I've been blogging now for 7 months, and over the past couple have really started to work on my blog. I'm learning all about SEO, a little bit of coding, google analytics, the list goes on! Of course, I've read a TON of articles on what new bloggers should know. There are so many tips, tricks, and lists out there that it is hard to keep it all straight. Looking back over the past months, these are some of the things I have picked up on pretty easily and don't even have to think twice about anymore! Here is my list of what I wish I had known when I started out as a beginning blogger:
1. Regarding having pictures and images on your blog:
- Adding alt tags to your pictures. These are pretty easy to do, and can greatly help with your SEO. Pretty much, when search engines go through your pages, they can't read what the image is. Having an alt tag tells the search engine what the picture is of. For example, with this picture of Lily I would tag it as "cute English bulldog sleeping". To add alt tags in blogger, you can just click on the image, then properties, and where it says alt tag add your tag!
- Adjust the size of your pictures to the width of your blog posts. Trust me, it makes your blog posts look much cleaner and nicer! To do this, just figure out the pixel width of your blog (mine is 650) and adjust all of your pictures to that size before uploading them. Once they are uploaded, select left alignment and 'original size'.
- Again, before you upload your picture name the file an SEO-friendly name. For example, rather than having it be "image_6.jpeg" (which this picture was before!) name the file something relevant, because this will also be included in your HTML and crawled by the search engines. For this image, I called it "English bulldog puppy sleeping."
My adorable English Bulldog Lily sleeping as a puppy! |
3. Have an about me page- and remember to update it! When I was a beginner blogger, I created my about me page and then promptly forgot about it for about six months. So, my original about me page said I was 23 years old and was engaged to be married in September 2014. Well, six months later I was no longer 23, and had been married for five months. When I find a blog I think I like, one of the first things I do is check out their about me page (because I want to know if I will really like the blog or not!). This is the most important page you can create!
4. Have a page featuring your most popular posts. My Best Of page features popular posts, as well as collects posts together. I have them organized by posts about Nick and I, traveling, and hockey. Remember as you continue blogging to periodically update this page as well!
5. Link back to your old posts and pages- it will help users stay on your site longer, in addition to giving you another slight SEO boost. By linking to other posts and pages, if a reader is interested they may just click and read another post. The longer they stay on your site, the better for you! (PS- see what I have done throughout this post, linking to other pages and posts?) Of course, you don't want to do this too much- if every other sentence is a link, its just going to look annoying. Pick something relevant and then perhaps highlight that!
6. If you don't have a dog, get one. People (especially bloggers) LOVE dogs. I didn't learn this until about a month ago, and since then Lily the bulldog has taken over as my 2nd highest viewed post, and all I did was introduce her! Unfortunately, being in Sweden, I don't have Lily over here. But trust me, once I get home this summer, Lily will be all over the place!
A bonus appearance of Lily, just because I can! |
Great tips! I have got to get better about naming and tagging my pictures. That may have to be my blogging resolution!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jennifer! I had the hardest time remembering to do it at first, but now it has just become second nature.
DeleteAwesome tips! I need to work on 5+6. I have 2 rescued greyhounds!
ReplyDeleteCathy, I've found that linking back to old posts has helped my site so much. My English bulldog Lily (the one pictured!) is another reader favorite. I bet your greyhounds would do great!
DeleteThank you so much! Great information. I'm not doing any of these , so I will definitely add to my to do list! I do have a dog , lol! Will have to incorporate him into the blog this year :)
ReplyDeleteJane, it continues to amaze me how many different things there are to do with blogging in order to help boost your SEO/etc. There is so much to learn!
DeleteGreat tips! I'm from Sweden too :) Live in Canada now though. Saknar min familj i Sverige dock :(
ReplyDeleteSee now that you're not from there, but live there, lol. Enjoy it for me though ;)
DeleteViolette, it sounds like we have (almost!) switched then! I'm from Minnesota, which lets be honest is almost Canada. Where in Sweden are you from? I have loved my years here - such a great country to live in!
DeleteGreat tips! I'm just learning about making my photos larger to fit the width of the page. I still have to go back and make those fixes! #sitsblogging
ReplyDeleteJanelle, it is definitely always a work in progress! Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteI agree with everyone. These are awesome tips for new and veteran bloggers.
ReplyDeleteI decided I needed to go back through all my old posts and edit + rename my pictures + add a description. I did not know until recently that the description you write for your picture will be the same description for a Pintrest pin. Might as well take advantage of that.
I'm with you on that! I'm definitely working on my Pinterest strategy- it seems like there is always so much to work on!
DeleteThanks so much, I always appreciate blogging tips (just stopping by from SITS Saturday Sharefest)
ReplyDeleteThanks Laurie! There is always so much to learn with blogging!
DeleteVery useful tips.Thank you so much for sharing these tips.
ReplyDelete