You must be able to answer a few fundamental questions about your
target demographic in order to successfully wed them to your content.
Ask yourself this: Who are these people? Blogging is typically thought
of as a sort of soapbox. The bloggers write, the audience reads. But, if
you want to really draw them in, you will need to open up your ears.
So-hits on your blog are discouragingly low among a targeted
demographic? Study your web analytics and change your approach. Apart
from web analytics, posting surveys on your site or on related sites is a
neat way to adapt your strategy based on real metrics.
These days, most bloggers are aware of the importance of SEO--Search Engine Optimization. Incorporating SEO strategies ensures that your blog ranks as high as possible on a search engine results page. Think of SEO as a translation process; you must make search engines understand the precise value of your blog. Search engines want relevancy and quality. Use accurate keywords often, both in the text of blogs and in the metadata. If your blog has multiple pages, submit a sitemap through Webmaster Tools. You will be helping the search engines to index every page and in return helping yourself. SEO only seems daunting. After some initial research and a bit of experience anyone can become a pro.
Now, think about timing. Try to be ahead of the curve when it comes to posting content that is related to current events or trends. For example, the fashionista demographic may want to read about spring fashion before the season kicks off. Anticipate the wants of the audience. It would also be reasonable to consider the time of day when your readers are fishing for posts. High school students might be in blog mode in the hours after school. Timing is crucial. No one gets to the top of the Reddit feed by writing irrelevant and untimely content.
Above all else, bloggers are storytellers. We read blogs in order to connect in some way with the author. Posts should be compelling and engaging. Again, anticipate the wants of the reader. Never forget that they are inundated with content when they are online. Successful blogs need to assure readers that there is a human on the other end of the computer. They should convince us that we are better for having navigated to this page. With this in mind, carefully craft your mission statement, tone, voice, and perspective. Remember: all of these elements can be experimented with, but only after you've consulted your metrics. See what works and what doesn't work. While you're at it, invite readers to engage in the conversation over Facebook, Twitter, or other platforms.
These days, most bloggers are aware of the importance of SEO--Search Engine Optimization. Incorporating SEO strategies ensures that your blog ranks as high as possible on a search engine results page. Think of SEO as a translation process; you must make search engines understand the precise value of your blog. Search engines want relevancy and quality. Use accurate keywords often, both in the text of blogs and in the metadata. If your blog has multiple pages, submit a sitemap through Webmaster Tools. You will be helping the search engines to index every page and in return helping yourself. SEO only seems daunting. After some initial research and a bit of experience anyone can become a pro.
Now, think about timing. Try to be ahead of the curve when it comes to posting content that is related to current events or trends. For example, the fashionista demographic may want to read about spring fashion before the season kicks off. Anticipate the wants of the audience. It would also be reasonable to consider the time of day when your readers are fishing for posts. High school students might be in blog mode in the hours after school. Timing is crucial. No one gets to the top of the Reddit feed by writing irrelevant and untimely content.
Above all else, bloggers are storytellers. We read blogs in order to connect in some way with the author. Posts should be compelling and engaging. Again, anticipate the wants of the reader. Never forget that they are inundated with content when they are online. Successful blogs need to assure readers that there is a human on the other end of the computer. They should convince us that we are better for having navigated to this page. With this in mind, carefully craft your mission statement, tone, voice, and perspective. Remember: all of these elements can be experimented with, but only after you've consulted your metrics. See what works and what doesn't work. While you're at it, invite readers to engage in the conversation over Facebook, Twitter, or other platforms.
