Pro Blogger Guide

Robert and I have been preparing for our upcoming session at ConvergeSouth about tips and tricks on writing great blogs. Personally, I am of the opinion that the best way to blog is not to blog at all. It’s like what they say about keeping your computer safe from viruses: the best way to protect your computer is not to turn it on at all and the best way to blog is not to blog at all. Barring that good advice, and understanding that no blog post will be perfect, here are some tips that could help you blog and prosper. I have also included some additional reading at the end of this post for your reading pleasure.

1) Pick a defining title tag: What keywords do you want to be known and searched for? If your blog is about food, then the word food needs to be in your title tag: i.e. Maryam’s cravings: will blog for food.

2) Pay attention to your headlines: write snappy, sexy headlines filled with relevant keywords. i.e. Microsoft’s iPod killer: coming Zune to a Walmart near you

3) Add more Media: podcasting, videoblogging, and photography. Adding sound, photos, and video to your blog makes it more attractive and gives you more ways to communicate your message to the audience.

4) Write frequent and precise posts: Post often even if your posts are short. Think of your audience as a new love intrigue. Not every contact you make needs to be filled with meaningful, deep and romantic content. You need to show them you are interested though. Sometimes you call just to say hi, sometimes you show up with a bouquet of roses and sometimes you write them a poem that will put Lord Byron to shame. The point is you need to show up and you need to make the effort. You catch my drift.

5) Find your own niche: Get some scarcity and focus on a single niche. There are millions of blogs out there. What makes your blog worth reading? It might be the corky way you view the world and most importantly it is those interesting details that are interesting just to you. For example, check out this highly popular blog about the London Underground.

6) Give free link love: Network with other bloggers and influencers and link out to friends and enemies alike. To become an authority, you need to network and learn from others and you’ll earn credibility when you give credit when it’s due even if happens to be your competitor.

7) Get up-close and personal: Develop your own style and persona online and cover stories by adding your own perspective. Don’t be afraid to be controversial, agree to disagree, or just over the top from time to time.

8) Tag baby, tag: make your blog optimized for search engines by tagging your posts.

9) Admit mistakes and make amends.

10) Allow comments on your blog, make commenters feel welcome, provide a safe environment for your commenters in your blog and respond as often as possible.

11) ok one more bonus tip: write well. Read and reread, check your facts, spelling, grammar and your state of mind before you hit publish. Once you hit that publish button, your post is going to live on the Internet forever. Does it represent you in the best way possible?

Now, I am not an A-lister and I doubt I ever will be. What I have shared with you are not my own brilliant ideas. I have been hanging around some great bloggers for the past few years though and have been reading and continue to read many blog posts. The above is just based on my observations, but by no means a complete list. Please do your own research and if you come upon words of wisdom please share it with the rest of us.

If you have the time and the resources, attending conferences and un-conferences, are always helpful. I learned quite a lot at the Blogher conference back in July, and look forward to the upcoming gatherings at ConvergeSouth and Blog Business Summit in October.

Additionally, I suggest reading Helen’s posts on how to pick the best blogware, and how to drive traffic to your blog, Shel’s nine random thoughts on blogging, and Dennis A. Mahoney's article: How to write a better weblog.

If I missed anything please feel free to comment and improve this post. Thanks for stopping by. Good luck and keep on bloggin’