Blondish.net » Blogging

Authenticity – Blog And Be Yourself

Nile — Thu, 03 May 2012 08:47:56 +0000

Liz Strauss (@lizstrauss on Twitter) had been at WordCamp Chicago (June 6-7, 2009) and talked about many basics behind blogging. However, it was one thing that I could not pass up to blog about and share. I am always finding time to pull up notes from presentations I have attended because there is a meaningful lesson to be learned or reminded of.

When you blog, you need to be authentic- be yourself. I found myself nodding while listening to Liz. I can remember all the wank through the years from bloggers not being who they were. I even remember people trying to call me out, and guess what… I have always been myself.

How can people visit another’s blog and comment when they do not believe you? Are you consistent about yourself? Are you blogging from experience or are you there to just be another person handing out the same information as other websites?

I can agree with Liz when she said, “I can find information anywhere, blog your experience with your information.”

When your blog might have a similar subject like so many other blogs, I choose to come to read and comment because I am reading about your experience. Especially with blogs about WordPress, I am fairly picky. I want more layman’s terms and a little bit of personality. I want to know why I should use one particular code string, versus another, especially since I tend to read blogs late at night when I am slightly tired and blurry-eyed. If I want WordPress information, cut, dry and straight, I will go to the Codex, but if you are going to pass a catchy-phrased tutorial link through my Twitter stream, it better be as catchy as it sounds.

Remember this, your blog may be visited by many people, or very few, but each are different. The only thing in common is that they choose to visit your site because they find you authentic.

Are your authentic? Do you blog from experience? Have you had experiences with people who were not who they said they were?

(Note: Photo is compliments of @LisaSabinWilson.)

What To Do When Your to Blog Inspiration Hits A Dry Spell

Nile — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 09:14:50 +0000

Sometimes blog inspiration might seem hard to come by. What can you do to prevent hitting that dry spell? Inspiration can come from many places, but it is how you harness it that counts. However, there are factors that can get in the way of getting your words to jump to your mind and onto your blog.

Well, you need to think about your blogging habits:

When do you normally blog? In the evening? In the morning? Midday?
Have you eaten properly?
Are you having some type of exercise, even in small increments of time, like 10-20 minutes.
Have you done your homework by reading around your niche and a little outside of it to keep on top of the news?
Are you blogging way to frequently?
Does blogging have to be done in a rush?
Are you just painfully continuing to blog in a niche you no longer have enough material to provide for?

All of the above factors can affect your blog habits. You do need to blog when you are most creative because this is when you will at least have that extra oomph to get that article done. Also, never rush blogging. If you have an article you think you have to squeeze in before a certain time, you really do not. You are not putting a newspaper to bed for publishing on the next day. Your thoughts might be rushed and not come across as logical as it should.

Yes, your health can be a big factor! If you are ill or not eating properly, you could be running low on both energy and the brain power to even get through the day. Make sure you are eating well and incorporating a few exercises. Some bloggers may even freelance online, so that means those who are living the freelancing lifestyle need to take extra care. 10 or 20 minutes might make a difference. Remember in health class – exercise encourages your body to release endorphins. Endorphins make you happy and a bit more energetic.

DO YOUR HOMEWORK! You might not have a boss overlooking… wait – YOU ARE YOUR OWN BOSS! Make sure to keep yourself on target and do your research. Surf the sites you enjoy, read from people within and outside of your niche. You never know – someone might write an article that you may have a response well worth writing your own blog post.

The biggest thing of all in this is that if you are just doing this for the money and not because you are at least passionate about it – STOP! Most people who are passionate about certain topics are more than likely able to nit pick everything apart and find something new to write about. They are also more willing to do the research and stay on top of the game.

These are merely some things to think about when your blogging inspiration hits a dry spell. However, I know others have their own rituals – so what do you recommend?

Adding and Editing Links in WordPress

Nile — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 21:15:56 +0000

Not everyone uses the Links section in the backend of their WordPress. However, there is Adding and editing links in WordPress.

It is important to note that the Links section in the WordPress backend does not have to just be for blogroll links. It can be used for many things like affiliates, relevant sites to yours, supporters, and much more. You have the capabilities in WordPress templating to make a template to call a specific link category to a page if you want.

Repurposing Versus Republishing Blog Posts

Nile — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 23:27:36 +0000

Repurposing and republishing blog post have both similiar and different meanings. Both mean handling a past post in order to post it again. However, repurposing is merely changing the date to the current day for publishing while republishing is totally removing the old post, and starting fresh.

The reasons for both article marketing techniques are to bring a post that the author may feel relevant now, but it did not get as much attention the first time around. It is also a great way to pull up those posts, freshen them up with any new information and then release it to your readers again.

In repurposing a post, everything is retained, even the original comments. If a person republishes a post, any comments that had been associated will be lost. Also, in repurposing, it could mean that the author could publish the post in another medium, or in several mediums, like video blogging, or even podcasting. While both ways are great for any blog author, repurposing a post might be a better choice.

Why?

In most content management systems and blog platforms, including WordPress, the blog author can change the status, the visibility, and when the article was published. As said earlier, the older comments remain intact with the article, keeping the conversation open for newer comments. The other great thing about re-purposing is that it is posts to the social networks like a fresh new post and put as the most recent post in your RSS feed.

In entirely republishing a post, while the article may be listed, the comments are lost. This really is much like a slap in the face to past readers who have commented on the article.

It is your choice as the blog owner to decide which method works best for a particular article. However, remember, that if you are trying to get more traffic to that article, as well as your readers to leave comments, you will have to do a little more effort on the social network sites other than just posting your article.

Which method do you normally do – repurposing your posts or completely republishing your articles?

How To Be More Relatable to Your Readers

Nile — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 12:30:38 +0000

One thing that really impresses me about one blogger over another is their relatability with their readers. Ever person has a different background filled with hundreds of unique experiences. It is often at this point, no matter what the article might be about, that a reader can become turned off.

Here is how to be more relatable to your readers.

Be open and friendly. While you might have some serious topics covered on your blog, while engaging in conversation when readers who comment, make sure to make them feel welcome and that you respect their opinion. Not every reader will agree with you, but if you can make that extra effect to reply, and make sure that they know you at least read their side, they will come back.
Be honest. “Honesty is the best policy.” That quote rings true in so many ways. When you decide to promote your work on the social network streams, you better be giving honest information. People react in very negative ways and are quick to tell others if you are a dishonest character.
Be uniquely informative and accurate. You need to be able to give something to people that will stand above other blogs, especially if you are trying to compete for their attention. You might agree with another website on a topic, and you can always link to the original article and expand on your own opinion. That actually keeps the conversation going and for some people, when you link them back, you end up making a nice blog friend that is open to linking you back.
Do not overwhelm your readers. Long paragraphs are known to be a bore for some readers. Break them up. If your articles are going over 700 or even 1000 words, perhaps look into your article and find a way to break it up into parts. This will allow you to have several posts instead of one, AND those who liked the first part, will be eager to read the rest.
Use words that are easy and do not intimidate your readers. Another thing is if you choose to use vocabulary that might be difficult for others to understand, you may want to provide a short footnote or some type of explanation. Within the US, most people have an average reading level of a 6th grader. Outside of the US, you are dealing with language barriers, so they will have to look up difficult words in a translator sometimes.
Always be open for new ideas. If you ever feel you site is missing something, ask your readers for suggestions of what topics they believe you need to cover. Do a survey or create polls. Create open events for your readers to drop in and ask questions.

What other ways do you suggest on how to be more relatable to your readers?