When I attended my first ever BlogWorld in Las Vegas late last year, I was so inspired I wrote How to become a Problogger in 3 days or less, which went down a treat with my community.
Perhaps that’s because I had actually learned a lot at this event around what was necessary to become a better blogger. One session I attended that definitely helped me a lot was one with the name of this very blog post. That’s what originally enticed me to attend. I mean, who doesn’t want to create mouth watering content to draw in more readers.
Yet, for anyone who has a blog, or several you probably know how hard it is to do this on a consistent basis.
So when Nathalie Lussier presented to a packed room of enthusiastic bloggers wanting to know more, I listened up and took notes. I also made sure I introduced myself afterwards, and from that auspicious beginning we then hung out all afternoon and even shot a short video!
In the video, Nathalie goes over these key points, but more importantly we discuss her blog journey and particularly what she’s done in the last 6 months to really turn her blog into a thriving one (note this was 5 months ago and Nathalie has gone on to do all she speaks of in this video about her future blog plans!).
So sit back and soak up the key notes I took. I can guarantee Nathalie knows her stuff and shares some really honest and invaluable insights.
Who is your ideal reader?
What’s in it for them?
- Educate – with how to articles
- Entertain – bring in humour, personality
- Enlighten – need that human connection, lighter perspective, bigger picture
The big picture: Create connections
How much food do you serve?
You can dish up a light appetizer or a 3 course meal. Planning your content is like planning a menu.
Whet their appetite for the next course:
- There’s more where that came from (i.e put the big stuff out there, don’t save it for later)
- Lead them crumb by crumb so they’re enticed to read on
- An editorial calendar (or menu plan) comes in handy – don’t always have to use it, but it guides you and;
- Increases your return visitors, subscribers and excitement
You can follow a recipe or create your own
You can have the right ingredients you always put in that work for you, although it can get boring.
OR you can mix up the ingredients and test the recipe to see what people like.
What’s in a recipe
The headline = Bold, builds curiosity
- Promises something: what’s in it for me
- Check out magazine titles, Digg for what’s popular and your favourite blogs for great headlines
The ingredients – style, strong & intriguing
- Break it down into subheadings and bullet points
- Recap the key points at the end of the blog post and tell the moral of the story or next step
- People want more of you – you, your story
- We all love a good story, so share a journey
- This creates connection, entertains your readers and you become real
- Builds know, like and trust factor
Keep a running log
- Whether it’s a notepad or document on your computer – make sure you capture your fabulous ideas
- Ask your readers what they need, and then write about it
- Gauge reactions to your posts in the comments section, and write more about these hot topics
- Go deep – focus on their needs even if you think it’s basic
Another great article worth a read and on the same theme of deliciousness is Recipe for Successful Blog Marketing & SEO at TECHmunch Austin 2011
The plugin I mention in the video is PopUp Domination. You can learn more about it on my tools page. I highly recommend it.