Starting a blog - what I would do differently
Ok so I’ve been blogging for about a year now, and while I haven’t been as successful (or as faithful) as I would have liked to be, I do believe that I’ve learned a thing or 2 about blogging, and I’ve certainly identified some thing that I would do differently.
If you’re planning on starting a blog of your own, you’re in for quite a ride. I remember when I started my first blog, and to be honest, it was quite crapy; but the feeling of starting something like a blog is definitely one that I won’t forget (kinda like the same feeling one gets from building something really cool out of Lego, for me anyway). I don’t think it’s easy to get it perfect the first time around, in fact, this blog was the fifth blog that I ever created, and even though it is a marked improvement from the other 4, it’s still far from perfect. So don’t worry too much, just start and everything else will fall into place.
Having said that, read the rest of this post, and maybe you’ll pick up a few pointers that could make your blogging life easier. So here goes.
What I would do differently if I were to start over:
- Have a clear plan for my blog’s theme - This is critical. When I started this blog, I had a vague idea of what I wanted to write about, but I didn’t really sit down and decide exactly what I wanted. If you’re starting a personal blog, then this point isn’t so important, but if you plan on turning some sort of profit from your blog, either from monetization or selling later on, then this point is absolutely vital. If I were to start over, I would spend a good amount of time and energy on this point.
- Develop an SEO strategy - This point ties in closely with the previous one. I’m always kicking myself for having neglected this in the beginning. SEO doesn’t have to be such a huge deal either, I know it can seem daunting, but basically all you’re doing is deciding on a key-phrase (or several) and then just adding it anywhere you can. Of course it can get more complicated than that, but if I had at least done that, I would have been happy. As it stands, I don’t even have a key-phrase that I’m targeting (if you have any ideas for key-phrases that suit this blog, please let me know).
- Curb the over-enthusiasm - I know the feeling, you start your blog with at least 10 posts in mind that the world needs to read today. The reality is that nobody is going to even see them, EVER. When I started this blog, I was churning out new posts daily, often it was more like 2 or 3 daily. I don’t think that many people have read those early posts, and as a result I quickly ran out of things to write about. Pace yourself, that burst of information overload that you experience in the beginning is good, but save those posts and publish them over time. It is much better to publish 3 posts a week, then it is to publish 15 a week for the first month, and 1 a month (if that) thereafter.
- Beware of monetization overkill - For a lot of us, we get attracted to blogging because of the prospect of doing something fun and making money in the process. But that can be a dangerous trap sometimes. Nobody likes a blog that is full of ads, so you much rather sacrifice the few potential cents that could be earned, and concentrate on content, and building a loyal reader base. Once you build a loyal base of followers, you can afford to throw up some ads, and maybe even look at other forms of monetization such as paid reviews, but if you put that as your focus from the beginning, you might find that some people are just not coming back.
- Commenting on other blogs - If I was starting this blog over, I would spend a lot more time commenting on other blogs in my niche. That might seem a little silly, but think of it as handing out your business card. When you start a new business, one of the first things you should do is print up some business cards and get them out there. Commenting on other blogs, in my opinion, is the best way to let the world know you exist, and that you know your stuff. So get active, blogging is about community.
- Wordpress - I started this blog with blogger, but unless you really can’t afford it, you should really go with wordpress (not the free one). Wordpress is the bloggers best friend, there are so many plugins that make life so much easier, and your blog will definitely be of more value if you’re not using a free hosting service (such as blogger). Wordpress also has a large community that is very interested in it’s well being and improvement.
Wow, that was long. I’m sure there is still a lot for me to learn, but I’m sure this would help. If you have anything to add, please let us all know in a comment.
Enjoy
Simon
I too have been at it for about a year. It has become such an addiction I wish I could quit. I guess I could just not show up tomorrow but I always comeback to the beast.
Simon,
Are you being silly. Be the look of your catagories your keyword be something like blogging, blog networking, and such.
I really liked this post. Now to go see what a wordpress blog costs.
@Debo, I know exactly how you feel, hang in there, I would miss you if you left.
@Catherine, thanks for the keyword ideas, I suppose one of those could apply. and hey, if you need any help with your wordpress theme, just let me know.
yes, just keep at it. these are some nice pointers, it shows that you have learned a lot from your blogging experience !
great pointers.
i’ve learned some things to but i have nothing more to say about life or myself or anything since i don’t go out much so…my site is pretty much dead.