October 17, 2013

BLOG TALK: LESSONS LEARNED, VOL. 2

Because I know this is a popular topic among bloggers (and bloggers only, as far as I know), I'm back with round two of blogging lessons learned (here's the first round!).

1. Update your about page. It's easy to forget about that welcome page, but it's an important one to keep updated--after all, it's the page new readers visit and decide if you're worth reading--is that too harsh to say out loud? That, and we all know that we won't be a twenty-something forever, so make sure to update it every now and then. Life changes, and so should your about page.

2. You've gotta put work into it. You don't just get readers out of nowhere. You've got to build up your blog (both design and content-speaking!), find your blogging identity, and build a community. Extra emphasis on the building part!

3. Reply, reply, reply. As a blog reader, one of the most disappointing things I've found when commenting is having bloggers not respond to your comments. I don't care if you do it on your blog or via email (or if you use a commenting platform like Disqus), but please reply! Note: If you do choose to reply to comments on your blog, I highly recommend making a note of it somewhere so people know that--I love how Kellie does just that in her sidebar. And if you'd like to receive my replies via email and you haven't yet, check to see if you're a no-reply commenter.

4. It's all about passion. It's so easy to want to jump on a bandwagon and post things that you think will be popular in the eyes of your readers. In my experience, however, I've found that the posts about my passions, my heart, and my life are the ones that are the "most popular" and receive the most (and best!) feedback.

5. Sometimes less is more. It's good to have balance when it comes to blogging. Balancing photo content to actual word content, balancing real hearty posts with light-hearted posts and balancing short and long posts. Trust me, I know it's easy to post long wordy posts. But sometimes, it's nice to read short posts. So yes, sometimes less is more (unless we're talking about clothing and modesty--that's a completely different story).

6. Don't be afraid to leave a comment. I promise, we don't bite! I mean, I have yet to meet a scary blogger who hates receiving comments and while I may be speaking for myself, even if it's just a little "Hi!" or "Love this!" knowing that you're reading my blog makes my day. I know that it's easy to click, scroll, and move on, but I encourage you to leave a comment--it's worth it! Plus, you never know what will happen if you do; you just might meet your BBFF (blogging BFF)!

I'm by no means a blogging expert (in fact, I don't think any blogger claims to be!)--so I want to know your blogging lessons learned or blogging tips. Do you agree with what I've said? Do you have any funny blogging experiences? Let's get this conversation started, okay?

Ready, set, go!

13 comments

  1. The whole "reply to comments" thing gets me. I guess... who made this a rule? And why have we come to expect a reply to our comments?

    Replying to comments takes a lot of time. And some comments don't really need a reply in my opinion. I think there is balance in this part of blogging as well. If I don't feel a genuine reply to a comment forming in my mind I don't reply. Nothing like lame conversation haha. :)

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    1. I get where you're coming from. From my point of view, I love knowing that people have read my comment or at least acknowledge that I exist and that they actually care so I really try and reply to comments--especially when they're from new or visiting bloggers. That, and I'm also really wordy and I like to write so it's kind of hard for me not to reply to comments some days!

      But I also get what you mean about there being comments that don't need replies because I've gotten a few of the one-liner comments and what not and am not always sure how to reply to them. :)

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  2. + i think you've got some good points here!
    i get a little frustrated when i see the "noreplycommenter" show up on my email - especially if they've put thought into their comment - i'd like to just say "thanks for reading" ya know?
    + i think as long as your blog reflects YOU that's what matters. everyone won't like every blog - different strokes for different folks ya know? There are some blogs that some of my blog friends LOVE and i'm like "meh" and vice versa!

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    1. YES! No reply commenters are soooo frustrating with me, too (not the people themselves, just that it's an option to begin with!). And I've noticed a lot of that recently when people switch to their Google+ profiles instead of their Blogger profiles. Oh, technology... :)

      And I also agree with what you said about creating a blog that reflects you. There are definitely blogs that I've felt "meh" about, too. I think it's all about being yourself and remembering that not everyone's gonna like you---something that's always harder to accept for me!

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  3. I agree.
    Replying to comments is definitely something that I always to try to do, both in email and on the blog.
    I've also noticed that the posts where I am sharing my heart, are definitely most popular.
    I love seeing people share their heart on their blog, it's refreshing :)

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    1. I so agree with what you've said--especially about sharing your heart. Those kinds of posts are definitely refreshing. It's easy to get lost in the happy-go-lucky posts around the blog/social media world and think that no one ever struggles or has hard days. It's the heartfelt posts that remind me that everyone has their own story, they just might not choose to share all of it. :)

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    2. I love how you put that"It's the heartfelt posts that remind me that everyone has their own story".
      I so agree girl! When people share their heart on their blog it feels like i am getting to know them better :)

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  4. Great tips! Love them all Especially the "About Page." I always have my about page in the back of my mind, thinking about what may needed to be updated or changed.

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    1. I'm glad you agree! The about page is definitely one of those pages that I like to change up and update and it's also something that I like to change up every now and then because as life changes, I like to try and make sure my entire blog reflects that, too. :)

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  5. These are some super great tips, Kiki! It's always awesome to know what works for different bloggers. :-)

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    1. So true! It's always neat for me to see what works for other bloggers, too. I love that blogging is one of those things that is really and truly to each his (or her!) own. :)

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  6. Thanks for these great tips. I am going right now to check out my about me page and to make certain I replied to all the comments.

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    1. Thank you for reading them! :) And no worries about updating your about page and comment responses! Those are just two things that I like to make sure I'm on top of on my blog. but with blogging, it really is whatever works best for you as the blogger. :)

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