2/14/2018

The Hurdles You'll Need to Clear to Keep Your Blog on Track


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No matter what anyone else tells you, it’s still more than possible for you to make a success of your blog in 2018. Sure, the market might be crowded with lots of different blogs already, but there is always room for more if the quality they offer is up to scratch. However, there’s more than just quality that you need to offer and focus on when you’re starting a brand new blog. Blogging isn’t as simple as heading to WordPress and typing out some thoughts that have been rattling around your mind.

That’s not to say the process of starting a blog has to be overly complicated, but if you want to get it right and find lasting success for your blog, there are some key things that you need to think about. You can’t let the hurdles that take down so many first-time bloggers take you down too, but that’s probably what will happen if you don’t anticipate them correctly.
Read on to find out about the hurdles that you’ll need to clear before you can find real success with your new blog. By informing yourself now, you’ll be better prepared for what lies ahead once your blog is up and running.
Choosing a Domain That Actually Makes Sense
This is the first thing that you will need to get right to your blog. The domain name you choose will be one of the first things that people see. It should say something about what your blog is about and the kind of content that’s covered there. If you choose one that makes no real sense at all, it could really hinder you and stop you making progress early on.
Engaging Via Email in the Right Way
Email marketing is something that you should most definitely work on because it can be a great way to engage with the people who enjoy your blog. Advertise the fact that you have an email newsletter that people can sign up to. Nobody will sign up if they don’t even know it exists.

Building Followings on Many Social Media Platforms
As well as building a following on the blog itself, you will also need to expand into other areas in order to appeal to people on social media platforms. This gives you a base from which you can distribute and share your content and hone your voice. There are plenty of people out there who have done this successfully, so there’s nothing wrong with looking to them for inspiration if you need it.
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Getting the Look of Your Website Right
The look and style of your website will go a long way towards determining how people respond to it and enjoy it. If you’re not sure what kind of style to go for, try to keep things minimalist and don’t go too crazy with the colors and over the top graphics. Simple is often best, especially when you’re starting out and still finding your feet as a blogger. Alternatively, you could hire a graphic designer to come up with solutions for you.
Installing Plugins That Allow You to Stay on Top of the Analytics
Every modern blog should have a range of plugins in place, and some of them should relate to analytics. You can’t run a successful blog unless you’re willing to put in the work behind the scenes, and analytics will most definitely play a big part in all that. Find ways to make the most of these analytical tools in order to learn about how your blog is being used by the people that matter most.

Being Transparent With Your Audience
Transparency is one of the values that is respected most of all in the blogosphere. If you come across as shady or obtuse, people will have suspicions about you and your intentions. This is a very personal world because it’s about people opening up about themselves and sharing their knowledge or experiences. That’s why people want you to be as transparent as you possibly can be. It’s something you’ll have to get right as early as possible you’re going to find success.
Achieving Consistency, Even When You’re Busy With Other Things
Being consistent is perhaps the single biggest challenge bloggers face when they’re trying to establish their blogs and build a base of fans and readers. People lose interest very quickly and if they look at your blog and see a person who’s probably only going to post once every couple of weeks, they’ll probably head elsewhere for their fix. People enjoy being able to head to a blog and find consistent content there. If you have a full-time job and other commitments, you’ll have to balance these with your blogging.
Not Simply Falling Into Line With Other Blogs
There are plenty of blogs out there and many of them will be trying to achieve the same things as you and attract the same kind of people as you. The risk of this is that you start paying too much attention to blogs that are operating in a similar niche to your own. It’s never helpful to focus too much on where the crowd’s heading because then you just become another sheep that falls into line behind all the rest of them.
Dealing With Technical Problems Without Them Wrecking Your Readership Figures
Running a website means that you’re almost certainly going to experience technical problems at one time or another. That just comes with the territory. However, you shouldn’t allow yourself to assume that these issues don’t matter that much because, in some instances, the readership of the offending blog can be really turned off by technical annoyances. Making use of Managed IT Services could be the right thing to do because you can’t let these problems take over. Your readership won’t put it up with it forever.
Making Yourself Part of the Blog’s Brand
Blogs rarely work if you’re running them in an anonymous kind of way. It’s not right for you to hide behind a username or to hide behind your writing. These days, you’ll be expected to put yourself front and centre. Like it or not, you’re going to have to become part of your blog’s brand as an individual. This will add the human factor to your blog and give people a relatable human to attach your words too, so it’s not as daunting or as scary as you might think.
Resisting the Urge to Aim for Viral Success
Everyone wants to achieve viral success when they’re producing content, but is this really such a worthy thing to be aiming for in 2018? I’d argue it’s not. That’s because when you’re so focused on achieving those viral hits, you tend to dumb things down and lack nuance. This might be fine for one piece that you want lots of people to read. But will those people come back to read your next piece? Probably not. And by that point, you might already have alienated your core audience.
Finding Ways to be Compelling and Comprehensible in the Eyes of Specific Visitors
What’s compelling to one group of people might not be particularly compelling to others. That’s why you should take notice of any feedback you get relating to your blog. Some users might feel like you’re talking down to them and writing too simplistically. At the same time, people might feel like you’re using too much jargon and that your message is going straight over your head. Gauging where you’re getting this write and where you’re getting it wrong will be key.
Getting to Know Your Audience Better
Before you can really get good at giving your audience what they want from you, you first need to understand your audience and where they’re coming from. It’s impossible to offer a perfect experience if you don’t know exactly who you’re pitching your content to as a writer. Use the analytics, as well as the engagement you get on social media platforms, to get a better idea of who your readers are and what it is they’re looking for when they visit your blog.

Personalising the User Experience
The experience of the user is always of paramount importance when it comes to running your blog. If you don’t offer an experience that people feel in some way connected to, there will be less of an incentive for them to come back for more of your content. There are so many ways to do this, but it makes sense to focus on user engagement in the form of comments. Make this a place for open and positive discussion while banishing any negative trolls.
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Now that you have a full and clear understanding of what’s required of you going forward, it’s up to you to make sure that you start your blog in the correct way. Don’t let yourself get dragged down by the kinds of mistakes that you really don’t need to make. With a proper preparation and a clear strategy, your blog can be successful.

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