Blogging is often thought of as the perfect blend of arts, science and marketing. As a result, there is no one “right way” of getting it done. The key is to deliver whatever your clients paid you for. Here are a few tips from blogging experts for all experienced, brought to you by a leading search engine optimization agency.
Brian Clarke, CEO- Copyblogger
As a blogging expert with several years of experience, Brian advises writers on understanding their audience better than they understand themselves. It often requires a lot of questioning and research, but at the end of the day, all that trouble is worth it.
Simply ask your readers across various social media platforms with an engaging quote. If your readers respond positively to the quote, then the topic is definitely worth writing about. This technique works wonders if you’re coming up with a new and unique idea for a blog.
Neil Patel, Founder-KISSmetrics
Neil advises all professional and amateur bloggers to be consistent. It is one of the most important aspects to blogging. It is far easier to lose your web traffic rather than building it up, so make it a point to blog on a consistent basis.
This observation was further proved with a research by Hubspot. It conducted a two-month study, which revealed that businesses publishing frequent blog entries (at least two per week) succeeded in adding subscribers much faster than companies that added content only once a week.
Kristi Hines, Freelancer
Having worked with various organizations, Kristi advises bloggers to start building their own email list from day one. Even if you do not plan to sell anything, having a standby email list will allow you to promote your content and communicate with your target audience easily. This way, you need not worry about your search rankings.
When promoting your blogs through email listing, you can always experiment with your writing style and creativity. For instance, if you replace the line “subscribe by email” to “get jobs by email”, you can substantially improve your subscription rate- as Willy Franzen found out.
Darren Rowse, Founder- ProBlogger
For any business, customer retention is as important as acquisition. Blogging is no exception to this rule either. If you have an avid reader base, you should appreciate them and encourage them from time to time. Look for new readers each day, but make it a point to thank your existing ones.
A blog is more than just online content. It is a promise to your readers that you always have something for their taste. This is what separates your blog from a generic newspaper article- a strong call to action with reader benefits and an emotional appeal.
Jeff Bullas, Author- Blogging the Smart Way
Everyone loves free gifts and giveaways. Your readers love that too. And that’s where Jeff Bullas comes in with his advice of giving away a truckload of free content that adds value to the readers’ lives. Websites with giveaway contest get nearly twice as many email subscribers are others. However, care should be taken when creating new content. It should be relevant, focused and to the point.