Blogger Tutorials: Lesson 2 - Blog Posts

So you've started your blog and have been careful to use targeted keywords to write your tag line and describe your site. The next step is to write your charming and entertaining blog post. How you blog is very important to the success of your site. This article was created to help you write better

How important is your post
It's the nutrient to your site. Your post is what keeps your visitors coming back and paying interest in you and what you write. Think carefully about what you create and who you're creating it for. Read these punctuation lessons and make sure you're at least competent. Interesting and compelling content is marred if it's littered with grammatical and punctuation mistakes. Furthermore, blogging about things that do not hold your interest will eventually seep through your writing and cause your readers to lose interest too. 

• Teach your readers. People surf the Internet to gain information.
• Question them. Always leave them with something to think about.
• Help them. Readers appreciate this.
• Show them something new - a different way of looking at old beliefs.
• Entertain them. People like to laugh.
• Be original. Always add your personality into what you write. 

What do you post
Of course it's your blog, so you have a right to post whatever you want. However, keep in mind all the research you put into naming your blog (the first article in this series) and resolve to make blog posts about your targeted subject. The only way search engines will offer up your site when people search for terms you cover, is if these phrases can be found intelligently scattered all over your blog.


Try to approach your subject from different directions to satisfy your own curiosity and that of your readers. Use pictures to depict scenes you want to tackle, and make sure your research is backed up by figures and links to validate your claims. Always remember that there are free image sites where you can get pictures to use on your blog, even though most pictures on the Internet are claimed by someone else. Please give credit to the owners of the pictures you use by also including their site link under the image. 

• Intelligent blogging is key.
• Targeted subject matter makes your blog more successful.
• One picture tells a thousand words.
• Don't be a rude blogger by stealing other people's work and images.

Where to find inspiration for blog blog posts
This is the hardest part. Many people lose interest in blogging after they realise that it's not as easy as it sounds. Having an online diary is of no interest to anyone but yourself. However, if you want to have a site buzzing with visitors and comments, you have to dedicate more time than simply rigging up your next shopping list, or a detailed account of what your dog did yesterday. 
I recommend taking inspiration from life for your articles. This is the only way you will have original posts. Having said this (as a person who manages 4 blogs) I realise that one sometimes need visual prompts to get the creative juices flowing. Here are some I've successfully used in the past.


Alexa This is a site that tells you what is popular at the moment. It gives you general or specialised subjects, so you can search for your targeted topics too. If you need a quick blog post idea, have a look at some of these topics. Do your research and write your own point of view. Remember that your blog post has to be your own. The reason why people read your article on your site is because they want to hear your individual take on the matter. Don't use other people's material.


Radio - News and reviews will spark ideas of your own. In addition, other people hearing about those particular events will be searching the web for more information. This is where your research and blog come in. 


Newspapers - Reading always helps us write better. 


TV guides - Search your TV guide for upcoming topics of interest to you and your readers. You may find something inspiring, timetabled to show at the end of the week. Cover it in your blog today so you can catch the traffic when the searches start to flow in at the end of the week.


Part one of this blog tutorial is here. And here are lots of other writing and blogging articles you may be interested in reading: 20+ must read articles for the new blogger.