There are some things that you need to think about whenever you start a new blog or decide to take an existing one in a new direction. In this article we'll be looking at topics such as the name of the blog, the topics that it will cover, your posting schedule and your writing style.
Picking a Name For Your Blog
Unless you have already started your blog, one of the first decisions you need to make is what you are going to call it. There are usually two broad choices to start with - whether you will brand the blog after your own name or pick something that is more related to the topic.
Your choice here will depend on the aims of your blog. If you intend to use it to promote some kind of personal service then using your name can be a good idea because it will always remain relevant even if your services differ over time. If you're blogging about a specifc topic and you intend to monetize it via external methods then it can be better to use a name that is related to the topic.
Deciding Upon Topics For Your Blog
Many new bloggers start their first blog by just blogging about anything that comes into their head and end up with a broad range of largely unrelated topics. This is not all that efficient as many readers simply don't have time to wade through posts they are not interested in and it makes it more difficult to target monetization efforts.
When it comes to writing your posts you will be able to organise them into categories which makes it much easier for new readers to find your posts and its easy for them to see at a glance what your blog is about. When you just post a mish-mash of posts on all sorts of topics that are not really related then it can be more difficult to turn a one-off visitor into a regular subscriber.
Deciding on a Posting Schedule
Many people advise you to blog every day when launching a new blog with the theory being that the more you post the more people will come to your blog. However many blog readers find that blogs that post every day or even multiple times a day are simply too much and they can't keep up with them.
In my experience, the actual posting schedule really doesn't matter all that much. Many readers will consume their blogs via RSS feeds and will read your posts at their convenience, not yours. There are many successful bloggers that only post once a week.
One trend that I see with many blogs is that the blogger starts out enthusiastically by posting every day or even many times per day but over time he either loses steam, finds it too time consuming or simply runs out of stuff to say and then the schedule starts to slip and the posts become less frequent. This is noticeable to the reader and it does not look good!
It is much better to start out with a much gentler blog schedule and see how it goes for a few months rather than over-commit yourself at the beginning and then burn out a few months down the line. My recommendation would be to start conservatively and then increase it gradually if you feel the need - not the other way around!
What Style of Writing Will You Use?
Some people suggest that you alter your blogging style to fit your target audience but in my experience I find that it never works to try to blog in a style that is not uniquely you. Your blog is a reflection of you - your thoughts, your findings, your interests and passions.
My advice is simply to blog in your own style, whatever that means! Some people are very conservative, some people use very colourful language, others like to be controversial, others are very dry and matter-of-fact. Whatever you are, simply be who you are and write as yourself.
The only area where I might suggest that you alter your default style slightly is that of post length. A blog that is publishing 10 posts a day would probably do better with shorter, snappier posts than a blog that is publishing only once per week.
It really doesn't matter what your style is because the readers who like your style will stick around and subscribe and the ones who don't, wont! Simple as that really! There is no way that any single style is going to appeal to everybody so don't try! No matter what your posting style is, there will be people who like it and some who don't, but it never pays to try and be something that you are not.
Picking a Name For Your Blog
Unless you have already started your blog, one of the first decisions you need to make is what you are going to call it. There are usually two broad choices to start with - whether you will brand the blog after your own name or pick something that is more related to the topic.
Your choice here will depend on the aims of your blog. If you intend to use it to promote some kind of personal service then using your name can be a good idea because it will always remain relevant even if your services differ over time. If you're blogging about a specifc topic and you intend to monetize it via external methods then it can be better to use a name that is related to the topic.
Deciding Upon Topics For Your Blog
Many new bloggers start their first blog by just blogging about anything that comes into their head and end up with a broad range of largely unrelated topics. This is not all that efficient as many readers simply don't have time to wade through posts they are not interested in and it makes it more difficult to target monetization efforts.
When it comes to writing your posts you will be able to organise them into categories which makes it much easier for new readers to find your posts and its easy for them to see at a glance what your blog is about. When you just post a mish-mash of posts on all sorts of topics that are not really related then it can be more difficult to turn a one-off visitor into a regular subscriber.
Deciding on a Posting Schedule
Many people advise you to blog every day when launching a new blog with the theory being that the more you post the more people will come to your blog. However many blog readers find that blogs that post every day or even multiple times a day are simply too much and they can't keep up with them.
In my experience, the actual posting schedule really doesn't matter all that much. Many readers will consume their blogs via RSS feeds and will read your posts at their convenience, not yours. There are many successful bloggers that only post once a week.
One trend that I see with many blogs is that the blogger starts out enthusiastically by posting every day or even many times per day but over time he either loses steam, finds it too time consuming or simply runs out of stuff to say and then the schedule starts to slip and the posts become less frequent. This is noticeable to the reader and it does not look good!
It is much better to start out with a much gentler blog schedule and see how it goes for a few months rather than over-commit yourself at the beginning and then burn out a few months down the line. My recommendation would be to start conservatively and then increase it gradually if you feel the need - not the other way around!
What Style of Writing Will You Use?
Some people suggest that you alter your blogging style to fit your target audience but in my experience I find that it never works to try to blog in a style that is not uniquely you. Your blog is a reflection of you - your thoughts, your findings, your interests and passions.
My advice is simply to blog in your own style, whatever that means! Some people are very conservative, some people use very colourful language, others like to be controversial, others are very dry and matter-of-fact. Whatever you are, simply be who you are and write as yourself.
The only area where I might suggest that you alter your default style slightly is that of post length. A blog that is publishing 10 posts a day would probably do better with shorter, snappier posts than a blog that is publishing only once per week.
It really doesn't matter what your style is because the readers who like your style will stick around and subscribe and the ones who don't, wont! Simple as that really! There is no way that any single style is going to appeal to everybody so don't try! No matter what your posting style is, there will be people who like it and some who don't, but it never pays to try and be something that you are not.
About the Author:
Caroline Middlebrook has been blogging in the Internet marketing niche since August 2007 and her popular blog earns a 4-figure revenue-stream every month. She teaches you how blogs make money and offers downloads of her free guides & courses from her website.
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