This is Day 6 of 31 Days to Build a Better Blog, a group project 60+ of us bloggers are doing together in an effort to help each other become better bloggers. You can read an overview here.
Today is a massive dose of medicine that should really taken over time, well that is what I thought when I looked over the list of posts that Darren mentioned. The internet is full of such articles; so it is great that we have a list filtered by someone trustworthy and influential. I have read many of these and seen a few video; recently that of Chris Brogan‘s Kitchen talks and those of Daren Rowse. The points that have stood out or me:
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- It Takes Time
It is easy to say that when you have been blogging for a few years and your blog is successful, but it is true. Even Darren says something like two years.
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- It Takes Effort
Not Luck, Chris Brogan says that. You can see that he advocates hard work. It you want to get a better blog then you gotta make some sacrifices like waking up early and not watching that lame movie.
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- It Takes Thought
There is a purpose to everything; whether you like it or not. You want lot of page hits, lots of comments, an Alexa rank of under 100k, all you family to keep visiting your blog. Whatever it is there is strategy needed to obtain those goals. I read a great book by Donald Miller called a Million Miles in a Thousand Years; what story do you want to tell about your blog.
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- It Takes Help
Seth Godin‘s post on first, ten is great. There is so much power in collaboration. He says that you need to try first with ten people then move on. However, I think that it does not matter where you are in your blog, get ten people now and stage a drive – it will put a little bit of extra momentum into you endeavors. This is something I have been trying to get right for a while, it has not worked because I have not had the right people, close by, with the same interests and intentions as me, but now with all of use here on the same project looking for the same outcome, hmm I think that this is an opportunity for us all.
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- SEO, etc
One set of principles and technical aspects I have always had in the back of my mind is that of SEO. I am sure that a better understanding of the principles involved would be good – not just using plug-ins like the All in one SEO pack. There are so many articles, long articles, on the subject. I am sure that delving into them will help you achieve your blog objectives. Refer to the point about “It Takes Time”, lol.
Discussion
- What are your thoughts on the 5 points above?
- What tips have proven to be most effective in developing and improving your own blog?
- What tips stand out as things you want to implement or get better at?
- Did you find any other articles not listed that could/should be considered?
The Extra Mile
A few other things you can do to take your blog, other bloggers, and this project even further today…
- Reply & give other bloggers feedback on the little things they do.
- When other bloggers include a link to a new article they’ve posted today, click, read, and comment on it.
- Check previous posts in the series for new comments.
- Tweet, share, & bookmark this post.
Phillip Gibb; I am a Christian, a husband to a beautiful wife and father of two stunning children. It is my dream to make a Film one day and to Glorify God on my journey there. I blog at SynapticLight and twitter at phillipgibb.
102 Comments
I liked the one about commenting on other people's blogs. There's a balance here, and maybe your primary motivation for searching for blogs is to make comments and help your latest post, but that can't be the ultimate reason you comment. You've got to comment because you're interested, you want to encourage someone, you want to add something to the conversation, etc. Otherwise it will be obvious you're only throwing out a meaningless remark to get your name up there. People will know–all of them.
When I get comments like that, I check out the blog to make sure it's okay, and then I just leave them up. It doesn't hurt me to help these people; they probably don't know any better; and maybe they'll keep coming and end up becoming genuinely interested. But I don't do that, and neither should anyone else. It's lazy and thoughtless.
I liked the one about why people do or don't comment as well. When I read an article that says it all, I usually do try to leave at least a word of appreciation. But the author is right–when there's nothing more to say, it's kind of the end of the conversation. Maybe that's why Jesus always just told His stories and didn't explain until someone asked Him to. I've started doing that. A lot of what I write would be cryptic to a believer, let alone a non-believer, but explaining it all out ruins it. So other than the occasional definition, I just put it out there. If anyone has questions, they can ask.
Like others, I didn't read all the articles–way TMA for a one-day (or weekend) assignment. I may get to some of them later.
Blessings, Cindy
Hey guys. Well, due to me starting a new business this month and actually being on training this week, I simply don't have the time to get today's task done. Hopefully I will be able to get back to it over the weekend sometime, but what I can say though, is that I can definitely see that it takes time.
For more than a year now, UnsafeChallenge, has had a regular base of readers, but no real growth. I could also see the difference between me being on holiday or actively blogging.
So, I will just keep plugging away at this, as it is very much a personal outlet, rather than anything else, and with God's Grace, He will send the right people along to get the community that I dream of along.
And yes, to do anything worthwhile takes hours and hours of investment.
What little I've been able to touch on with this list I agree with. This is one I need to file for a time when I'm not out of town visiting in-laws and have time to truly ingest the information. I'm looking forward to putting some of them into practice.
Like so many others, I am overwhelmed by today's readings. This will be another ongoing assignment, it seems.
I did like the five points highlighted. The one that speaks to me the most is #2, it takes effort. Effort is where I'm at with my blog. I am focusing on content, and trying to plan my posts. So, from today's readings I am studying "How To Write Great Blog Content" by Yaro Starak.
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