Browsing Tag

Blogging

Blogging Content Marketing Social Media Marketing

How to Create Engaging Blog Posts

July 8, 2015
Blogging

Every second there are thousands of blog posts being posted online, so what makes someone engage with a particular post over another? Through all the online noise, you want to make sure your blog gets the attention it deserves. You wrote it for a reason, you want it to be seen. So follow these simple tips and guidelines to make your content stands out from the overcrowded streams.

Create Interesting Content

People are not going to waste their time reading your blog posts if it is not of interest to them. Create content that is useful, educating or entertaining for readers. If your intent is to educate or provide information for others, make sure that you know what you are talking about. Do your research and provide information that is correct.

Keep in mind Quality is always better than Quantity.

Become an Expert in your Field

Research, research, research. Read other people’s blogs on similar topics, learn from them, the more you read, the more you will learn, and this will come across in your writing. Keep up to date with the latest trends and facts. Information is always changing, so by keeping up to date with the latest knowledge allows you to stay ahead of the game, and you can share your knowledge with others through your blog.

Find your writing style

Think about your writing style and how you want to come across to others through your writing. Do you want to write from a professional standpoint? Think about your target audience and what is relevant to them. What is your subject matter, as this will also determine what voice you are trying to have. Think about your approach, are you informing, sharing experiences or creating conversation?

Use Images

Humans are visual creatures. So always add an image or more if you can to draw in readers and encourage them to read what you have written. Find an image that is relevant and of good quality. This helps when you want to add your blog post to social media. Using an image will help your tweet or Facebook post stand out from the rest.

Use Headings

Breaking your content up into sections with headings makes it less overwhelming for readers. If they come to your post and see pages of chunked content they may feel overwhelmed and not read any of it. So break it up into sections with headings. This also allows readers who are pressed for time to scan your post for snippets of information that they are interested in without having to read everything. Or, after scanning your headings they will be more intrigued to read your whole post as they know ahead of time that you will be covering a list of topics that will be of interest to them.

Leave it Overnight

After you have finished writing, leave it a day and then come back and proof read it. If you proof read it and send it straight away you’ll have a higher chance of missing errors. You will find proof reading it a day later is easier to spot mistakes.

Write regularly

Try to write on a regular basis. Think of a realistic schedule and stick to it. If once a week is feasible, then set aside time each week to write, and try to publish to a regular timeline. So if you plan to write one article per week, try to post on the same day of the week each week and at the same time. Once people start following you, they will know when to return back to you to read more. The more confident you become with your writing and subject the easier it will be for you to write more on a regular basis.

Post to Relevant Social Media Platforms

Once you have published your blog, post a link to relevant social media platforms. Twitter is the best platform for nearly any blog post, followed by Facebook. If your blog is relevant for LinkedIn then you can also post it there. If you don’t already have a Google+ account, now is a good time to create one, as anything you post to your Google+ page will rank higher in Google.

Follow these simple tips and your blog posts will have a better change to survive and get the attention you are after.

Image source: Vector Stock
Blogging Web Design

How to Create an Avatar

May 29, 2015
avatar

Ever commented on a blog post or a forum and want more than an empty image that resembles a game piece on a board game to represent you? Or you have created a website using WordPress and can’t figure out why your picture is not showing up? Then you need to create an avatar. It’s a simple and easy process that allows you the freedom to add either an image of yourself, or a picture of your choice.

Before I walk you through the steps on how to create one, I want you to first give some thought to the picture that you want to use. Think about what it is that you do online and how you want to come across to others. Are you a gamer who wants a more arty image, not necessarily a photo of yourself so that you can remain anonymous? Or are you a writer who wants to create a professional image of yourself? These are all things to think about when deciding on which image to use.

Steps to creating your Gravatar:

  1. Go to Gravatar
  2. Click ‘Create Your Own Gravatar’
  3. Create an account, or if you are already registered with WordPress then log in.
  4. You will then need to confirm your account via email if you have created a new account.
  5. After confirmation you will be taken to a page that says ‘Whoops, looks like you don’t have any images yet! Add one by clicking here!’ – follow the prompt and click here.
  6. Select which method you would like to upload your image from
  7. Upload your image and click ‘next’
  8. You may then crop your image, so click ‘Crop and Finish’
  9. Click ‘G’ rated, if you click a higher rating, then you will find that your image won’t show up on most websites. Unless your image is not ‘G’ rated, but I really recommend you re-think your image choice if it is not.
  10. Select the image below, and click ‘Confirm Image’
  11. In the highlighted box click ‘Check this Gravatar’
  12. Your gravatar will be updated online within 5-10 minutes.
Image Source: VectorStock