Do you often feel uninspired and unmotivated to write a new blog post? Is your blog looking tired and in need of a refresh? Same! I thought I'd pull together a few quick ideas on how you can up your blogging game.. right now! No long term project or expensive hacks.. just quick and easy steps to a better blog and a more motivated you!
1. Update an old post
This seems like it could be a waste of time but seriously.. re read your 5 most popular blog posts and update them with fresh experiences. Have your views and opinions changed on the subject? Let your readers know! They must have been popular posts for a reason so it makes sense to keep them fresh right? Maybe add some new or better quality images as well to really freshen up your content.
2. Don't forget self-promotion
Got a load of new content but nobody reading it? Don't forget to shout about your latest posts across social media and share on Bloglovin'. That's where I get over 75% of my page views from so it makes sense so share your content with as many people as possible using popular hashtags. Self-promotion can be a daunting thing when you're just starting out but it's the best way to get eyes on your blog. Tools such as buffer or Tailwind are great ways of automating and scheduling your content across social media.
3. Get a new template
Now I tend to do this every 3 months or so just because I get bored easily of the layout of my blog, but it makes sense to refresh your template a couple of times a year just to wow your existing readers when they come back to look at your content, and of course entice new visitors into your blog! I always use Pipdig for my templates, which don't come cheap but are amazing quality and come with all the instructions you need to create an amazing new layout.
4. Cross-link to new content
Be sure to add cross-links from older blog posts to newer ones with a similar theme to make sure your readers are finding your newer content. This will also help to stop losing visitors after reading only a single post on your site. This is also a great way of encouraging new followers and comments when people discover new content that they enjoy!
5. Submit your blog to search engines
Sites like Google Webmaster and Bing allow you to submit your website to ensure that it's always listed on their respective search engines. You can also learn handy SEO tips to get your blog listed as high up search result pages as possible to maximise traffic visiting your site.
6. Reach out to new brands
If you want new opportunities and sponsorship deals the easiest way to get them is to just get out there and communicate with brands that really match the content of your blog, and suit the interests of your readers. Brands are always more attracted to blogs that seem to fit the style and tone of their brand and products. So start chatting to them and who knows!
7. Clean out your side bar
If you use Google Analytics to track how visitors engage with the content on your blog then you should be able to identify widgets and areas of the sidebar that your readers simply aren't using? Are there any elements you could remove to allow you to focus on other things? Popular post widgets are often a waste if the content featured in them is out of date. Definitely worth a look.
8. Brainstorm future content
Does blogging inspiration always strike at the weirdest times or is that just me? The only time I can't think of a new post is when I actually sit down to write something so make sure you're constantly taking notes throughout the day if you get new ideas for content. You'll always forget later on! Try and pool your content ideas into categories then create and share new posts from each category over time. This will ensure readers are always enticed to return to your blog with the promise of fresh posts.
9. Create a survey
If engagement with your most recent posts has taken a nose dive and you're not sure what's wrong then why not create a survey using a tool such as Survery Monkey to find out what's frustrating your readers. There's almost nothing worse than getting decent sums of traffic to your blog but very limited comments and feedback on your content. If you don't ask then you'll never know.
10. Buy your own domain
Having your very own fancy .co.uk or .com not only looks more professional and appealing to potential new readers but also gives you a whole host or new options when it comes to customising your site and adding new widgets and content. I always use GoDaddy for cheap and reliable domains and hosting, you also get a few business e-mail address too..fancy!
I hope these tips have helped inspire you to give your blog a 2017 refresh! Have you got any other ideas to share?
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So what exactly is this Minimalism thing everyone's been on about lately? Do i need to throw out everything I own? No.. Do i need to sell my car and and quit my job? No.
Minimalism is a tool that enables people all over the world to accomplish something quite amazing.. freedom from the trappings of the consumer culture that people around my age build our whole lives around. That's not to say there's anything wrong with owning or admiring material possessions, but the minimalist lifestyle just helps people stop assigning so much value and meaning to "stuff".. stuff that in fact most of the time we could quite easily do without.
Since watching a recent Minimalism documentary on Netflix (the source of all inspirational content nowadays!) I got thinking about how i could take some advice from the two guys that tell their story in the film. Their simple message is "Focus on less", and I think that's quite powerful.
Focus less on the THINGS that matter and more on the PEOPLE that matter. I like that.
So since it's the beginning of the year and everyone is in a "self improvement" mindset, I thought it might be helpful to share the things I'm currently thinking of doing to try and minimalize different areas of my life:
- Find a place for everything I own. If I can't then I don't need it
- If i haven't used something for over a year then it needs to go
- Donate, give away and sell things I no longer feel I need
- Actively unsubscribe from any YouTube channels or junk e-mail accounts clogging up my inbox
- Create a monthly spending budget, that only includes a couple of new items.
- Love people, use things. The opposite never works.
Does having a go at the minimalist lifestyle make your to-do list this year?
1. Created Opportunities
Did i start blogging with the aim of making a fortune out of sponsored posts and quitting my job to write all day from the shores of Barbados sipping cocktails? Absolutely not and if that's why you're thinking of creating a blog then don't..no seriously. Blog simply because you love to write and want to share topics and products you're passionate about with the world.
Getting paid is always a great feeling but at the end of the day brands are in it for their own self-promotion and not for your overall success. A sponsored post here and there and a few gifted products have been a blessing but certainly not a reason to keep on the blog train.. hang on is that a saying? No...no it's definitely not..
2. New Blogger Friends
Before I started my blog a little over a year ago now I had no idea just how great and supportive the blogging community is. I've had nothing but encouragement and amazing feedback since launching The Guy On Trend, and also made some great friends along the way!
3. Better Self Confidence
Creating a blog is great fun but to get people to actually read it is a massive challenge, and one that is only overcome by doing a lot of self-promotion. Joining twitter chats and constantly communicating with brands and bloggers to swap ideas and discuss partnerships is a daily occurrence, and one that involves talking yourself up a lot. Over the past year I feel like i've learnt a lot of skills here and can really promote my brand to others.
4. Passion
Before launching The Guy On Trend I wasn't passionate about a lot of aspects of my life, and didn't have a huge array of hobbies to speak of aside from music. Blogging has given me a whole new sense of worth and motivation to succeed, which I can really feel works its way into other areas of my life. It's often so hard to keep motivated to blog when you're so aware that hardly anybody on Earth actually consumes your content, but if you believe in the quality of your posts that's what matters.
5. Creating Goals
My blogging hobby has really helped me set goals both for life and for The Guy On Trend. I now find myself planning out my weekends according to what content needs writing and it's really helping me make sure i get stuff done. I really want to start creating monthly blog goals like increasing my Bloglovin followers by 25 etc. This new addiction to goal setting has also started to translate into other areas of my life and that feels great.
Here's to another year of blogging and loving it in 2017! What has blogging done for you this year?
Now these are by no means cheap so let's see what you get for your hard earned £289.99. In the box the first thing you'll find is this neat carry case, which is study enough to survive a flight or camping trip with ease. Inside you'll find your headphones along with a couple of handy accessories including an in-flight adaptor so you're not stuck with the AWFUL quality headphones we're forced to use on long haul flights! Great addition.
Now let's move onto the headphones themselves. In terms of build quality you'll struggle to find anything as luxurious as these for less than £300 on the market. The over-the-ear cups feel great and much more comfortable than the Beats Studio alternative. In just a few clicks you can connect to your iPhone, iPod or any other bluetooth device and start listening in minutes.
Battery life also easily exceeds 20 hours so you won't be charging them more than once a week, which is a huge bonus but they also take less than an hour to charge so even if you're running low it's easy to give them a quick boost on the goo using the USB adaptor for plugging into a laptop.
The only negative I can really come up with is that they don't sound great when you choose to listen with the noise-cancelling function turned off. In fact you're probably better with a pair of Apple's out of the box headphones because these things sound BAD. You can see Bose has put a huge amount of effort into these but if you ever did run out of charge just do without.
The Bose QuietComfort Q35s are £289 and available here.
Bose QuietComfort 35 Wireless Headphones - Black
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