When writing a blog, you want to have a nicely-designed space to host your content, which means that having a well-built website with a nice design is important. Having good quality content is important, but often isn’t enough to draw in a reader and capture their attention. You may think that you have to have a background in web design in order to create a quality site to host your content, but all you need to get started are a few helpful tips and a little patience.
Create a Logo
Part of creating a brand for yourself includes designing a logo that you want to associate with your blog. Your logo can carry your brand across multiple online channels, including your website, social media, emails, and discussion boards. You want to create a logo that captures the essence of you and your brand and that is clear and easy to understand to readers. There are logo makers online that can help you get started, or if you’d rather leave the work to a professional you can enlist a designer. You may even want to consider talking with your local college to see if there are any graphic design students who would like to take on the project to save you some money and help them pad their own portfolio.
Design a Color Scheme
Every strong brand has a color scheme that identifies them to their audience and creates brand recognition. You shouldn’t choose your colors haphazardly, however, as different colors evoke different moods. If you want your blog to be a calming space for your readers, for example, you may want to choose hues of blue over vibrant reds and yellows, which tend to have the opposite effect.
Humanize Your Blog
In order to get your readers to feel a connection to you and your writing, you should consider humanizing your blog by adding an about me section or a photo of yourself. Providing a glimpse into the face behind the writing can make your readers feel more connected to you and give your blog a more personalized feel. If your blog chronicles your life or a particular journey, such as weight loss or home improvement, then adding a human element is vital or people will never feel truly invested in the story.
Let Your Site Breathe
When it comes to web design, less is more. According to Mr. Dmitry Sergeev, the founder of Crello,
“Too often, people make the mistake of overcrowding their blogs with too much content, which can be overwhelming to visitors. The more overcrowded your page is, the fewer time people will spend on it. Give your content room to breathe by incorporating a lot of white space into your design.”
While you’re building your site, you’ll also want to organize information so it’s easy to find and makes sense to the reader. Filing your information by category or date can be helpful, and you should also be sure the titles of each blog entry are clear and easy to understand so it captures the reader’s attention.
Use Quality Visuals
Many bloggers use their own cameras to take photos for their blog, which can both help and harm you depending on how you use them. They can help you by adding a personalized element to your blog and help chronicle your journey from the first-person point of view. However, if you aren’t great with a camera or it’s low quality you may end up with photos that make the reader feel disjointed or confused when reading your content. You should choose your photographs wisely and remember not to clutter your homepage with too many of them or it will make your site look disorganized. There are a number of free photo sites on the internet that provide high-quality photos you could use on your site if you aren’t comfortable taking your own photos.
Use Calls to Action
Chances are if you keep a blog that you want people to subscribe to your content. Make it easy for people to subscribe or share your content by providing clear calls to action on your pages. A large, clear, easy to read button to share and subscribe can increase the chances that your content will reach more people and that they’ll buy into your brand and want to read more.
Conclusion
You don’t have to be an expert designer or marketer to get started with a quality website. If you follow these tips and use patience and good judgment, your site can help increase traffic to your page and establish a loyal following.
