How am I going to fix my Blog?
Following on from my previous Blog post “The first step to recovery is to admit you have a problem” which explained how I felt my Blog was falling short in several areas. I have been giving a lot of thought to the problems identified with my Blog and how I might go about improving it.
To start I probably need to do some research, as I feel that getting to the bottom of some of the following points may help me understand the blogging process better and therefore have a positive impact on my Blog:
- What Blogging platforms are available and what are their benefits?
- What makes a good Blog
- What are the do’s and don’t of Blogging
- Who else is Blogging in my chosen area
- Identify Blogs that set a great example
Because there are a large number of areas that all need addressing and because I don’t have an unlimited amount of time (Sometimes, I really wish I could enter the Fold – a special mention to the first person who correctly identifies the reference) I need to prioritise the problem areas and this is the order I have been thinking about (first is highest, last is lowest) addressing the problems:
- Mistake #8 – Not doing what it says on the tin
- Mistake #2 – Expecting people to visit
- Mistake #3 – Not writing as if I’m talking
- Mistake # 6 – Not linking to others as I’d like them to link to me
- Mistake #5 – Neglecting my article headlines
- Mistake #9 – Don’t get caught up in traffic analysis or rankings
- Mistake #7 – Underestimating the time commitment
- Mistake #1 – not using a self-hosted blog
- Mistake #4 – changing the location of my blog
Ok, to address the first Mistake. I need to restate or reconsider the purpose of my Blog but before doing so I need to think a bit more about the following:
- What is my Blog about?
- Who is it aimed at?
- What will an audience find here?
- How will people know where to find my Blog?
- Can I be sure to be ‘adding’ something and not simply restating information that can be found elsewhere?
- Does the look and feel of my Blog match the intended content?
- What will encourage comments and feedback?
That sounds like enough food for thought for one day. Once I’ve given these points some thought I’ll be back.
Related Blog Posts
The first step to recovery is to admit you have a problem by Jason Slater in jasonslater.co.uk
Top 7 blog mistakes to avoid by David Airey in davidairey.com
Why Blog by Frank Catalano in The Journal
Weblog Usability: The Top Ten Design Mistakes by Jakob Nielsen in useit.com
The 12 Biggest Problems With Your Blogs by Lorelle VanFossen in Lorelle on WordPress
Another 28 Tips that will improve your Business Blog by Terinea in Terinea Weblog
Do You Make These Mistakes With Your Blog? by Brian Clark in CopyBlogger
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Thanks for the feedback Peter, it is certainly a learning experience!
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“Above the Fold – aha! Actually, that’s very interesting, and thanks for the indirect link. I’ve been doing this ever since I started blogging, primarily because I wrote the blog software for small-screen mobile devices, so all my content was above the fold. Nowadays I put the intro/leader into the “above” bit and hopefully tempt the readers with what’s in the click-through.. at least, that’s the theory.
Mistake #1 – not using a self-hosted blog: I do now, and it’s really worthwhile!
Mistake #4 – changing the location of my blog: that happened when I corrected mistake #1. *sigh*
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