10 Little known tips for first time Bloggers in 2021

                     Starting a blog in 2021 is not a bed of roses, especially when you are new to blogging. Blogging has become the most adopted source of income since it offers you both flexibility and satisfaction to work in your areas of interest. According to the statistics on Optinmonster, Blogging has grown by 12 percent since 2015 and there are over 2 billion blogs out there on the internet, out of which 31 million have reported strong results. Now you can imagine the competition.

                    If you are stepping into blogging in 2021 or you already are a blogger but have not been satisfactorily successful yet, then this isn't a walk in the park in 2021 either. 

Here are 10 tips to get you started.

1. Use One Platform

        Earlier there were very limited options in the market, where you could make a decent blog and write your heart out. But as time passed by, the number of people choosing blogging as a full-time career accelerated and a lot of options popped up in the market to help and encourage budding bloggers. That's one advantage of you starting a blog in 2021. You have plenty of options to choose from.

    

        However, a lot of beginners, try to start their blogs from multiple platforms at the same time and end up biting off more than they can chew. You need to understand that when you start writing a blog, you will have to figure out a lot of things, decide upon the niche, figure out what works with the audience, topics to write on, engage with the readers, and promote your blog posts. Upon that, as a beginner blogger, ideas won't come that easily. Trying to get new ideas and writing different blogs for multiple platforms at once is exhausting for newcomers and will affect your consistency.

        So remember to choose one blogging platform that best suits your requirements and expand your horizons once you are comfortable with the blogging.

2. You don't have to choose your niche, just yet

          I know that most of you have landed here to start a blog and have already been researching. And most of the bloggers advise you to choose a genre/niche for your blog before you start blogging. But figuring out the genre for your blog can be a challenging task. 

        I personally believe that choosing and fixating on a niche as a rookie limits your capability to experiment and explore and will compel your thoughts in the margins of a cubbyhole. 

        If you have already found your niche, that's absolutely amazing. But sometimes, as a beginner, you have several great ideas for your blog but not all of them will belong to the same niche, and already deciding your niche will limit you to writing only about your chosen niche. Many bloggers choose their niche and after a later point in time, realize that it is not driving enough traffic to their blog as per their expectations or is not as popular among the readers. Not choosing your niche just yet, will give you the freedom to experiment with your blog articles, decide what works best for your readers, and after you have explored enough you can finally make an informed decision about the niche of your blog. 

3. Build an idea treasury before you start

        Assume you have set up all the necessary things to start your blog and have a fantastic idea for your first post, which you are excited about. Should you write and publish it?

        Absolutely not! Imagine this scenario. You have published an amazing post. You expected a decent response and in a couple of weeks, you have also received it (which is difficult but let's say you did). But you are still not ready with your next post. No idea is crossing your mind. You are going online in search of inspiration, doing research for the post, getting facts, composing a decent-looking article, and then finally publishing your second one. Meanwhile, 3 weeks pass by. This will make you lose all your readers.

    

    Search engines also value consistency. Even though your first post did really well, if you take too much time to post the next one, you kind of disturb the momentum, and the results can be pretty depressing.

So before you even start writing your first blog, try to build an idea treasury for the next 5-6 posts, which will help you be consistent. In fact, make it a habit to dedicate at least an hour every week to append to the list of ideas and topics for your blog posts so that you will always have something to publish.

4. Research and Ideate

        Having just a great idea does not produce a great article. Readers might lose interest quickly and bounce away from your content if it is irrelevant and not up to the mark. You need to invest a lot of time to research before you dive into writing an article.

 

        Go on and read at least 10 to 15 blogs on a similar idea. Figure out what unique you can give to your readers from hundreds of other articles out there on the same idea. Examine and learn how other bloggers from a similar niche compose their pieces. Get your facts straight. Ensure you have enough knowledge of the subject. You would not want negative criticism from your readers. If you are writing on a trendy topic, go to social media platforms to understand your readers' opinions and anticipate what they would like to read. This will not only help you to organize the content of your piece but also to target a specific set of audiences.

5. Consistency is the key

        Quality and consistency are two sides of the same coin when it comes to blogging. The key to a memorable blog is to be frequent on your blog. The more frequently you appear with a new post in front of your readers, the more they remember you. 

        Let's take a real-life example. You are less likely to remember a relative you met in a wedding reception a few years back than your best friend whom you interact with daily. In the same way, your readers will recognize you the more you create content and would want to visit your blog frequently once they have marked you as their favorite. 

        Besides that, it will help you boost your search engine rankings. Search engines like Google, use web-crawlers to index an increasing number of websites on the web and rank them in the searches as per user's needs. This is done based on several factors such as searched keywords, relevancy, device compatibility but most importantly Consistency. So be consistent if you want to get organic traffic from search engines.

6. Establish Goals

        Setting goals has time and again proved to be critical for success. If you have adopted blogging as a hobby, then it does not matter so much. But if you want to monetize your blog sometime in the future, then it is necessary to build goals that will lead you there.

        Identify your capabilities and pick achievable goals at first. This will boost up your confidence, once you achieve them. Start small. For example, writing 2 pieces a week. Once you achieve them, push yourself a little more and try to aim bigger and tougher. Keep it self-paced. Do not rush yourself by aiming for bigger goals just because you see other bloggers posting twice or thrice a day. This will leave you worn out. Remember that only you can build your learning curve.

        Setting goals help you to put a realistic timeline to track your development and gives you a sense of personal satisfaction and accountability. It helps you to focus on the brighter side even while going through major setbacks.

        You can set goals for the number of visitors to your page, number of views per post, number of subscribers, or search engine rankings.

7. Create an 'About me' page

        Your blog is the safe-space you create to share your opinion and views about the things you are passionate about. When people read our blogs, they are actually reading you. When they connect to some of your opinions, they would wish to know more about you and your personality. That's when they look for your 'About me' page.

        Having an 'About me' page gives you an added incentive of connecting with your audience on an intimate level. Keep this page as personal as you can. Add a stunning picture of yourself from last summer. Add your unique personal characteristics and habits, that will help your readers remember you. Include things you like and if your readers like that too, then Voila! you have already established a connection.

        Visit my 'About me' page for example(little inspiration maybe).

8. Simplicity is the best policy

       When you first start your blog, you will suddenly discover your untapped potential for creativity. That's great. And you know I was that person too. I stuffed in all my creativity. Came up with titles that were too inventive. Too inventive for them to pop up in the search queries.

        That's right! Getting too creative can wreck your chances of getting more organic traffic to your blog. When the readers try to search for something, they will always use words that describe their needs in the simplest way possible. Using heavy and uncommon words in your article or title will drop your search engine rankings and the reader will never land on your page even though your articles are great. Ouch!

        I am not implying to not be creative at all. Just dial your oozing creativity down a notch and find the right balance which will bring you enough views and also make your pieces rare.

9. Include original images or give credit

        In today's generation, most of you are familiar with the word 'Copyright'. But if you are a grandma like I was, let me educate you a little. Copyright in legal terms provides the owner of intellectual property, right to use and copy them as per requirement. In other words, if you have created a video/image/blog content, then only you have the legal rights to use them. No one else can use them as their own without acquiring proper permissions. This is something you need to know from the beginning itself. You wouldn't want someone to put a copyright strike on one of your popular posts, right?

        Most importantly, not everything you find on the internet is copyright-free. So if you are searching for eye-appealing images on the internet, check if they are copyright-free. There are a few sites where you can find high-quality copyright-free images to use for your blogs or you can create original content. I use Canva to make original images for my blog and Pinterest account. Canva has plenty of free templates, elements, and text formats to help you design the right images for your blog.

        If you still want to use an image that is under somebody else's copyright, then give credits in the image caption. Maybe put a link to their article in the image caption. You are on the safe side unless you display somebody else's work as yours.

10. Marketing is just as important as the content.

        Now, let's come to practical terms. Blogging is not easy money. If you are here to get rich quick, not gonna happen anytime soon. As a freshman, you are really going to struggle to get the views you expect. You are still in the discovery phase. You are still figuring out what is working out with your audience. What is making you visible and what is not working out great. So awaiting a thousand views on your first few posts through organic traffic is quite unrealistic. 

        So to be heard in the blogosphere, you need to be great at marketing your thoughtfully written article as well. Make use of your social media presence. Add links to your blog on all social media platforms. Be sure to promote your articles every time you post.

        Blogging can be challenging. You need to strive hard, keep up with new trends, improve your content, promote your work, and network with fellow bloggers. But you are not alone. The blogging community is generous and accommodating. There are tons of great bloggers out there ready to help you with astounding tips. Comment and let me know what worked for you and feel free to add any to the list.

Read Next: 8 Best FREE Blogging tools to improve traffic for low-income bloggers

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