Wednesday, 08 March 2017 / Published in Blogging 101, Uncategorized

10 Blogging Essentials You Need to Use to Create an Amazing Blog

Once upon a time, there was no such thing as SEO or blogging essentials. It was in those early prehistoric times (by internet standards) when a blog was nothing more than a glorified journal.

It’s safe to say that those days are gone.

These days, your blog is the real deal and can be a powerful tool. Especially when you know how to use it correctly.

That’s why there are now so many blogging essentials to get your blog the maximum in exposure and productivity.

But don’t stress. It’s not brain surgery.

Apply These Ten Blogging Essentials and Create a More Successful Blog

1. Personal stories and other “peopley” stuff.

Your blog has the power to bring in the human element, so get all “peopley” up in there.

This does NOT mean a ‘dear diary’ scenario of your company’s deepest innermost ramblings, though.

What it means is giving readers a chance to relate to your business in a more personal way through sharing personal stories. Doing so helps build brand affinity.

And it creates a nice sense of connection.

Featuring a real person complete with quotes, photos, and other not-too-personal information is one of those blogging essentials that’s a surefire way to produce engagement with your audience.

2. Upcoming events and getting there.

Nothing gets the blogosphere humming like an upcoming event.

It could be anything from a poetry reading to an awards event all the way to the Olympics.

Events and happenings saturate many of the most popular online searches.

If you ARE going for the gold and heading to the Olympics (see what we did there?), why not tie in some tips on how to get there cheaply and safely?

Travel continues to be a hugely popular topic for online searches.

And with 126 million passports in circulation in the U.S. alone, that trend doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. Ironically.

3. Advice on evergreen topics like productivity and parenting.

You’ve seen those content-laden websites that rose to prominence by featuring valuable advice to educate readers on just about everything? Of course you have.

Sometimes there’s advice on subjects that no one even knew were actual subjects.

The thing is, humans are curious by nature. They’re always on the lookout for tools, technology, or tips to help them get more done (such as blogging essentials, for example).

Another evergreen topic? Parenting.

Because there doesn’t seem to be a shortage of parents. Ever.

Parenting tips are particularly well-received by new parents whose belief that parenthood was going to be a basket of sunshine has been seriously challenged. But even the most seasoned parent likes a sense of community.

4. Politics.

If you’ve been told that you shouldn’t talk about politics, you may want to reconsider when it comes to your blog.

This is especially true during an election year.

And we’re not just talking presidential election. There’s plenty of fodder on the local and regional levels too. So find a political topic to discuss, and get to conversing.

Don’t forget that politics can be some rough terrain, though. Be prepared for some potential controversy.

5. More content, more scannability.

You’d think that humans entrenched in this culture of “doing” would rather have shorter posts.

And that may well be. But search engines like the longer stuff.

The longer your blog post, the better chance it’s going to show up in the top search engine results. SerpIQ found that the pages in the 10th position have, on average, 400 fewer words than those in the first position.

It makes sense.

The more content on the page, the more clues search engines have to figure out what your blog is about. So shoot for a minimum of 300 words per blog post.

That way, search engines have plenty of keywords and text to crawl to help them understand the subject of your blog. You’ll also want to tighten up your content.

Turn one long-winded sentence into two concise sentences.
Keep your paragraphs at 2-3 sentences max.
Grab reader’s attention by using bulleted lists and subheadings.

All of these tactics make the post less intimidating. Especially on a mobile device.

6. Guides, guides and more guides.

The beginning is as good a place to start as any.

Bloggers can build organic search traffic at the onset with beginner guides. They can even be done using infographics.

But if you’re feeling quite the expert on a topic, then maybe you’ll want to use the ultimate guide angle – though the term ultimate has become a bit hackneyed.

Consider terms like essential, complete or uncensored. Or doctor up your title even more with something like ‘The Quintessential Guide to _____________ That Will Unlock the Secret to All Life.’

But not that, of course. Unless you have, in fact, unlocked the secret.

Checkout Matthew Woodward’s How To Start A Blog Guide

7. Product reviews.

If you’re looking to monetize your blog as instantly as just adding water and stirring, then product reviews are your go-to.

Product reviews not only build trust and draw traffic, but they are also a revenue stream for bloggers.

And people love them.

If you’re going this route, be sure you go niche, though. This will build the greatest platform for credibility and expertise.

8. Don’t forget internal links.

You want your audience to regard you as the trustworthy bastion of information that you are, of course.

This is where linking to other pages or blog posts on your website can give you a boost.

Internal links to other valuable content keep users on your site longer. This, in turn, reduces the bounce rate and increases your potential for a conversion. The blogging prerequisite trifecta.

But using internal links needs to be done naturally. Steer clear of the whole “click here” thing and avoid spammy or generic text, such as “top rate blogging essentials that will redefine reality!”

And by all means, don’t do too much a good thing.

Before you use a link, consider whether it ties in naturally with the subject matter and will offer value to your readers. If not, skip it.

9. Funny stories.

There will always be a place for humor in this world.

While this is evidenced by the wealth of stand-up comedians and words of wisdom on bathroom walls, it’s even more apparent when you look at the popularity of websites like Buzzfeed, The Onion, Clickhole, and Bored Panda.

Make ’em laugh.

10. Listicles.

And finally, the listicle.

Some people roll their eyes at listicles, insisting they lack quality. And that’s likely true for some of them.

(Just not this one.)

Furthermore, science proves that people love to read listicles. And since science is no longer considered – by most – to be the devil’s work, then it must be true.

In all seriousness, though, listicles continue to be among the most popular articles online. They’ve transcended trend status.

I got so excited when i wrote this post i almost forgot to mention hosting. Major blogging essential, so much that you can’t do without it. We are a HostGator affiliate and proud of it. You can head on over to HostGator here and see what they have to offer your online business or blog. HostGator has Crazy good deals and perfect hosting to fit the needs for any site or blog. Their 1 click WordPress install is pretty impressive too.

So why not keep it on your blogging essentials list?

There are plenty of good ideas out there. Do you have any you’d like to share?