It happens to all of us bloggers out there. You view your blog and scan through all your previous posts then back up to the top hoping for some sort of inspiration to just fall out of the sky…….nothing. You stare at the empty title and post fields, hoping that your content will just flow from your head to your fingertips, spackling your screen with the most amazing and profound thing anyone has ever read…….and nothing. You realize that you haven’t posted in a few weeks and you know you need to write something sooner than later to keep the interest and syndication going or the virtual cuisinart that we know to be search engine indexes churning away will shove your posts and content down to the bottom in no time at all. Stale content in the search world is the equivalent of no content in the web 2.0 world. Stale is your enemy.
I’ve been trying to ratchet up the frequency of my own blogs lately. While I’m getting closer to that sweet spot that is almost guaranteed to get me inspired to write on a whim, I still have much to figure out. However, there are a couple things that have helped me get going on the right path, regardless if I’m blogging for business, or for fun.
Tips on Catalyzing Your Creative Synapses
There’s nothing I’m going to say here that hasn’t been said before but I figure a few reminders never hurt. Here are a few of the basic things I do to keep the blog cogs turning.
Organize Your Inbound Information/Feeds:
There is so much content out there that it can be overwhelming when trying to figure out where to get specific content and what content best suits and spawns your ideas best. Make sure you have a plan for receiving your preferred information. Find the right client apps, tools or websites that will effectively deliver what you want and how you want it. If you have this part dialed, that’s half the battle.
Read & Infer From Your Analytics:
In the midst of writing and publishing blog posts, a lot of times the importance of analytics and keyword reporting are overlooked or forgotten as a source for ideas. We tend to glance at web analytics and cling to our page views and bounce rates instead of really looking at patterns in traffic source types, keyword clusters with common themes (possible evidence of a hot topic), and your post’s individual traffic to comments ratio (percentage of visits eliciting voluntary interaction). All the decent blog platforms come with some sort of basic analytics now and if they don’t, chances are there are some really great (and free) plugins for your blog platform of choice.
Reach Out And Touch Someone’s Blog:
This is one of the most effective ways to build a follower base yet it’s the most commonly neglected task for most new bloggers. Successful blogs really require a lot of TLC at home, but also require that you give some TLC to the notable blogs of others as well. Make it a point to comment on someone else’s blog at least once a day. You don’t need to drum up 5 paragraphs per comment either. Make it short and sweet. Get your point across and make sure it’s relevant and genuine. My traffic on my photography blog gained a lot of momentum very quickly by doing this.
Some Other Helpful Sites
Onward.
I’ve Joined The Quick ‘n’ The Dirty
They started The Quick’n'Dirty Podcast on BlogTalkRadio almost a year ago and it has since grown to the point where they need some help. Their reputations, experience and down to earth approach in business and social media have helped them grow the show quickly and attract some well known talent as guests on the show. My role as producer on the show will be to help put together and implement the tools needed to make the content syndication more fluid, tightening up some of the nuts and bolts of the show, and at times standing in as co-host if either Jen or Aaron get called off to duty to better mankind through social media.
I’m honored to be onboard and thankful for the opportunity to work with and be surrounded by so much talent and intellect. It’s nice when you can work with people that you are also comfortable enough inviting to a bbq at your house and sharing a beer with.
For more information on The Quick’n'Dirty Podcast and it’s co-hosts check out these links:
Aaron Strout’s Blog
Jennifer Leggio’s Blog on ZDNet
Q’n'D on BlogTalkRadio
Q’n'D Podcast Subscription
Q’n'D on Twitter (@quickndirty)
Q’n'D on Facebook
Our main blog is in development and it’s launch will be announced in the coming weeks.