Five Components of a Successful Blog

If you have taken the time to start a blog, there is little doubt that you want it to be as successful and widely read as possible. After all, there is little more discouraging than pouring your heart and soul into your blog posts week after week and knowing that only a few people are reading them.

So what is it that makes some blogs so popular while others remain relatively almost invisible? What can you do to get more traffic and make more money from your blog?

Luckily, there are some common factors that can take a blog from average to amazing. Listed below are the five components that can make or break your blog’s success.

• Content – Content is the backbone of your blog. Regardless of the main reason you are trying to attract visitors, content is the way to do so. Make sure all your posted content is accurate, entertaining, and informative. High quality blog content will not only attract visitors but will also ensure that they return again and again. You can also use your content to differentiate your site from your competitors so you can stick out from the crowd. Finally, and possibly most important, making sure your content is high quality will lend credibility to your site, which will encourage visitors to tell friends about you. Word of mouth is invaluable in drawing new traffic.
• Appearance – Never underestimate the importance of your first impression. If a new visitor to your site is overwhelmed by unattractive color choices or a cluttered appearance, they will likely click away immediately and never return. A clean, attractive, aesthetically appealing site will have the opposite effect, however. Visitors who find your blog visually appealing are likely to stay a while and return often for new information.
• Graphics and Images – Graphic design elements can make your blog stand out from the crowd. Well chosen pictures help to get your ideas across easier and provide a visual appeal that will make visiting your site much more enjoyable for viewers. Pictures and graphics that are related to your content give readers a preview of what your blog has to offer and also add a visual appeal that will draw readers in and keep them interested.
• Social Media – Social media provides a wealth of opportunities for enhancing the success of your blog. Becoming active in various forms of social media allows you to develop a strong web presence and also gives readers an additional means of communicating with you. Once your web presence is established on social sites, you can use your reputation to promote your blog and attract new viewers. The better your social media presence, the more popular your blog will become.
• SEO – Using the fundamentals of search engine optimization on your blog will enhance your prominence on major search engines, thus attracting new visitors and increasing traffic to your site. As your search engine ranking grows, so will the number of readers your blog receives. If you aren’t familiar with the basics of SEO, it is well worth your time to learn about this valuable promotional strategy, from a trusted source, such as SEOmoz and SEO Book.