Although it may seem like an obvious question, do your blog readers know who you are?
Do they know what you do, how you do it, and how to ask you to do whatever it is you do for them?
While there may be a host of reasons for you to write your blog in the first place, none of it means anything if you don’t offer a clear-cut picture of who you are, what you do and why you should be read. After all, if your blog readers don’t know who you are why should they read you over the next guy?
The good news is, you can take this out of the equation with just some minor house-keeping.
Tell Your Readers All About You
No, this isn’t an invite to go all broadcaster mode and start spouting off all the great (and not-so-great) things about you. It is, however, one of the first things any blogger should have – an About Page. This is the single most important aspect of your blog when it comes to letting your visitors know who you are, after the content itself.
Sure, your content may be great but who’s the person behind it? While an About Page can have whatever information you want on there, some of the key information should be:
- Bio – who you are and what you do.
- Contact – either a link to your main Contact Page or a contact box (either on-page or in the sidebar).
- Outposts – where else can people find you online.
How in-depth your About page is is up to you. You can have testimonials, projects, clients, etc – the limitations are yours to choose. Just make sure you do have an actual About page, though – even if you’re a personal blogger, it’s part of building that relationship with your community.
Tell Your Readers Why Your Blog
There are over 180 million blogs online today, and that’s just the recognized number from Technorati – the true figures are probably much, much more. So why should readers choose yours over the hundreds or thousands of others in your niche? Let them know why with an About This Blog page.
Why an About This Blog page when you already have an About page? Simple – new readers of your blog can immediately see if it’s for them or not, and it’s your blog’s elevator pitch, as opposed to simply who you are. Features of this page should include:
- Topics – what you write about. For added effect, break it down into categories and link to each tag for that category.
- Sitemap – this helps readers old and new navigate your blog. Again, this can be on-page or a link to it.
- Subscription Options – if people like what they see about your blog, you are offering a way for them to get the latest, aren’t you?
- Archives – perfect for allowing new readers to see just what it is that makes your blogging voice stand out.
The Benefits to Bloggers
A great About This Blog page acts as the perfect complement to your personal About page and really lets your blog readers know all about you and what you do. As a blogger, there are key reasons you want to do this:
- Business – allows potential clients to see why you’d be a perfect fit.
- Personal – the first steps to building the relationship with your community.
- Portfolio – if you have external resources elsewhere online, your About pages can direct your visitors there.
- Search Engines – you want to be found. About pages help strengthen your online visibility.
These are just some options for having a solid About This Blog page. There are more – the choice really is up to you.
How about you? Do you have About pages? If not, what other ways are you using to help your blog readers know who you are?
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image: Choconancy1
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