If you turned in early last night you may have missed an enlightening conversation on Twitter. from Crunktastical.net and from AwesomeLuvvie.com were giving testimony without the morning announcements and collection plate. I decided to compile a list of my favorite tweets. This post is kind of long, but well worth the read. Freshalina’s advice will be in Part II.
Top 10 advice tweets from Luvvie
1. “Instead of faking popularity, how about you put effort into being better at your craft so people will be inclined to care about it?” ()
This is true. I’m a web designer by day. We are born and bred to be in the background so being liked isn’t as important as doing great work. I tend to see the opposite online. Popularity can be bought, but authenticity and creating a real connection with your readers can only be achieved by putting in real work and providing something of value to your readers. Remember quality is king!
2. “Some of you are housed in a shack tryna be a mega church. You’re trying to play “get the pageviews” so you throw up anything. You won’t win.” ()
Anyone can get pageviews by putting up crap. But what do those pageviews mean? Have you taken a look at HOW people are reaching your site? What they are reading and HOW long they are staying? For top dollar advertisers, this is the information that counts. Advertisers that spend real money want to know how your readers are engaging with your site.
3. “You know what you should be paying attention to in Google Analytics? Time on site. And pages per visit. THOSE matter. Get those numbers up” ()
BINGO! Start by learning HOW to read/interpret your analytics reports. I’ve had jobs as a web designer, social media marketer, social media account manager, etc. and one of my duties was to read and interpret analytics. If you are clueless on where to begin start with this guide from and learn about Social Media Marketing.
4. “This is why good blogs are hard to come by. Folks are chasing pageviews instead of chasing engagement. And QUALITY. Losing outchea.” ()
Again, on point. Quality should be your main goal. Not comments, not working with brands, not free trinkets and definitely not Likes and Followers. If your content is great, all of that other stuff will come when it’s time. Don’t rush to put up the same information 20 other blogs in your niche have already covered. Do something different. Set yourself apart from the rest, have real expectations and find a great niche.
5. “Brands, I blame you. Some of you have hired PR folks who don’t know what analytics means so you’re placing ALL cred just on pageviews.” (src)
Stop listening to people who have no idea on how website traffic works. You’ll end up chasing some magical carrot and lose focus on why you started your blog in the first place. Don’t diminish the potential power of your brand by falling victim to chasing these numbers, just work on building your traffic organically.
6. “Your blog should be so good that when you finally DO start getting traffic, people will be going back in your archives tryna get more!” ()
You want people to spend hours on your site being upset that they didn’t find out about your blog sooner. This means you have effectively engaged your reader and made them interested in YOUR point of view. I’d rather have 5 regular readers who value my content verses 25 visitors who reach my blog once and never return. So it helps to identify your audience before you begin.
7. “You don’t have competition. There’s room for everyone. Do what is authentic to you and drink gatorade to quench your thirst.” ()
Truer words have never been spoken. Your only competition is yourself. You need to be a better blogger than you were last year. If you concentrate on what the next person is doing, or THEIR accomplishments, it’s easy to lose focus on what you own personal blogging goals are. Stay in your lane and “do you”. Also see my do’s and don’ts for newbies.
8 .”And while we’re at it. My blogger sisthrens and brethrens. Show love to other bloggers. That doesn’t take your pageviews. Why so stingy?” ()
This is a pet peeve of mine. The ONLY way to prosper online is to share each others content. It’s called back-linking You need links coming into your site as well as leaving it in order for Google Search to know that you are popular. No one can be successful online without the help of other bloggers. While you guys are chasing comments, I’ll chase incoming links, retweets and shares. Read more about back-linking and why it’s important.
9. “Get your money. But don’t bend yourself backwards and change your whole voice and compromise your integrity to do it.” ()
Do not, under any circumstances, change who you are while chasing success. The minute you do, your credibility is out the door. You gain a readers trust by allowing yourself to be vulnerable and sharing your world. So why be fake it just to earn a buck? Don’t make the sacrifice, because once you’re exposed, it’s over. Read more about getting paid online.
10. “I’m stubborn so I want success on my own terms. As long as I can pay my bills, look at myself in the mirror and hit my dougie, I’m good.” ()
Determine what’s successful to YOU. If you are comfortable with earning enough to pay your bills and money left over for your savings, then be happy with that. Do not be swayed by what OTHERS consider successful. You are the only that can can define success and figuring out this sooner than later can help you stay focused.
Bonus: Luvvie’s Top 5 Things Every Blog Needs
Now this information seemed like common sense to me as a designer, but maybe it needs to be said. I have a post called Top 25 Website Pages which elaborates on the subject as well.
1. An “About” page. Folks need to know who is behind the words. Tell us who you are. ()
Take a look at my About Page for an example. In general, it should give an idea of who you are, what your blog is about, how to connect and where else we can find you online.
2. A “Contact” page. Give us a page where we can send you email w/o leaving your site. And where else you are ()
A contact page is where you list your email address or any contact information. If you don’t want your email listed, I’d suggest a form. WordPress users can try the Contact 7 plugin. If you are using Blogger try Wufoo. My contact page is simple and easy to find.
3. A navigation bar. Folks should be able to click to different pages w/o scrolling down. Your pages go there. ()
I advise clients to include a top navigation bar for important information you want visitors to see immediately and a sidebar for less important info. Ignore #3 if you goal is to lose a new visitors.
4. Google Analytics. Because you need to know how folks are interacting w/ your content beyond hits. Measure. ()
Understand how your visitors are engaging on your site. This will help you tailor your posts and bring more traffic into your site. Start with this guide from .
5. A “subscribe” button. So it can be easy for folks to get your content. Either thru email or an RSS reader. ()
This is automatically built in Blogger and WordPress built sites. But make the link available and easy to find for your readers. The RSS for this site is at the top right of the website.
For the entire list of tweets or please visit AwesmeLuvvie.com, grab a cup of tea and look around. All images used are copyrights of their respective owners.
