As much as I love writing for this blog, I enjoy reading other blogs too.
It’s part of the blogging fun.
Whenever I visit a blog for the first time, I look for the answers to the following four questions.
If a blog makes me search and search for one of these answers, I’m less likely to return.
I think the same is true for most potential blog readers.
1. What Is This Blog About?
Your reader shouldn’t need to read an entire post to determine your blog’s theme.
The title of your blog should indicate the kind of topics you write about.
Many bloggers, including myself, use our name for our blog’s title and domain. If so, then the subtitle should clarify the kind of topics you write about.
My subtitle is actually my life verse. Readers can reasonably infer the two topics I write about: faith and writing. If this is too indirect, then I explicitly state my blog’s purpose in the brief bio section at the top of my sidebar.
Here are some great examples of blog titles that give a first-time reader a clear indication of the blog’s theme:
Mercy Found Me
Grace for My Mess
My Journey to Authenticity
2. Who Is the Writer Behind These Words?
Every blog should have an About page. Michael Hyatt’s new book Platform devotes an entire chapter to what you should include in your About page.
However, you should briefly introduce yourself on the main page too. Then invite your readers to learn more about you by providing a link to your About page. Here is where you could also provide a way for your reader to contact you.
When I first started blogging, I loathed the idea of putting a picture of myself on my blog, much less any information about me. I wanted my blog to be about the writing, not about me.
It dawned on me, though, that when words are divorced from the context of the writer, they are nothing more than mere words. A person and a person’s words are inseparable. How can I expect a reader to take my words to heart if I’m not willing to put a face to mine?
When writing your introduction, make it brief! Save the extra details for your About page. And, yes, include a picture.
Here are some great examples of brief introductions:
Narrow Paths to Higher Places
Simply Striving
Full {Her} Life
3. Why Should I Come Back?
This is the most important question every first-time reader asks.
Naturally, the content of your writing is what makes a reader come back. Developing good content takes work. And lots of practice. So don’t become discouraged if you feel as though you haven’t yet “found your stride.”
All writers constantly seek to improve their skills.
Read books on the craft of writing.
And read books for pleasure.
Reading and writing are a reciprocal process. One always helps the other.
My favorite part of blogging is discovering fantastic writers. Here are some of my favorite blogs to read because the content is consistently great:
The Next Step
The Sylvr Pen
Redemption’s Beauty
4. How Do I Connect for Future Contact?
If you want your readers to come back, then you need to invite them to join you on your writing journey. Make subscribing to your blog easy.
Also, include a Contact Page or make an e-mail address available. While most bloggers don’t give out a personal e-mail address, you can create a free g-mail account and designate that account as your public e-mail address.
If your readers can’t contact you, then you give the impression that you don’t want to be bothered by your readers.
For further connection, invite your readers to connect with you through Twitter or Facebook. Of course, there are so many possible connections through social media. It can be overwhelming. Choose which ones work for you.
All of your contact information should be easy to locate, either at the top of your main page or in your sidebar. Your readers shouldn’t have to click around to find a way to connect with you.
* * * * *
I’ve been blogging for over three years, and I’ve probably broken every “blogging rule” there is. But blogging isn’t about rules, per se, it’s about connecting with people through our written words.
Blogging is a journey. Just as writing is a journey. We never completely “arrive.” We’re constantly refining and improving.
These four questions are simply a starting place for every blog’s main page. If we want our first-time readers to return, then we need to give them the four answers they’re looking for.
Does your blog answer these four questions on the main page?
TWEET THIS:
Does Your Blog’s Main Page Answer These Four Questions? http://denisejhughes.com/?p=3756
To join this Community of Grace and Truth,
you can subscribe by E-Mail and follow on Twitter or Facebook.
RELATED POSTS:
Writing Is About Letters ~ Not Numbers
Thoughts on Blogging and Living
Why Bloggers Love to Write {Even If They Hated English Class}
Photo Credit: MAClarke21 (Creative Commons)
Completely humbled by my blog being recognized by you. Blown away, really. Thank you Denise. I’ve noticed you are honing in on writing about writing and I have loved your posts. They have all, every one of them, been very helpful. I’m working on transforming my “books to read” page today. And if you ever have any advice you want to give me, I am rolling out the red carpet here.
Thank you, Shelly, it’s humbling that you would “roll out the red carpet” for feedback. I’d like to roll it out for you as well. As iron sharpens iron, writers sharpen other writers through helpful feedback.
Thanks. I’m consistently trying to work on the above. Love how you make it so concise.
Alene, I’m consistently trying to work on the above too! I think a writer is always working to improve in some area of the craft.
Thank you!! This was a very helpful and quick read. I love to share what God places on my heart as I walk through life. I know that I am ‘Set Apart for Him’ and because of that my life should reflect His character. Thank you!!! Thank you!! Thank you!!
–Nicole
http://set-apart-for-him.blogspot.com/
Nicole, that’s awesome. I can’t think of a better way to use our writing that to share what God places on our hearts and what He does in and through us. Blessings to you, friend.
I love your blog! I have learned so much already. I can’t wait to get started doing some maintenance on my pages. I constantly struggle to find my “writing path” as my life is so chaotic. But I am trying to keep coming back to God for my “style”. I am looking forward to reading more of your great tips. Michelle
Thank you, Michelle. When my life has been chaotic, I found that writing my way through it helped me find a sense of peace and purpose. Keep writing! And, yes, keep going back to God for everything!
Felt stunned at your listing my blog here, Denise, but touched and deeply grateful for this grace.
Before I got that far along in your post, I went “Ouch!” at #2. Guilty! Especially photo of self. Like you, I haven’t liked the idea of that on my blog, and have avoided “about me” info other than what my posts reveal. I do want my blog to point to Christ, not me; so I’m still wrestling with this issue. I think of “He must become greater; I must become less,” and wonder how can I become less with my image plastered about?…
Yet what you say is true. If someone doesn’t want to show her face, what she says may not come across as authentically. I’ve also noticed in my own blog reading that I connect more closely with bloggers whose faces I see. They feel more like friends than disembodied voices, and when I see their photos again, I feel like they’re popping up saying, “Hi!” And those I feel friendliest toward also do point me toward Him in their blogs. So, working through this with Him…
( Also have to figure out how to provide contact, email, info… Techno-challenged.)
I agree with Nicole. Such helpful advice, presented so concisely. You are becoming a rich source for bloggers! Thank you.
Sylvia, I admire your thought process and want to add my 2 cents. I feel connected through your consistent comments. I would love to put a face to the name, but I respect your choice. For now, every time I see a silver pen, I think of you!
Sylvia, I completely understand where you’re coming from. I share the same heart for wanting my words to glorify Christ alone. I want Him to increase while I decrease. Yes, yes, yes!
I’ve also noticed, though, that I tend to “connect” with a writer more easily when there’s a face and a locale. I didn’t mention this in the post, but I have a cache of “floating names and faces” in my mind, and it helps me to “anchor” these names with a general locale. Obviously, we don’t put our addresses on the internet, but we remember people when they’re “attached” to something else in our long term memories. So, it helps me to know that “Sylvia is from Pennsylvania” and “Alia is from Oregon.”
About the picture thing, please continue to blog at your own pace! If you’re uncomfortable putting a picture up, then don’t do it. I think I initially connected with your blog because the name is so close to the name of my first blog: “The Quiet Quill.” I think blog names that include the word “pen” or a synonym for pen always catches my attention as someone who truly loves the pen! And I know that’s true of you!
You gals are SO sweet. I feel so blessed to have “met” you both through blogs and comments. An exuberant joy!
Denise, this is such a helpful post. I love that you have included example of each point. I recognize some of the blogs and fully agree. I look forward to viewing the others.
Thank you, Tereasa, your blog is truly a joy to follow. (And I know your main page already answers all four questions!)
I feel like you are letting me take your college classes for free, Denise! Love the insights you are sharing lately. Thank you!!
I’m honored you’re listing me in the #2 category — especially since I feel like I need work in this area! Primarily my About page. Going to look into Hyatt’s book. Thank you!!
And you make me feel so much better about #3…I’ve only been blogging 7 months and need to keep reminding myself it’s a process. I haven’t found my stride yet, but I sure am enjoying the journey!
Nikki, I love that! I’ve actually been thinking about offering an online writing class ~ especially for those who may not have totally loved their old English classes.
Enjoying the journey is what it’s all about. Please don’t let your “blogging age” (a.k.a. 7 months) determine the “level” of writer you think you are.
I love how you ended this post: “We never completely “arrive.” We’re constantly refining and improving.” I struggle because I want to be “one of those big bloggers” and feel as if I completely fail. But when I take a step back, and breathe, I remember that God has me right where he wants me and that I need to continue refining and improving as I use the gifts he blessed me with.
Deanna, it’s so true. We never completely “arrive.” We’re always growing and developing. And, yes, God has each of us right where He wants us at this place in time. There is such peace in knowing that and trusting Him.
Thank you for blessing me with your words. (I got the link you sent me in an e-mail too. I look forward to checking it out!)
Thanks for the mention, friend. SO blessed by your writing advice and consistent encouragement to pursue the craft with practical tips. Love this post.
Good Mornin’ Denise!
Thanks so much for touching base with me the other night! You’re a blessing… thank you for your pure heart, your God-chasing mind, and your great advice! ~ Blessings out and all over your day sister, Amy from fullherlife.com