Blogging Trends – Don’t Become A Boring Statistic
By Sheila on Mar 11, 2010 in Blogging Tips
I was talking with Jen over at Redheadranting.com about some of the irritating trends in the blog world so of course I needed to post about it.
Blogs have taken over the internet. They’re everywhere. They are fun, smart, sarcastic and informative. They make me laugh, cry, scream and rant. I love finding a good blog, (It’s like finding a good author – I read every single one of their books and keep searching for the next) I’ll sign up for their newsletter, subscribe to their posts and look forward to reading whatever they blog about.
The thing is, the more I delve into the blogosphere in search of the next best blog I am confronted with an abundance of CRAP. You can feel it the minute the window flickers open and the pretty pink butterflys float across your screen – CRAP – and you say to yourself, “Didn’t I just read this post on the last blog I read?” I know how this happens – You started a blog, but you don’t know what to write about – it’s harder than you thought. You get ideas from blogs you enjoy reading and voila you got yourself a post – then you do it again, and again and again until your blog isn’t YOUR blog anymore but just a version, a stepchild, a poor example of what it could have been if you had made it YOUR blog and not tried so hard to look like the other 50 million blogs out there.
1. Don’t Become a Stepford Wife
Make sure you keep your content your own. Don’t copy what others are doing just because you think it looks cool – it’s cool the first time, not the second, third, fourth, millionth time.
2. Make sure you know what you are talking about.
Choose a topic you are interested in. Choose a topic you are knowledgeable of. Choosing a topic just because it’s the “hottest” trend right now won’t help if you don’t know anything about it. If you write about something that you are personally interested in, this would eventually manifest itself in your posts and the readers would see just how well informed you are and that would make them want to read more. So make sure that you always keep your information up to date and refreshing. Don’t post the same thing that others are posting, try to be unique and you’ll see that people would prefer your blog over the others.
3. Be consistent – Again, never stray from the subject you chose for your blog. If your blog is about shoes, then don’t start posting about origami unless you can somehow connect it with shoes.
This constant changing would confuse your readers and they would eventually lose interest. Basically, they came to your blog because they want to know about the latest in shoes not because they want to learn origami. Remember that you’ve exerted quite a bit of effort in getting readers, so don’t start losing them now.
4. Make regular posts – Make sure that your blog always has new and fresh content. The more updated you are with information and news regarding your chosen subject, the more people would come to your blog to read.
Another benefit that you can get from frequent posting is that this attracts the search engines to crawl your blog for the new posts and this would subsequently boost your blog’s search engine ranking. So keep your blog well updated with fresh content everyday.
Lastly, make your posts very easy to read. Big words are great for when you are trying to impress someone with an essay but for blogs, keep the words simple and easy to understand. You don’t want your reader to start scratching their heads trying to figure out what you might be trying to say. That would make them lose interest and lose you profits as well. So keep it light and simple.
39 Comment(s)
By 3sna on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
can’t agree more with you… thanks for reminding me to keep on making a good post… i wish i didn’t get writer’s block as many as my friends did… sigh~
3sna’s latest post Commercializing in Education
By sandy on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
I sooooooooo agree. With perhaps one exception. I generally go back and read the same blog over and over because I become acquainted with the individual and therefore don’t mind things on a different topic. But, that works best I think for people with a personal blog. One that clearly says upfront it’s about life. Life, pretty well covers everything. My travel blog stays focused on travel and things connected to travel. You’re liable to find whatever floats my boat on my personal blog, and my homeless blog is strictly about helping the homeless.
I’ve not run into people coping each that much except with u-tube. To me that’s not blogging. Posting a link or embedding a u-tube takes no time or thought and it’s boring. You see the same ones over and over and over.
Updating….my pet peeve. I constantly see blogs with high page rank, good Alexa rank, popular with EC with rarely anything new on them. Some I think truly wait until their 90 days is about up and then post something. Still others purposely don’t add a date to their blog posts so you can’t tell how old they are. Did I mention this was a pet peeve. lol…Getting off my soap box now.
TGIF
Sandy
By Jen on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
I hate the no date on the post thing too. And if I comment I kinda expect a response. On their blog, I don’t expect them to come to mine to respond, in fact wish they wouldn’t. But there are some great comments being left on some blogs that are never responded to and that’s just asking people not to come back.
By Jen on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
By the way, I love the picture you used today.
By Sheila on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
Sandy – I love your travel blog and I agree with you about returning to blogs that you become familiar with, you enjoy reading whatever they put out there.
By Sheila on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
Jen – I’m guilty of not responding sometimes but I really try. If I leave a comment I do usually check back and see if there is a response from the blogger.
By Brenda on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
I’m fairly new to blogging, so I really appreciate the comments – they’re very helpful. Thanks!
By Sheila on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
3sna – I think everybody gets writers block sometimes – I know I do.
By Howard Bob on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
can’t agree more with you… thanks for reminding me to keep on making a good post.
By mrsblogalot on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
This was a great post Sheila!
I think I’ll do one just like it….yeah, I know, I didn’t do very well in school either.
(-:
By Sheila on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
mrsblogalot – Admitting you have a problem is the first step
(the next is making sure you copy a really great post!)
By Man Over Board on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
Is that you and Jen in the picture, lol. I had to start off with that one, seeing how Jen brought it up first.
Starting a blog is easy, maintaining one is HARD. Especially for blogs that have a very specific and small niche. I am a lot like you, as far as finding new blogs, before you know it an hour has passed and you are so far behind from what you had planned on doing.
I have a few pet peeves, like blogs that add every plug in imaginable, that not only makes the page never stop loading but all these annoying inline pop outs and things like those butterflies you mentioned. I also despise when you click on a blog and all of a sudden there is music blaring away. Or all these 1980 flash elements that are placed everywhere.
I love a blog where the font is large enough to be able to read easily. If you have been on the net for any length of time, your eyes get tired and trying to read small print or words crammed into a small post box give me at least a headache.
My blog is filled with lots of stuff, but it’s built along a newspaper theme which is made to be put together with many columns and subjects. You remember newspapers? But I try not to make it annoying with pop outs and inline text ads.Also with a newspaper theme you just get an excerpt to catch your interest, then you click on it for the full post.
Another good post and I am sure you will get lots of good comments to follow up on too. That is one thing I think many people forget about, is to go back a few posts and read the comments, they tend to take on a life of their own and usually are filled with great and relevant info in regards to that specific topic.
Have a great weekend.
By waterrose on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
A great topic and a good reminder. It’s the same when designing art or crafts. Trying to keep it fresh and new.
By Sheila on Mar 12, 2010 | Reply
MOB – Thanks for the great comment – you’re right – sometimes the comment section is where all the excitement is.
By JuneZach on Mar 13, 2010 | Reply
It is very boring to visit blogs that are so outdated! Well, it is quite a challenge to maintain fresh quality contents. Hope the authors of these blogs will do something about it.
Way back my younger years, I already have been thought the principle “write to express and not to impress”. I am laughing in the back of my mind every time I read posts from a particular blogger who tries to impress the readers through his/her writing skills. It just wouldn’t work with blogs. I really would like to comment to ask the person “Are you joining an essay writing contest?” LOL
By josie on Mar 13, 2010 | Reply
hi Sheila, this is the first time that I left a comment here, though I’m a regular visitor. I’m not a pro-blogger, so I need to learn more. I enjoyed blog-hopping to keep me updated. I will follow your suggestion to answer comments on my blog, what I did is I will go to their sites and made feedback on their comment on my post.
By Sheila on Mar 13, 2010 | Reply
JuneZach – I hate reading content where the writer is trying way too hard to impress – I usually read a couple lines and move on.
Josie – It’s fun when you start seeing a lot of the same bloggers returning to your site. Do you ever go back somewhere you left a comment to see if that person responded?
By Robyn on Mar 13, 2010 | Reply
A couple of things… it’s hard to be consistent when are new to blogging as I have found and it’s also hard to find your own voice, it takes time and sometimes it takes a bit of trial and error – kind of like trying on different hats. I know I’m not even close yet.
I think the difference between me and those that are crap – at least I hope – is that I’m not trying to be anyone else, or do what anyone else specifically is doing.
I don’t know if you’ve seen it Sheila but I stumbled across a blog that is trying to be this one. I couldn’t even point it out if I tried but it must be in Entrecard and though I’ve been here only 2 or 3 times before I knew right away that it was a very specific imitation and that must be flattering and irritating at the same time.
On the comments note – I think responding to comments is a must for building real rapport with readers and agree it’s often “where the excitement is” I always look up my comment the next time I visit to see if I have been responded to. Jen is wonderful at this.
I read on doshdosh once that spammers hoping for some link love don’t realise that leaving a good comment can get you a new reader and I can wholeheartedly agree. Many, many times I have followed a commenter back to the blog and ended up adding a new one to my list to regularly visit.
By agentmango on Mar 14, 2010 | Reply
Even though a million of bloggers wrote about these kind of tips, autoblogs are everywhere and they are millions. Blackhat blogging is alive.
By Project Savior on Mar 14, 2010 | Reply
I have to agree with Man Overboard, the worst thing is people who beg for me to see their blog. Then it has so many plug-ins it crashes my browser. Not a way to make me come back.
Also if you want comments, make sure your comment system works.
I hate running into 3rd party comment systems that take forever to register then won’t let me leave a comment.
By Lisa - Alterity on Mar 14, 2010 | Reply
I quite agree with you. I keep a business blog and sometimes have such a hard time coming up with posts that will spark interest. I have wanted to start a personal blog, but fear it will be one of those blogs that people say “crap” to when they get to it. You are right…blogging is quite harder than one would think….
By Miss Virtual Reality on Mar 14, 2010 | Reply
You also forgot to add this, do not post just one or two articles and then keep the rest mostly as ads.
Good tips, though!
By Buggys on Mar 14, 2010 | Reply
This whole subject is one who’s time has come. Of course, we aren’t ever forced to read or visit the crap that we don’t like and there is surely an abundance of it out there. Freedom of speech and all that.
I have really been remiss in not responding to my commentors, instead, I have always gone to their blog and read and commented on their posts. After reading this though, It’s clear that I need to change my ways.
I tried for 2 hours to download Disqus without success but I will continue.
By Sheila on Mar 14, 2010 | Reply
Robyn – some great advice to everyone – follow your commenters – you never know what you’ll find. I haven’t seen the blog that looks like mine, but I would be interested in checking it out.
Agentmango – it’s a shame – they hurt everyone – when I visit a blog for the first time I’m always a bit skeptical because I know they are so prevalent.
Projectsavior – OMG – blogs that make it impossible to comment – the WORST -
Lisa – I love your blog – while you might look at it as a “business” blog – it shows so much of who you are that it can almost be considered a personal blog – LOVE your wire rings!
Msvirtual reality – Thanks for adding it – you’re 100% right!
Buggys – I used to do the same thing. I wouldn’t respond to comments but I’d click on there link from my comment. Once I started reading blogs like The Junk Drawer and Redheadranting I started feeling guilty and decided to give it a try.
By Katherine on Mar 14, 2010 | Reply
I love the picture too! You are right, I’ve seen blogs that go all over the place… kind of confusing. I notice you didn’t cross out any words in your post… Jen would be happy LOL!
By Sheila on Mar 14, 2010 | Reply
Katherine – don’t tell Jen but I have used the stike-through once or twice, but once I see it all over the place it loses something.
By Roezer on Mar 15, 2010 | Reply
I would not use Discuss it’s nofollow you have to login to Discuss, and it slows down your page.Sometimes I have seen that Discuss Comments will not Load meaning your Visitors do not get their Voice. The Best is the Default WordPress threaded Comments.@Sheila Great pointers on blogging if we Blog the latest Topics we are just competing with Too many other Bloggers for Content that is useless next week we should focus on Timeless Content much more Often when writing Blog posts
By josie on Mar 15, 2010 | Reply
yes I did, and it’s a good feeling thinking the blog owner read my comment.
By Michelle | Online Poster Printing on Mar 15, 2010 | Reply
I think as with any venture you should know exactly what you are talking about You can’t just go along typing whatever, you yourslef have to find it interesting.
By Sheila on Mar 16, 2010 | Reply
Roezer – I don’t like it very much either.
By injaynesworld on Mar 18, 2010 | Reply
Very interesting post, Sheila… I never really thought to ascribe any kind of theme to my blog, so you could literally find me posting about shoes one day and origami the next. Not to mention politics and private parts.
For me, the thing that keeps me coming back to any blog is the quality of the writing — including grammar and spelling — and an authenticity of voice. So the consistency of the voice is actually most important to me. You can be snarky one day and sad the next, but I have to feel that it’s coming from a place of truth in the writer.
As for comments, I love the Disqus system that allows me to reply to people on the blog and it’s immediately e-mailed to them. I rarely go back to a blog to see if a comment I left was responded to simply because I don’t have the time. I wish everyone had such a system. It makes it so fast and easy to leave comments as opposed to having to fill out my information every time and then deal with the freakin’ word verification.
Sorry I’ve prattled on so long. Clearly, I’m over-caffeinated today.
By Lainy on Apr 14, 2010 | Reply
Hi Sheila!
This post is a good reminder for us on how to keep our blog alive and breathing.
Time and again, I have always believed that content is King. It’s quality articles that would keep the readers hooked on our respective blogs.
However, quality is subjective. We may differ in our standards of quality as we have various niche and blogging orientation. In addition, I avoid making sermons on the mount as it would sound too preachy.
I don’t want to label blogs as quality or crappy. To quote Max Ehrmann:
“Even the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story.”
As to comments, it would be polite to respond to all comments left at a particular blog. AS in my case, no matter how limited my time spent online, I always make sure to answer all comments. I also visit back the blogs I have dropped my comments on to see if the author has responded. That way, blogging rapport and interaction is being developed which makes blogging more interesting, colorful and meaningful.
Thanks for this post.
All the Best,
LAINY
By Sheila on Apr 14, 2010 | Reply
Lainy – Thanks for the great comment. You’re right quality is subjective but I don’t think it’s very hard to figure out when a blog has been set up just as a way to make money. There are a lot of blogs that don’t interest me because of the subject but they are still quality blogs. The ones I can’t stand are the ones that are all paid posts. The ones I can’t understand even though they are written in English they make no sense. Sadly, there are a whole lot of these and it’s frustrating because they take away from the good blogs out there.
By Brain Stormer on Apr 14, 2010 | Reply
Hi Shiela,
I can now see what your gripe is about. It did not come specifically clear with your use of the word, “crap” at your main article.
To quote you:
“but I don’t think it’s very hard to figure out when a blog has been set up just as a way to make money” (unquote)
Bloggers do what they do at their Blogs for varied reasons. Monetizing their Blog is one among several reasons out there as there are bloggers. There is no necessity to be critical about what motivates others to do what they do with their Blogs.
The weBLOG per se has such a broad definition. As such, paid post Blogs has become an integral platform for blogging.
In as much as you’re entitled to cast aspersions on post paid bloggers, they too have an equal right to do as it pleases them.
Have you ever tried composing material for paid posts? It takes imagination, creativity as well as the ability to express cogently. Those qualities should not go unnoticed even if you do not appreciate what is published.
Since you do not like what you stumble upon at paid post Blogs, perhaps you ought to go out there and run a crusade. Suggestion: leave comments at these post paid Blogs and inform these post paid Bloggers about what you speak so eloquently here.
Then listen to their side of their story how the post paid income helps to pay for their survival needs.
It’s merely blogging – we shouldn’t get carried away by unjustly judging others
Just my two cents.
By Sheila on Apr 14, 2010 | Reply
You make some good points. I do understand people writing paid post to earn extra money. But, I hate paid posts. I hate when I open a blog and start reading a post and then there is the link and you have to stop and wonder is anything in this post real or was it just written to add a link. I’m talking about the bloggers who live in the Philippines and write paid posts about lawyers in California. Or the guys in Germany writing post about car insurance in Chicago. You say writing paid post takes imagination and creativity, in other words, lies and made up stories, otherwise they would just be able to write their experience. I think it’s a question of ethics. I would NEVER make up a story to try to get someone to buy something EVER. It has become somewhat better now that bloggers have to tell you up front that it is a paid post. Anyone who reads a lot of blogs know that there are way to many out there that are actively being advertised that haven’t updated in months, write absolutely no content or just write paid posts – why bother advertising to other bloggers? We’re the worst critics of blogs.
I don’t call any blogs out specifically, I wouldn’t do that to someone but maybe by reading what other people think about certain aspects of blogging someone will make a change that will help them in their blogging adventure.
I wonder why you didn’t leave a link to your site – too many paid posts?
Thanks for a very well written and thought out comment
By Brain Stormer on Apr 14, 2010 | Reply
“I wonder why you didn’t leave a link to your site – too many paid posts?”
Just a brain stormer. No site.
By Amy on Apr 18, 2010 | Reply
I would not use Discuss it’s nofollow you have to login to Discuss, and it slows down your page.Sometimes I have seen that Discuss Comments will not Load meaning your Visitors do not get their Voice. The Best is the Default WordPress threaded Comments.@Sheila Great pointers on blogging if we Blog the latest Topics we are just competing with Too many other Bloggers for Content that is useless next week we should focus on Timeless Content much more Often when writing Blog posts
By Oudam | Khmer movie on May 1, 2010 | Reply
I read other blogs for inspiration, not to copy their ideas. If you surf the internet enough, you’ll discover that just about everything that could be said has been said by somebody somewhere already. You can be “unique” in the way you say.
By Sheila on May 1, 2010 | Reply
Oudam – Your are right – everyone can have a different perspective on a certain subject and can write about a subject in a different way. But, there are a lot of people who just don’t make an effort to make a subject their own.