Essential Blogging Tips

Ironic how I’m posting blogging tips when my blog seems to be currently rolling down the hill. However although my blog seems to be getting worse in my opinion. I feel like my knowledge is getting better. And since going self hosted which I did in around September time last year. I have learnt so many new things. So I thought why not share my little tips as they might come in handy.

Also my outfit shots are completely irrelevant but I’ve already posted this outfit before. So if wants ‘full post worthy’. But if you’re curious;

Dungarees – Primark – £7
Striped Top – Zara – £5.99
Mesh top – Thrifted – £1
Coat – Zara / Sisters Wardrobe
Shoes – Vans Old Skool
Bag – Guess / Mums wardrobe
Earrings – Depop – £4

Content;

In my opinion your content is the main reason I’ll enjoy a blog. I enjoy everyone’s unique content and that’s why I think it’s important to focus on it. My main tip would be ‘you do you’. If you want to post a certain post then go for it. Even if you think ‘this doesn’t really fit in with the rest of my posts’. Or if you think it won’t be a popular post then don’t worry about it. If you write what you want to write about then your blog and posts will become immediately better. Without you realising as you’re writing about something you want to. I beat myself around the bush when it comes to content on my blog. I do struggle to post as frequently as I’d wish, as for once in my life I’m prioritising school work.

But when it comes to content. Post what you want and when you want. I try to stick at the same times on a Wednesday and Sunday. But at the end of the day if I post at 10:30 instead of 10. Does it really matter? No it does not so don’t be too harsh on yourself and post what you want when it comes to content.!

Readability;

Since I moved to WordPress there is a readability feature that wasn’t on blogger. (Or at least I didn’t have it on Blogger). But the main key points to get good readability are;

Only 25% or less of your post can be sentence with more than 20 words.
No paragraphs to have more than 150 words in.
Don’t have 3 sentences in a row with the same word.
Use a heading(s)

The list goes on but taking the extra 5/10 minutes to make sure you perfect it is well worth it. Readability is basically how easy it is for someone else you read your post. How easy is it to scan read and see the main points. Now I’ve looked at readability I have changed my style of writing slightly. So now my readability tends to be good straight away. But I always had to go back and re-edit posts to make sure they have good readability. If you’re on WordPress then I find your readability on the side section when you’re editing a post. And if you want to see what’s being your readability down then you can find it at the bottom of a post when your editing. If you scroll down to the bottom you should be able to see the readability section. Readability has also improved my blog DA. And this takes me on to my next point…

Blog DA (Domain Authority);

This always use to be something floating around that I was completely clueless on. Basically every blog has a DA number, domain authority. If you use a site like blogger and have that it you url then I think this makes your blog DA higher. And is not a true reflection. As when I used blogger my DA was always really high which was not right. But now I’m self hosted my DA is a true reflection.

The higher your DA the better. There isn’t a definite list but making sure you’re posts have good readability. Making sure each post has a sufficient amount of words. Having no broken lists. The list goes on but I see it as do your blog to your best ability. It also helps to get your blog link in other places, like doing a collaboration or leaving your blog link on comments. But your blog DA is something to worry over as at the end of the day it’s just a number. And beware it can go down as well! I had a lovely surprise of mine going down the other day!

Take time for your blog photos;

Blog photos are a big thing for me. I’m constantly trying to improve them and try new things out. They never seem to go very well. But I’ve learnt from my mistakes and rushing them is not the way forward. If I try to take them in a couple of minutes when it’s the wrong time in the day. Spoiler, it doesn’t work. Some may be able to master it but I think photos can be as equally as important as writing. Blog photos definitely draw me to a post. However don’t beat yourself up about them. Everyone has different styles but stick you what you feel like.

Promote your posts well;

For me personally, I’m more likely to read a post if I see an interesting tweet on it or a post on Instagram. If I see tweets that talk about a post more I find that I’m more likely to read it. Ironically I don’t actually do this myself so I’m actually going to start. Instead of just posting the title. But promoting is a key thing to your posts. Yes blogging is definitely not about numbers but it does make you proud when a post does really well. And I think promoting is an essential. I’m so bad when it comes to scheduling tweets but twitter is definitely my main social media ‘platform’. If you’re familiar with my Instagram, you will know I’m truly hopeless. But if you’re a new blogger or don’t schedule tweets then Buffer is the one to use!

I hope you enjoyed reading. Whether you’re a blogger new or old, I hope you’ve learnt something. And if there is anything anyone wants to know or wants tips on then let me know! I like writing posts like this!

Kate Xx