Discussion: What Makes Blogs Successful?
Awesome Content: Set Up For Online Success
I’ve just finished writing two articles in which I identify and discuss what I believe are ten unmistakable qualities that the most successful blogs on the internet seem to possess. The first article entitled 5 Irrefutable Qualities of Successful Blogs will be published tomorrow and it’s follow up 5 More Qualities of Successful Blogs will be published one week from tomorrow.
Before I share my observations, however, I want your feedback. I want to know what sticks out in your mind as you think about the best blogs and websites that you’ve visited.
What did you notice about them that stood out? How were their articles different than others you’ve read? What was different about their layout that was enticing? In short, I want to know what you believe the qualities are that drive your favorite sites to greatness.
Matt @ Life Without Pants said:
Hey Nicholas. I recently had a great discussion over on my blog about this exact topic of measuring a blog’s success (http://www.lifewithoutpants.com/blog-insight/measuring-your-blogs-success-its-not-all-about-numbers/)
The general consensus? There is no cut-and-dry method of success, but it should not solely be measured by the number of page-views and comments. To me, the most successful blogs are the one’s that promote interactive discussion amongst a community of readers. I want to be a part of a blog community rather than dictated to by the blog’s author.
Nicholas Z. Cardot said:
Matt @ Life Without Pants » I think that you are absolutely right about the definition of success and the methods of reaching out toward success. I believe that to truly be successful at your blog or website you have to assess what you own goals are and create a unique experience that is an expression of you and your goals. Success can’t be nor should it be copied and pasted from another site.
Having said that I still believe that their are a lot of characteristics or principles that can be learned from sites that have been able to create a community that fosters discussion and debate and is enjoyable for us to visit. As I have written the two posts that I’m getting ready to publish which will cover ten qualities of successful blogs, I believe that users should look through the list and find which qualities may assist them in furthering their own personal goals. All ten principles may not be right for every blogger. But some of them might be.
nelson » Great factors. I hadn’t really thought of a couple of your ideas. I may have to create a third post and bump the list up to 15. I don’t have charisma, determination, or age on my list and they are all fantastic points. Some highly successful blogs are ones that have been around for a while faithfully growing their readership base over time.
nelson said:
age seems to be a factor . you rarely see a successful blog that’s not at least 1 year old .
the level of charisma the blogger has . it’s close to impossible to come up with truly original content now ( depending on your topic , of course ) . those days are long gone . so yeah … charisma is a huge factor I think .
the level of determination the blogger has . and this is where that passion thingy comes into play .
decent design .
a structured blog .
the level of involvement he has in that community .
Arisu said:
I think successful blogs are the ones with the most effort in them, if the author works in creating good content, encouraging the readers to participate and promote the site I would say, it´s hard to fail.
Passion for what they do is key, but you can have it and be unsuccessful if they don´t work on marketing and keep learning how to improve themselves.
And -just like an other activity- you´ll see results if you don´t quit!
Nicholas Z. Cardot said:
Arisu » The Bible even says “In all labor there is profit.” You can usually tell which sites have the most effort in them. They do usually stand out. Good thoughts and I agree that if they just stay with it then results can come as long as they are continually growing and improving themselves and their sites.
Evan said:
Just off the top of my head, the items that come to mind for me on the blogs I like:
1) Good subject matter- the subjects covered have to be topics that are interesting or to which I can relate. The reader should be able to find them, too. The next step on my blog is to get the popular posts into the sidebar, where they’ll live on.
2) Engaging writing – the blogs that are an instant turn off are the ones where the blogger obviously does not have decent writing skills. That is the bare minimum. An engaging, eye-catching style (in the posts, and in titles, like you have a knack for)helps, too.
3) Clean design. This might just be a personal preference, but I am drawn to sites that are organized. Scattered sites, while perhaps artistic, don’t hold my attention. Your site manages to be both clean and artistic, which is a rare quality.
4) “Skimable” – I don’t know if that is a word, but I follow enough blogs that I need to be drawn in quickly to follow a new one. After I’m first drawn in, what helps me decide whether to subscribe to a blog is what I see when I scan over the other posts. I guess this goes hand in hand with clean design. If it is clean, then the good stuff is easily soon, usually.
Nicholas Z. Cardot said:
Evan » You’re points are great ones. In fact the ‘design’ concept is the first one on tomorrow’s list. Without a good design people often never even make it far enough to see if your posts are any good. Also, in today’s internet the ability to let your readers skim through your work is vital. All great points. I hope that you enjoy tomorrow’s post on this subject. I think you’ll see that you and I think alike on a few of these issues.
Arisu said:
Nicholas>>
That´s right. And you can learn all the things you need to know for blogging, except the passion.
Design is important, cause the same black template that everyone else uses ain´t gonna impress a reader, it also shows that you put very little effort in your blog.
Nicholas Z. Cardot said:
Arisu » I also believe that you are bordering on another important aspect: being unique. Your design should be different than everyone else’s and so should your articles. Of course your topics may already be discussed somewhere else, but you should be able to bring your own perspective to the table in your articles and your own style of writing.
Asswass said:
Hi Nicholas, I guess that the design needs to be unique to get my attention, like this blog. After the design I go for 100% interesting content.
Nicholas Z. Cardot said:
Asswass » Thanks for the compliment on the design. Design and interesting content are most definitely major factors in grabbing and keeping readers.
Jeff B. said:
I’m going with a few things:
*Original content, or commentary
*A fresh welcoming design
*Recent material. If the last blog or article was written months, or even years ago, forget it.
*A catching or easily remembered URL. Yes, even that can make or break it.
By the way, this blog post is definitely the kind that requests feedback, and makes you think a little. Great way to get interaction and feedback!
Nicholas Z. Cardot said:
Jeff B. » Thanks Jeff! You brought up a couple of points that I failed to come up with myself. I think I’m going to right a third installment and have 15 qualities of successful blogs. I’m going to add recent material and a catchy url to my list. Those are both excellent points.
The main goal of this post was to invite feedback and group discussion. I certainly hope that everyone will stop back tomorrow and add their thoughts about the first five qualities of successful blogs. I’m really looking forward to the discussion. I’ll see you then!
GenuineWoman said:
I hope others enjoy my blog because of the content.
Nicholas Z. Cardot said:
GenuineWoman » Content is extremely important but I’m becoming convinced more and more that it takes more than that to gain and keep readers.
Satkrit » I can’t take credit for this design. I didn’t make it. I only created my logo for it and made a few personalizations to it. I looked far and wide to find it and then I paid for it.
George Serradinho » Your five points are exactly on target. I think a lot of blog authors just fail to stop and really put thought into what it takes their blogs appealing. You sound like you’ve actually put some thought into it already!
Satkrit said:
This design of yours Nicolas is really amazing. I newver would have been able to blend two art and cleaness together. Do u use photoshop sort of as a preview?
George Serradinho said:
Well, there are so many things to look out for, but I will ljust list a few.
1. Layout – I don’t want to be distracted by to many adds or flickering stuff. Must have a clean layout where the content is what you are reading from start to end.
2. Content – the content must be written with passion and be honest and sometime show the authors personality. I don’t like it when I have read something that offers no real information.
3. Interaction – it must be easy to interact with the author as well as other commentators. I like the subscribe to comments plugin as I can always see what other comment and can maybe interact with them.
4. An easy way to subscribe to their blog/site. I have seen with some sites that it’s sometimes hard to find the subscribe button.
5. Post on a frequent basis – I hate blogs/sites that post now and then. I like to read fresh content and not get an update once a month or two.
Thats my opinion
bangchoy said:
nicholas,
i usually more respect to blogger which have info about their failure when join some internet paid program [example : scam program].
their info about all failure experiences will help me [us?] to more carefull about any thing when blogging..
Kok Siong Chen said:
I think the attitude of the author is another important point for a successful blog. The author should be ready to accept any critic from the reader. The author should make modest remark too.
My Latest Blog Post: Cri du Chat Syndrome – Human with Cat-like Cry
Ron Leyba said:
Here are my answers:
Q:What did you notice about them that stood out?
A:Its the writing style and how well they explained each and every topic they are posting.
Q:How were their articles different than others you’ve read?
A:Like what I have said above, its the way they deliver their message to their readers. The way they are connecting with their targeted audience and visitors.
Q:What was different about their layout that was enticing?
A:Good navigation and easy to read font text, style and colors. More of the usability.
My Latest Blog Post: Sikat Ang Pinoy