My take on reading blogs and keeping them in my Google RSS feed.
I admire that you took the time to think about what you wrote, and that each paragraph starts off with a different word each time. I read a blog once where I literally saw the word “So,” at the beginning of each of each paragraph. Add that with no photos to look at, makes for a pretty boring blog if you ask me.
For instance. I bought those pens off Ebay from Hong King because Pilot doesn’t make them any more. They’re my favourite. And, like my watery Victoria Secret hand cream that I don’t really recommend.
I love looking at photos. Are you the same way? I really don’t care what they’re of either, heck it could be a photo of the new Christmas garland you just bought — hey I’m an early shopper too, I understand. Not every post needs to have photos, but it sure helps to break up that monotonous text that we sometimes skim through. Stock photos are also kind of lame — but use them sparingly if you really feel the need to. That last part could also be just my personal preference. Anyone care to chime in?
So, this is what I did today…blah
So, my dog is sick and I’m sad.
So…I’m not doing much this weekend.
Starting every paragraph with the same word? It gets old fast. Makes for a fast mouse click to the unsubscribe button. Use a thesaurus. Use the dictionary and elaborate your vocab peeps. I’m not saying that my blog is popular by any means, but I did find that reading other people’s websites and the style of writing, it made me find my own style as well.But read each sentence out loud and see if it flows well together. I usually type the same way that I think, and then I re-write it after I have a paragraph or two written, to make it flow better. Because lawd knows I sometimes don’t know how to talk :)
So Also, if you are paid to write a blog entry, don’t just write the minimum allowed. Make it interesting, and put your own take on it, do a bit of research. That goes for reviews too. Many people ask me how I had the chance to review some great products, or how I got started doing reviews for companies. Companies will contact you, and they will find you.
How?
- Interact with your readers/comments.
- Ask questions at the end of your post (or somewhere in between — whatevs). Maybe the readers of your blog will also interact back with you.
- Post on a scheduled basis. I usually post only on week days, but I am also known to post 2x/day or even on weekends.
- Be positive. Nobody really likes to hear people whine or complain too much on a blog. Save that for something like Twitters 140 character limit. OMG add me!
That’s basically it! Then I honestly think it’s just my style of laid-back writing that flows easily and gives a good honest opinion about what I really think. Companies will contact you.
Use spell check. Nothing irks me more than definitely spelled with an “A” (definaitely) or hilarious (halarious). Use firefox if you don’t know how to spell the words. Anytime I type something out that is spelled wrong, it has a red squiggly line underneath. I tend to ignore the red squiggles when I make up my own words, however ;)
There you have it. My two cents on why I read, or do not read your blog!
