Practical Blogging Tips: What Bloggers Can Learn From American Idol
On American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance and other shows like them contestants often fail to hit the mark.
Something doesn't work and the performance is either lacking or downright bad, plain and simple.
In the case of Idol, listeners dislike a particular number and often it's easy in those cases to tell that the singer wasn't as comfortable as he could have been.
In the case of the dance shows, some pieces fall flat and dancers fail to draw the audience members into the emotion of the music and routine.
Why does this happen? Poor music choice.
Sometimes the performer has chosen the song because it has special meaning to him or her.
Less thought was given to who they are singing for, and what they are looking for.
For any reality TV contestant, those that matter most are the judges and the audience whose votes become increasingly important.
Performers may be happy they did their best with the choice other people didn't relate to, but that attitude may or may not help them win in the end.
So what does this have to do with blogging? When you choose your overall blog topic, the choice can't be all about you if you want to build a loyal following.
You must know who you're writing for, what they're interested in and then give it to them regularly.
Not every post will strike a chord with every reader, but the vast majority needs to hit the mark.
How do you do that? One key is as you choose a topic to write about consider whether it is something at least some of your audience would find interesting or entertaining.
As with the talent competition contestants, just because something is your absolute favorite thing, doesn't mean it will be good to offer to your community.
Even if you think a particular fact is super useful, or you've found the coolest new technique, step back and ask if your audience will truly benefit.
Consider if what you've discovered is mostly helpful for you personally, or if it truly has broader appeal.
If yes, then go for it.
If not, see if you can slant it slightly differently so that it is of service to more readers.
Bottom line, you must keep your audience in mind at all times.
Otherwise, don't expect to advance to the next round.
You may not be able to be voted off, but you very well could be ignored.
And that helps no one at all.
Something doesn't work and the performance is either lacking or downright bad, plain and simple.
In the case of Idol, listeners dislike a particular number and often it's easy in those cases to tell that the singer wasn't as comfortable as he could have been.
In the case of the dance shows, some pieces fall flat and dancers fail to draw the audience members into the emotion of the music and routine.
Why does this happen? Poor music choice.
Sometimes the performer has chosen the song because it has special meaning to him or her.
Less thought was given to who they are singing for, and what they are looking for.
For any reality TV contestant, those that matter most are the judges and the audience whose votes become increasingly important.
Performers may be happy they did their best with the choice other people didn't relate to, but that attitude may or may not help them win in the end.
So what does this have to do with blogging? When you choose your overall blog topic, the choice can't be all about you if you want to build a loyal following.
You must know who you're writing for, what they're interested in and then give it to them regularly.
Not every post will strike a chord with every reader, but the vast majority needs to hit the mark.
How do you do that? One key is as you choose a topic to write about consider whether it is something at least some of your audience would find interesting or entertaining.
As with the talent competition contestants, just because something is your absolute favorite thing, doesn't mean it will be good to offer to your community.
Even if you think a particular fact is super useful, or you've found the coolest new technique, step back and ask if your audience will truly benefit.
Consider if what you've discovered is mostly helpful for you personally, or if it truly has broader appeal.
If yes, then go for it.
If not, see if you can slant it slightly differently so that it is of service to more readers.
Bottom line, you must keep your audience in mind at all times.
Otherwise, don't expect to advance to the next round.
You may not be able to be voted off, but you very well could be ignored.
And that helps no one at all.