What kind of blog can you write, well the possibilities are endless. I really enjoying experimenting with different styles and types of blogs, and get a lot of inspiration from other blogs, news articles, websites, and images.
I'm often asked during social media workshops how can I enhance my blog to make it more interesting, and this is when I talk about the different styles you can use, from Infographics, Videos, cartoon images, lists, Voting and Polls the list go's on and on.
13 styles you might like to try, all of which are very effective in engaging with your audience.
Sharing your personal stories and adventures with your readers takes down the barrier of being just another business or logo. Here's one of my personal stories "The Best Thing That's Ever Happened To Me Because of Social Media"
2. Tutorials
Showing your readers step by step how to complete a task with pictures and instructions is always super helpful and offers your readers another insight into your world. Here's one I did earlier "Step by Step instructions for embedding a Twitter Feed into a webpage"
3. Facts and Figures
Look at adding fun and interesting plugins or widgets to your blog, such as google maps, social platforms like SnapWidget, or RebelMouse.
4. Incorporating Social Media
Consider adding in social media posts to get your point across, that's exactly what I did with the blog "Six Reasons Why Donald Trump is getting his Twitter Feed so wrong (but still has millions of followers)"
5. Lists
Everyone loves a list, consider creating a list of your top favourite solutions, Apps or products, my top tip, you don''t always need to use standard numbers such as Five, 10, 50 or 100 - look at using unusual numbers such a 7, 13, 22 or 39. Here's a list I created "The Ultimate List of FREE Stock Photo Websites"
6. Guest Blogging & Collaboration
This is a fab way to introduce a new topic or idea into your blog, as well as reducing down the amount of text you have to write! David Midgley, Head of Operations at Total Processing guest blogged and wrote "The Online Shopper’s Saga: In Search of a Secure Payment Solution"
7. Series
Using this style allows you to generate several blogs on the same topic, it's also a good way to cut down your blog entry if you write too much! Here's a series I created on Women in Leadership "My Mum the 1960's Workplace Disruptor" and "The Headscarf Revolutionaries: pioneers of change"
8. Video or Podcasts
Video is on the rise, we all know that, so creating a video or podcast blog entry is always going to be a winner. Here's a video I created "Pow! The Power of PowToon"
9. Shout-Outs
If you use a tool or product which you feel is a great asset to your everyday life, why not share your love, this is a great way to to get noticed on social media by @mentioning and hashtagging. Here's a shout-out I wrote called "Snaps for SnapWidget".
10. Trending Topics
There is always a trending topic which you can blog about, writing about trending topics though will ensure you have to be up to date and on time when publishing and promoting your blog or you'll miss the boat. Trending Topics I've blogged about previously, "The Headscarf Revolutionaries: pioneers of change" a blog focusing on Hull, which I published during the time Hull was City of Culture. "Why I Love Halloween And You Should, Too!" was, yep you guessed, published on Halloween.
11. Voting/Polls
Voting and Polls are a fantastic way of generating engagement from you readers, Here's a Poll I created "Do Women Really Like the Colour Pink?"
12. Photo Diary
A photo diary is a great way to show your readers a visual journey, it's also a super way of decreasing the amount of text you have to write. Here's my photo diary "Our Walk in the Forest"
Infographics - I can't get enough of them! Any shape and size, I think an infographic is a great way of telling a story. So much more interesting to read than a white paper. Check out my blog "The Rise of the Infographics"
