Yes, it’s been proven that newbies who possess a clear focus as a blogger achieve success more quickly. Focus is key to being successful in all aspects of life. You must pay special attention and apply discipline to all that you do remain productive.
That’s how you avoid losing track of your goals. The popular saying “if you fail to plan, you’re planning to fail” is the perfect quote to insert here.
If you are aiming to become an influential blogger in your niche then you will surely need to narrow your focus.
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Narrowing Your Focus As A Blogger
A lot of beginning bloggers do not have a main focus (idea) for their blog. Hence, they struggle in launching their blog or gaining traction and momentum to actually grow their audience. If you want to gain an international reputation as a blogger, you need to stay focused on your main topic.
Writing on a specific niche will help you increase blog traffic fast. This occurs because you would have tapped into your target audience, whom are already familiar with your niche.
This will make it easier for them to refer or share your content with their network.
What Should A New Blogger Focus On?
As a new blogger, you should focus more on what your audience wants to read. Sure, people care about many matters of life. But if you carefully survey your audience, you’ll soon discover your blog’s purpose. Furthermore, take your time to gather and provide the best content ensuring it too, is about your passion.
Let’s dive deeper on how to improve your focus as a blogger.
Establish A Clear Target Audience
Another sure way to improve blogger focus is to define your avatar. Once you have defined and clearly understand your audience, you’re then in a better position to satisfy them.
Analyzing your audience will help you to ensure their happiness and meet their expectations.
However, it is impossible to meet their expectations if you don’t know who your target audience is. Therefore, continually defining your avatar should be your focus as a blogger. So, start the process to gain an in-depth knowledge about your readership.
Blogging Tip: If you bring value to your target audience, they’ll have a reason to keep coming back for more — which means your site will grow.
Establish S.M.A.R.T Goals
A S.M.A.R.T. Goal is defined as one that is specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and time-bound. Establishing smart blogging goals help to improve your blog and get traffic.
Setting goals is a habit of successful bloggers. So, let’s consider 7 S.M.A.R.T Blogging Goals to set:
- Write At Least One Blog Post A Week: You should focus on writing high-quality blog posts for your audience and committing to a regular blogging schedule.
- Build An Email List (1000 Subscribers): This is STILL one of the smartest things you can do to start – and grow – your business. Learn how to do it by clicking here.
- Publish One Pillar Article Per Quarter: Quality is more important than quantity. A quality article can attract thousands of visitors. Read this article to learn how to create an ultimate guide greater than 2000 words.
- Increase Your Website Traffic: When you can increase your traffic along with the quality of the visitors, the better you will be able to increase your website conversion and get that traffic to become paying customers.
- Master One Social Media Account – Start with Pinterest if you are a beginning blogger. It is an excellent tool to help increase links back to your website, which, in turn, drives more traffic and sales. It’s great for businesses because most Pinners (Pinterest users) use the site for making purchasing decisions.
- Monitor Site Speed: What’s important is that you make your blog load fast. Site speed reflects how quickly a website responds to web requests. Faster sites create happy users and when a site responds slowly, visitors spend less time there.
- Achieving Balance In Your Life: Balance in life is something that requires constant attention and resilience. Don’t let the busyness of life get in the way of living your life to the fullest.
Blog About Your Passion
Personal interests should be one of the first considerations for a new blogger. Crafting new blog post ideas is so much easier considering your passion and knowledge regarding a particular topic.
Blog visitors can detect your passion for a subject matter, particularly if your posts are accurate and informative.
Passion pays off handsomely in the blogging industry. Yet, many bloggers quit due to the frustration and challenges they encounter. This is where passion keeps you going.
If you blog about the things that you are passionate about, there are fewer chances that you would give up so easily. So how do you determine your passion? Consider the following:
- What interests do you have?
- What experiences have you had? (good & bad)
- What expertise & skills do you have?
- What makes you upset?
- What do you enjoy reading?
- What do often daydream about?
- What do you talk to friends, customers and colleagues about?
- What do people always ask you about?
- Have you defined your avatar?
Build an Email List
Many bloggers don’t realize the importance of building an email list when they’re first starting out. Please don’t make the four-year mistake I made. The benefits of building an email list are simply too great to overlook.
An email list can have an amazing impact on your website’s traffic and revenue. Don’t wait to start learning how to get visitors to keeping coming back to your site.
The readers that respond to your emails and visit your blog are your true fans. They’re showing interest in your content, so you need to take advantage of this. For example, they can be used as your personal marketing team.
Email lists are valuable because email marketing is the best way to connect with customers versus social media.
Leverage the Use of Reviews
According to Medium.com, reviews not only have the power to influence consumer decisions but can strengthen a company’s credibility. Reviews have the power to gain customer trust, and they encourage people to interact with the company.
Customer interaction ultimately leads to improved profits for businesses.
Another reason why reviews are important is the fact that they help boost customer loyalty towards a brand. A person who takes the time to leave a positive review about a particular brand on product is likely to come back for more business should the need arise.
Consumers increasingly use reviews left by other consumers as part of their pre-purchase research efforts. As such, a bad review can have serious effects on your sales.
Blog More Consistently
“Blogging is about taking small consistent actions over time.” ~ Darren Rowse
If you run a blog, you need to be consistent. That means maintaining your blog posting schedule, regardless. Consistency will help you improve and hopefully become a better blogger.
You will get to the top easily if you are consistent. If you stick long enough and do your best, hard work will eventually pay off.
“Eventually” meant four years for me, but it could mean one year for you.
Content Marketing should also be your focus as a blogger. It involves writing content that matters on topics people care about. Whatever you do – do it consistently.
Here’s a blog posting strategy:
- Create your content calendar and consistently publish useful content.
- Open your Pinterest account and consistently pin new pins and repin others’ pins.
- Open your Twitter and tweet daily what people might enjoy reading.
Blogging Tip: When you’re first starting out as a brand-new blogger, the most important thing you can do is show up consistently.
Connect with Other Bloggers
Surely you’ll appreciate that no one person is an island of knowledge. It is a plus for you if you get to meet with other bloggers so you can exchange ideas (consider launching your podcast). They can share their knowledge, the challenges they faced, and how they triumphed.
Most bloggers are always willing to share their ideas and experiences to help others grow. Networking with other bloggers in your niche allows you to generate more awareness for your own blog.
You’ll be in position to develop mutually beneficial connections and establish credibility. And as you build your brand, you are exposed to more opportunities to grow your blog readership and community.
Continuing Education
To become a successful blogger is my modus operandi of continuing education and lifelong learning. For me, that end is to help produce and improve industry-related knowledge and skills.
Continuing education are courses that let you develop your knowledge and skills in a specific area. Accordingly, you may consider some of the best blogging courses below, all of which I’ve personally invested in:
- Built to Blog: Generate Six-Figures Blogging
- Blogging MasterClass: Build a Successful Blog
- Blog By Number
- Blog Profits Blueprint
- Elite Blog Academy
- Traffic Transformation
- List Love
It is an undisputed fact that you cannot give what you don’t have. So, to improve your blog, you must read and invest in yourself. Learn new things, enroll in a few online courses, attend seminars and grab a few workshops.
Blogging Tip: Keep learning because that’s what will push you forward. I learn new things daily but acknowledge that I am far away from knowing everything.
Wrapping Up
It is an uphill climb to increase your focus as a blogger; particularly, if your aim is to become an authority in your niche. No matter how challenging it may be, ensure you don’t lose focus.
Additionally, it is important to add that your health is important. No matter how focused you are, don’t compromise your health. Some bloggers overwork themselves and still don’t get the desired result.
Just remember that being a focused blogger should not interfere with you living the life you have dreamed of. Being focused entails setting clear and smart goals. Therefore, ensure your course of action is aligned with them.
Finally, blog owners should consider the quality of the blog they are capable of creating on a particular subject. Choose a subject where you are confident that you can not only make regular posts but also ensure those posts are original, informative and interesting.
So, what do you focus on as a new blogger? Please share in the comments below.
