What happens to your blog post after you press publish?
Crickets chirping? Tumbleweeds gently rolling by?
Are you starting to lose your motivation and the belief that this whole blogging thing really has any merit when it comes to building your platform and actually selling some books?
You are not alone. Blogs are abandoned every day, and the harsh reality is that the majority of blogs get less than 1000 people visiting per month.
So why are some blogs incredibly successful, while others limp along for a few months and eventually fail? What can you do to ensure your blog is one of the success stories?
Blog Post Mistakes and Mis-Steps
The mistake I see many writers make is that they see their blog or website setup as the hurdle. But the real work comes with developing and maintaining a site that readers want to return to time and time again.
To this end, crafting great blog posts is paramount. However, determining whether your content is in fact great is a big challenge.
If your blog posts are not feeling the love, you are likely committing one or more of the blog post blunders below.
1. No Plan
This is the biggest oversight that most writers make when developing their blogging content, and the most common reason most newbies quit blogging. They fail to establish a plan or a roadmap for the content they create.
No plan means no focus, and your readers are left with a smattering of thoughts and topics that are largely irrelevant to their wants and needs. Your passion alone is not enough to ensure that the subject matter is of interest to the audience you hope to reach.
Many authors sweat blood creating their manifesto one blog post at a time, only to discover that the message is not sought by anyone.
What to Do Instead:
- Identify what your readers want, and give it to them. This is easier said than done, of course, but the more time you put in here, the bigger the payoff to both you and your readers down the road. (For more on this, read my post on building your author brand).
- Strategically plan your blog posts to include topics that are useful, relevant, and helpful to your reader. Focus on what is core to your message and what your audience is already searching for.
- Create an editorial calendar to visually map out your articles. This will aid not only with time management and productivity (writer’s and deadlines, right?) but limit writer’s block and lack of motivation because you already know what you’re writing about.
- I use the WordPress Editorial Calendar plugin, which is free, but even the calendar on the fridge will work, as long as you use it, and use it consistently.
2. No Research
Spontaneous, off-the-cuff posts can sometimes be great, but for your readers, they can seem a bit thin. The meatier the post, the bigger the benefit to your reader. And by ‘meaty’ I don’t just mean epically long.
Answering the critical question “What are my readers searching for?” becomes much easier if you spend some time doing your research.
On-topic blog posts that provide valuable, well-organized, and extremely useful information are loved by both your readers and Google. Even articles that represent your ‘expert’ opinion, or are meant purely for entertainment, can still be optimized with a little research.
“Avoid creating content you want, unless you’re fine with being your only reader.” Tweet this
Writing a blog post without first finding out if your readers are interested or creating a post that provides little beneficial or practical information to your reader is often a waste of time.
What to Do Instead:
- Be generous. Spread a little link love by linking to other helpful articles, quotes, and materials. You are not a swiss army knife: you can’t fulfill your reader’s every need, nor can you be an expert in everything. Add to your reader’s experience by providing them with a post with carefully chosen references that increase its impact and value.
- An added bonus? Karma–and good business–dictates that your generosity may be returned by your peers and other bloggers you’ve kindly mentioned in your blog posts.
- Poll your readers (email your list) and ask your readers what they are struggling with right now. Their responses will be a treasure trove of new post, new book, or new service/product ideas.
- The free Google Keyword Tool lets you find out what your audience is looking for, the exact words they are using to find it, and even the number of searches they do each month to find the answer. Here, the keyword phrase I am searching for is ‘blog post’ with a result of a whopping 673,000 global monthly searches:
- I can scroll through the results to find other ways that people are searching ‘blog posts’, which may give me more ideas as to the angle for my article, the headline, subheadings, and so on:
3. Poor Design
Although strong content is a crucial aspect in attracting and retaining your readership, overall blog design, aesthetics and functionality also come into play.
Poor site design, and by default, poor blog post design, can cause a reader to jump ship before they’ve even had a chance to be exposed to your awesome content.
Blinking adverts, confusing copy, slow loading, hard-to-read text, not a trace of whitespace to be found… The list is long for design bloopers, so it’s important to steer clear of the most obvious infractions, and tweak your site to draw your readers in (not force them off).
Another aspect of design is understanding how people read online, and format your posts to fit that style.
Online readers typically scan content, looking to quickly absorb the most salient points in the shortest time.
“Scannable posts are the new black. It just works with everything.” Tweet this
Even those readers giddy at the site of a thick book will dodge long, unbroken blocks of text in a blog post.
What to Do Instead:
- Use short paragraphs, lists, bullet points, headings, and subheadings to break things up visually and draw the eye to important points.
- Ensure the text is easy to read (14pt – 16pt) and clean, with no irrelevant links, ads or other distractions that compete with your article content.
- Light font on a dark background is very difficult to read and should be avoided in your blog posts.
- Block quotes, images, and other graphics can also help to break things up visually, but be cautious not to overdo it.
- Use formatting (bold, capital, italics, underline) to add visual cues or to emphasize key points.
- Pop-ups that appear at various times while the reader is on your site can be used to draw attention to an action you wish the reader to take. Not everyone is a fan, but in some instances, they can be very useful. Consider carefully if these ‘interruptions’–to join your email list, buy your book or consider your freelance services–will be perceived by your reader as valuable or just irritating.
4. Ineffective Headline
Have you ever experienced a headline that was so clever that you had no idea what the post was about, but not so clever that you were interested in finding out?
A boring or unclear headline guarantees a poor response to your article. With so much competing for your reader’s attention, a headline fail can sentence your brilliant blog post to a lifetime of obscurity, without a flicker of interest from your audience.
“A headline fail can sentence your brilliant blog post to a lifetime of obscurity.” Tweet this
Your headline is arguably the most important part of your blog post because it’s a great headline that captures the reader and draws them in. Otherwise, you have the tree falling in the woods scenario: If an author writes a blog post and nobody reads it, does it still exist? 🙂
What to Do Instead:
- To avoid headline failure, you need to learn from those who have become masters. Here are a few resources to help you hone your skills as a headline savant:
How to Write Magnetic Headlines by Brian Clark at Coppyblogger
52 Headline Hacks: A Cheat Sheet for Writing Blog Posts that Go Viral by Jon Morrow at Boost Blog Traffic (requires email optin, but well worth it).
Using Titles Effectively on Blogs by Daren Rowse at Problogger
- Do your research! Knowing what your audience is looking for–and the words they are using to search for it–greatly increases your chances of creating a headline that resonates with them.
- A fun and free tool that I sometimes use when stuck is Portent’s Content Idea Generator. A very simple tool that allows you to generate literally hundreds of content and headline ideas, all around your simple keyword or phrase:
If you look closely, I could have changed the content somewhat and had another possible angle and post title. 🙂
5. Irrelevant Image
Like your headline, your blog post image is an extremely powerful tool. Its purpose is to capture the spirit or crux of your post and draw readers in to read the rest of your content.
Often, this enormous opportunity is wasted by using an unappealing, irrelevant image, or no image at all. Even image placement can affect whether a reader continues past the headline and image, or clicks the back button on their browser.
What to Do Instead:
- Choose your image with care. Make sure it ties in with your article in a fairly obvious way. If your audience can’t see the connection, it becomes either a distraction or a mislead.
- Placing your image to the left or right of your content decreases the line length for your first few sentences. This can also help to pull readers in.
- There are many resources, some free some paid, to acquire images or graphics for your blog. I often use Flickr Creative Commons or Morguefile. Make sure you understand the license for each photo you use, and ensure you get permission or give credit as required. (For a good summary of finding and using images in your posts, check out this article by Pat Flynn of The Smart Passive Income Blog).
- Pinterest is a platform that should not be left untouched by authors eager to gain visibility. Ensure your images are pinnable and even watermarked with your name or site name (ensure you have permission if not using your own photo). PicMonkey.com is a fantastic and easy-to-use resource that you can employ to add text, graphics, and more to your images, for free.
6. No (or useless) Lead Paragraph
Your lead paragraph has one purpose: to get your readers to read your second paragraph. One of the most successful ways to do this is by triggering a feeling or strong emotion in your reader.
If your first paragraph is not immediately relevant or sufficiently moving to pull the reader in, you’ll lose them–even though you may have scored a win with your post title and image.
What to Do Instead:
- Consider your lead paragraph as important as the first few lines in Chapter 1 of your novel. Grab your reader and lead them through each sentence until they’re hooked and can’t walk away. Writers should have it easier than most bloggers!
- Ask a question or two. A reader may pause long enough to consider an answer, and then want to compare their answer with yours in the article.
- Evoke high-arousal emotions like surprise, awe, anxiety, fear, loss or anger (careful with the last one). People tend to share and comment more if you activate these emotions.
7. Purposeless Content
This is a biggie and is of course tied to blunders number one and two above–not having a plan, and not doing your research.
Writing ‘purges’ may be helpful as a writing exercise, to just turn off your internal editor and get it all out there. But rarely, if ever, should this be your approach to writing blog posts.
Random, meandering, ineffective, or purposeless blog posts don’t convey your writing ‘voice’ to your reader, nor do they get shared (or even read, for that matter).
“Practical, useful, or emotional content is more likely to be read and shared.” Tweet this
Knowing what your audience wants (because you’ve done your research) and adding in the elements of emotion or usefulness can massively increase your chances of crafting a blog post that not only gets read but can potentially go viral.
What to Do Instead:
- In order to create useful content, you need to focus on solving people’s problems. Do this with practical tips, links, and tools that help your reader reach their goal.
- Entertain your reader by using humor, personal stories, or even a rant. Just make sure your point is obvious and relevant to the reader.
- Focus on your reader and use a conversational writing style.
- Have a clear main point and make it.
- Try different post types. From how-to posts to case studies, list posts to breaking news posts. Dig through this article on 52 Types of Blog Posts That are Proven to Work by Karol K at Problogger for inspiration.
- Use multimedia to entice your audience to consume your content. Embed video, use quotes, create a podcast, poll your readers, develop a series or blog your book.
8. Reader Left Hanging
Success! You’ve done the work of planning and researching your article and have managed to draw your reader in with your sharp headline and your artful image.
Your lead paragraph does its job of evoking emotion and your reader is blissfully carried through to the end of your intelligent and valuable content.
Your reader pauses, finger hovering over their mouse, ready…
This is the PERFECT time to tell your reader what the next step is–join the conversation by leaving a comment, sharing your fabulous article with a thousand of their closest friends, sign up for your newsletter which must be as fabulous as the post they just read…
But instead, there’s nothing. No call to action, no encouragement from you to join your blog community. So off they go into the netherwebs, a potential fan, supporter, and reader lost.
What to Do Instead:
- You MUST give your reader something to do at the end of each post (call to action).
- Ask a question or two, and suggest they join the discussion by leaving a comment. Back-and-forth communication between you and your readers–or between the readers themselves–fosters engagement and builds community. Encourage it!
- Ask your readers to share the content they just enjoyed.
- Include an email opt-in box at the end of your post. This is the perfect time to prompt your reader to join your email list.
- Ask your readers to consider purchasing your book, investing in your course, or obtaining a service.
- Be careful not to ask your reader to do too many things. Given too many options, a reader will likely choose to do none of them. Review your article and decide what one or two things would you most like your reader to do.
9. Illusive Author
Most people like to know where their information is coming from, and especially online, transparency is very important.
It is much easier to trust the source if you can see, and even relate to the person or persons behind the blog. However, some authors make this difficult by using a pen name, or hiding behind an author ‘persona’.
What to Do Instead:
- Be authentic! It is much easier to engage with a real person.
- Write like you are talking to a friend and be interesting and open.
- Make it clear who wrote the post (guest posts included). Readers shouldn’t have to search for the post author.
10. Inadequate Editing
As writers, I think we *should* know better than to allow our work to be ‘published’ without editing, editing, and more editing!
This blunder also relates to the readability of your article. Nobody’s perfect, but if your blog post is full of spelling errors, poor grammar, and broken links, you are wasting your reader’s time and likely damaging your author brand as well.
What to Do Instead:
- Consider the impression you’re leaving by publishing your poorly edited work. Take a little extra time to ensure that you are sharing quality content that has been properly edited.
- After writing your blog post, leave it for a period of time, and then come back to it with fresh eyes to catch errors you missed the first time.
- Ideally, you could have a second set of eyeballs check your post, but this may not always be feasible.
- Ensure your links are working, they lead your reader to where you’ve intended and they open in a new window (in WordPress, choose this when you are adding the link).
- Even the pros make mistakes or have spelling errors on occasion, but your goal should be to publish only your best work every time.
11. SEO Neglect
If you are avoiding the first ten blog post blunders, then this one is probably not a major issue. If you’re not, then it probably is.
Some creatives have SEO aversion and choose the build it and they will come philosophy to blogging. Unfortunately, this rarely turns out well.
Google wants to provide uber-useful content; people want to read uber-useful content. If you can provide this, it’s in your best interest (and your reader’s) if you give Google a heads-up as to where to find it.
What to Do Instead:
- The good news is that the biggest chunk of good search engine optimization comes from crafting great content. But crafting great content includes knowing what people are enthusiastically searching for online, and how competitive that particular topic is (use the Google Keyword Tool).
- If you have a self-hosted WordPress site, consider using an SEO plugin to help you optimize your on-page SEO and influence your blog post’s search engine ranking. (I use the WordPress SEO by Yoast plugin).
12. Onerous Shareability
I can’t count how many author websites I’ve visited where I’ve wanted to share their entertaining or industry-related content, and have spent several minutes searching for social sharing options!
The fact that I even take the time to search around to find an option to share, shows how compelling the content is! But I often end up leaving the site or using Hootlet – Hootsuite’s URL shortener and social media sharing tool–to share the content with my followers.
What to Do Instead:
- Make sharing easy. There are many WordPress plugins available that make this a snap.
- Set up Click to Tweet for your most noteworthy points. Give your reader the opportunity to share when they are most likely to want to–when they’re deep into your article.
13. Post and Abandon
You have taken great pains to provide your readers with an epic post that speaks directly to their needs, wants, and desires.
Even the search engines are on board, driving traffic to your wonderfully crafted blog post.
Readers are engaged, commenting and sharing your post, and even eagerly joining your email list.
And what are you doing? You’ve chained yourself to your computer or laptop because according to your ‘plan’ (see Blog Post Blunder #1), you’ve got four more ‘legendary’ posts to get out this week.
What to Do Instead:
- Consider adjusting the time you are spending creating content as opposed to promoting it. Yes, great content is necessary for the growth of your blog, but only if people actually see it.
- Use the 80/20 rule for content creation: spend 80% of your time promoting your content and 20% of your time creating it.
“The easiest way to get readers for your blog is to convince another blog that has readers to send readers your way.”
- Take Derek’s advice and start looking at other sites whose audience is a close match to your ideal readership. Guest posting on other blogs can be HUGE! Look at your editorial calendar and include guest posts in your plan.
- Contributing articles to blog carnivals can also help you to get in front of someone else’s audience.
- Cherish your commenters and respond to each and every one. Consider how often you’ve felt moved to leave a comment on a post you’ve read, and the extra time it required. Your blog commenters are like gold–make them feel valued!
- Optimize the reach of your post by emailing your list, and sharing on your active social platforms.
- Test your “Tweetables” and social sharing buttons to ensure they work, and to see what your visitors will see when they use them.
Over to You
Are the posts you are currently writing getting noticed? Are you making some of these blogging blunders and limiting your potential to reach your readers?
Or, do you feel that maintaining an author site is an impossible task and you’re ready to throw in the towel?
Please share this post and join the discussion in the comments section below. (Yep, see what I did there? :))
Your posts are always so helpful! Thanks for sharing this valuable information 🙂
Great to hear that, Cindy! Hope you can put the info to good use!
OK, I know that I have committed several of these blunders on my own blog. I am learning to use more images and to break up my paragraphs into smaller bite size chunks, even when my schooling keeps trying to tell me that one sentence is not a paragraph. lol.
I still need to work on the SEO part as I don’t really think I am targeting keywords effectively.
Thank you for this quick insight into how we bloggers can improve the visitor’s experience of our online home 🙂
Writing posts for ‘scanners’ does go against the grain a little for some writers; but consider how you yourself consume content online. You’re likely a scanner too!
Thanks for your comments, Victoria, and it’s great to hear that you’re applying some of the concepts, even if ‘schooling’ is getting in the way… 🙂
Kimberley,
I could not agree more that writers should pay close attention to their own behavior on the web. It can teach one a great deal about how to reach readers. We are no different than other users of the web and by observing what catches our attention and holds us on the page, we’ll learn to better server our readers.
Also, I think it’s great exercise for writers to learn to write for scanners. Why shouldn’t we have to work hard to capture their attention? They’re impatient, busy, and goal-oriented, just like us. It will make us all better writers to write for a demanding audience.
Love the way you think, Brian! 🙂
It’s funny that there can be such a disconnect between what authors think they should be doing to engage with their audience, and what their fans really want – especially since I haven’t met one writer who isn’t an avid reader!
Be your own focus group and analyze what compels you to get knee-deep into a post, pick your next “I can’t stop ’till I’m done, but I don’t want it to be over!” read, or to take the time to recommend an author’s work to a friend.
What you expect from your favourite authors, might just be what your readers are expecting from you.
Great job, Kimberley. Once I get rid of my horrid theme I have lots of plans. I have a drive full of well-researched content. The only hold up is personal life that gets in the way. Always hard for writers, whatever the form. 😉 Thanks so much.
Ahh, life… That does seem to put a kink into the best laid plans, doesn’t Lee? Good luck with finding your theme; with so many to choose from, you’d think it would be easier, but it never is!
Thanks for stopping by!
A very thorough and smart post, Kimberly. Excellent advice and very practical points.
I love the fact that you didn’t just point out problems – but you also offer *multiple* solutions. Thanks!
Thanks, Gary! It would be so much easier if there was just one sure-fire way to get you from here to success. But Derek Halpern of Social Triggers makes a great point when he notes that it’s not the ingredients, but the recipe, that’s important for a favourable outcome.
I’ve collected the ingredients, but it’s up to each author to create the recipe that really makes their site stand out! (Or, taste great? :))
Whoa, Kimberley! That was TONS of information in one post. That was like an encyclopedic post, full of great ideas, tips, and practical information. I, for one, love the Portent Title Generator – fun! I’d never seen that before and I think it will prompt some fun and effective headlines. Great job!
Thanks, Bobbi! The title generator is fun–and can really get those creative juices flowing!
Thanks a bunch for your comments and support!
I just started my blog this month, and I’ve already committed some of these mistakes! But are there any exceptions to the rule about light writing on a dark background? Because you see, my blog is about Christian Education and the background is a green chalkboard with white words (like chalk). There are no other themes I like that have to do with education available. I want to make my blog attractive. Do you have any suggestions?
Great question, Renee! There are always exceptions, and sometimes the most creative result comes from bending the rules a bit. 🙂
Light font on a dark background can be used to express mood or create an impact, so it may work quite well in some instances (like your home page), where there is limited text and it’s combined with other elements and graphics.
However, using a design that has light font on a darker background for your blog posts is not ideal because it will be much more difficult to read, even if your careful to format as noted above. And if it’s difficult to read, it won’t matter how good the content is or how well the theme ‘fits’; people will leave your site.
I’m not sure how much tweaking you can do to your design template Renee, but here are some things you should consider:
– Can you make changes to your site to create a chalkboard border around your post (leaving the text dark on light, but retaining the aesthetic appeal)?
– Who is your intended audience, and will they have more difficulty–or less patience–with reading posts written with light text on a dark background (i.e., parents, teachers, administrators vs. students)?
– How long will your average post be? If there is limited text, additional graphics or images and good formatting (easy to scan) then it may not be a problem. If you anticipate writing 600 word plus articles, it will be.
– Can the font size and style be changed? Larger font sizes and simple clean fonts are easier to read in general.
Hope this helps! And good luck with your new site!
This is a great post.
First, it’s very informative. Thank you for informing me about some helpful WordPress plugins. I’m doing research on some of the most popular and useful plugins to use myself and to share with my own audience.
Also, even though this was a long post, it kept me reading, probably because you practice what you preach and designed it with relevant content and broken up the copy with number and bullet points. I find that readers have a hard time reading longer posts, depending on the blog and topic. What I’ve learned today are better ways to write longer posts to keep readers engaged just by studying how you did it with this post. Nice work!
Thank you.
Thanks so much for your feedback, Leslie! Can’t wait for your post on WP plugins… 🙂
There is a lot of information in this post…having followed the rabbit trail of links you provided, I read that long posts are more likely to go viral and wondered if that may have been part of your strategy here!
I’ve certainly made many of these mistakes in my earlier blogging days but am making less of them now. I’m not great at the call to action at the end of posts and reading this has made me ponder that a bit. You’ve inspired me to work on that – thank you.
Thanks for your comments, Sharla! There’s a few reasons I tend to write longer posts, and one is for the viral possibilities. But here are some other reasons:
– It adds tremendous value to my readers
– Google likes long content
– I can be generous with links, i.e., your ‘rabbit trail’ 🙂
– There’s more opportunity for additional photos and videos
I’ve made most of these blunders too; sometimes it just helps to have a checklist to bump you out of a rut and into your groove!
Awesome, Esther! So glad you found it useful!
Thanks for stopping by 🙂
I’ve read about this stuff over and over again on various blogs, but it was never, never so well presented!
I really like how your content was organized, and the “what to do instead” section for each blunder.
Thanks so much, Helene! ‘Tis true I am not reinventing the wheel, but there is nothing more frustrating (for me, at least) than posts that provide the warning, but not the fix.
Glad you agree 🙂
Thanks so much! This information is straightforward and so applicable. Will be using your tips in my online writing.
Awesome, Peggy! Thanks for taking the time to comment!
You are welcome, Shan! And Portent’s Content Generator is useful and fun!
Another good post to check out if you haven’t already is Discover and Build Your Author Brand. It will help you synthesize your message and hone in on your unique selling proposition: marketing speak for your ‘secret sauce’.
Knowing what you have to offer that’s different from others in your niche will not only make marketing easier, but will help you craft exceptional content for your readers.
I’ve just started and realized right off the bat that content is king. So rewarding to write a great post and have people react but one does have to hunker down and come up with something meaningful to say.
That is the hard part, isn’t Tony? ‘Epic’ content isn’t easy to come by, but if you consistently strive to produce your best work and spend the time to learn what your audience is really after, what you do come up with should resonate.
Congrats on starting; that’s the hardest part!
Great post. I use the editorial plug-in, too, and it’s definitely helpful. The generator you mentioned sounds like an interesting tool. A lot of useful information.
Thanks, Vikk! Have fun applying some of these ‘to-do’s’ to your own blog!
Kimberly,
I really liked your article and I wanted to share it with my network — and I could not find a share button for LinkedIn 🙂
Just a thought.
Lucky
Added to the floating bar on the left, Lucky! Thanks for your feedback 🙂
Ditto all that, except for one thing: I despise “click to tweet,” so much that it makes me reluctant to keep reading a blog. It’s manipulative and patronizing. Avid Twitter users never, ever, ever need suggestions on what to tweet. It’s like back in the day, people often added “Please Retweet!” to their tweets, which is now considered amateurish. If you’ve posted something tweet-able (or re-tweetable) it will get tweeted. Don’t try to force it.
You make an interesting point, Kathleen, although I must admit that I haven’t heard anything against the ‘click to Tweet’ option (accept maybe overuse in a post).
People often have a similar reaction to pop-ups. I guess it just comes down to personal preference and the response and interaction you get from your readers. If you find them effective on your blog, use them; if not, don’t.
(I’ve got you down as 1 against, Kathleen 🙂 ) Thanks for you comment!
Awesome, just awesome! Thank you!
You are very welcome, Rose! 🙂
Excellent article! I already have a short article partly written to talk about the fun Portent’s tool.
I’m seriously considering your point about writing realistic headlines. I tend to be rather silly, since I have a humor site, and since I use a couple WordPress plugins like Headspace2 and All in One SEO to write the Google titles differently, I figured the first post titles didn’t matter as much. But if readers don’t really know what the subject is, maybe I’m wrong. (I have 3 other blogs.)
I also don’t give readers a call to action. I’ve never compiled an email list, for instance.
I saw that Social Triggers thing of thinking of where you want to get linked somewhere else, too. I’m stuck at the homework part. 🙂
Last, agree with commenter above, not wild about the Tweet This plugin.
Thanks for all your hard work on this.
Thanks for your comments and feedback, Donna!
Headlines are extremely important to get right, and much more difficult than you might think to master. Try changing things up with your headlines and see if it makes a difference in the shares and engagement you see with your posts. You may be pleasantly surprised!
An email list is a must, and well placed ‘call to actions’ are necessary to guide your readers to, well, take action! The last thing you want to do is leave an interested reader hanging; give them something to do instead of hitting the back button.
Now the Click to Tweet or Tweet This option is something you can take or leave (depending on your preference) but remember, just because you don’t think it’s valuable or useful, doesn’t necessarily mean your audience feels the same way. Consider testing it out on a few posts and note your readers’ response. Again, you may be surprised at your results!
I’ve definitely learned to be more purposeful with my blog. reading others, this one included I see the necessity to keep organized and on thought to not only be readable. but to also be more professional and consistent
There are lots of ways to be cutting edge and innovative with your site, R.L., and it’s important to share your uniqueness with your readers. But no matter how creative, there are still some basic guidelines that hold true, regardless of your personal flair.
Hope this post helps you focus, without robbing you of your creativity!
Great job, Kimberley. I had read this before but reading a wrap of post of links sent me back here. You’ve given everyone reminders a-plenty. Thanks for this.
Hi Lee! Long time no ‘hear’. 🙂
Thanks for checking out the post; glad you liked it.
Hi Kimberley. I just discovered your site today (through Pinterest) and it’s fabulous! So packed full of information, thank you! You are spot on in all your points and I’m particularly interested in bettering my images and visual branding–just about to redesign my website. I love your images for your blogs. Where do you get the images for the backgrounds? Do you have someone else design these or do you do it? Thanks again–just signed up for your newsletter.
Welcome to the YWP community, Kelli! I’m glad you’re loving the site!
As for the images, I often use photos from Morguefile.com and edit in PicMonkey.com. Here’s a full post on creating images that grab attention (including video).
Hope that helps!
It’s really useful article and I really loved reading this!
Thank you for sharing
Kind Regards,
Sahil Sharma
http://www.webdevelopersahil.com
Thanks, Sahil! Glad you enjoyed it! 🙂