Just like having kids, when you first start out with a blog you are lost. It is just a fact of life. Unless you have had a blog before you have little to no idea of what you are really doing. In fact you can read as many blogs as you want to before you start blogging and you will still not have any real idea of what you are getting into. Here are some tips for first time blogging parents:
- Get started – If you wait around for the perfect time or until you figure out everything you need to know before you start up your blog then you will be waiting forever. The best way to learn what you need to know about blogging is by blogging. You just have to get started. I know, you are worried you will mess something up. Well, you are probably right. You will make mistakes and do some things wrong. The good thing is that most mistakes are best made at the beginning, so now is the time to screw things up. But you may be surprised. Blogging is easier than you think and you may jump into it successfully, like a duck to water. You will never know, though, if you do not get started.
- Pick the right platform – The blogging platform you pick will determine how and what you blog. I know, it seems like any of them will do, but that is just not true. If you pick Tumblr you will end up doing mostly photos or videos. If you pick WordPress or Blogger you will end up with more text. It is just the way they work. You have to play to your audience and your audience varies on different sites. Personally, I like WordPress best because it is easy to use and customize, but that is really up to you. There are even more technical and less well known platforms out there so do not think you are confined to just the ones I mentioned. If you are a techie sort you can find all sorts of cool platforms that might be just the right kind for your blog.
- Pick a topic you are passionate about – You need a niche. Now, that does not mean you have to talk about the same thing in every blog post, but it does mean that you focus in on one aspect of something. It may be kids, it may be music, or it may be gadgets. Whatever you pick, make sure you love it. If you do not love what you are writing about then you will not be successful. Why? Because readers know how you feel about a subject. If you are just dialing it in then they will go elsewhere. Passion comes through on the page, so make sure you love your blog topic.
- Pick a good name – There are a lot of blog names out there that are forgettable. Do not pick one with numbers or random latters. Try to avoid dashes. Try to pick something that is memorable for your users. Charlie143 is not memorable. DeathRock is. Make sure you know your blog topic before you pick your blog URL and name, okay? You do not want a blog called DeathRock if you are talking about flowers, nor do you want one called ButterflyKisses if you are talking about car tires. Make sure it fits and is easy to remember.
- Title accurately – The thing about blog posts is that the title is everything. That is the very first thing a potential reader is going to see. Your best bet is to make titles catchy. Use name recognition to get people in and make it twisted so they stay interested. I would read something titled ‘Ten Healthy Snacks Scooby Doo Would Love’ before I would ever click on one called ‘Healthy Snacks’. Get it? Good. The point is to not only catch people’s attention with the titles but make sure the titles fit the blog post. Readers hate to be tricked into clicking something. If you can’t write on it then do not use that title.
- Keep it short – Short and sweet is the name of the game. No one wants to scroll through pages of text when they get on your blog, so do not post long blog entries. Instead, break a long post into a series of posts. The rule of thumb is that if you can’t summarize your blog post into two sentences or less it is too long. Keep posts under two thousand words for best results. You should also break up your paragraphs into short ones of around three sentences each. This helps to keep readers from getting overwhelmed by text. Another great way to keep readers from tuning out of a longer post is to break it up by using headers. A header is a simple thing for anyone to add, and even a basic html program can bold a header to make it stand out from the rest of the text. Make sure you make the headers short, useful and informative.
- Lists are great – In the same vein as the last point, and fitting with this post, lists are a great way to get and keep reader’s attention. The thing about lists that people like is that they can be scanned easily and you automatically know how long the post will be. A list of five things is short; a list of seventy five things is long. You can get your mind set before you ever click on the post and you will be ready to skim or sit down for a spell. This ability to help readers get an immediate grasp on length and also be able to quickly see if the list is applicable for their needs makes list posts more likely to be read then nearly any other type of post.
- Use images – People are overwhelmingly visual. It is just a fact. When anyone sees a picture it catches their eyes before any text does. This means you have an opportunity to grab readers’ attention long before they read anything, even your title. If you can add a funny, cute, weird, or beautiful image to your blog posts then you have a jump on everyone without a picture. Do not worry; there are plenty of places you can get free images that anyone can use if you do not want to post personal pictures. Flicker is one place for amateur photos, but even professional stock photos are available for free on sites like freedigitalphotos.com and whoopy.com. Adding an image is a fast and easy way to make your blog posts stand out.
- Edit later – When you are posting on a blog all the time it can get a little frustrating. You get burned out and feel like you have nothing left to write. Do not let that get you down. The easiest way to get over writer’s block is to just write. Spill your guts out on the page and do not worry about what, exactly, it is you are writing. When you are done you can come back and edit it, make it flow, or cut out parts you do not like. This way you are getting something done even if you do not feel very productive.
These are just a few of the ways a parent blogger can be successful right off the bat. There are many more hints for successful blogging I could give you, like tagging your posts and becoming a part of the blogging community, but I think this article has gone on for long enough. Some things you will just have to figure out on your own. Remember to have fun and love what you write or do not bother to blog at all.
Author Bio:
Ken holds a master’s in business leadership from Upper Iowa University and multiple bachelor degrees from Grand View College. As president of morningsidenannies.com, Ken’s focus is helping Houston-based parents find the right childcare provider for their family. When he isn’t working, he enjoys spending time with his three children and his wife.
photo source: mumables.com