What is a "blog"?
By definition, a blog is a discussion published on the Internet consisting of a specific, often informal writing style of condensed information. As accurate as this definition is, in most cases, a blog serves a simple purpose – to present your ideas or insights to others in a friendly and helpful way. Don't think of it as being your diary – it's not. But while you could include more personal elements in the blog, it still has to retain the information or at least the entertainment value for the reader.
Type of Blogs
These days, there are blogs about every imaginable topic. Food lovers, and travellers, aren't the only ones in this field – you can find issues about tech, art, and even various hobby industries. In fact, 7,5 million blogs are published daily. That means you can create unique content in any interesting field and still get people who will enjoy your publications! You can choose any writing style too, and to help you get started - here are the 3 most common blog types that might inspire you.
1. Personal Blog
The most prominent way to document your life is personal blogging. It is what it sounds like: independent blogger posts their thoughts and ideas online, thus making it an interactive experience with their followers. However, only some personal blogs have become popular and made their authors well-known. Usually, such blogs are mostly followed only by close family relatives and friends of the writers.
2. Collaborative or "group" blogs
Collaborative blogs serve two purposes: to help split the reading material and to reduce the amount of individual work personal blogs require. These blogs are popular in well-established blogging communities that focus on information-rich topics like politics, technology, and entertainment. Online personas often use this writing to introduce new ideas to their readers and attract more mass to their website as it helps everyone involved in the project.
3. Microblogging
Some could argue that microblogs are just an old-school form of social media, but they haven't lost their relevance yet. The material presented is more spontaneous, raw, and distinct. It can be a photo, quote, or anything that popped into the writer's head at that moment. While it brings a blog to life in funny and unexpected ways, too much of this method could make the personal page seem a bit too similar to an Instagram account.
Steps to how to write a great blog
Let's get one thing straight – no rule will turn your blog into a great one. Ideas and styles that apply in one space can get rejected elsewhere. Thus, this is more learned through practice than in theory. But that should not stop anyone from giving themselves a head-start. You could avoid simple mistakes and improve your blog with a few simple steps.
Things to avoid:
Choosing the wrong topic name
Your topic is the most important thing. It's a hit or miss. Make sure your topic is clear and understandable. Often people create fancy headlines with complex wording, but that leads to users not even clicking on your blog. It can even target the wrong audience or miss out on potential new followers.
Posting too often or too rarely
Suppose your blog only gets updated every half a year. In that case, most people will forget about you and read other people's material instead. On the other hand, if you post every hour, everyone could get overwhelmed about constantly hearing from you. A good tip is to ask yourself, how often do you read similar blogs? The best advice is to publish content continuously, at your own pace.
Focusing too much on yourself
This applies both to the writing style and the ideas you choose. Self-promotion is essential but making your blog a personal marketing scheme will lose you any readers. On top of that, using repetitive topics as the backbone of your posts will make your blog boring.
Things to include and use:
Gradually targeting a larger audience
If you see that adding a little bit of information to widen the range of topics mentioned in your blog will not be difficult - do it. This will make your blog more dynamic and attract new readers.
Writing an attractive headline and introduction
It is crucial to make people interested in your idea right away. Especially when they could get side-tracked by anything else on the Internet, your introduction should get them hooked quickly. Something short and punchy yet valuable!
Investing in forming a community and keeping it engaged
As soon as you attract readers, the rush of getting more popular might kick in. And while it enlarges your community, it is vital to appreciate the value readers you already have brought. Organizing meet-ups, entering discussions with them and getting to know each one better will keep your blog dynamic and sustainable.
To conclude
Blogging is a fantastic way to share your projects, thoughts and ideas with the online community. If you feel like your work and hobbies are worthy of others' attention - it is the easiest way to get it. But remember that followers dedicate their time to you. The writer is the one who serves the reader, not the other way around. So, don't be afraid to experiment. Always appreciate your followers as they form your community and make efforts worth a while.
