How To Maximise The Benefits Of Blogging
Does your blog need a little TLC? Let’s look at when you should apply some strategy to those intelligent digital ramblings.
It can be a challenge to tread the line between blogging about Every Single Thing. that happens in your life (such as that friend from high school who updates their Facebook status every 5 minutes) and leaving your audience really, really wanting more by posting only when all the planets in our Solar System align. Blogging with “fresh” content, a.k.a. content that has never appeared on the web before, will improve your search engine rankings; but if doing so merely pushes you from the 100th page of search results to the 75th, you’re not going to see any significant change to traffic.
So where is the middle ground? How can we know how much is too much, or when a scarcity of posts will find you going solo? Consider these different factors that come into play when determining your blog balance:
Check Your Readership Numbers
If you’re just starting out as a burgeoning blogger bursting forth on the blogosphere, then your enthusiasm level probably outweighs the number of readers you have. In that case, you don’t need to be focusing on SEO right now. What you need is readers, people in front of screens reading your content, and you’re not going to get them by increasing your SEO – not yet, anyway. Derek Halpern of diythemes.com suggests a few ways you can maximise your exposure when you’re just starting out:
First, see if you can write a few guests posts: “This is one of the easiest ways to get your name on a large blog. You give content, the large blog gives you exposure.” Second, invite people to interview you to put your name into the mix: “Interviews are a great way to get exposure. As a matter of fact, I like them more than guest posts because you’re the center of attention… not your content.” Third, land major press mentions – however this one is easier said than done: “Find who’s getting press in your industry, and see if you can land it too.” If you use this advice, your subscriber numbers will be off to a healthy climb.
Find Your Scheduling Sweet Spot
No matter how often you post, stick to a regular schedule. Readers like to know when new material is coming out on your blog, and if it is regular and engaging it will keep them coming back for more.
Most bloggers out there write their blog on the side and have another full-time job, which can make regular blogging difficult. Sue Anne Dunlevie at successfulblogging.com suggests posting at least once a week: “If you update your blog once a week and write 1,000 words per post after a year you’ll have written a small book. That’s impressive.” Dunlevie goes on to outline more benefits of blogging regularly: “You’ll get more visitors with more posts to attract new readers and loyal readers will come back more often the more your blog’s updated. You’ll grow the volume of content on your blog faster which the search engines will notice. In time that should help improve your search engine ranking. You’ll increase your chances of people sharing your content with other people or linking to it from their blogs and grow your readership faster.” In any case, the point is that posting regularly will improve both faithful readership and, in time, SEO ranking.
Make Your Blog Your Job
If you find that you have some extra time in your everyday schedule, use that time wisely and post, post, post! Hubspot’s State of Inbound Report, available to download here, found a direct correlation between the frequency of blog posts and the number of new readers: according to their stats, the more you post, the more readers you will get. What’s more, if you eventually get to the point where you can make money off your blog, you will need to continue to build your readership base, so keep those creative juices flowing.
There’s no magic potion to find blog success, but the right combination of creative, fresh ideas with a smart posting strategy will have your blog sailing in no time. Build your blogging website today with Website Builder from UK2.