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Focus on Blog Content Before Traffic

I have read several books on blogging and subscribe to several blogs for bloggers. I have even attended a few blogging seminars. They seem to all talk about similar things.

Two Hands Typing on a Keyboard Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/sdominick, Image #103597

Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/sdominick

I have heard the experts talk about:

  • The differences between blogging platforms
  • The elements of great blog design
  • The merits of including or excluding advertising
  • Search engine optimization (SEO)
  • Comment engagement and strategy
  • The use of social media
  • Third-party widgets and hacks
  • Unique visitors, page views, and bounce rates
  • Page load time optimization

But I rarely hear the pros talk about the one thing that is essential: content.

All of these other items are interesting, but none of them will help you if you don’t write great—or at least, pretty good—blog posts. In fact, these items can quickly become a distraction if you are not careful. It is much easier to search for another blog widget or tweak your blog design than actually write. (Don’t ask me how I know this!)

Writing itself is difficult, arduous work. As someone once said, “I don’t particularly like writing, but I like having written.” Amen to that.

So before you open your blog admin page and start fiddling with the secondary stuff, I suggest you do the following:

  1. Commit to a specific number of posts per week. Frequency is more important than you think. In fact, it is second only to the quality of your content. If you are writing good stuff, most people want to hear from you. My goal is five posts per week.
  2. Determine when you will write. Everyone’s schedule is different. You might be in a season of life when you can only commit to an hour a week. Perhaps you can commit to more. But, if possible, schedule your writing time just like any other appointment. I try to write for an hour every morning before work.
  3. Keep your posts short and to the point. Blogs are not a long-form medium. Brevity is a virtue. I shoot for 400–500 words. I often go over this, but I am working to whittle my posts down. I can tell you from experience that readers will bail out or scan if your posts get too long.
  4. Make it easy to get through your posts. Lists—both bulleted and enumerated—are magic. Why? Because reading is hard work. Lists, subheads, and even quotes make your content more accessible and help people get through it. It creates a sense of forward progress.
  5. Invite reader engagement. Make it easy for them to comment. This is why I do not require people to register to comment or fill-in some silly CAPTCHA test to prove they are human. All of this just adds friction and discourages people from commenting. Yet, I rarely have a problem with spam or inappropriate comments.

In summary, focus on creating content before you get too concerned about driving traffic. If you don’t post good content with enough frequency, none of the other items matter.

Question: What are your posting goals? How well are you doing?
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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Posted on August 14, 2009

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  • http://www.egyptianmind.com Mohamed Shedou

    2- Blogging is kind of a disposable form of content. People read the new posts and rarely go back. Even when you have a new subscriber, they will read the new posts and a few will go back to old ones. If we put all or most of our writing energy into blogging frequently, would we have any energy left for, say writing a book, with more comprehensive content?

    3- my third concern is about quantity. with so many good blogs out there, the reader may not always have time to be up to date with all the ones that he/she likes. If all of our favorite bloggers post daily, the reader might feel behind, with no time or energy in the day to read all of it. Then the reader will have to scan instead of reading. with this much information coming in, we might lose the ability to focus and give the needed attention and time to good quality content. It's like food, if we eat too much good and healthy food, we would actually be unhealthy and wont be able to process it. Our best strategy would be reasonable amounts of good food/content.

    Do these concerns make sense?

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      I share your concerns. I see blogging as a fundamentally different way to deliver—and consume—content. Personally, I make time for both. For example, I have spent the last hour reading a book. However, earlier this morning, I spent 30 minutes scanning a 100 blogs or so. The ones that interested me, I read word-for-word.

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  • http://www.faithbarista.com/ FaithBarista Bonnie

    Thank you for writing this post, Michael. I get so sick and tired of people writing about traffic and followers .. to amass an army of following.

    If you build good content, people will come. That, I think, is the key to unlocking every blogger's field of dreams.

    You're a great example of that.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      Thanks so much. I agree. I get tired of the traffic-talk, too. Obviously, it is not either/or, but there is a priority and sequence.

      • http://www.faithbarista.com/ FaithBarista Bonnie

        Yes, Michael. Good clarification. There is excellence to be applied to the craftsmanship of blogging – including employing all the great tools to speak in our modern day "Acropolis". But, not, as you say, at the cost of truly saying something meaningful.

  • http://www.faithbarista.com FaithBarista Bonnie

    Thank you for writing this post, Michael. I get so sick and tired of people writing about traffic and followers .. to amass an army of following.

    If you build good content, people will come. That, I think, is the key to unlocking every blogger's field of dreams.

    You're a great example of that.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      Thanks so much. I agree. I get tired of the traffic-talk, too. Obviously, it is not either/or, but there is a priority and sequence.

      • http://www.faithbarista.com FaithBarista Bonnie

        Yes, Michael. Good clarification. There is excellence to be applied to the craftsmanship of blogging – including employing all the great tools to speak in our modern day "Acropolis". But, not, as you say, at the cost of truly saying something meaningful.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/LoriJ LoriJ

    Well, I have one thing that I will do that should help me immensely and that is I have begun using a recorder to capture my thoughts as I go along. Increasingly, I have thoughts about new blog posts that happen when I am separated from my computer or it is just inconvenient to write it down. So I whip out my little recorder and speak my mind. And I will also work on watching my word count. i can get to 1,000 words in a heartbeat. The other thing that I know will help me is selecting a certain time to actually sit down and write. I have a lot of thoughts to post but the distractions of life slow me down.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      I occasionally use the recorder built into my iPhone. Before that, I would call my office phone and leave myself a voice mail. The key is to be able to capture it when you are inspired. That doesn't always happen in front of the computer.

      • http://intensedebate.com/people/LoriJ LoriJ

        I love that iPhone, however, I love my Verizon service too. I'm hoping against hope that Apple and Verizon will reach an agreement that will let me upgrade to the iPhone on my current network. I have my fingers crossed.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/LoriJ LoriJ

    Well, I have one thing that I will do that should help me immensely and that is I have begun using a recorder to capture my thoughts as I go along. Increasingly, I have thoughts about new blog posts that happen when I am separated from my computer or it is just inconvenient to write it down. So I whip out my little recorder and speak my mind. And I will also work on watching my word count. i can get to 1,000 words in a heartbeat. The other thing that I know will help me is selecting a certain time to actually sit down and write. I have a lot of thoughts to post but the distractions of life slow me down.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      I occasionally use the recorder built into my iPhone. Before that, I would call my office phone and leave myself a voice mail. The key is to be able to capture it when you are inspired. That doesn't always happen in front of the computer.

      • http://intensedebate.com/people/LoriJ LoriJ

        I love that iPhone, however, I love my Verizon service too. I'm hoping against hope that Apple and Verizon will reach an agreement that will let me upgrade to the iPhone on my current network. I have my fingers crossed.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Lindsey_Nobles Lindsey_Nobles

    Thanks for the post. A great reminder of what people are coming for. As I said jokingly earlier, if there are not new posts, I don't visit someone's blog to take in the nice design/atmosphere. I want to engage with the blogger.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Lindsey_Nobles Lindsey_Nobles

    Thanks for the post. A great reminder of what people are coming for. As I said jokingly earlier, if there are not new posts, I don't visit someone's blog to take in the nice design/atmosphere. I want to engage with the blogger.

  • http://www.intensedebate.com/people/patriciazell patriciazell

    Right now I am posting twice a week, and since my posts are what I would be writing in a book, they're coming in between 600 and 1200 words. I consider my blog to be a lot like the serial stories that magazines published
    "long ago"–I try to interest my readers enough for them to come back.

    Last week, I put an ad with just my blog title and url in my local newspaper. The traffic increased on that day, but more important was the fact that the page views skyrocketed. So, not only were people coming to my blog, but they were also staying and reading all of my posts.

    I'm planning to keep writing over the next two years and then I will consider my next step which may just be to keep on blogging. Meanwhile, I'm having fun and hopefully people are being blessed when they read what I write.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      You might consider making those four 300-600 word posts. You could cover the same ground in more bite-size pieces. Just a thought.

      • http://intensedebate.com/people/patriciazell patriciazell

        Okay, I'm willing to flex–but, please pray for me because I've been spending a lot of time getting ready for school (my official first day back in this Friday) and I will need help from God to fit writing that many posts into my schedule. Thanks!

  • http://www.intensedebate.com/people/patriciazell patriciazell

    Right now I am posting twice a week, and since my posts are what I would be writing in a book, they're coming in between 600 and 1200 words. I consider my blog to be a lot like the serial stories that magazines published
    "long ago"–I try to interest my readers enough for them to come back.

    Last week, I put an ad with just my blog title and url in my local newspaper. The traffic increased on that day, but more important was the fact that the page views skyrocketed. So, not only were people coming to my blog, but they were also staying and reading all of my posts.

    I'm planning to keep writing over the next two years and then I will consider my next step which may just be to keep on blogging. Meanwhile, I'm having fun and hopefully people are being blessed when they read what I write.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      You might consider making those four 300-600 word posts. You could cover the same ground in more bite-size pieces. Just a thought.

      • http://intensedebate.com/people/patriciazell patriciazell

        Okay, I'm willing to flex–but, please pray for me because I've been spending a lot of time getting ready for school (my official first day back in this Friday) and I will need help from God to fit writing that many posts into my schedule. Thanks!

  • http://robert.epictales.org/ Robert Treskillard

    Excellent advice, Mike. I try for 2 posts a week, and I know it’s not a lot, but I seem to be able to maintain my readers with that.

    The biggest benefit, I find, though, is that the search engines seem to like frequent posts. My ranking in Google continues to rise until now I am surprised how often I come up in the high rankings on the subjects I am blogging about.

    Part of that may be the fact that a lot of searchers click on my blog to visit, but I honestly think the new content helps a lot.

    -Robert

    p.s. It was fun to be part of your logo contest, You must have had a tough choice with all the excellent quality presented. I must say you picked a great logo and it’ll be fun to see it on your masthead.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      Google does indeed love frequency!

      Thanks also for your participation in the logo tournament. I couldn't believe how many entries I got. Thanks also for your participation!

  • http://robert.epictales.org Robert Treskillard

    Excellent advice, Mike. I try for 2 posts a week, and I know it’s not a lot, but I seem to be able to maintain my readers with that.

    The biggest benefit, I find, though, is that the search engines seem to like frequent posts. My ranking in Google continues to rise until now I am surprised how often I come up in the high rankings on the subjects I am blogging about.

    Part of that may be the fact that a lot of searchers click on my blog to visit, but I honestly think the new content helps a lot.

    -Robert

    p.s. It was fun to be part of your logo contest, You must have had a tough choice with all the excellent quality presented. I must say you picked a great logo and it’ll be fun to see it on your masthead.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      Google does indeed love frequency!

      Thanks also for your participation in the logo tournament. I couldn't believe how many entries I got. Thanks also for your participation!

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  • http://www.purposefulleadershipblog.com/ Janna Rust

    Hi. I found you through Twitter. I loved this post because it emphasizes content. FYI, a great resource for blog "training" is The Blog Squad (you can find them online). They emphasize the same thing.

    I'll definitely keep your blog bookmarked! :)

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      Great. I added Blog Squad to my RSS feed. The content looks great, though they probably DO need to focus a little more on SEO and design. I had a difficult time finding them via Google.

  • http://www.purposefulleadershipblog.com Janna Rust

    Hi. I found you through Twitter. I loved this post because it emphasizes content. FYI, a great resource for blog "training" is The Blog Squad (you can find them online). They emphasize the same thing.

    I'll definitely keep your blog bookmarked! :)

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      Great. I added Blog Squad to my RSS feed. The content looks great, though they probably DO need to focus a little more on SEO and design. I had a difficult time finding them via Google.

  • http://www.scottmeyer.wordpress.com/ scott meyer

    Michael,
    Thanks for the incredibly PRACTICAL insight and wisdom you share through your blog. Reading your numerous post son blogging and watching your sample presentation (that used to be available on your site) has encouraged me to start a blog. However, you named my biggest challenge in this post…GOOD CONTENT. I will take up your #1 instruction and commit to at least 2 post a week.
    Thanks again.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      Good for you. One little secret I have used to accomplish big goals is to go public. It keeps me from backing our when the going gets tough—as it inevitably does.

  • http://www.scottmeyer.wordpress.com scott meyer

    Michael,
    Thanks for the incredibly PRACTICAL insight and wisdom you share through your blog. Reading your numerous post son blogging and watching your sample presentation (that used to be available on your site) has encouraged me to start a blog. However, you named my biggest challenge in this post…GOOD CONTENT. I will take up your #1 instruction and commit to at least 2 post a week.
    Thanks again.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/michaelhyatt Michael Hyatt

      Good for you. One little secret I have used to accomplish big goals is to go public. It keeps me from backing our when the going gets tough—as it inevitably does.

  • http://surachartopun.com/ Surachart Opun

    Great! your advice.

    And very goood for me If can commit about my goal to publish blog. It's not easy. But that's good idea.

    ;)

  • http://surachartopun.com Surachart Opun

    Great! your advice.

    And very goood for me If can commit about my goal to publish blog. It's not easy. But that's good idea.

    ;)

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  • Cheryl B. Lemine

    Dear Mike:

    Thank you for your commitment to post 5 times a week whether or not you feel like it. I'm taking your advice in a previous post and have started to build a platform for my professional writing. Within the next month, I'll be launching a blog!

    It's exciting as I watch God use perfectly timed info (your post), combine it with my life experiences, college studies, previous careers and motherhood to create "a new thing."

    By the way, I also appreciate NOT having to participate in the registration gyrations many blogs require.

    With much appreciation,

  • Cheryl B. Lemine

    Dear Mike:

    Thank you for your commitment to post 5 times a week whether or not you feel like it. I'm taking your advice in a previous post and have started to build a platform for my professional writing. Within the next month, I'll be launching a blog!

    It's exciting as I watch God use perfectly timed info (your post), combine it with my life experiences, college studies, previous careers and motherhood to create "a new thing."

    By the way, I also appreciate NOT having to participate in the registration gyrations many blogs require.

    With much appreciation,

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  • http://www.orangy.in/ orangy

    SEO can get consistently drive large amounts of traffic to a site able to deliver consistently hot content..

    Orangy – The Sweet Sour Tangy Taste of Life

  • http://www.orangy.in/ orangy

    SEO can get consistently drive large amounts of traffic to a site able to deliver consistently hot content..

    Orangy – The Sweet Sour Tangy Taste of Life

  • http://www.waxcom.com/impressions Caroline Hatchett

    I agree with your recommendations on building content, but I think a person would put a blog at an immediate disadvantage by ignoring traffic considerations. Certain plugins (Analytics, SEO, spam filters, etc) are vital and easy to install. On-page SEO takes one minute per post unless you have to update months worth of content with appropriate tags and titles. SEO is much easier on the front end. And if you're not participating in or creating an online community (through commenting or social media), you're forgetting that blogging is social media–it's more than a publishing format. Community is the point.

  • http://www.waxcom.com/impressions Caroline Hatchett

    I agree with your recommendations on building content, but I think a person would put a blog at an immediate disadvantage by ignoring traffic considerations. Certain plugins (Analytics, SEO, spam filters, etc) are vital and easy to install. On-page SEO takes one minute per post unless you have to update months worth of content with appropriate tags and titles. SEO is much easier on the front end. And if you're not participating in or creating an online community (through commenting or social media), you're forgetting that blogging is social media–it's more than a publishing format. Community is the point.

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  • http://www.sitesketch101.com/ Nicholas Z. Cardot

    Excellent post. I've been blogging for a while and I've learned that these are all excellent points. Content is king. Provide consistent quality content and you can build a great following over time.

  • http://www.sitesketch101.com Nicholas Z. Cardot

    Excellent post. I've been blogging for a while and I've learned that these are all excellent points. Content is king. Provide consistent quality content and you can build a great following over time.

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  • http://twitter.com/DaveAnthold @DaveAnthold

    I have to say that right now, I am more of a writing when I feel like it, but I am trying to get into the habit of writing at least three times a week. I just need to get into the habit. Heading uphill, in this case, is a good thing.

  • http://twitter.com/DaveAnthold @DaveAnthold

    I have to say that right now, I am more of a writing when I feel like it, but I am trying to get into the habit of writing at least three times a week. I just need to get into the habit. Heading uphill, in this case, is a good thing.

  • http://www.iknowtheguru.com/blog Matt Clark

    Great food for thought. I'm hungry now :)

  • http://www.iknowtheguru.com/blog Matt Clark

    Great food for thought. I'm hungry now :)

  • http://www.amyeslater.com/ Amy

    Regarding #3: This is one I struggle with. I have much difficulty in keeping my posts short and to the point. My question: If the content really is good, and worth the reader's time, is it okay to go over 400/500 words? I suppose one may do whatever they desire with their blog, but in order to really draw in readers, is it an absolute necessity to keep all posts short?

    Thank you for all your great advice, by the way!

  • http://www.amyeslater.com Amy

    Regarding #3: This is one I struggle with. I have much difficulty in keeping my posts short and to the point. My question: If the content really is good, and worth the reader's time, is it okay to go over 400/500 words? I suppose one may do whatever they desire with their blog, but in order to really draw in readers, is it an absolute necessity to keep all posts short?

    Thank you for all your great advice, by the way!

  • Mike R.

    Really good advice. Thanks.-Mike R.

  • Mike R.

    Really good advice. Thanks.-Mike R.

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  • http://saranelsondesign.com/ Kevin Cole

    Fascinating to see someone finally state the obvious… For all of the dicussion of how to "manipulate to maximize" the data, there is curiously little discussion of quality content in the blogosphere. Thanks for bringing up the subject. I feel a lot less alone… :)
    My recent post Chinook Awards

  • http://saranelsondesign.com Kevin Cole

    Fascinating to see someone finally state the obvious… For all of the dicussion of how to "manipulate to maximize" the data, there is curiously little discussion of quality content in the blogosphere. Thanks for bringing up the subject. I feel a lot less alone… :)
    My recent post Chinook Awards

  • http://www.sixestate.com/ David Reich

    Nice post, Michael. This is one of my favorite topics to discuss. Content should be the main focus of any blogger; and if linking-building, syndication or any other SEO tactics enter into the equation before you have quality content that actually benefits your readers, you're clearly missing the point. I'd love for you to check out a post of mine called "Blogging and SEO: Focus on People Not Google"

    http://sixestate.com/blogging-tips/seo-value-of-b…
    My recent post CPB Launches Local Journalism Initiative

  • http://www.sixestate.com David Reich

    Nice post, Michael. This is one of my favorite topics to discuss. Content should be the main focus of any blogger; and if linking-building, syndication or any other SEO tactics enter into the equation before you have quality content that actually benefits your readers, you're clearly missing the point. I'd love for you to check out a post of mine called "Blogging and SEO: Focus on People Not Google"

    http://sixestate.com/blogging-tips/seo-value-of-b…
    My recent post CPB Launches Local Journalism Initiative

  • http://www.servelovelisten.blogspot.com/ Jean-Luc Currie

    I just began seriously blogging about one month ago. Your blogs, this one and the one about generating comments, have been extremely helpful. I could consider you one of my top resources. Currently, I only post once a week, on Thursdays, because I have time Wednesday evening to sit down and write. Frequency may increase as time goes on.

  • http://www.servelovelisten.blogspot.com Jean-Luc Currie

    I just began seriously blogging about one month ago. Your blogs, this one and the one about generating comments, have been extremely helpful. I could consider you one of my top resources. Currently, I only post once a week, on Thursdays, because I have time Wednesday evening to sit down and write. Frequency may increase as time goes on.

  • http://bondage-teens.blogspot.com/ bruick

    You do have a point here. I have read a lot about this on other articles written by other people, but I must admit that you have proved your point here! Will be back to read more of your quality information!

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