Some Things You Need To Know About Writing Blogs
First Some Basic Facts
So maybe you've been considering writing a blog. That's great. Writing blogs can be both challenging and fun. And even if you're not so good at it at first, you will get better over time. That's just how it goes. Then one day you will look back at your earliest posts and realize how much you have improved. You may even cringe when you read your old blog posts. That's okay, though. You can edit those old posts, using your current skill level.
But, just starting out, you should probably know of some of the facts and statistics regarding blogs and blog writing. First, how often you should post. For the best results, at least three times a week. That may sound like a lot but you don't have to start out at that frequency. You can start out by posting just one blog entry a week. Then work up to two and, later on, three. Nobody says that you have to go full throttle right away. You should know that, to be successful at blogging, you need to post regularly.
Article length is so important. Search engines favor longer blogs with more words over shorter blogs. The absolute minimum, according to some, is at least 500-700 words. That is the absolute bare minimum. For the best results, around 2,000 words or more. Search engines will then give you a much better ranking in the search results.
Search engines regard blog posts with more words to be higher in quality. The logic behind that is that a blog entry with more words is most likely more detailed, more informative and more professional. So you need to remember that and really try to get to the point where you can write a blog with as many as 2,000 words. The search engines also take into account the frequency at which you post a new blog entry. They think that frequency is an example of your level of professionalism. So domains or subdomains of blogs that post more frequently will be favored. The various search engines index websites regularly. So the various changes, such as new content, are noted.
Mind Your Grammar And Spelling
When someone reads a blog post and they see numerous spelling and grammatical errors, they may be inclined to think that the information given in the blog may be less reliable. The blog entry you write could be completely factually correct, but the person reading it may disregard what you're saying if it is poorly written, because a poorly written blog is perceived to be less professional. It's just how things are. and it's unfortunate as well. So it is important that you try to ensure that your skill levels pertaining to spelling and grammar are up to snuff.
One thing that helps to improve spelling and grammar is to read. However, you need to read a bit differently than normal. Try to read a book with an analytical approach. That means that you analyze the sentences as you read them. Analyze the grammar, spelling and the words used. If you see a word you don't understand, look up the definition for it. That will enhance your vocabulary. Observe the usage of words that sound the same. People often get them confused. Words like there, their and they're are often confused with each other.
One mistake that I see often, mostly in social media posts, is someone saying more then, rather than more than. If I had a dollar for every time I've seen that one, I'd be a millionaire. The correct way is more than. If You go to Amazon.com, you can run a search for grammar guide books that can help with your grammar.
Some Search Engine Optimization Tips
Search engine optimization (SEO) is important too. There are certain things you can do to improve it. We've already mentioned the frequency and length. But other factors come into play. They are the usage of keywords, usage of headings and subheadings. Blogs are best broken up into sections and separated by headings and subheadings. Those headings and subheadings should contain important keywords or description of what follows in that section. The section that follows the heading or subheading should also contain the same words. An example is the fact that the heading above this text contains the term search engine optimization.
Just don't overuse the keywords. The search engines see that as a form of spam and will actually penalize you for it. One thing you can do as far as finding good keywords to use is to run a search on the best keywords and you should be able to find some tips. Also be mindful of common terms or phrases used by bloggers who write blogs in the same area of interest as yours. See how the pros do it. Let's say you want to write a sports blog. Run a search for the top sports blogs. The ones listed in the top of the search results are there for a reason. They are doing something right.
Use Headings And Subheadings
Each section of the blog article should have its own subheading. The reason is that a reader can quickly scan the blog for the section that may interest them most. The subheading is larger than the regular text and is easier to see when someone quickly scans over the article. The unfortunate truth is that not everybody reads the entire blog article. However the reader, after reading the section, may find that section to be so interesting that they decide to read the entire article. I find myself doing that quite often.
Various Features To Offer In Your Blogs
There are a number of features you can add to your blogs to make them more interesting. Images, embed codes from YouTube or Instagram, relevant links and so forth. An image is something that catches someone's eye. Some studies have determined that social media posts that include images draw in more people and are more likely to be clicked on. So if you post your articles on your social media pages, make sure they include at least one image. Most platforms will display an image from the post if you post a link to your blog.
If you have a blog post that refers to certain things, you could provide links to sites that are relevant to the subject matter of the blog. This makes your blog seem more helpful. If you have your own Instagram account, you could use embed code from your Instagram posts. This not only adds something interesting to your blog post but could also steer the reader to your Instagram account.
Methods Of Blog Promotion
There are many ways to promote your blog. First of all, you need to be on multiple social media platforms. You need to be on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (now X), LinkedIn and so on. You need to post a link to your latest blog entry to all of the platforms you are on. No point in being shy about it. I myself am currently on five different social media platforms.
Ask your friends to share your posts on their social media pages. If you think they would be supportive of you and your efforts, don't hesitate to ask them. What would it hurt? If you have a website, post links to your blog from your website. Post a link to your blog from all of your social media accounts. Most of them give you an option to include links on your profile page. If you don't promote your blog, you will get very few people actually seeing your blog posts. Just be careful not to post links to the same blog posts too many times. That will actually annoy people.
If you know people who have a website, ask them if you can do a guest blog post. Website owners should be happy to add content to their websites. It makes the site more valuable to have more content. As long as the subject matter of your blog matches the subject matter of the website. You may also ask the webmasters of other sites, of people you don't know. There is usually contact info like an email address on every website. You can ask for an opportunity to do guest blog post on their website and post a link to your blog so they can see examples of your work. If they like the quality of your work, they may consider granting you that guest blogger opportunity. Just make sure that you are allowed to post a link to your blog with a short bio about yourself.
Always proofread
Always proofread your articles. That is the last thing you should do right before posting. I've actually, in the early days, posted some articles that I didn't even proofread. Then I read them and notice the mistakes. I don't do that anymore. I proofread everything before I post it now. I'll sometimes miss some mistakes but nobody is perfect.
Sometimes it seems that no matter how many times I proofread an article before I post it, I end up missing something anyway. I sometimes go back to read some of my old blog posts and spot an error of some kind. I'll go back in and fix it. So it's a good idea to go back every now and then and check your old posts for typos and other things.
Studies have also shown that the more time someone spends writing an article, the better the quality generally is. It might seem obvious to most but some people like to take shortcuts. Those shortcuts and time savers usually mean lower quality. So take that extra time to proofread. Proofreading doesn't just catch typos, spelling errors and grammatical errors, you may also see that some things could have been worded better.
In Conclusion
I can't give every tip there is to give regarding the subject of blogging in a single blog entry, but I think I covered a lot in this article. There is a lot of competition out there between the various blogs that are online. There are millions upon millions of blogs on the Internet. You will need to stand out from the rest in order to do well. That could involve a unique perspective regarding the subject matter at hand or information you feel may be lacking. In any case, be unique and be yourself. Also do what you can to promote your blog. It may not yield the results you want right away, but if you are persistent, things will improve. Below is link to a book that could be helpful in assisting you with English grammar.
Bob Craypoe
Basic English Grammar For Dummies
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