Sunday, February 5, 2012

How to: Improve your Blog and Gain Readership!

When I first started a blog, I had no idea what the fudge I was doing. I was inspired to do it by an amazingly talented gal named Sere (Check out her awesome blog!) but found myself lost in a sea of confusion. 

Widgets, stats, SEO, HTML, CSS....omg.

Naturally, like all newbies I stuck with Google search and found answers to all my questions. I started blogging a few years ago and haven't stopped since.
My first blog was pretty successful and reached nearly 100 readers in less than 4 month span. Now I am starting all over with my baby Furiously Fab. If you are new to blogging or if you like to accept non-expert advice from unofficial people like Moi, then take a read and see if any of these tips can help ya Improve your Blog and Gain Readership!

Rule 1-Stop drop and think…

The best advice I read offline when beginning to blog is to figure is to question yourself “why and for what purpose?” This will inevitably steer you towards whatever path your blog is meant to have. 

Some people like to vent or express themselves and use their blog like a journal, others like to gain notoriety or develop popularity and blog about a specific subject like those famous hijabi fashion bloggers (you know who you are ladies!!) 

Whatever is your cup of tea, know it from the get go because it will help you stay focused in your future. It is always best to stick with what you are passionate about, because whether you have lots of readers or not, you are fulfilling a deep desire inside of you…how satisfying is that?

Rule 2-Be concerned about structure.

I love it when I am reading a blog and it gets a facelift. I love it when bloggers take time to customize their sites. It feels refreshing; it makes me feel appreciated as a reader. Take care of the overall look of your blog.  Make sure it fits with your theme because it helps support your daily blogging. Blogs are better when they:
·         Attractive
·         Cohesive
·         Easy to navigate
·         Fit with the theme
·         Do not take thousands of years to upload!

There are plenty of templates and sites on how to improve your blog. Take some time to educate yourself about these things and implement them where possible. 

Rule 3-Show care to your readers.

I love all my readers; they make blogging feel more rewarding whenever I receive any kind of feedback. 

Thanks to all of you who are reading right now!

I try to pay my readers back by visiting them as well and getting to know them as people. They inspire me, teach me, and make me laugh. I have realized over the years that I would rather have a deep relationship with a few readers then a superficial one with hundreds.

One thing I try to do is to thank and respond to my blogging comments. If I don’t do it immediately I try to do it eventually. I once visited a blog often who had interesting posts and great photos, unfortunately this person almost never responded to comments. It really bothered me. I felt that no matter how nice the blog was I lost my desire to support that person because it felt like they just wanted to show off and get attention and not appreciate their readers.

Rule 4-Differentiate

There is always someone who can do it better! But there will never be someone who can be a better “you.” 

Does that make sense? 

One of the biggest branding tactics is differentiation. It is purposeful tactic where you show people your unique position compared to the rest of the competition. You can’t win everybody over but, there should be something unique that you can offer that draws in your most loyal and loving readers. For blogging your differentiation could be your personality, your unique point of view, or style or fashion sense (if it is your own) or your expertise and perspective. 

Rule 5-Try to be consistent.

Take a look at the most popular blogs on your list. It is not hard to see why some blogs have gained more popularity in a short amount of time. These bloggers are usually very consistent when it comes to their unique content and posting. 

If you blog every other week, then you will be read every other week. But if you post every day or every few days, than that is how much more you are offering up to the world. I wish I could post every day, but being a mother, looking for a job, starting a business, and just trying to handle being so fabulous (joke) prevents me from doing so. As a result, I try to blog every other few days, and hopefully would like to stabilize my posts to specific days of the week so readers will know what to expect. If you are going on a break or will be busy, drop a line out. If you are striving to post every other day, communicate that with readers so they know what to expect. Don’t get overwhelmed though, because it can lead to burn out. As long as you recognize your limitations and schedule, you can figure out how to be a more dedicated blogger.

Rule 6-Expand and work together

This is one of the most effective ways to gain exposure. Let others know you are there and what you have to offer! You can do this by submitting articles or adding your blog to other searches and sites. Also, you can create relationships with other bloggers by participating in challenges, answering their questions, promoting them by linking back to them, and signing up for community sites. Its fun, it livens things up a bit, and it is mutually beneficial!


Now folks, it is your chance to give advice! Tell me what rules do you hold for yourself when it comes to blogging. Was any of this helpful? Again, thanks for reading!!!




13 comments:

  1. another awesome post, agree totally with all the above, especially with commenting on other blogs and the blogger never responding or reciprocating. You feel like Im supporting you why cant you respond or support me? I stopped with a few of them. Ive been wanting a facelift too but am so hopeless when it comes to I.T related things...wish someone could do it for me!

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    1. yay! I am glad you liked it. I actually love the way your blog looks. With all those lovely photos its really nice and minimal. I too wish someone would just do it for me for free right but I would probably not like it and be too picky. The first blog I did I changed the template, it took me days! to get that thing on point :(

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  2. hehe i laughed a little at "branding tactics". I love this post, it reminds me of marketing! I remember you mentioned you had a bachelors in business admin. I'm studying that as well :P Ugh I cannot stand people who follow my blog yet don't even say a word to me it gets a little weird. I found rule number six to be very useful. Although I'm not blogging anymore (for now) I still want to submit posts on blogs etc...

    As for rules I hold to. "Keep it simple, stupid" I like my blog to me simple yet stylish. I hate blogs that have loud colours and fonts a child would use. It expresses them I understand but if it's a public blog readers are stakeholders as well :\ Other than that everything a free for all. I was never one for rules ;)

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    1. haha! I thought it was cute too. I never really knew how helpful all that stuff I learned in school was until I started really working. Diddo again on the whole comments thing, there was one time I had to stop myself from complaining. I really wanted to write, sis, why dont you respond to comments...but then I was worried I would it would resemble a stalker so I decided to give up and join other sites. I agree with the making the blog look decent for your readers but like you said I bet there are tons of folks who like all those happy fonts lol. Thanks woman for stopping by!

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  3. lovely post, and very helpful for new bloggers... and i totally agree with you about the comments thing, its always nice to know that the other person appriciate you as a reader... xxx

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  4. True true true. My hubby hates my blogging, and I am beginning to feel that while I really want to be out there, I really need to just keep track of what my family is doing for us. It's weird, that was the main point of my blogging, but it just took a life of its own.
    I think it depends what you want to do. When I apply for a freelancing job, I use my blog as an example of who I am and how I write, but I cannot for the life of me, see how some women make a lot of money blogging.

    One thing that some of them say is that it is business, and there is little time for visiting other blogs and commenting...I see that.

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  5. Great post. I've found that commenting on other blogs is one of the best ways to increase your readership. I love clicking on new names in comments to see their blog as well. I also agree on the replying to commenters. It's just being considerate and keeping the conversation going too. You wouldn't ignore someone saying something to you in real life, right? Yea.

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  6. @Fatima- exactly! :) THanks for reading!
    @Salma- Your blog is incredible, but would it be worth it if it later on if gets too much in the way? I too wonder how or if some people could support themselves, I think it would require 3x the amount of effort than other jobs. I do notice that some blogs (that have a ton of readership) rarely comment and it then can become understandable. Thank you for reading :)

    @Mona Z-Thanks woman! I truly believe that is why I had so many readers for my first blog. I don't ever want to get caught up just "collecting readers, or followers" which I think can be tempting for those who get really popular. Thanks for stopping by :)

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  7. aww! you mentioned me. thank you so much! ^__^

    It's truly a pleasure to read your blogs though. I'm glad to see you growing in it and expressing yourself in ways that help both yourself and the readers grow in thought and more. I think that's another point that's really good to consider - to have the blog help you and/or the readers in some way. Whether in fashion or tips for taking charge of your home life, the blog is a perfect vessel to help *someone* - even if it's just yourself.

    Your point 4 is something I should keep in mind for myself too. Too often, I get into my perfectionist mode and it ends up distracting me. It's good to keep in mind that someone can always do it better than me and I should just do what I can do my best and be humble and satisfied.

    Great post overall!

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  8. It was very helpful, thank you.

    I agree with that no one can be better at being "you" and I try really hard to show me in my post.
    Yes, this is a new blog but I hope to make it one that shows me in a better light.

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  9. @Sere-Wow just saw this comment! You deserve the link sweets! You are absolutely right about the "helpful" factor. I think will add that point into this post. I def. feel more dedicated to blogging for that reason (this blog helping me a lot with being a better person). All the best sere!!!

    @Arkansas Muslimah- THanks for visiting sister!! I am glad it was helpful. Inshallah I wish you all the best with your blog. I am sure the "you" will come out naturally anyway and your readers will appreciate it :)

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  10. Salam. I heart this entry, just found your pretty blog. And can't agree more, especially about getting back to the readers who leave comments. Some bloggers pick and choose whose comments to respond and whose not. That spells discrimination to me and somehow gives somewhat wrong impressions.. At least that's how I feel, :)

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  11. Hey woman!! Thanks for reading I couldn't agree more with what you wrote. That type of blogging can be a turn off definetly :) I wish all the best for you sis!!

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