Blogging involves planning and plenty of work to be successful. Learning the blogging secrets expert bloggers employ is fundamental to separating a good blog from the thousands of other good blogs within the background blogosphere noise. Experts do not want other bloggers to know these secrets for the simple reason their competition will swell and then their task becomes more difficult.
Selecting a blogging strategy and technique for a specific niche is often a challenging task, because a blogger must satisfy their readers. Some of the most commonly known strategies include:
- writing strong content
- learning how to write for an online reader
- being passionate
- asking questions to involve readers
How to Set up a Blog for Success
Domain Name – for bloggers who want to fill a niche it is critical they establish their own domain name through a hosting service. The ability to select a domain name related to a niche is essential for success, because people search using names and terms related to a niche.
Using free blogging services such as WordPress or Blogger have the advantage of no cost; however, these free services have limitations which include:
- limited formats and themes from which to select, leading to a blog which looks just like so many other blogs
- in ability to monetize the blog using adsense or other revenue sources
Experiment with Posts – try different writing styles and reading levels of blogging posts to determine which result in reader optimization and then stick with this style. Far too often, bloggers stick with a format they like, not what their readers prefer or targeting their reading level. Also, learning to write at the reading level of the blog’s readers is also another secret expert blogger’s use to retain readers after they visit.
Typical blog posts should target the average reading level of eighth to ninth grade. Why? According to Research for Practice by Elizabeth H. Winslow and Ann F. Jacobson in The American Journal of Nursing published in 1998, this is the average reading level for people in the United States and Canada.
Advertising: Social Networking as a Marketing and Promoting Strategy
Spreading the Word – bloggers must view social networking as a strategy for advertising their blog. Readers will visit a blog and hopefully return if they are aware it exists. This is one of the secrets expert bloggers use to build a large readership for their blog – social networking.
Just like in the business world, success and longevity comes with a strong advertising campaign. Bloggers have the advantage of using free advertising through online networking, so take advantage of it.
Using online social networking tools such as Twitter, FaceBook, Stumble Upon, Reddit, Delicious, Buzz Up, Digg, Sphinn, etc. light a neon sign which says – this blog has something to say, come check it out.
Professional Networks – if the focus of a blog is providing products and services, use professional networking groups to for marketing and advertising. There is one online service providing professional networking, which expert bloggers use – LinkedIn.
Blogging Tools: Free Online Resources
Expert bloggers have several blogging tools they use to help separate their blog from the rest of the pack. These online tools include:
- Polls – they use polls to serve two primary purposes. The first is to let their readers know they are concerned about the views and input. The second is to collect information from their readers by using well designed poll questions for completing research, which lead to future blog posts.
- Widgets – expert bloggers use widgets such as Link Within to recommend related blog posts within the blog. They also use a Twitter widget to provide the opportunity for readers to let their followers know about an interesting blog post they just read.
- Analytics – these experts use tools such as Sitemeter and Google Analytics to analyze their blog’s traffic such as referral sites, pages viewed, how long visitors stated on site, keywords visitors used to arrive at their blog, etc.
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Tools – these are essential tools every expert blogger uses to attract traffic to their blogs. Free SEO Tools include Google Adwords and SEO Tools. This is one of the biggest secrets of expert bloggers – mastering SEO to separate their blog from others in the blogosphere.
David R. Wetzel - Dr. David Wetzel's experience includes more than 25 years in continuing, adult, and teacher education.
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