Mama Kat Thursday: Blogging Tips

Welcome Back!
Today's Mama Kat Prompt Is:
"Share any blogging tips you picked up in 2012."

First, you might like to know what sort of blogging experience I have. 
Well, I've had 2 blogs, this one being my second. The first one was a Bravenet journal, which I had for many years, but when I decided I needed a blog service with broader capacities, I  moved here.That was a year ago.
I've also operated several websites with a couple different services, which has made me well versed in many of the technical aspects of setting up an on-line presence, and I have a degree in advertising/marketing.

So, here's some basic tips from my realm of experience:

#1)  Decide what your purpose is.

Do you want to share a cause, discuss politics, journal a life's journey through something, like weight loss or illness; share a devotional, share a hobby, share photos, connect with family or just yell about your bad day at work?
Perhaps most importantly: do you care about who reads it?

 Do you want to attract readers or do you not care about that?
In my case, my first purpose with my Bravenet blog was personal expression, but my purpose with this one was to attract regular readers.

#2)  Choose a free blogging/journaling service that best suits YOUR purposes.

I chose Google Blogger because it gave me more decorative freedom then Bravenet, supported html widgets, didn't have a photo limitation and, probably best of all, included automatic indexing into Google's search engine.
Google also offers a connection to Google+, which I've found has doubled my readership.

If you want readers, making your blog known to search engines is vital.
Most blog services won't do this for you, which means you'll have to do it yourself by going to Google's or Bing's "submit URL" and typing in your blog address.
Also you'll want to make good use of "key word" labeling or "tagging" for ALL your posts, which will help search engines find your stuff.

One point on blog decor: make sure your writing content is clearly visible and readable against your chosen background. Decor, no matter how pretty, is worthless if it makes your blog unreadable!

My remaining tips are for those interested in attracting regular readers:

#3)  Post Interesting.

Interesting content will attract readers interested in your content.
Plus, if you make your content what you're truly interested in, you'll stay inspired.

#4)  Post Regular

There's nothing worse then visiting a blog that hasn't been updated for a week or more.

 That will lose readers.

Consistent readership means consistent posting.
Having a schedule where you post certain things on certain days is a really good idea. It gives your readers an expectation.

Plus it helps prevent writers block.
For example: my goal is a variety blog that is educational and/or entertaining Monday through Thursday.

Monday is cooking/recipes, Wednesday is Gardening and Thursdays are Mama Kat Blog Prompts.

#5)  Post Good

By good, I mean at least use your spell check.
I find nothing more annoying then trying to read a blog full of typos.
I also prefer no swearing, but that's just me.

#6)  Most Importantly: Be Patient and Persistent

Don't give up. Be faithful to your blogging.
Blogging is actually hard work, a mini-job all in itself.
It has taken a whole year to get my readership stats up from zero to 30-50 daily.