Are you new to blogging and looking for tips to help you get started in 2023? Look no further. In this blog post, we've gathered 24 practical blogging tips for beginners or anyone looking to freshen up their blogging know-how.
From choosing the right niche to creating engaging content and promoting your blog, this post makes it happen.
Whether starting a personal blog or building a blog for your business, these tips will help you attract an audience and grow your online presence.
Ready to learn how to make the most of your blogging journey?
First Things First – Blog Planning Checklist
We built a comprehensive blogging checklist with each step outlined in this post, plus helpful questions and resources to ensure you stay on track. Additionally, we've provided access to the blog post outline we use for writing articles and posts.
You can find both resources on Google Sheets. Just make a copy, and you'll be on your way to building the perfect blog.
Step 3: Read the tips below
This blog post has been created to help you through every step of the blogging process, planning, writing, and post-publishing. or promotion. If you find it helpful, please let us know in the comments.
Planning Phase Blogging Tips
1) Figure out why you want to start a blog
Before starting your own blog, figuring out why you want to start is essential.
Here are some tips to help you:
Define your purpose: Decide what you want to achieve with your blog. Is it to share your knowledge and experience, express your thoughts and opinions, or promote your business? Do you want to monetize your blog or build a blog to flip?
Identify your audience: Understand your target audience and what content they would be interested in. This will help you tailor your blog posts to their needs and interests.
Consider your personal goals: Think about what you want to achieve personally from blogging, such as improving your writing skills, building your online presence, or generating income.
Evaluate your commitment: Blogging requires a significant time commitment, so it's important to be realistic about how much you can dedicate.
By understanding and having a clear commitment to your goals, you can develop a clear vision for your blog and ensure that it aligns with your personal and professional aspirations.
2) Set goals for your blog
Setting goals for your blog is essential to a successful blogging strategy. Here are various tips to help you set effective goals for your blog:
Be specific: Define your goals in a specific, measurable, and attainable way. For example, instead of setting a vague goal like “increase traffic,” set a specific goal like “increase website traffic by 20% over the next six months.”
Prioritize your goals: Focus on setting goals that align with the overall vision for your blog and your target audience's needs and interests. It's important to prioritize your goals and avoid setting too many simultaneously.
Set deadlines: Deadlines can help you prioritize the goals you want to achieve first and help you stay motivated. Deadlines can also help you measure your progress and adjust your blogging strategy.
Track your progress: Regularly track your progress towards your goals to determine whether you are on track or need to change your strategy.
By setting specific, prioritized, and deadline-driven goals for your blog, you can create a roadmap for success and help ensure your blog supports your personal and professional aspirations.
3) Research your audience and competition
Research is a critical aspect of successful blogging. Here are some tips to help you conduct effective research for your blog:
Identify your audience: Ensure your research helps you better understand who your audience is. You want to write posts that speak directly to them, and having a clear idea will help you create better content.
Use multiple sources: Use multiple sources to gather information and cross-check the data to ensure accuracy and balance.
Research your competitors: Analyze the content of other blogs in your niche to determine the popular topics and angles they cover.
Keep up-to-date with trends: Stay informed of emerging trends and developments in your niche using social media, online forums, and other channels to stay up-to-date.
Take notes: Take detailed notes while researching to ensure you capture all the essential information and can easily reference it when writing your blog post.
By conducting comprehensive research, you can create high-quality content that resonates with your audience, positions you as an authority in your niche, and helps you achieve your blogging goals.
Grab some coffee. The meatiest tasks in this phase are coming up!
4) Choose a blogging niche
Choosing a niche for your blog site is an important decision and can play a significant role in the success of your blog. Here are some steps to assist you in choosing a blog niche:
Choose something you're passionate about: Blogging requires a lot of time and effort, so choosing a niche you're genuinely interested in and passionate about is important.
Align with your target audience: Define your target audience and determine their needs and interests. Choose a niche that aligns with their needs and interests and will likely attract a loyal and engaged audience.
Analyze the competition: Analyze the competition in your chosen niche to determine whether it's already saturated or has room for new entrants. If the competition is intense, consider narrowing down your niche to a more specific sub-niche.
Consider the monetization potential: If you plan to monetize your blog, consider the potential revenue streams in your niche, such as sponsored content, affiliate marketing, or product sales.
Evaluate your expertise: Choose a niche that aligns with your skills and expertise, so you can create valuable and informative content that establishes you as an authority in your niche.
By considering these factors, you can select a blog niche that aligns with your interests and skills, resonates with your target audience, and has the potential for success and growth.
5) Run a competitive content marketing analysis
Running a competitive content marketing analysis can help you gain valuable insights into your competitor's strategies, strengths, and weaknesses. Here are some tips to help you run an effective competitive content marketing analysis:
Identify your competitors: Identify your top competitors in your niche and analyze their content marketing strategies and social media trends.
Analyze their content: Analyze the type of content they produce, the topics they cover, their style and tone, and the format and length of their content.
Assess their distribution channels: How have they distributed their content, including social media, email marketing, and other channels? Determine the channels that drive the most traffic and engagement.
Evaluate their SEO strategy: Evaluate their SEO strategy, including their keyword research, on-page optimization, and link-building tactics.
Monitor their performance: Monitor their performance, including their traffic, engagement, and conversion rates. Determine what's working and what's not and identify opportunities for improvement.
Learn from their successes and failures: Learn from their successes and failures, and apply the lessons to your content marketing strategy.
By running a competitive content marketing analysis, you can understand your competitors' strategies and leverage the insights to improve your content marketing strategy, attract more traffic and engagement, and achieve your blogging goals.
6) Choose the perfect blog name
Picking the perfect blog name is important in creating a successful blog. Here are some tips to enable you to choose a great blog name:
Make it memorable: Choose a name that is memorable and easy to remember. Avoid using complex words, long phrases, or confusing names.
Make it unique: Choose a unique name that stands out in your niche. Avoid using names that are similar to your competitors' names or that could cause confusion.
Make it relevant: Choose a name relevant to your blog's niche and content. It should accurately convey what your blog is all about and what your readers can expect.
Make it easy to spell and pronounce: Choose a name that is easy to spell and pronounce. This will help your readers remember your blog's name and easily share it with others.
Make it flexible: Choose a name that is flexible and adaptable. This will allow you to expand your blog's topics or pivot your blog's focus without changing your blog's name.
Check for domain name availability: Check to ensure that the domain name is available and that you can secure it easily. Check social media handles for consistency.
By following these steps, you can choose a blog name that is memorable, unique, relevant, and easy to spell and pronounce, allowing you to build a strong brand and a loyal audience.
7) Choose the right blogging platform
Choosing the right blogging platform is crucial for creating a successful blog.
Here are some steps to assist you in choosing the right blogging platform:
Determine your blogging goals: Define your goals and what you want to achieve with your blog. This will help you determine which platform aligns best with your goals and needs.
Consider ease of use: Choose a platform that is easy to use and user-friendly. This will allow you to create and manage your blog without spending too much time or effort on technical aspects.
Consider customization options: Choose a platform that offers customization options, allowing you to create a unique and personalized blog. This will help your blog stand out and attract more readers.
Consider scalability: Choose a platform that can grow your blog. This will ensure your blog can handle increased traffic and content volume without experiencing performance issues.
Consider cost: Choose a platform that fits within your budget. Some platforms are free, while others require a subscription or a one-time fee.
Pro Tip: Most bloggers who want to monetize and fully customize their blog use WordPress. A WordPress blog is considered much more sellable than any other platform you pay a monthly fee for.
Whether you choose to use one of the free top blogging tools and platforms or pay a monthly fee for a proprietary solution, view our list of the best blogging platforms before you choose.
9) Choose a domain registrar
Registering a domain for your new blog is critical. Once you've selected the name and niche and chosen a blogging platform, you'll want to ensure you can tie it together with a great domain.
You can choose to use your name as your domain if the intent of your blog is for personal growth or if you have a unique monetization angle to grow influence. Still, a better and more business-specific blog domain will help monetization if you decide to sell the blog eventually.
Consider the following when selecting a domain name:
Shortness: Keeping a domain name to two to three words and under 15 characters is best. Shorter means easier to remember.
Aged: Some domain options that have been in use before may come available, and if you used one as the domain for your blog, you might already have backlinks going to it.
If you are looking for aged domains that might fit your niche, the best option to check out is Serp.Domains marketplace and SerpNames.com.
See our list of the best domain registrars, complete with pricing information.
10) Select a good web hosting company
One of the most important aspects of starting a blog is to retain the services of a good website hosting company. Your hosting has much to do with how well your blog will perform. You'll want to select a web host based on the following criteria.
Plan options and pricing: There are multiple types of plans to choose from, including shared, managed WordPress, cloud, VPS, and dedicated. Each comes at a varying price point and infrastructure, shared being the lowest price and dedicated the highest.
Performance: The server infrastructure and components can either hurt or help the performance of your blog. Ensure you make a well-researched decision, or you'll likely need to transfer your website hosting at some point.
See our list of the best website hosting options with pricing information.
11) Grab all related social media handles
Once you've locked in your domain name, you'll want to ensure you grab all related social media handles, so you do not lose them to someone else.
You might not intend to use them immediately, but owning them as part of your digital real estate portfolio is critical.
You can decide how extensively your handle claim extends, but the essential social media accounts to claim a handle on are as follows.
- YouTube
- TikTok
Other needs depend on your audience's age, where, what platforms they frequent, and geographic location. You can see a complete list of 125+ social media platforms and decide for yourself.
Take a Break – Like this little guy!
12) Build a content marketing plan
Building a content strategy and content marketing plan before you start writing is essential for creating a successful blog that attracts and retains readers.
Here are some tips to help you build an effective content strategy:
Define your target audience: Define your target audience and their needs and interests. This will help you create content that resonates with your readers and provides value.
Determine your blog's mission and goals: Define your blog's mission and goals. This will help you create content that aligns with your blog's purpose and helps you achieve your blogging goals.
Research and analyze your competitors: Research and analyze your competitors to identify content gaps and opportunities. This will help you create unique and valuable content that stands out in your niche.
Brainstorm blog post ideas: Brainstorm content ideas that align with your target audience's needs and interests. Consider using a mix of formats, such as blog posts, videos, infographics, and podcasts.
Create a content calendar: Create a content calendar that outlines your publishing schedule, topics, and formats. This will help you stay organized and consistent in your content creation.
Optimize your content for organic traffic: Search engine optimize your content for relevant keywords, meta descriptions, and alt text. This will improve your visibility and organic search traffic.
Promote your content: Promote your content through social media marketing, email marketing, and other channels. This will enable you to reach a wider audience and increase your blog site traffic.
13) Create a content calendar
Creating an editorial/content calendar is essential to building a successful blog. It helps you plan and organize your content creation process, ensuring you publish content consistently and on schedule.
Here are some tips to help you create an effective editorial calendar:
Determine your publishing frequency: Determine how often you want to publish content on your blog. This will help you set up a schedule for creating and publishing content.
Identify important dates and events: Identify important dates and events relevant to your niche or target audience. This will help you plan content that aligns with these dates and events.
Brainstorm content ideas: Brainstorm content ideas that align with your target audience's needs and interests. Consider using a mix of formats, such as blog posts, videos, infographics, and podcasts.
Prioritize content topics: Prioritize your content topics based on their relevance and potential impact. This will assist you in ensuring that you are focusing on the most important topics for your blog and your audience.
Schedule content creation and publishing: Schedule your content creation and publishing process on your editorial calendar. This will help you stay organized and ensure that you are publishing content consistently and on schedule.
Track and evaluate your results: Track and evaluate your content performance using analytics tools. This will help you identify what is working well and what needs improvement and adjust your content calendar accordingly.
You've successfully completed phase 1
Writing Phase Blogging Tips
Hopefully you are using a computer, but to each their own.
14) Start with keyword research
Starting with keyword research is a great way to optimize your blog content for search engines and increase your chances of ranking well in search results.
Here are several tips to help you with keyword research:
Use a keyword research tool: Many keyword research tools are available, both free and paid. Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Moz Keyword Explorer are some of the most popular options. Use these tools to identify relevant and high-volume keywords for your blog.
Analyze your competitors: Look at your competitors' blogs and analyze their keywords. This will help you understand what is working well in your niche and help you identify potential gaps and opportunities for your content.
Focus on long-tail keywords: Long-tail keywords are more specific and have lower search volume but can be easier to rank for. Use long-tail keywords relevant to your blog's niche and target audience.
15) Build a blog post outline
Building a blog post outline is an important step in the writing process. It helps you organize your ideas and blog topics and structure your content, making writing a compelling and cohesive blog post easier.
Here are some tips to help you build an effective blog post outline:
Start with a clear introduction: Begin your outline with an engaging introduction that hooks your readers and sets the stage for the rest of the post. Your introduction should also include a thesis statement that explains what the post is about.
Develop your main points: Break down your post into several points or subtopics. Each point should support your thesis statement and provide valuable information to your readers.
Use subheadings to organize your main points and make your post more scannable for readers. Subheadings also help search engines understand the structure of your content, which can improve your SEO.
Include supporting details: For each main point, include supporting details such as statistics, examples, or anecdotes. This will make your post more engaging and provide more value to your readers.
Conclude with a summary: End your post with a clear summary that recaps your main points and reinforces your thesis statement. This is also a great place to include a call to action, such as inviting readers to leave a comment or sign up for your newsletter.
You can copy one of our blog post outline templates if you need a head start.
Need more help? If you prefer to build your own, read our post on blog post outlines.
16) Create powerful blog post titles
To help you create effective titles:
Use clear and descriptive language: Your title should clearly and accurately describe the content of your blog post. Avoid vague or clickbait titles that don't accurately represent what your post is about.
Make it attention-grabbing: Use language that grabs your reader's attention and makes them want to click on your post. Questions, lists, and intriguing statements can be effective for this.
Use keywords: Incorporate relevant keywords in your title to improve your search engine optimization (SEO) and help your post rank higher in search results.
Keep it short and perfect: Aim for a concise and to-the-point title. A great rule of thumb is to keep your title under 60 characters long so that it appears in search results.
Need more help? Read our 5 rules on building winning blog post titles.
17) Build a consistent posting routine
Building a blogging schedule to ensure consistent posting is important for maintaining a steady flow of content on your blog and keeping your readers engaged.
Here are some tips to help you build a consistent posting routine:
Determine how often you can post realistically: Consider how much time you have to write and publish blog posts and set a realistic posting schedule based on your availability. This could be once a week, twice a month, or any other frequency that works for you.
Stick to a regular schedule: Once you've determined your posting frequency, stick to it as much as possible. This helps your readers know when to expect new content and can increase engagement and loyalty.
Plan ahead: Creating an editorial calendar can help you plan and schedule your content in advance, making it easier to stick to your posting schedule.
Be flexible: While consistency is important, it's also important to be flexible and adapt your posting schedule as needed. If unexpected circumstances arise, such as illness or a busy period at work, adjust your posting schedule temporarily.
18) Be mindful of what your audience is reading
Being mindful of what your audience is reading can help you create content that resonates with them and keeps them engaged. Here are some tips to help you understand what your audience is reading:
Analyze your blog's analytics: Use tools like Google Analytics to track your blog's traffic and understand which blog posts get the most views and engagement.
Monitor social media: Pay attention to the channels where you promote your blog and track which posts get the most likes, shares, and comments.
Use surveys and feedback forms: Conduct surveys and feedback forms to gather feedback from your readers and understand what kind of content they enjoy and want to see more of.
Stay up-to-date on industry trends: Stay current on industry trends and developments by reading blogs and news outlets in your niche. This can help you stay ahead of the curve and create timely and relevant content.
19) Use images
Using images in your blog posts can make your content more engaging and visually appealing and help break up long blocks of text. Images are essential for blogging success.
Here are some tips to help you use images effectively:
Use high-quality images: Choose high-quality images that are clear and visually appealing. Poor-quality images can make your blog look unprofessional.
Choose images relevant to your content: Select images relevant to your blog post and help illustrate your point. Using irrelevant images can be confusing or distracting for your readers.
Optimize images for the web: Optimize your images by compressing them to reduce their file size. This can help your blog load faster and improve your readers' experience.
Give images descriptive filenames: Use descriptive filenames for your images that accurately describe the image's content. This can help with SEO and make finding your content easier for search engines.
Need more help? Here are the best websites for blog image sourcing.
20) Prioritize longer posts
Here are some tips to help you prioritize longer posts:
Set a minimum word count: Set a minimum word count for your blog posts, and aim to exceed it whenever possible. This can help you create longer, more in-depth posts that provide value to your readers.
Focus on quality: While longer posts can be beneficial, quality is still the most important factor. Make sure your longer posts are well-written, informative, and engaging.
Cover a topic in-depth: Longer posts allow you to cover a topic in-depth and provide comprehensive information to your readers. This can help establish you as an authority in your niche.
21) Incorporate different types of content
Incorporating different types of content into your blog can help keep your readers engaged and interested in your content. Here are some types of content you can incorporate into your blog:
Infographics: Infographics are a visual way to represent data and information. They can help explain complex topics in a more easily digestible way.
Videos: Videos can help you diversify your content and provide another medium for your audience to engage with your brand. You can create product demos, how-to videos, and even live streams.
Podcasts: Podcasts are another type of content that can help you connect with your audience in a new way. You can use them to discuss industry trends, advise, or interview industry experts.
22) Start with an outline
Starting with an outline can help you organize your thoughts and create a clear structure for your blog post. Here are some tips to help you start with an outline:
Identify your main topic: Start by identifying the main topic of your blog post. This will help you create a clear and focused outline.
List your main points: Once you've identified your main topic, list the main points you want to cover in your post. These points should support your main topic and help create a logical flow for your content.
Organize your points: Organize your main points in a logical order. This will help you create a clear structure for your post and make it easier for your readers to follow along.
Add subpoints and details: Once you have your main points organized, add subpoints and details to support each point. This will help you create a more in-depth and informative post.
23) Develop a powerful linking strategy
Developing a powerful linking strategy is important for improving your blog's SEO, driving traffic, and increasing engagement. Here are some steps to help you develop an effective linking strategy:
Internal linking: Use internal links to connect related posts and pages within your blog. This helps search engines better understand the structure of your website and allows readers to navigate your content easily.
External linking: Link to high-quality external websites relevant to your content. This can help your readers find additional resources and increase your credibility and authority in your niche.
Backlinks: Build backlinks to your blog by creating high-quality, shareable content that other websites will want to link to. Backlinks can improve your website's authority and increase your visibility and traffic.
Link to influencers: Link to influencers in your niche to attract their attention and potentially get backlinks from their websites or social media channels.
Post Publish Phase Blogging Tips
24) Promote your blog on social media
Promoting your blog on social media can be a great way to reach a wider audience and drive traffic to your blog. Here are several tips to help you effectively promote your blog on social media:
Choose the right platforms: Start by choosing the social media platforms that are most relevant to your audience. Example, if your target area is primarily on LinkedIn, focus your efforts there.
Optimize your profiles: Enhance your social media profiles to showcase your blog and make it easy for people to find and follow you.
Share your blog posts: Share your blog posts on your social media channels, including a catchy headline and engaging visuals.
Use hashtags: Use relevant hashtags in your social media posts to make them more discoverable and increase their reach.
Engage with your audience: Engage with your audience by responding to comments and messages and sharing other people's content.
Collaborate with others: Collaborate with other bloggers or influencers in your industry to reach a wider audience and expand your network.
25) Feed the post w/ backlinks (Internal & External)
Backlinks are links from some websites to your blog post. They are important because they can increase your blog's authority and help it rank higher in search engine results.
There are two types of backlinks that you should include in your blog posts: internal and external.
Internal links: Internal links are links from one page on your website to another page on the same website. They can keep readers on your site longer and improve their experience by guiding them to related content. For example, you can link to other relevant blog posts or pages on your website.
External links are links from your blog post to another website. They can provide additional context, resources, and credibility to your blog post. For example, you can link to industry research or statistics to support your argument.
When adding backlinks to your blog post, it's important to ensure they are relevant and add value to your content. Avoid overusing backlinks or adding irrelevant links just for the sake of it, as this can harm your blog's credibility.
26) Monitor your analytics
Monitoring your blog's analytics is crucial to understanding its performance and making informed decisions about improving it. Here are some key metrics you should be tracking:
Traffic sources: This will show you where your blog traffic is coming from, whether from search engines, social media, or other sources.
Pageviews: This will show how often your blog post has been viewed.
Bounce rate: This will show the percentage of visitors who leave your site after viewing only one page.
Time on page: This will show how long visitors spend on your blog post.
Conversion rate: This will show the percentage of visitors who take a desired action, such as signing up for your newsletter or purchasing.
27) Monitor and respond to blog comments
Monitoring your blog's comments and responding when a comment is posted is vital to ensure your audience knows you are not just writing blog posts and leaving them behind.
Initially, all the comments will likely be spam, so you'll want to monitor and ensure that no comment gets posted without manual approval. Over time, you'll find legitimate comments and questions you want to respond to.
28) Reply to social media engagement
Once you post on social media, your audience will engage with you across various channels they spend their time on. You'll want a system to get notified of these comments and respond to them in kind.
The more engagement you receive on social media channels, the better off your blog will be at converting bystanders into readers and readers into something more. Make sure you treat them as part of your community.
Bonus Tips: Building Your Blogging Community
Make friends with other bloggers
Building relationships with some bloggers in your niche can help you learn from them, get inspired, and collaborate on projects. Reach out to other bloggers through social media or email, and offer to help them with their projects or promotions.
Join social media groups
Joining social media groups in your niche can help you connect with other bloggers and share your content with a wider audience. Look for groups within your niche on Facebook, LinkedIn, and other platforms.
Comment on other blogs
Engage with other bloggers by leaving thoughtful comments on their blog posts. This can help you build relationships with other bloggers and drive traffic back to your blog.
Add questions to the end of your posts
Encouraging your readers to leave comments by asking questions can help build a community around your blog. Make sure to respond to comments and engage with your readers to keep the conversation going.
Build an email list
Building an email list can help you stay in touch with your readers and promote your blog posts and other content. Offer a free download or other incentives to encourage people to sign up for your list.
Attend blogging events & build a network
Attending blogging events such as conferences or meetups can help you connect with other bloggers in your niche and build your network.
Mention loyal readers in your posts
Recognizing and thanking your loyal readers in your blog posts can help you build a stronger relationship with them and encourage them to continue reading and sharing your content.
28 Blogging Tips for Beginners Wrap-up
Blogging can be a great way to share your thoughts, ideas, and expertise. However, building a successful blog takes time, effort, and careful planning. The 28 blogging tips for beginners covered in this guide can help you create a strong foundation for your own blog.
Becoming a successful blogger takes time. But you cannot succeed if you don't start, so start blogging and figure out your path to success. Remember to stay focused on your goals, and don't be afraid to experiment and try new things.
With persistence and dedication, you can create a successful blog that resonates with your readers and helps you achieve your objectives.
