How to Be a Better Blogger

I came across this the other day and had to pass it on. Simonworld has a post called "Everything you wanted to know about blogging but were afraid to ask." It's funny, informative and dead on in describing how bloggers think. For instance, to improve traffic to your site he suggests, among other things:

43. A good way to get people to visit your site is to visit theirs. Blog owners check their referrer logs religiously and when they see a new URL in the logs, they go check it.

Sure enough - I was checking my referrer log the other day and found a referral from "This Liberal." "This Liberal" had a link to Simonworld where I got the material for this post. I hate it that this guy doesn't know me yet could read my mind.

Based on Simon's advice, I will now follow tip #6:

6. Blogs live for two things: readers and links (not in order). There is no blogger alive who does not religiously follow Trackbacks - if you don't have trackbacks (that's especially for you Blogger folks) then use Kevin's manual Trackback pinger. Link liberally and eventually someone might notice you. You can even said emails to bloggers telling them about your new site or post. Try and keep it relevant, but unless they are a mega-blogger most will read the email. Here's a handy hint: do NOT title the email "Cheap Viagra".

I am doing so by sending trackbacks to Simonworld and "This Liberal."

Seriously though, he's got a lot of good tips and it is worth your while to read this thing and follow his advice. Well, follow his advice, but I think it goes without saying that those of us in the Blogdom of God don't want to be following his advice to talk about our sex lives or use porn to attract visitors.

Comments

[Neb]

Thanks for the informational entry. I'm relatively new to blogging and need all the advice I can get... :)

[Jeff]

David,

Did you start out blogging using TypePad?

Jeff

[David]

Glad to be of service Neb.

Jeff - I actually started out using blogger. After about a month of it I could tell I was getting hooked so I switched to Typepad.

[William Meisheid]

David, please take this with a little tongue in my cheek, but doesn't "The Purpose Driven Sex Life" fit the advice, even if using an evangelical filter for the content? It touches the "third rail" of the Christian life, one most people find it extremely hard to discuss or think about and as such fulfills the same slot in his advice for the Christian as sex and porn fills for the unbelieving hedonist.