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I believe that many of us think of the content of our blogs only in terms of the posts we write.
But you know what? The content of your blog is actually everything on your blog – the photos you share with each post, your header, and every button and link in your sidebars. Content is what’s on your About page, and your Related Posts widget, and your navigation menus. (It’s also every post in your blog archives and everything single thing your blog links out to, but let’s save those bits for other posts.)
Every piece of your blog participates in telling people who you are.
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…Which brings up the question: who are you?
So, what’s the first step to building a good content strategy? As with many things, it’s knowing thyself.
What, specifically, do you want to be known for as a blogger? And what kinds of people, specifically, need to be reading your blog? It’s hard to have a strategy for your content if you don’t know the answers to those questions. It’s also hard to come up with a strategy if your answers are too vague!
Those two short questions encompass a lot of thinking and analysis that’s a bit outside the scope of this post. I have a great workbook in my online shop that helps you focus down to who you are and who you need to reach – so please check that out. (And that’s my “ask,” by the way.) :-)
I’ve also done a pile of writing here on the subject of writing blog posts that align with your goals, so I won’t get into that here. Try this podcast and this article, for starters.
So, let’s look at the rest your blog content strategically.
Since this is our first post in this series, let’s give “content” a really broad meaning. Let’s look at some common zones of your craft blog, and then ponder how you might think about these more strategically.
(And again, we’ll go even deeper in future posts this month.)
Your Photography
I’m talking about this zone of your blog first because for craft bloggers, photography is vitally important. We crafters blog to a very visually-oriented audience. Attractive photos help your readers decide whether to read your post… or click away to something prettier instead.
The quality of your photography also communicates the quality of your work, whether you sell finished items, patterns, or design services. Let’s say, for example, that your goal is to communicate the high level of craftsmanship in your handmade jewelry. Will greyed-out, fuzzy little images give anyone that impression? Will photos of your jewelry plopped on the nearest tabletop with no styling give anyone that impression?
Nope. To think strategically about your blog photography, you might:
- Make every photo count. Don’t allow anything that’s badly-lit or out of focus or just plain dull on your blog.
- Invest in growing your photography and photo-styling skills. (There are lots of free and paid resources out there.)
- If there’s something you’d like to be known for, see if you can inject a little evidence of it into most of the photos you share. (Fiber designer? You might sneak your yarn basket or a WIP into the background of that shot of your cat.)
Your Blog Template
Depending on the blogging platform you use, you might use the word “theme” or “design” instead. No matter what word you use, there are a lot of readymade templates out there, many of them beautiful.
…Even so, if you’re thinking strategically about this part of your content, you’re asking yourself one question: Which template presents my work in the best light? (That’s a more strategic question than: Which template is the prettiest?)
- A very ornate template may look gorgeous on its own, but end up competing with your photography for attention. Does that competition help people understand what you want them to understand about you – or does it distract them?
- Does a cute illustrated template designed by someone else communicate your skills, or the template designer’s skills? Whose skills are more important to communicate on your blog?
If you’re not a technical person, don’t worry. You can always find a simpler template that allows your photography to be the main source of eye candy, and that goes a long way toward communicating what you’re about.
Your Sidebar (or Sidebars)
We’d like to believe that everyone who comes to our blogs spends time exploring all the amazing goodies in our sidebars. But in reality, attention spans are shortening by the day. If we’re thinking strategically about sidebars, the question becomes, What will help people with short attention spans look at the things I want them to look at?
Consider that the upper section of your sidebar is “prime real estate” on your blog in terms of attention. How you use this location depends on your blogging goals:
- If your goal is to earn ad revenue, you might place ads there.
- If your goal is to get people to your online store, you might put a button or Etsy-type widget there.
- If your goal is to be known for your design skills, you might put pictures of your best tutorials there.
- If your goal is to grow your audience, you might put a category list and some “follow me” links there.
I’ll bet that more than one of you had more than one of the goals in that list. This is the eternal challenge of strategic sidebars! You only have so much space, and so much attention, to work with. So you often have to make hard choices. It might be a matter of arranging these sidebar elements according to the amount of direct impact they have on your blogging goal.
Image by Mike Monteiro, via Flickr
…It might also be a matter of “less is more.” I used to advise bloggers to fill their sidebars, and lately I’ve been reversing that opinion. You only have so much reader time and attention to work with. Maybe every item in your sidebars deserves examination. If it’s extraneous, maybe it’s better replaced with a bit of lovely blank space, which will help your readers see the things you want them to see more easily.
So, let’s talk: where do you think you can get more strategic about your blog’s content?
I thought a lot about these things when I redesigned my website a few months ago, but I wish I’d had this article to read back then to help me really focus!
I looked at A LOT of templates for the redesign, but in the end, I realized it wasn’t a fancy template I needed, it was an outstanding header. I write about crafts and creativity, but I don’t make crafts for a living – what I peddle is words and ideas. So I commissioned a cut-paper header from my friend who’s and artist. A cut-paper header on a website is the marriage of what I do – writing and editing print and online articles and publications about crafts and creativity. I love the header, and because of it I was able to tweak a fairly minimalist theme to make my site and my blog a pleasure to read.
I’m rambling now, but I love that you’re embarking upon this series, Diane. I came to this page from your newsletter, and I’m going to go download the worksheet you so generously shared.
Heh! I’ve always meant to ask you whether you cut that header on your blog, Kim. Now I know! And you made such a great choice there. It speaks “creative” and “writing” beautifully. AND you supported a fellow artist in the process! WIN!
The template I’m using for the forthcoming site redesign is very simple, too. More and more, I’m convinced that I just need to “get out of people’s way” – you know?
I recently spent quite a bit of time simplifying my blog. I eliminated several categories from the navigation bar, made the banner very simple and nearly all white, and created buttons to make it obvious what’s what. Starting an ad program was the impetus for these changes. Knowing that my blog is now part of my business more directly (bringing in it’s own income stream) helped me to focus on it and not resent the time spent redesigning it.
…And having that purposeful focus probably made the redesign process easier, right?
I usually read your blog via RSS, so I just popped over and saw the new page. I love the changes you’ve made! It’s super easy for me to see all my action options now – and I love how your sidebar is now organized into categories of content. Excellent work, Abby!
“Know thyself.” Maybe I’m weird but this is something I have GREAT difficulty with. Putting into words who I am, what I want, and then shifting into what I want for my blog? I find it changes from day to day. It’s a big fuzzy area. Yesterday I liked crocheting, today I like quilting, tomorrow I will like egg carton crafts. Who am I? It’s a blinkin’ mystery. As a consequence, the process of trying to answer these questions makes me want to run out of the room. But I know that if I want to progress to the next level, these are things I’ll have to consider.
I agree with you 100% that less is more where blog design is concerned. I will be doing a re-design very soon and one the goals is to distill and simplify. But “knowing myself” would help make the whole thing that much more relevant and impactful. So I’ve downloaded your worksheet and I will try to answer the questions. Trying is the first step, right?
Definitely, the Crafting an Effective Blog workbook is designed to help you with that whole “know thyself” thing.
I think it’s hard for all of us to articulate this stuff. I dwell in a similar place as you – I like thinking about these “thinky” subjects, and I like crafting. And I couldn’t do a blog of only one of these things. But I think you can blend multiple threads in a blog, and I think your threads in particular often have a commonality in that you use recycled materials so much of the time.
Just keep trying. Something will emerge eventually!
Hello “great big blogger” ;)
I started my blog a little over a year ago with little idea of where I wanted to go with it. I find I am a “doing person”, in that, I have to do stuff to figure it out. Much like I have to talk my ideas out loud. Poor old Mr Myrtle… Anyway, slowly I am getting a picture of where I want to be headed. I watched your interviews last year with several bloggers (like the Sexy Knitter) with huge interest and I found them soooo useful. This year I’ve got a giant project for the year and it’s really helping me figure out what I want Truly Myrtle to become.
I’ve started thinking about next year already and am getting super excited about the possibilities (not least because my baby is off to preschool and I’ll have a little more time up my sleeve…).
I’m really ready for a blog design overhaul and as tempted as I am to tinker, I am going to wait until I figure it all out and then launch something new and wonderful. I’m thinking I’d like to really simplify it, let my photos shine and try to reflect where I want Truly Myrtle to be in 2013/14.
HAHAHAHAHAHA!! :-) Still in the sweat pants over here today!
Sounds like you’re getting to some good clarity, Libby – and that’s awesome; that’s half the battle. Ooh -and incidentally, I’m a learner-by-doing as well!
Thank you so much for the comment!
I have a blog and that’s all I know about that. I haven’t a real purpose, but maybe one day when I grow up to be like you, Diane, I will! I do know that when I visit other people’s blogs, I like things simple and uncluttered. I don’t like being bombarded with ads all over the place, especially if they’re blinking or moving, ugh. There’s one card-making blog I visit, but it’s so busy it always takes me a minute to zero in on the project being kinda-sorta spotlighted.
There are YouTube crafters that do the same thing. They make a too-long intro (anything over 6-10 seconds is over kill) and then spend 10 minutes talking about the craft they’re going to make without even showing it. There’s one that’s gotten to be 45-minutes long now; that’s almost a movie!
Speaking as a subscriber of many craft blogs, simple is definitely better be it a blog, video or even e-newsletters.
P.S. Thank you for your help with the links today!
My pleasure, Dorothy! Totally agree with you re: video. Our visual brains are pretty lightning-speed things, so when I watch video, I want it to move as quickly as I’m thinking. And when it doesn’t move as fast, I get antsy. :-) It’s interesting to watch some of the longtime YouTubers; they speak so rapidly now. But in context, it’s a great speed.
Anyway. I digress. :-)
Sidebars – definitely sidebars. Restyling my blog is on my list and going from a 3 column to a 2 column is part of it. As I’ve gotten better and more interested in photography, I’ve wanted to highlight the photos more. Plus, simplifying, as you said, because of short attention spans seems to be the way to go.
This is an amazing post. And “What will help people with short attention spans look at the things I want them to look at?” is a super helpful question!
Yay! Thank you, Elizabeth – I’m glad it was helpful. I’ve been simplifying my sidebars, too, in prep for the upcoming redesign. The more I remove, the more I see clicks happening on the stuff that’s left.
I think about my blog design *all* of the time. I seriously can’t keep my hands off of my sidebars. I don’t know if I will ever feel “done” but I think that’s ok.
My goal is to keep making the important stuff easier to find, and to keep it all attractive and “homey.” While I love the simple look, I do think that when you strip away too much, you also strip away some of the personality. There’s a balance there, that’s not easy to find!
I’ve also been thinking a lot about how my feed looks. I tweak that often, too, because many of my readers are seeing me through an RSS reader or in their email inbox. All of the beautiful well-made sidebars in the world don’t mean a thing if people aren’t actually reading the blog *on* the blog’s own website!
Excellent point, Lisa! People read our feeds in all kinds of places now.