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Targeting Your Blog Theme and Content

What makes a good blog? Someone writing about something they’re

passionate about, that’s an informal definition of a good blog.

In other words, a good blog is when a blogger presents content

on a specific topic or theme that comes across in basically one

voice to the audience, communicating on a one-on-one level.

Take, for example, a blog centered around the theme of dogs, not

all animals, just dogs. It could present its content in a

friendly pet-owner tone, discussing various resources for pet

owners like healthcare guides, how to make your own dog treats

and dog clothes, etc. Or it could present a more formal tone,

like that of a military trainer with firm commands, sharing

specific articles and tips on an assortment of dog training

techniques.

So how do you know which type of content to choose when

determining the focus of your blog? Here are some basic

guidelines.

Choose Your Focus

Choose a theme that you KNOW, one that you are passionate about

and could write about at length. You’ll want to have plenty of

contacts; individuals, companies, groups and / or associations

in your field of interest. And you’ll want to have plenty of

resources, tips and experience to discuss in your content.

Note: To keep your blog going, hosting plus your time and effort

– all take money to continue (unless you’re wealthy, money and

time aren’t a concern or this is for a hobby or nonprofit

(donation, tithing situation, etc.) So if money is a concern,

don’t forget you’ll need to have a money-making avenue to keep

the blog – and you (your time and efforts) - going. Plan ahead

to make sure you’ll have plenty of affiliate, resale and / or

your own products and services to advertise throughout your blog

to generate income. All items need to coordinate with the theme,

too. For example, don’t try selling, “How to Buy Real Estate”

ebooks on your dog site.

Vary Your Presentation

When presenting your content to your audience, offer variety.

Some people are more focused readers, others are better

listeners, and still others are better ‘watchers’ or for

example, prefer seeing video content instead of text. So if you

only post articles – and lengthy ones, you risk the chance of

alienating some of your possible audience. Write nice, short

articles, sometimes offering a link to a web page with further

details for those who may choose to read more. And insert audio

/ video clips and graphics; banners, affiliate products with an

ad spot, or digital photos that coordinate with the textual

narration, for example, to round out your content presentation.

Show visitors photos of your dog. And let them hear her bark in

audio snippets.

Don’t forget news! People like to keep up with news in the

field, so include some. Add a category and announce upcoming

trade shows, for example.

Pre-date & Update

A neat thing about blogs is that you can pre-date your entries

and work ahead in batches to load content once a week or however

often you’d like. Plus you can go back in time and adjust old

entries, updating ad spots, inserting audio / video links, etc.

So keep your content fresh, posting frequently (daily or at

least a couple times during the week), and round out past

entries with updated content to keep it fresh for new and return

visitors, too.

So write a good blog, targeting your theme and content around

something you’re passionate about, something you KNOW. And spice

up your content with variety.

Free "Vary Your Blog" Video Tips

For a 2-minute audio / video / text presentation entitled,

“Vary Your Blog” click: http://presssuccess.com/blogvariety .

The tips & production are complimentary from Content Propulsion Lab

at http://www.ContentLabInfo.com , a Division of Content Desk,

online at http://www.ContentDeskInfo.com .

-30-

Author: Diana Barnum, president of Moving Ahead Communications. Get

tons of freebies, tips and help at http://OhioHelpGroup.com or call:

(614) 529-9459. Freebies section at http://presssuccess.com/bookstore