Please note: this is a contributed post.
The blogging world has come a long way in recent years. Whereas it was once something of a side-hobby, today it’s more than possible to make a substantial income just by hosting and curating a website. The issue that many bloggers have, however, is that while they’ve shifted their mental view of their blog, the blog itself is still lagging behind. If you want your blog to be taken seriously in 2018, then you need to show that you’re a professional. Below, we take a look at seven ways you can up your professional level, and take blogging on your website to the next level.
Source: Pexels.com
Go Easy On the Design
Sometimes, it’s not that bloggers don’t do enough with their website; it’s that they do too much. In their quest to perfect their website, they’re forever tinkering and adding new aspects to the design and content. Resist this temptation. It’s much better to have a website design that’s clean, clear, and simple to navigate, rather than one that’s far too crowded. Professionalism looks clean and ordered. Amateur hour looks like madness.
Create Error Free Content
No-one’s expecting your blog to have Shakespeare-worthy content, but there is a minimum level of quality that people to expect. You should know how to structure a sentence, and how to spell. No-one’s going to quibble over a typo or two, but if they’re everywhere – or your blog is just otherwise difficult to read – then it’ll be difficult for your audience to see through the mistakes and get to what you’re trying to say. Consider using an outside grammar checker like grammarly.com. It’ll pick up errors that your eyes don’t.
Use High-Quality Photographs
Photos can say a thousand words. In the case of your blog, in fact, they may say more than this. Consider the difference between a website that has high-quality photos and one that uses photos that have been taken with an old smart phone. Worse still are those websites that use photographs from digital cameras that still have the date and time stamp at the side. No-one needs to know that information. Use photographs from professional photographers, there are plenty of royalty-free image sites you can use.
Invite Experts to Guest Post
You’re just one person, trying to convince the rest of the world to take you seriously. Why not add more people to your team, and lessen the pressure on yourself? If you’re running a niche-specific blog, then consider adding experts to your writing team. A guest blog from an influential commentator will give you respect and credibility – not to mention improve your professionalism – with your web visitors.
Showcase Blog as a Business
You’re running a website, sure, but it’s also a business, so why not showcase it as such? Look at your website as if you were viewing it as a business. How does it shape up? If you think that you wouldn’t trust it based on what you’ve seen, step things up. You can get a virtual address in the “real world” by using a website like physicaladdress.com. You may also want to hire a virtual communications firm to handle any calls you may receive. If you’re doing all the things that a regular business does, then people won’t have any choice other than to see you a professional outfit.
Branch Out
A professional website isn’t going to sit back and rest on what it’s done before. It’s going to want to push things forward. The thing about the internet is that it is forever moving forward. There’s no reason for you to stand still when there are so many exciting opportunities always popping up. A big part of professionalism is not taking the people who make your venture a success for granted. Come up with new and exciting things to do on your website, and you’ll show yourself to be forward-thinking.
Make it Secure
There’s been a lot of talk about security and data protection in recent months. This isn’t something that you can leave up to chance! Take steps to keep your website secure and develop a policy for developing your visitor’s data with care and trust.
Final Thoughts
It does take some time to give your website a professional makeover, but it’s worthwhile making an effort. Once you’ve finished, you’ll have a clean, high-quality website with which to showcase your content. Web users are naturally drawn to websites that look and feel professional; make the changes, and bring them on board. It’s your secret weapon for expanding the popularity of your site.
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