A sticky blog isa webpage which Internet readers return toagain and again.
Not only that, when they arrive at your page they want to stay.
Every blogger should aim for a sticky blog.
Think about yours.
What is the first visual a reader sees when they click through to your page? The first word? What would make a reader want to stay? What would make them want to leave? What can you do to create a sticky blog? Focused Content.
It's been said before, it'll be said again:content is king.
The first thing that's going to make a reader return is content, whether it be informational or demonstrative, creative or unique.
What you have to say is important.
What does your current content say about you? It's even more important that there's a certain slant or focus to your content.
Web surfers, by in large, are always on the hunt for 'something.
' They Google a specific topic, name, headline, question.
If yourblog content has a focus , has that 'something,' it makes it easier for readers to find you and stay with you.
It makes it easier for a reader to return to see what you have to say.
That's how you build a specific audience.
That's how your blog remains sticky.
And it goes without saying that you need to keep up withnew content.
It's one thing to gather an audience, it's another thing to keep them.
At the beginning, aim for at least three days a week.
Give readers a reason to return.
Nothing makes a blog lose its glue faster than infrequent posting.
The Eye of the Beholder.
It can take a readerless than five secondsto decide if they're going to stay on your site or click away simply because of the look of the page.
If you have annoying popups, flashing images, or text that is just unreadable - the greatest of all blog sins - you're begging a reader to leave before they've read the first word.
What is your blog design? How many fonts do you use? How many colours? Is the text easy to read? What's the focus? Where does the eye land on the page? Does the look of your bloghelp or hurt your chancesof becoming sticky? When it comes to look, you want to land somewhere between somethingsimpleand something withvariety .
Simple to read, but variety for the eye.
And that doesn't mean a bunch of colours and flashing lights! You don't want a wall a straight single spaced text with no breaks.
That'll scare a reader away faster than the flashing lights.
Use variety to break up the page: point form, a sparing use of visual emphasis, a single photo.
Split that huge article you're writing into two parts.
Don't be afraid of white space on a blog.
Create Action.
A blog should not be just words thrown into cyberspace.
If you want a sticky blog you'll need tocreate conversation .
Create action in your community.
Provide a forum for your audience to interact: if they feel a part of your world it gives them all the more reason to return.
How do you create action? Allow comments.
Propose questions in your blog for your readers to answer.
Acknowledge ever post.
Even nasty ones.
It's not necessary to create conflict, but readers do want to know there's a human being behind the curtain.
Set up ways for readers to be able to subscribe to your blog.
An RSS feed is an excellent example.
Don't know what RSS is? Here's a video link to RSS in plain English.
If you want an audience for your words, or you are using your blog as a marketing tool, or you want exposure as a writer, thenyou need a sticky blog.