Separate articles, same theme. First Darren writes about the truism that most Internet users don’t realize that they are reading a blog and might be turned off but continual references to to “on this blog … ” kind of things.

In my work as a blog consultant I run into this often. Blogs aren’t really well understood by the majority of Internet users. How is it different from a website (it isn’t really)? Isn’t just an online journal (yes, and no)? None of my friends, colleagues, target audience read blogs (they probably do, they just don’t know it).

Darren concludes with this …

I think their observation is correct. While I’m not suggesting bloggers need to dumb down their blogging I think the mind-shift of moving from writing for other bloggers to writing for ‘normal people’ (I can see bloggers everywhere scrolling down to the comments section after that phrase) is one worth making for most bloggers.

This means getting out of our own little Pro Blogging Ghetto and learning to communicate with others in ways that are accessible and smart – otherwise we limit the potential for our succes

Darren’s overall suggestions are bang on, IMHO. Bloggers, especially professional bloggers and bloggers who are going for information, news, etc need to be aware that people are looking for good stuff to read, learn, and use and don’t give a rodent’s tushie that it’s a blog.

Now, published about the same time are 21 great writing/blogging tips from Make You Go Hmm:

1. Provide more, not less, original content in the blog entries.
2. Find things you are insatiably curious about and write with full-on passion.
3. Rather than make 10 so-so posts every day, make 3-5 really good ones.
4. Can’t find the solution to a problem in the search engines easily? How-to/fixes/solutions make great topics.
5. Give away something once in awhile.
6. Start blogging about subjects that aren’t already being blogged to death, or write about them with a fresh perspective.
7. Pay a professional if you suck at graphics and design.
8. Don’t use too much Flash.
9. Don’t slap a bunch of flashy banners and buttons (no matter how small) all over the place.
10. Use a smaller, less gaudy logo.
11. Make sure at least some content (not logo, not header, not advertising, etc) shows on every webpage without browser scroll
12. Provide consistent navigation.
13. Do include a byline and author bio so it’s clear to readers who wrote the content
14. Always disclose conflicts of interest
15. Clearly mark or define advertising placement
16. Don’t cripple the RSS feed.
17. Liberally blend with descriptive text: pictures, screenshots, audio (podcast), video and any other items that will help keep the readers interested, informed, enlightened and/or entertained.
18. Keep an open dialogue with commenters and two-way trackbackers.
19. Don’t let flamers destroy the community.
20. Are you having fun?
21. The last tip is probably my most favorite: don’t be afraid to write something and not publish it.

I think (almost) all of these are super tips … maybe every pro blogger should print them out and stick near their computer (hard for me, because I usually work from the couch and friends visiting might comment on my “unique” taste in wall art). The professional design tip is a tough one, that can be expensive. I suggest finding a skookum template to use for your blog. I’ve been setting up a lot of WP 2 blogs lately, and I direct new clients and friends to Alex King’s site to pick a template. There are so many awesome ones there that people have trouble picking an absolute favourite (so I recommend picking 3-4, installing them on the blog and then choosing).

Of course, none of us are perfect. Heck, my blog is rather bland. Which is why, in true blogging style, the 21 tips closes like this:

Can you follow all these tips? Probably not. This blog doesn’t even follow all them, although I do try to keep this stuff in mind when I feel the quality is starting to slip (and it is an every day job working on blog quality, not something one can just go into autopilot on). But follow enough of these and it will greatly increase the likelihood that you’ll become one of the most read blogs out there someday. Let’s face it, the web can never have enough quality content. You can add or take away with each post you make. Want to be a shallow, one dimensional blogger? There’s tons of those. Want to really work at your writing and make it better? This post is for you.

Tags: blogging tips, professional blogging, blog design, blog writing

Powered by Qumana