New Blogger Talk And Tips

There comes a time in your life,when you just suddenly feel you don't want to do anything.You don't want to go to school,not because you are ill,but just because you don't feel like going,same goes when you are in your working age,you feel tired,not motivated to go to work,even though there are tons of work that you need to finish up at the office.

I sometimes feel this way about blogging,especially lately,it is not just about blogging,it is just a time in my life that I just don't want to do anything,not everything,but mostly things that need your mind and body to work.In a simple word,I just feel lazy!



For fulltime blogger like me,time is not such a big problem,but sometimes it does,not because of not having enough time to write a post,but more about finding the right time to write it.But for part-time blogger,time can posed a big problem.So how do we solve this time problem since we cannot do anything to change the 24 hours a day that we have.

Time management.

I think this is the best solution.We have 24 hours,so work it out to our benefit no matter if we blog full or part-time.I believe if we manage our time properly,we can do all the task that we need to do,blogging or non blogging related,attend to other things in our life and as a bonus,we can even have some time for a nap!

To manage our time,we must have a schedule.List out what are the things that need to be done daily after we woke up,to the time we go back to sleep,no matter if you have a job or spend all day at home like me.Through this schedule,set a time to make your blog post,but remember,there is no point in having a schedule if you do not stick to it.Try it for a few days,make changes until you find one that really suits you and stick to it.Doing things routinely everyday will create a habit,a good one and will benefit you and your life.

Always have a pen and notebook close to you,not only to write points for your post,but with every free time you have,write and edit your post,so when you want to make your post,just type it in,without having to think while you type,you can easily finish your post in 15 to 20 minutes,giving you time to do other things.

Look for ways that will make your life easier,like subscribing to certain site you like for information,so instead of spending time looking for it,you can open your reader and get the feeds there,or subscribing through emails.If you have extra time and with a few post in your notebook,type all of it and schedule it for the next 2 or 3 days,so on that day you don't have to think about making a post,instead you can do research,or just enjoy a break by going out.

If you are serious about blogging and finding it hard to make time to make a post,you really should have a daily schedule and include posting to your blog in it.

As for me,feeling lazy is just something you feel inside,once you get over it,everything return to normal.It is something that you have to fight,or maybe it is time to take a break?

Being new to blogging,sometimes or most of the times we just can't help but feeling envy towards the Top Bloggers.Why not?They have about 20,000 readers subscribing to their blog,but we only have 20,we sometimes don't have people commenting on our post,the best we get is 1 comment,but they get 20 to 50 comments easily though sometimes we feel our post are much better than theirs.We struggle to even make 1 post,but they can easily make 3 post daily and the biggest envy will surely be because we make our first $100 after 3 month,but they make $10,000 to $30,000 every month.

In our envy,we sometimes forget that they actually are not much better than us when they also first started blogging.They struggle like we do,have nothing to show after their first 3 month,some even feel frustrated and thinking whether they make the right decision,but they did the right thing by sticking to it and now we the new ones are looking up to them with envy and also for inspiration.

There is nothing wrong to envy them but we must also learn from them,what is it that we can actually learn by looking at this top bloggers?

Keep on going and one day you will become the envy of others for a change.

I'm just learning to blog,so SEO is really a new thing to me,like most other things that I only learn after I start blogging.Even though still new to it,I know the importance of SEO in getting targeted traffic.People who got money can just pay some SEO expert to do the SEO for their site,but for me and I believe for a lot of you out there,learning to do it ourselves is something that we just have to do for now.Luckily there are a lot of resources that we can find about SEO online,the thing now is to apply it to our site.

Here is something that we as beginner's should really do to get started in doing the right SEO for our site.

For beginners like me and you,I believe this is something that we all can do and achieve.It is all in the effort,if you are willing to put in the effort,I believe you will have success in getting your SEO like the way you want it to be.

Well,time to do my SEO now,have a good weekend and enjoy trying your new SEO knowledge.

I'm not an SEO expert nor do I really know about search engines algorithm,but what I do know is SERP or search engine result page is much more important than PageRank.PageRank is what Google think of your page based upon how long it has been around,what type of links coming and going from your page,it is rank from the lowest 0 to the highest 10.Advertisers will want to see what PageRank you have and certainly having a 0 PageRank meaning you have a very low chance of advertisers wanting to advertise on your page,or maybe you want to do paid review,chances are a blog less than 3 month old with 0 PageRank will not get to do it yet.

SERP on the other hand is how your site fare when people do a search on certain keywords that are related to keywords you have on your page,let say blogging tip.If you are in the first page,at number 1 to 5,chances are these people will certainly visit your site since they want to know about blogging tip and getting it from a site that came top in their search results meaning they will get the best tip possible that all other people are looking at too,but if you end up in page 3 and above,it seems very unlikely people will discover your site.

If you want visitor,work on your SEO to get the best SERP,there is no point in worrying about your PageRank are still 0 or you have a PageRank of 3 and suddenly it goes to 0.What you should really worry about is whether your site are being index,how to optimize your site to get good search engine results and good search engine results mean more traffic.

I'll write a little bit more about SEO in my next post,how you can do-it-yourself without paying huge sum of money to get it done for you.I'm no SEO expert,but like to share what I know,what I learn.

Here is something that I believe we all should look at and maybe try for the benefits of our blog and also for ourselves.

Do you have anything to add through your own experience that we all can share?Please leave a comment if you do.

There are a lot of widgets that you can add to your blog to make it more attractive,something that can be useful for your readers,something that can provide extra information and something that can be used to interact with your readers.Most of this widgets are free and some of it are really useful,like the visitors counter.

What exactly are widgets?It is a small bit of code,usually in JavaScript that can be paste into your blog template.It serves fresh content from other servers.

Should you add widgets to your blog?

It all depends on what type of widget you want to add.If it can be useful to both you and your readers,it is recommended to add it.There are a few widgets that you can add to your blog because it is useful not just for you but also for your readers.

Before you add all sorts of widgets on your blog,do remember this,

What really matters is actually your content,some widgets are only for first impression.When your blog look nice with lots of graphic on it,people will want to look more but if they find your content is nothing to shout about,that will be the first and last time they visit your blog.

This is one of the most biggest concern among bloggers.You start a blog,write a post,but there are no people reading it.You can find topics about traffic in any forums you join.There are ways that we can do to promote our blogs like submitting it to blog directories,joining blogging community,use social networking sites to promote it to other members,join forums,comment on other blogs and a lot of different ways that we can think of just to get people to our blogs.But still,even if they do come,that is the only time they came.

Maybe we are getting the wrong kind of traffic?Maybe there is something wrong with our blogs?Lets see,do we forget about this 3 major ingredient which can help our blog,not in getting sudden rush of traffic,but a more targeted traffic,that will eventually become our loyal readers.What are the 3 ingredients?

Now that we know the 3 important ingredients,it is time to put it into practice and hopefully we will see an increase to our traffic in not a very long time.After we achieve this,is there anything else to do?There sure is,don't be easily satisfied.We can always optimized our effort.If we can create good content,optimize our knowledge to make a better or even great content.If we manage to get good amount of traffic through SEO,optimize it by making it better or do other things that can help add more traffic.Join conference,network with other bloggers,create a group among bloggers in your niche.

As I've said a number of times before,blogging is a learning process.If we are willing to learn and put to practice what we have learnt,learning from mistakes we made,we always have a better and bigger chance of being a successful blogger.

Bloggers are only human,and as human,we make mistake.How hard we try to be perfect,but sometimes mistakes does happen.Spelling error,grammar mistake are common among bloggers,but certain people have trouble in accepting this fact.It is like when you blog,you must be perfect,no mistake is allowed.You must present great content,no spelling error,no grammar mistake.The post must have a certain flow so reading it will be a smooth and enjoyable experience,and surprisingly,these people are bloggers too,and even their own blog doesn't represent what they preach.

Expectation.That is the problem.You cannot expect all the blogs out there to be the same.It is created by different people with different taste,different liking,different interest,different background from different countries.There will be a difference.People from US,UK,Canada and Australia maybe can blog in English with a very little effort since it is a major language there,except for Canada where there are a mix of English and French,but to people like me,from Malaysia,somewhere in South East Asia and I believe some of you didn't even know where it is and many other Asian countries,or African countries,or certain European countries like Portugal,Spain,Romania where English is not a major language,there will be some problem,unless you have good command of English.

You can proofread your article before getting it publish,some even ask friends to proofread it for them,this will reduce the percentage of making mistakes,but do you always proofread your articles?Do you always have time to proofread it or ask someone to do it for you?I normally check for spelling errors,then read it twice or thrice before I hit the publish button.

I'm sharing what I learn,what I know,what I find is right with my readers,so we can all learn something new,that is why I also read other blogs,to learn.I'm not writing to get an A+ in exams or writing novel,some English Literature,and so does all of you.Just write what you want,try to minimize the mistake,but in the end,mistakes still happen because we are only human.

Bloggers have emotion too.We have personal,family and financial problems and it all can have effect on our blogging.Sometimes we just make a simple post,or maybe miss our posting because there are other things we have to attend to,some people understand,some people don't.They start questioning you being here on the blogosphere,but when you look at their blogs,there isn't any regular posting pattern,at least you update your blog regularly.Most blog readers are bloggers too,so try to understand that bloggers are human that have other things in their life other than blogging.

Take a break from blogging maybe for 2-3 days or a week.Go somewhere,settle your problems,spend time with your family.Refresh yourself.Life is not just about blogging and life on the Internet.Don't treat it like you are addicted.Don't push yourself.Do take care of your personal thing,your health,these are the things that matters too.You won't be blogging if you got sick or maybe even dead.Blogging can be hazardous if you don't take care of your health.Sitting too long can bring problems to your back.Facing the monitor for too long can be bad to your eyes and brain.Spending long time online,sometimes eating chips and coke and not having enough sleep can be bad for your heart.Take good care of your health.Being healthy meaning you can keep on blogging for a long time.

I've read Daniel Scocco recent posting on his blog,DailyBlogTips about social network and how he compares it to the fashion industry.I pretty much agree with Daniel because it does have some similarity.

The fashion industry is all about glamour.About creating new trends,creating the "In thing",being cool,being seen in the right place,with the right people wearing the right trendy outfit.It is about creating new looks,competition among fashion designer and designer house,sometimes creating ridiculous fashion.It is about creating something so people will want it,not because they need it.Just so they can be cool,and people will look at them as some kind of fashion icon.

Social Network are also about being cool,being in the right social networking,the latest site where most people on the Internet spend their time,where popular bloggers and popular people in the industry hang out.When new social network site emerge,they will abandon what they have now and move to that site,creating their profile,linking with others,inviting all their friends there because,it's new and it is a new cool place to hang out,to get noticed.

There is nothing wrong about this,who doesn't want to be seen among cool people,among the top people in the industry,you will get the much needed attention and getting the boost you always need for yourself,your blog.

But what about that old social network site that you just left,that you abandon to be in this new site.What about all the friends you have there,the links that you have created.Using social network site now is not just about getting to know other people,but more and more are using to expose their work,their blog especially.But if you keep on jumping to the latest craze on the Internet,and abandoning your effort to create a whole new profile and links there,that is not such a good move.

Not all social network site have good impact on exposing yourself and your blog.While taking time to create your presence on the latest site,keep on building what you have on the existing one.Jumping to every new social network site available and joining too many of it can be bad for your blog,because you will be spending more time there instead of updating your blog and looking for resources for your post.

Join just one or two social networking site and spend just the right time on it,there are other things that needs your time to,like posting to your blog,doing your SEO,connecting with your existing readers and contacts,replying their comments and emails.Neglecting them to get new readers will be a very big mistake.Most good bloggers said that getting readers for your blog is one big task,keeping them as your blog readers is a much bigger task for you.

It is great to get notice and getting new friends from a new place,but lets not forget the real true friend that have help in making your blog popular and successful,your existing readers.Social networking sites are things that you can do,but it is not something you must do.Don't indulge yourself into just one particular things because there are a lot of other factors that will contribute to your blog success.

I want to start a discussion here and I hope it will get good response from all of you,my valuable readers.I read in Daily Blog Tips how Daniel discuss about this,but it is more open where it isn't just about blogging,but about getting it right and being successful on the Internet.Chris Garret did a survey among his readers recently,and one of the results is that 87% of almost 1,000 bloggers who participate have a university degree,but Chris himself left school at the age of 15.

My personal view is that it depends actually not on the education background that you have but more towards this 3 things.

I once read a book by one Internet Marketer.He wrote,people always say that knowledge is power,but to him it is wrong.Applied Knowledge is Power..and I agree with him.Having knowledge but not doing anything with it means nothing,but learning about something and then applying that knowledge to be become successful,that is true power.It doesn't promise instant success or a guarantee of success,but it does increase your chances of becoming successful.

What do you think?

Are you a passive blogger?Do you network with other bloggers?Do you join forums?Do you join Social Media or Social Networking sites?

Being a passive blogger is not good for you,especially for your blog.You must communicate with other bloggers so that others will know you exist and it will help expose your blog,but there are ways in communicating with other bloggers and make sure you follow this simple guide line so you won't irritate other bloggers.

You must always remember that by doing all this is not just about yourself,about what you want to gain,though sadly most of the time it is about personal gain.It is not just about driving traffic to your blog,but creating genuine networking and friendship for the long term benefit of your blog.Be honest whether in forums,giving comments or in social networking sites.By being a good member,you will benefit in the long term,you build strong relation with other bloggers,help them promote their blog,and they will surely help promote yours.

Socialize and remember to socialize the right way.

I read last week what Chris Garret wrote in his blog about how taking a break can be good for a blogger.Actually it is not only Chris,Darren and other bloggers have also wrote about taking a break from blogging can do wonders for your blogging life and will help keep you motivated.I have also wrote about this before and I'm posting it again with some bit of new things here and there.

Before this it is a bit difficult to just leave and go for a vacation,or maybe just go to my mothers house and not worry about not updating my blog.I have no laptops,so I won't be able to do anything if I left the house.Sure there are a lot of Internet cafes here,but most of it cater to those interested in playing online games,so imagine the noise and all the people cramped into one small area.Then also the issue of slow connection.But now I can go out and enjoy myself since Blogger introduce Schedule Post.I will schedule my post depending on how long I will be going,so no more worries of not updating and my readers can rest assured that they will always get fresh content every 2 days,as usual.

Spending time away from your daily blogging schedule sure can freshen you up and keep you motivated to carry on blogging.Blogging can sometime be stressful if you push yourself to hard,that is why some do it as a hobby,but to someone like me,it is not a hobby,and not a profession,but something that I want to do,something that I like to do.It is not stressful,but sometimes you do face days that you just don't have any idea what you wanted to blog about,because we are only human,and there are many things that can have an effect on our daily life,and our blogging ability.That is why I suggest you always bring a notebook and pen where ever you go,make notes if you suddenly get an idea of what you want to post.You can write and schedule your post since you have what you want to write about,and you can write it in advance so that there will be no pressure of needing to update your blog.

How To Stay Motivated.

That is why I like weekends.I can spend time away from blogging and make me fresh to start blogging again.Taking your time away can sure be good to your blogging life,because like working 9 to 5 or any other job,we must take time away to make us fresh.Take our mind away from things that are routine.If we keep on going without stopping,we will be burnout,because we are not machine or robots.Our mind have a limitation,and need a rest so it can function as well as it possibly can.That is why we need a good night sleep,to rest our mind,and start fresh when we woke up.Resting on weekends can relax your body after sitting in front of your PC or Laptops for hours everyday,so you will be fresh.It is good for your health too,since health has become one of the major issue concerning blogging.

Other Ideas?

OK..sometimes we do feel like not blogging.If I were to face this situation,I just simply rest,and not push myself to blog,thinking on what to post,because I know,if I do these,I can't produce anything,or even if I manage to,I don't think it will be worth publishing.

If I just feel a little lazy,or have an idea what to post but don't have the drive to write it,I just leave the house,go down and have a coffee at the cafe near by,or maybe I take a bus and go to the nearest mall,spend sometime there.

If I'm in no mood to go anywhere,I just take a short nap,or play the games I like(I just love to play football games on my PC!).

You can also cook,do household chores like sweeping the floor,doing the laundry or ironing your shirt.Just anything that can take your mind off blogging or take you away from your PC or laptops for a while.

Does It Works?

It certainly do for me,and from what I read in other posting,and in forums,most of them agree,taking times off can do wonders to freshen you up and keeping you motivated.

When is the last time you take a break?

Once you have start blogging,it is not just about writing post and updating your blog.You will be tweaking your blog,play around with your template to make it look better and different,you will start doing things to expose your blog,visiting other blogs,commenting,moderate comments on your blog,giving response to the comments,maybe emails you received.Learn new things,add new widget..etc..etc.

Now more and more blogger are involved with Blog Community,Social Media and Social Networking,seems that more and more things are need to be done.How do you use all that available time?It is good to spend time on all those things,but always remember,the real reason you are doing it is to make friends,to expose your blog,to network with other blogger,to expose your blog.The main thing is to expose your blog,but what is there to expose if you spend way too much time on these things that you don't have enough time to do research for your blog content,you sacrifice your blog content and posting so you can do your networking thing.

Your blog is alive and will keep on being alive if you update it regularly with good quality content.The most important time to be spent on are on researching for your blog post,making a regular posting and by doing your research,you will be able to provide informative and meaningful articles for your readers.

Don't over indulge your self with things related to your blogging life but spent real quality time on building and making your blog better,especially with fresh,quality content.

Who would want to miss out on using social media and social networking sites since it has prove to be a popular site and can help boost your presence on the Internet.

You can submit your post to Digg,Stumbleupon,Mixx,Reddit and if it is good,your readers will submit it there and will get a vote.If you are lucky it will get to the front page and this will bring drove of traffic to your blog!Your readers can follow you on Twitter and now there is Plurk,you can make friends and add more readers by joining Facebook or MySpace or both.

Is it worth it?For most thing,I like to see the good and the bad,because normally there will be a little bit of both.Not everything is all good and not everything is all bad.

Good.

As with everything else that blogger love to participate in,there are certain rules that must be follow to get the real benefit from joining such a site,like forums and now social media and social networking sites so does blogging community like MyBlogLog and Blog Catalog.

Don't use social media and social networking site just for your personal gain.Build your reputation and your blog credibility there and you will gain long term success.Do you really think 1 or 2 burst of traffic to your blog is enough to make it popular?It will fizzle the way the traffic to it fizzle too,but if you build your credibility and popularity,your readers will increase at a steadier pace and will stay way much longer.

Forums,Blog Community,Social Media and Social Networking sites,all these are tools to help you and your blog gain popularity,but there are certain ways to use a tool,use it wisely,you will get what you want,using it wrongly,it will do you more harm than good.

One of the biggest problems that a blogger face is in updating the blog with fresh new material regularly.It won't be that difficult for personal blogs since anything can be written to be added to the blog,but what about niche blogs,something like mine.

I do find it difficult to write and update my blog regularly when I first start blogging,but I hope with this method that I use now,it can help me overcome it and maybe you can use it too if you find it helpful.

It is not a guarantee that you will not face anymore problems when you want to make a post,but I'm sure it will help a lot,especially when you want to take a leave for a holiday,vacation.You don't have to leave your blog without any new post for that period because you can schedule it and by having points to write in your notebook and from a lot of resources,you can easily make 5 to 6 schedule post while you enjoy your holiday or vacation.I sometimes schedule 1 to 2 post so that I can do something else without having to worry about not making a post.