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SEO
Search Engine Optimization encompasses a wide variety of techniques in which your website can be better tracked and displayed by Google (the largest search engine). Through comprehensive management your site can have the largest chance of succeeding.
CONTENT GENERATION With the recent Google algorithm changes, content generation, publishing, and blogging are the keys to ranking a site and driving traffic. Through careful management, your business can reap the benefits of constant content.
SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING
Social Media Marketing is an important part of any business, large or small. As social media develops, businesses are finding new and innovative ways in which to sell products and attract customers. Can you afford to ignore a possible revenue stream?
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How to Create a Blog In Minutes virginiaseo.org /blog/how-to-create-a-blog-in-minutes/ Adys Lynn Dill
Why You Need A Blog Creating a blog can be quite challenging for those of the professional world such as bloggers, marketers, and business owners. It is well known that blogs serving business related purposes should be professional as well as creative. Your readers should be pleased by quality content which can help promote your business or idea and “convince” your readers and search engines that you publish worthwhile content. However, accessibility and eye catching features are just as vital. Your hard work doesn’t just get out there on its own, but with the help of content marketing agencies such as Virginia SEO, spreading the word can be quite simple. Couple this content marketing with a standard web host such as BlueHost, GoDaddy, or HostGator, and you can easily create a blog quickly and get your content circulating the internet- and your customers news feeds.
A Recommendation Of WordPress Virginia SEO recommends WordPress as a blogging platform, for a lot of reasons. We won’t get into it here, but if your interested in finding out more about WordPress there are 800 million posts about it. We develop on Joomla! and Drupal as well, but by far we enjoy WordPress the most.
With WordPress being the go-to content management system, GoDaddy and BlueHost have WordPress supported services to make presenting blog work extremely productive. With the use of their marketing tools like, social media, and a content publishing plan or SEO company, successfully popularizing a blog has become a click and go procedure. So how does a writer or company create a blog within minutes?
Register A Domain Name The first important thing to do would be to register a domain name. Having a domain is a great way to gain exposure of business or ideas, and is necessary to host a publicly available website. Securing that domain name ensures no one else can get it or sell/trade it off. Bloggers want their blog posts to stand out, so he/she will want a creative name, secure it by signing up for a new hosting package with the preexisting or new domain name. Most web hosting companies have a variety of payment options for customers to choose from. These providers are also essential to the hosting services needed to maintain the newly insured domain.
We recommend using BlueHost, who we have had great success with. Customer support is great, and the servers are stable and quick. GoDaddy has recently upgraded their interface and services and it providers a better experience as well. Without explicit needs of another host, either of these services will service a small business or personal blog without trouble.
Hosting Services
Now that the domain name has been chosen, it is time to utilize hosting services. Web hosting companies use servers that contain storage space for their customers’ content. To acquire the best storage space, security, and performance reliable, users should pick the package that best fits the websites needs. An average user or blog will not quickly exceed the limits set in a shared hosting plan, while specialized sites like photography galleries might be better off paying attention to storage space and bandwidth. One the hosting package is setup, most of these hosts offer a 1-click install for your application, which is wizard driven. This allows even an un-wev-savvy professional to setup a WordPress blog, and log into it to get to work. There are also tons of videos provided by each hosting company that will walk you through the setup step-by-step (Once on the providers website click “Support” and look for “Getting Started” links).
Content Now that you have your hosting and blog setup, it is time to start fleshing it out. The content of the blog is very vital to the blogs success and is what the viewers will be reading. A CMS tool such as WordPress makes it very easy to post blog related content with options such as writing, embedding pictures, and video recording. After choosing the desired format, it is important to submit quality content. Content consisting of Intro, Body, and a Conclusive ending is best, though you will sometimes see blog posts in other formats, such as quotes or short snippets and ideas. Whatever your content is, you need to pick a theme and way of blogging and stick to it- Google notices things like the overall tone and direction for your entire site. Viewers should be intrigued by the content posted, otherwise interests will be lost and all content may not be viewed. Although all blog posts may not be informative on the behalf of the viewer, a conversational and professional tone is a great way to appeal to the viewer’s interests. This amplifies the likelihood of viewers promoting the post(s) to their own blogs or social media outlets.
Review Your Content Now that the post contains content worth viewing, is it visually appealing? The home page is considered the “magazine cover” of your blog and it is the page that catches viewers’ attention. The home page needs to be well written and attention grabbing, and it should set the tone for the entire website. Some users choose to have the “blog roll” as the home page, which shows a list of the past X blog posts. It is important that the content be easy and entertaining to read for maximum appeal. Customizing the home page changes the way viewers see the content. This is one of the many ways to improve a blog
with little effort. In addition to the home page customization, WordPress and the other CMS’ offer a series of widgets which can be used at a publisher’s disposal to maximize the features of the blog. These widgets consist of coloring options, toolbar placement, font adjustment, and header customization. They also provide added features to the blog with single click functionality and can add things like social media feeds, ads, and author information. With a well designed theme and blog filled with unique interesting content, a blog owner can easily and quickly build up and audience and traffic.
Social Media Now that the blog has been created, a home page added, and a few blog posts up, it is time to extend the blog through social media. Social media will increase the sharing capabilities of your readers and increase the reach of your blog posts and content. Also consider setting up other static pages such as a “Contact Us” and “About” pages- these are designed to help your customers find things they need, such as your phone number. They also give Google a bigger chance of crawling and indexing your content.
Final Notes So setting up a blog is easy, and can be performed by someone who has very few web or internet skills. customizing a theme is a little more in depth, and if you are not comfortable with editing HTML or the general concepts of web design then you should hire a web design company that will take care of everything for you. Once your site is up, published, designed, and shared, then the fun can begin. SEO and content marketing are great ways to get your blog out there and in front of your customers. Virginia SEO can provide you a content publishing plan and help you reach your business goals. We also design with SEO in mind, and often launch blogs that perform very well right from the start without additional SEO attention. We offer a wide range of services included in our plans, or you can purchase items separate to fill your specific needs:
Website Design and SEO Setup We prefer WordPress, but can use whatever your business needs dictate. We can even build you non-CMS HTML-only website.
Content Publishing and Blogging We can publish pages, blog posts, articles, press releases- you name it and we can do it for you.
Social Media Optimization We optimize pages, add header images and graphics, fill out your profile, and even post on your behalf.
Adys Lynn Dill SEO Consultant at Virginia SEO Adys Lynn Dill is a mother of one and really enjoys spending time with her family. Besides taking care of her husband (the other baby), she spends her time doing graphic design as a part of the family business. The Dill Design is a local web design company in Virginia, and they specialize in small business websites. Lynn also participates heavily with Virginia SEO, and is head of social media marketing, and a key member of the content generation team. Lynn enjoys social media so much that she is on it more than a normal person should be some days.
Latest posts by Adys Lynn Dill (see all) How to Create a Blog In Minutes - May 28, 2014 3 Tips for Outbound Marketers Who Want to Stay Relevant - May 25, 2014 Your Website In The Fast Lane: Speedy SEO (Part 2) - May 19, 2014