A is for About, Advertising, Audience and Awards.
Your About Page is probably one of the most important pages on your blog and is one that you should spend time carefully constructing. It is the page that most people will find their way to in order to find out more about you and your blog and a place where you can let people know the sorts of things they can find on your blog such as topics you cover regularly and what they can get from your blog (for example, if you run tutorials the things they can learn). I like to think of the about page as being similar to the back cover page of a book where you can find out about the author. There are lots of helpful sites on the internet that have guides for writing a good About Page but the basics for building a page are to give a little information about you that are interesting, such as your hobbies and interests, where you are from, why you started your blog, the topics you write about and what you hope your readers will get out of the blog.
Advertising. I spent a long time shortly after I started this blog, researching ways to drive more traffic to my website and in the end I decided that using social media was a good way to advertise my blog. I’ve never paid for advertising but my blog has a Facebook Page, a Twitter and and Instagram which I share blog posts and images to. I search relevant hashtags and will follow people in my blog niche. Advertising, as a blogger, is more about getting your name out there rather than paying for an ad to appear in targeted social media group.
Audience. When starting a blog, before you have even written a word of a blog post it is worth thinking about who you want to read your blog. It is all well and good to want everyone to read your blog but each person is different and you can not write for the masses. Think about the types of post you want to write, what they will be about, the tone of your post – will it be serious or light hearted, chatty or business like, and start building up a mental picture of the persons who would be likely to read your posts. If, for example, you are writing about technology – computers and mobile devices you are likely to have more appeal to the younger generation and the tech savvy, you start to imagine what the typical reader would look like, what sort of job they may have etc, which will help you to pitch your blog post in just the right way, using language, words, phrases and tone to attract them.
Awards. Awards are fun things that bloggers share to other bloggers that they consider to be worthy of the title, for example, “The Sunshine Blogger Award”, and usually come with a set of questions written by the person giving the award. These awards can be fun to take part in as they can give your audience a little more insight into who you are as well as introduce them to new bloggers as many awards ask for you to share the award with other bloggers, this in turn can attract further readers when the award is accepted as you usually have to thank the person that awarded you with it. These are brilliant networking tools and I encourage you all to give them a go when you get nominated!
I hope you enjoyed the first part of Blogging From A-Z – A-Z of Blogging! What are your thoughts on the about page, advertising, audience or awards? do you have any other A’s that are important? I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments!
I shall be back tomorrow with the letter B!
Hi Suzy,
Hope you are well. Looks a very informative post thanks & will revisit when I have ‘touched base’ since premature return from Gambia 16 March.
Initially all rushed but since return so far so good 🙏. Thankfully I am retired so in a weird kind of way more flexibility in making use of the mental space that this period has created. Only now feeling retired (officially 2010!). Can’t believe water gone under bridge since then.
In my journal ages ago I wrote ‘making up for lost time’ but never thinking i would experience a pandemic, a thing only learned about in nursing & health visiting training.
Hoping you and yours keep well ❤️🙏
It is really crazy isn’t it? I never thought this sort of thing would ever happen either, except in films. I’m ok, I’m in self isolation again for the second time as I’ve got a cough and sore throat which could be hay fever related but it’s better to be safe than sorry! Hope you are ok! Xxxx
Glad you are caring for you. I have perennial allergies & sniffles part of daily life so blow my nose numerous times daily hence hands are sore with washing. Hydrocortisone 1 per cent between fingers n aqueous cream for hands & lo & behold wash hands time again.
Sounds like your managing food supplies.
Am sure you are glad to get re connected.
Take care ❤️🙏
I am! Being back online is brilliant! Especially in lockdown! Hope your hands are ok, sounds painful! How are you aside from that? Are you keeping safe? Xxx
Hehe well I don’t do the whole advertising so the others:
I’m kind of an about page snob. Like if someone doesn’t have one, I usually don’t follow them! 😂 I need to read it! I update mine a lot.
When I started blogging I didn’t have any idea about an audience. I was writing a private blog. I also didn’t know about awards! I used to love them and would follow all the rules and everything but like it just got too much. Now it’s rare that I do one properly
I rarely do an award now as I find it hard to fit them into my schedule but I do like to read them and find out about other bloggers who were given it too!
I love reading people’s about pages! And I’m a bit like that too, no about page = no follow from me though sometimes I save their url and check back every now and again! Xxxx
Thanks for the reminder. I will check it out.
No worries! Hope you are staying safe atm! Xxxx
I am doing my best. Take care.
I’ve been meaning to write an About page for like…an entire year, heh. Ooops!
Lol! It took me a while to think about what I should write for mine and for it to sound ok! It can be really hard to write an about page, it sort of felt like writing an application for a job where they ask for supporting information! Lol! Good luck and let me know when you have written it! I love reading about pages! Xxxx
I sure will! I think I’m mostly afraid of sounding stupid or full of myself. I’ll probably do ok though if I’d just start the thing,lol
If you want to draft something up I’d always be happy to read over it for you before you put it up on your site! Xxx
Awe, that’s very kind. Thank you!
Hey Suzi – How are you ?
https://aguycalledbloke.blog/2020/04/01/i-am-ok-thanks-for-asking/
Hey you!!! I’m ok! Self isolating for the second time, not sure if I’ve got hay fever (which is super bad atm anyway) or something else, got a stupid cough that won’t seem to go. How’s you, Suze and scrappy? Xxxx
Do you have a fever … is your temp above 37.8 and is that cough a dry cough or a wet cough?
Suze and l are ok … l was somewhat ill last week – but good now 🙂
How is Roxy?
Hey! Hit a spike in temp of 38.3 on the weekend, phoned the dr on Tuesday and had a phone consultation with him, he did it sounded like I’d had the virus but have now developed a chest infection. Been prescribed antibiotics which I received yesterday! Roxy is ok, she’s loving me being home and being able to take naps with her! Lol! Xxx
Well you take care of both of you properly Suzi – thanks for the heads up 🙂
Hi Suzy,
I am sure it is great to get back online.
Am ticking along ok & I am DEFINITELY cleaning my bedroom after cuppa & small nap.
Think I overdid the phone calls yesterday (some Abit intense) but had my park walk. Been clearing cupboards this a.m containing articles, newspapers etc that I never got around to reading. Plenty of time now.
Thank you Suzy hands much improved, Aveeno hand cream seems to suit me best.
Take care ❤️🙏
Hi Suzy,
Hope you are well. Just revisiting here. I think I am only really now aged 64 years old getting to know myself.
I know the way my blog has developed it has allowed me to highlight where my interest lie and become more self aware.
I updated my About section yesterday focusing on how it had evolved. I know I need to look at the whole in order to give a fuller picture of me.
Watch this space 🙂🙍🏻♀️
im new to WordPress and blogging but after going through a difficult time this year I’d like to share not just my story but also the ups and downs of recovering from the worst year of my life….it took a long time to get the help and support I needed to get through and I found it so difficult to access support partly because of covid restrictions but also because some support is available but not known even by health care and social care providers some of the support I discovered by accident and I shared it with everyone who’s been supporting me and they had no idea about some of what I’ve managed to access all in the same area…its hard to believe in this age of technology that health and social care professionals don’t know about other help and support for their clients in the same post code areas…anyway thanks for your a-z of blogging im following with interest and hopefully I can begin to share my experiences and new found knowledge to others who may need it…if you have time any tips and advice you have for me a total new comer to blogs vlogs and sharing experiences would be welcome and appreciated 😊