Symptoms of A Bad Blog & How To Fix It

We can all recognize “good” blogs when we see them, but we might not instantly know why we consider some blogs to be better than others. In general, there are two things that make a blog “good,” or worth reading: interesting or educational topics and easy-to-understand writing.

When hunting for a good read, users typically search for an author or company with shared interests or concerns, and then they delve into the material. Readers immediately judge a blog by its content, language, and length to decide whether it’s worth reading or not. While personal opinion and taste play a part, topic and brevity are still key to hooking your readers. Sometimes bloggers will let SEO concerns rule their blog-writing habits, but remember that readers don’t want to wade through a sea of keywords to get to the point. Likewise, very long, very laborious writing will turn off readers. Follow our tips to make your blog work for you, and not the other way around.

Content Before Keywords

When Truman Capote, author of the phenomenal non-fiction crime drama In Cold Blood, was asked about Jack Kerouac’s success and popularity he said, “That’s not writing, that’s typing.” Though some people may disagree with Capote’s opinion on the Beat generation’s foremost author, bloggers and writers everywhere can still learn from what he said.

Blogs are usually used as either a tool to gain business or a platform for people to write about their personal lives and passions. Business owners especially should keep in mind that people want to be captivated by the blogs they read too. SEO is a very important part of making your site visible to the world, and including keywords on your site is a crucial part of SEO. However, don’t go overboard with the keywords. Articles should have keywords in them, but they should not distract from the message. Posting well-written blogs a few times each week will actually do more to help your keyword rankings and search engine visibility than posting poorly-written posts overflowing with keywords once a month. Stay true to your company’s values and make your blogs interesting for readers; the keywords will come naturally.

Keep It Simple

This isn’t Ulysses and certainly not many of us are on the writing level of James Joyce, so why bore your readers with lengthy, complex posts? Though it may be tempting to rant and shoot off like a blogging bottle rocket, remember that the audience is there to learn something or explore an idea further. Also, remember that the audience has a short attention span; anything over 800 words (unless you’re writing for an academic blog or journal) is a bit lengthy and can lose some readers in light of length alone. If you want the message to be clear and worth your readers’ attention, then you must revise and revise again until the message is concise and easy to understand.

Remember, keep posts to the point, write clearly and on topic, don’t focus solely on keywords, and post often. These tips can help keep readers on your site longer and more often.