that you’d like to add in the comments, send ’em and I’ll try to answer them.
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#1 Know Your Niche
This sounds cliche, I know, but this is going to help you SO much down the road.
I know many new writers who start out a blog and just write whatever they want. That’s fine, but it’s going to be a lot harder for people to find you online. Search algorithms try to find the sites with the most matches to search queries to give to web surfers. If I have two blogs and one is about knitting, and the other is about knitting, limericks, my 37 cats, my collection of World War 2 soda bottles, and my weird wart problems that grow to the size of large erasers, and someone searches up “blogs about knitting”, which one is more likely to come up? The blog about knitting! And chances are that person will come back to the blog JUST about knitting.
It’s not bad necessarily to have a rambly blog, but you will get more traffic if your readers know what to expect from you. Figuring out what topics to write about is a whole rodeo in itself, but if you need help, I’d recommend starting with this article:
#2 Use Yoast
Yoast SEO is a plugin for WordPress sites that helps improve how search engines find you through keywords. Most people hear “SEO” and have a panic attack, but it just means Search Engine Optimization. And what Yoast does is make it easy for your site to get seen. The interface is pretty simple and it has easy tips for improving your post to be more visible. I write in keywords for all of my sites and at least try to get a “good” rating. I don’t have the hard data to see how much this works, but my site shows up places, so it must be doing something right.
#3 CONSISTENCY IS KEY– but don’t forget breaks
A lot of articles I’ve seen about writing blogs emphasizes consistency, WHICH I ONE HUNDRED PERCENT AGREE WITH! Consistency is highly key and I make it a point to send out a blog article once a week, every 5 AM on Monday– even if it means I have to stay up late on Sunday night to do it *nervously eyes the clock*.
But, one thing I’ve learned as I’ve been in a season of burnout: it’s okay to take breaks. Don’t drop the place like a hot potato, leave a note– but if you really can’t blog that week, it’s okay. Your readers will understand. You’re not doing them any favors if you’re just burning yourself out, creating content but forgoing quality to do that. Even I feel like I do that sometimes, if I’m being honest.
So yes, be consistent, but also give yourself grace. Sometimes I think as creators, we forget that we are finite people who do not have all the time and the energy in the world for our craft.
#4 Reach Out to Others
One of the ways that your site gets seen more is if Google notices your link in other places. And yes, that includes even commenting on a post with a comment form that includes a link to your site in your name. So comment on other blogs! Connect with people in your niche. Interview people, find guest blog opportunities. Of course, don’t just randomly post the link to your blog in comments (that’s rude), but meaningful interaction with other blog posts can often make a blogger’s day, and if it helps your algorithm a little bit too, it’s a win-win for everyone. Writing shouldn’t be a lonely endeavor– somewhere out there are content creators like you! You just might need to do a tiny bit of digging to find them.
#5 Love your audience
I can never emphasize this enough: people, blogging isn’t about YOU. I know, we’ve all see the movies and stereotypes, but at the end of the day, the page that you write on is something of a superpower. Use the words that you have to bless and love others! Love the people you’re writing for, not for how they serve you, but for how you can serve them. Ask them questions and get their opinions. Talk to them (and be sure to listen when they talk back). Research so you know what people in your audience are looking for right now and how you can give it to them. Ultimately, if you love your audience and love serving your audience, your blog won’t feel like a chore. Even if no one comments, it doesn’t mean people aren’t reading.
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Yeah I know that was EXTREMELY short but I’d like to open the floor for Q and A, if y’all want. Any questions you have about blogging, shoot! I’d be happy to answer them ^_^ (and don’t forget to link your website with your name in the comment form ;))