8 tips and tricks to blogging!

Starting a blog is a great, amazing experience from beginning to end. When I was starting out I googled and read any, everything I could find about blogs. I found that when you are learning something new it is helpful to have access to information about that topic. One thing I hated was the lack of information about actually getting my blog started. I decided to put together a list of a few tips on starting a blog.

1. Find/Identify your niche First.

The first thing you should do when starting a blog is to understand your niche. Your niche is a comfortable or suitable position in life or employment. In the blog world, your niche is what you will be writing about. Even if you are not an expert on a topic you can become one by learning everything you need to know about it. Once you find it make sure this is something that you are interested in and can end up loving because this is your baby.

2. Always tell a story.

When you are writing blogs make sure that you tell a story each time. In this blogging world, it is so easy to hit that X at the top of the screen. You must make sure you keep your audience engage and the best way to do that is storytelling. If you need to do some research on writing styles or being a writer that could really help. You do not have to be an Award-winning journalist to start a blog. Just do the best with what you can and you will do great. Remember this is yours, you have the freedom to do what you want and answer to no one, never forget it.

3. Get to know your audience.

Knowing who will be reading your stuff and what they like can really help your blogging career. In business knowing your audience is key to marketing and sales. Think about your blog as your business and each article is a product for sale. To make sure people buy your products you would be making sure they are appealing to the audience. You want to find two things; your go to and your no-no. Your go to is the thing you know will always work for this audience it never fails. The no-no is the things you know will turn them off.

4. Quality over quantity.

One of the golden rules in this blogging world is to remember quality or quantity. We think that the more blogs we have the better, things will be. This is actually not true. Remember your audience and that they like to be informed too. Articles that are informative with a lot of information will do better than several with no substance.

5. Do not use too many ads.

Ads are the #1 killer to a blog page these days. People want to make so much money they start exploring their options. There are tons of different ad companies but DO NOT over well your site with them. You will notice in your research that most of the sites have tons of ads and popups which make them want to leave asap. Popup and extreme numbers of ads proven the reader to have a good read.

6. No matter what you hear (START A MAIL LIST)

So when I first started blogging, the first thing I did was make an email list. I had a blog platform (Wordpress) that helped me make it. I ended up changing platforms and my email list ended. I started seeing things where they stated that you don't have to have one so I didn't start another with the new website. That was a big mistake. The traffic I have missed since then is crazy. These people that subscribe to your blog, they are purchasing your content you just have to deliver. So no matter what you see MAILING LIST ARE YOUR FRIEND!!!

7. Try other blog platforms

When first starting out it is easy to just be comfortable with the first builder you see and go with that. Yes, this is a way you can go about this but it is not the most efficient. One thing that happened to me was that I started to hate my layout. My blog and I were growing but my website its self was not. I noticed things I wanted things I couldn't and then I started searching. I had to abandon all those page views I worked hard for and start over. If you make sure you pick the perfect platform for you first you will be way better off.

8. Promote, Promote, Promote!!!

After you finish your first blog make sure you promote the socks off that baby. Tell everyone about your new blog. A lot of people will just subscribe because you are new but the majority are intrigued. They liked what you have to say so far and now they want to know every time you have some new info. Use social media and other forms of marketing to get your name out there. Also, remember SEO is your friend.

At the end of the day, this blog thing is not that hard and is something everyone can do if they want. It is time for you to get out there and really give your all. Commit to your blog and your commit to your brands future. I hope these tips help you get through this new time in your life with this new blog baby!!