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There are times I’ve been reeled in by a great blog post headline and as I read on, I find I’m disappointed. The post doesn’t deliver what I thought would be posted. Other times I’m reading a post and I can tell that the blogger is just posting to post–rambling on without any purpose-or just in a “posting rut”. This is an easy trap to fall into.
Whether you decide to use your blog as part of your online marketing strategy, to position yourself as an expert on a topic, or just to share your knowledge…don’t make the mistake of posting just to post, or posting to meet your own needs.
Don’t answer the questions: What will “I” get out of this? How can “I” boost my web traffic? What can “I” do to increase online sales?
The questions shouldn’t be about “you”, but about your audience. You need to gear your blog posts to them. The object of the game is to attract regular readers, so you need to appeal to their likes and interests. This is the way to avoid just being a Drive-By Blog Poster…give your audience information that is relevant and useful and you will build a successful blog.
Here are five easy steps to avoid the Blog Drive-By Drivel
Step 1: Know your audience
As elementary as this sounds, you need to put yourself in their shoes. What do they care about? What will solve their problems? What valuable information can you give them? Don’t think about yourself; think about your audience.
If you’re not sure what they want, do some Internet research. Find out what information they seek. Study statistics about your audience demographic. Use that information to lead your blog content. When you know what types of information they’re hungry for…you know what to deliver.
Step 2:Stay on topic with each post; don’t wander
Make sure your post delivers what your headline promises. Stay on point and give your audience what they expect. Be careful not to ramble on, but make each word count. Keep your content relevant. If your audience finds your blog through a keyword search and finds your information relevant, they stay; otherwise, you lose them.
Step 3: Dump the corporate-speak
Write your blog posts as if you were talking to your audience face to face. Don’t be formal, be conversational, casual. Use the jargon that your audience understands and uses. You want to inform them, but not bore them.
Step 4: Keep posting fresh content
Give your audience something to come back for. Don’t let your blog get stale. If your audience knows they can rely on you to deliver fresh content that is informative, they will be back for more.
Step 5: Keep the relationship going; be consistent in posting
If you’ve followed the above steps, your audience will keep checking back to see what you’ve posted on your blog. Now, that you’ve got them, you can continue to inform them, market to them, or whatever your goal may be.
They’ll look at you as an expert in your field, and look at your blog as a credible resource.
Kudos to @graywolf for inspiring the term “Drive-By Drivel” via Twitter 
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I always seem to have the problem with #3 a lot. I wonder where a good medium is. In person, I talk pretty casually, but I want my readers to think that I’m a professional, so I try and write differently so I don’t look like an average Joe. I have no way of knowing if how I write is better or worse, but I just don’t want to come off as too casual.
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Great advice Vince! For me its easy to think of the titles that will make the masses come, but the key is having the content that is going to make them want to keep coming back once they have found you. Great tips bro!
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Good post Vince. It really is tough to write a killer title and include killer content. Anytime you can hit both makes all the difference in the world! Thanks for the tips on ways to make it happen.
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