5 Tips For Beginner Bloggers

As a relatively savvy internet user I actually have very little experience with whole blogging thing. That is to say, I am completely comfortable with the concept of blogging and am aware of the various platforms, terminology and such, I just have never really got into the whole blogging thing.

So to help me along and as the start of my Net11 Learning Log, I have listed my 5 tips for a beginner blogger. Actually it's a requirement of the Learning Log, but we won't tell anyone that now will we!

1. Do your homework. A quick search on Google for Blog will return 2,580,000,000 results, that's Billions folks, so there is more than enough information on blogs out there. Of course with so much information in the blogosphere, it can be really daunting when you are just starting out. To help save some time, and your sanity, here are two resources I have found handy, Problogger.net: Blogging Tips For Beginners and Technorati.com: Blogging Basics.

2. Set a regular time to write your blog. While it's all good to write your blog when the moment hits you, it pays to also set aside a dedicated time to write your blog. Whether this is once a week or once a day it doesn't matter, just make a regular time to capture your thoughts and ideas and commit them to 010101's.

3. Learn to link. If you have been on the internet longer than five minutes then you will know that the clicky things which take you places are called hypertext or links. By learning how to link from your blog you not only get to share your fantastic finds and further educate your readers, you are also showing respect to the people who have inspired you or have written something which resonates with you.

4. Blog about what is meaningful to you. It's much more interesting to read a blog from a person who is passionate about what they are writing, than someone who is "finding a niche" to stand out from the crowd. Remember you are a niche, there is only one of you in the world and your unique way of expressing yourself is fantastic

5. Follow other blogs and comment regularly. This is an idea which I have only just picked up from my Net11 tutor Peter Fletcher, yet it is such a simple and powerful thing to do and will make your blogging that more meaningful again. As Peter has pointed out, blogging is about communication and finding new ideas and ways of thinking. So go forth, follow and comment.

So there you have it, my five tips for starting down the path to your own blog. Feel free to share yours in the comments.