Let’s Talk: What Your Blog Readers Want To See From You
Let’s talk blogging. What do your blog readers actually want to see from you? Do you sometimes wonder if you’re making content people aren’t interested in? In this post I’m opening a discussion on what our readers are looking for and ways to change up our content when we’re feeling stuck or repetitive.
This isn’t really a guidebook, so you don’t need to take my words as gold. This post is simply a compilation of my thoughts on what I like seeing most from my favorite bloggers, as well as recommendations from my own personal experiences. Let’s get into it!
GET PERSONAL
I love to learn more about people through their blog posts (and YouTube videos, if they have them). Shared stories and experiences help me to relate to bloggers and connect with them on a more personal level, which is what I love most about the blogging community. It’s so fun to find people across the world that you connect to and have similar interests with. I always like when people share funny moments, behind the scenes mishaps, and other little things that you’d tell a friend. I think this helps readers grow closer to you with each post they read. I like when people share photos of various aspects of their life: themselves, significant other or friends, home, etc.
Branching off of that, make every post you. Put a bit of yourself, your humor and personality into everything you write. Type how you speak. It’s likely that at least half of the people coming to your blog are there to read what you have to say, not necessary because they strictly have an interest in what you’re talking about, so keep that in mind.
TWO WORDS: PHOTOS AND NARRATIVE
For me, a great blog post is the perfect balance between photos and narrative. I strive for my posts to fall within this balance whenever possible because this is what I personally prefer to see from others, as well as on my own blog. My favorite posts tend to have at least a few photos with narrative to match, or alternatively, posts that consist of super informative content on a topic I’m interested in, not requiring many photos — although pictures are fun to look at! 😉
I always like to see bloggers put themselves in front of the camera. This is something I’m getting better at by planning photo shoots in advance and utilizing a few extra hours of sunlight a day thanks to daylight savings time (hallelujah!) to capture images of myself. Show people who you are and what you’re about with photos of you wearing, doing and creating things you love. Put you in your blog posts and Instagram photos. I truly believe seeing (and hearing, when possible) helps people to make personal connections.
INTERESTS AND EXPERIENCE
If your blog readers are anything like me, they want to hear about things you’re passionate about, your recommendations and any knowledge or opinions you have on subjects of interest. It’s likely that your readers want to learn from you or relate to you in some way through everything you post, so I suggest keeping that in mind when drafting future content.
I started my blog talking about fashion, beauty, lifestyle and PR because those are things I have knowledge and experience in, but in saying that, I don’t think you need to limit yourself. It’s always fun to pick up a new hobby or interest and share your journey with your readers. Just because you’re not a chef doesn’t mean you can’t share your recipes, and so on. That’s what is so great about blogging: you don’t have to fit into a box, ladies and gents!
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With all this being said, what would you like to see from me and other bloggers? Do you prefer helpful posts, personal ones, or both? Are you a blogger that feels constricted and unsure of how to create more personal content? Please join the conversation by leaving me a comment down below sharing your thoughts! Feel free to email me privately as well. If you enjoyed this post, you can click these links to catch up on my previous “Let’s Talk” and blogging content.
