This post is for everyone who wants to start a blog or wants to improve the traffic to their (already existing) blog.
And no, no my friends, this is not going to be a tutorial on how to set a blog up. Rather, this post is dedicated to the writing tips needed to make your blog successful. I will be teaching many many writing techniques in my media writing class, inshaAllah. Here’s a taste:
1. Fear Allah in everything you write. Take naseeha from others.
I’ve posted things up and taken things down several times. And I’ll probably continue to do this once I realize a mistake. Humble yourself, and realize you’ll be held accountable for everything.
2. Have a theme.
When people come to your blog they should know exactly what type of topics they can expect to see. Of course you can veer off and talk about other topics. However, people like certainty. People who come to my blog know that I will never write about celebrity gossip. Rather, they can expect to see posts about media, Islam, culture and more. Differentiate yourself from all other blogs out there.
3. Write in an organized fashion.
ofen timez i c peoples write lik dis and i’z wants to bring dem back 2 skool.
When you write on your blog, actually write in a professional manner. No one wants to decider code on your blog; It requires too much from your audience. It will make your audience reluctant to read more than the first paragraph of your post. Also, be mindful of grammar, punctuation and the over-all appearance of your post.
4. Pay attention to your headlines and leads.
The most important parts of an article are the headlines and the leads (hooks) to your stories.
You have to try to catch people’s attention in the very beginning if you expect them to read more. The lead is the very first paragraph to your article. It should generally give the readers an idea of what the whole post will be about. It can be in the form of a story, an anecdote, or even just facts. I will cover these in depth in my class, inshaAllah.
5. Write in inverted pyramid style.
Start with the most important information. As the article goes down the information becomes less and less important. This is flexible for blogs. But it’s definitely a useful way to write and get your point across fast. This is something every journalist does, and likewise it works well with blogs too.
6. Have a unique outlook on different topics.
If you want to write about a subject that many other people have written about or you would like to write about a general topic, offer a new outlook or perspective to the topic at hand. No one wants to read things that they’ve heard in other places — unless they are Islamic reminders. However, even with Islamic reminders sometimes it’s nice to give real examples of the topic at hand. This in turn, will help the reader identify with the topic and open way for dialog/discussion. Also, include some of your personality in your theme and the style in which you write.
7. Include pictures with your post.
For every post, include at least one picture. If you’re post becomes lengthy, it gives the eyes a break from all the words if you include pictures thus making it more visually appealing for people to continue to read until the bottom of your post.
8. Don’t start off with questions or quotes.
One rule in journalism is that we never start articles with questions or quotes. There are rare exceptions to this rule. If you ever decide to start off with a question, the only time it’s acceptable is if you answer it immediately after you ask it. Again, don’t demand too much from your readers.
9. Write on an 8th grade level.
This really depends on your audience. If your target audience is a specialized group of people this could be different. But try avoiding jargon and gobbledygook. Write in a manner in which all people 13 and up can understand. (This is another journalistic rule.)
10. Interact in in the comments section.
If you want to make your blog interactive, the best way to do this is for you yourself to interact with those who come to your site. Your blog will not be warm and welcoming if you do not answer people’s questions and contribute to the discussion.
I hope these were helpful, and inshaAllah I will be covering many, many more writing tips and techniques in my media writing class later this year, inshaAllah.
Use these techniques and watch your traffic grow. Use Alexa.com to check your progress every once in a while. This will show you what number your website ranks against all the other websites in the world. The more traffic and people linking to your blog, the higher your rank.
And lastly, write things that you think will be of benefit to people.
Wallahu Alem.
Brought to you by Minbar Media.
Stumble it!
July 26th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Jazaki Allah khair. I especially benefited from #5, 8 and 9.
I remember in another post you mentioned you have something like 7000 hits per day. Would you be able to write a blog post on how other bloggers can achieve that?
July 26th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
waiyyaki.
haha. it’s not quite so much. at least not every day. stumble upon is a big part of it. i wrote a post earlier about stumble upon. other than that it’s all about word of mouth, people linking to your blogs, etc.
i get at LEAST 1,500 page views a day. and it depends. with stumble upon it can triple that, one of my posts got over 150,000 new visitors. it really depends. but really just follow my tutorial about stumble upon, and also there are tricks to use with it.. i suggest taking the social media marketing class that is going to be after ramadan with Message Mastery inshaAllah. it’ll teach all these techniques.
but here’s the link to the stumble upon post:
http://egyptiangumbo.com/secrets-exposed-bloggers-stumblers-and-muslims-16.htm
i currently dont know the number of subscribers to my blog because the counter broke one day after 20,000. but that was only 1/4 of the way through the crazy traffic i was getting in 3 days. so i’m guessing it’s somewhere around 60,000 now.. wallahu alem. I’m planning on changing my template soon and i’ll let you know once all this stuff is fixed.
we’re currently busy with the minbarmedia website. after that inshaAllah i’ll pay more attention to this one.
but yeah use stumble upon.
but the content also has to be sound. so people should use the tips above and they should have no problem getting the same results inshaAllah.
wallahu alem. hope that helps! if you need more help let me know! and my email is always available for you!
July 26th, 2008 at 2:48 pm
Fancy meeting you here greekmuslimgirl
I have to say, Shirien really knows her stuff and would completely encourage everyone to follow her advice.
I love the network we’re building
“I am Sheba” in the Acropolis, promoted by Minbar Media.
What say you, sisters of my heart…
May Allah SWT put barakah in our aspirations and make them flourish because of our dedication to seeking HIS pleasure.
July 26th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Heba > *sighs* Ameen!
July 26th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
I was taught the exact opposite of number #8 in my writing class.
July 26th, 2008 at 10:29 pm
Heba, sounds good
ameen! We need Alima in on that action too.
Samir,with media writing, this is a standardized rule. Unless it’s an absolutely amazing quote or you answer the question immediately afterward.. we usually don’t start with them. Some people think that using them will draw readers in, in special cases it might, but in general it’s boring, and requires too much from the reader.
In creative writing classes this may be a little different. but since blogs are very much like internet news wires or newspapers– in the sense that people are always on the go and don’t spend long in one page…then this rule would apply.
wallahu alem.
July 26th, 2008 at 11:18 pm
Blog, who me?
< Insha’Allah, when i get back from DU i’ll definitely start one insha’Allah.
For now, way too busy, thoug your teaching, masha’Allah is very inspiring and fun!
Alhamdulillah
July 27th, 2008 at 10:12 am
Ma sha Allah, Heba, nice to see everyone here. It’s DL all over again.
Shirien, thanks for the details. I have been using Web 2.0, but now’s the time to crank it up! Jazaki Allah khair. Looking forward to seeing your new company.
July 28th, 2008 at 5:21 am
Nice article, excluding no. 8.
I was start most of my entries on my blog with a quote - either from the Qur’an, a hadith or a statement of a scholar. I find it to be very beneficial and so do others. WAllahu alam.
July 29th, 2008 at 12:24 am
I have to agree with Shirien on #8. I almost never start my blog posts or talks/halaqas with a quote.
We need to grab people’s attention RIGHT AWAY and reel them in and the best way to do that is to start with a story, reflection, action, experience etc.
When you move the quote to the end, it gives a richer experience because the reader pays attention to it and contemplates on it.
Giving the quote at the beginning can lead to a shallow experience for the user.
July 29th, 2008 at 8:11 am
Aarij,
I understand what you’re saying and by all means people do things in different manners and just like a khutbah is often begun with an ayah to introduce the topic, you could do it that way as well. However, like greekmuslimgirl has mentioned, sometimes people need to be pulled into the topic then support what they are saying with evidences.
but that rule is flexible somewhat with blogs, but if one to write for any mainstream newspaper or internet newswire they would most likely never accept a story that started off with a quote or question (unless of the rare exceptions)
wallahu alem.