There is no denying the fact that the dynamic world of blogging is one of the most powerful Internet activities which can quickly deliver an audience around just about any subject, product or service. The first critical step towards blogging success is in learning the critical components necessary for delivering unique content, the lifeblood of today’s Internet.
Web 2.0
Long gone are the days of the static web. Today the Internet is all about offering an enhanced experience to its users. This more dynamic and personal experience has resulted in the newly coined term, Web 2.0. The stale, static web that is merely a means of communicating basic information such as canned sales messages or basic business contact information is long gone. In the world of Web 2.0, it’s all about creating an experience for the end user that provides enhanced value. Blogging is possibly the easiest way to achieve the value-added goal of Web 2.0 to users. At the heart of this new value proposition is the need for unique blog content.
Content Matters
What exactly is meant by unique content? For starters, unique content is exactly as it sounds, original and not in existence anywhere else on the Internet. All the best web content is always unique. Does this mean a blogger has to necessarily be a great artist or writer? No. However, it does mean that a blogger does have to know the subject material which they are blogging about well enough to offer some valuable insight or credible viewpoint.
More specifically, the exact subject matter which the web article or blog post is written about does not necessarily have to be unique in nature, but the way in which it is presented and expanded upon does. It is the additional commentary, wisdom or idea expansion upon everyday or common ideas which actually creates the blogger’s unique content and a blog’s overall appeal. Constantly inventing the wheel isn’t necessary when it comes to blog content. Communicating how and why the wheel was invented, and what it means for the person reading the blog post or web article is the critical factor which determines the content’s uniqueness.
Relevance Required
Successful blog content must also be as relevant as it is unique. Content relevance is becoming a much larger search signal in many search engine algorithms. Yes, but relevant to what? For starters, successful blog posts and web articles must first serve to uphold an idea or subject that is congruent to the central theme of the specific post or article. Total elimination of keyword stuffing and any extreme bait-and-switch tactics is an absolute must for any blog to be successful and credible.
The days of searching for popular keywords or phrases in hopes of “hooking” traffic and page views for better search engine ranking are long gone. Secondly, the overall blog post or article must fit within the scope of the blog’s overall subject material or theme. This means that a blog’s content must be and remain focused. In other words, the dog training blog that reviews iPads because iPads are a hot topic in the hopes of capitalizing on iPad review traffic is nothing more than a waste of time. Unless there is a specific way in which an iPad can aid in dog training, a dog training blog creating content around the subject of iPad reviews is worthless.
Keep Going
Lastly, all content must be constant. The time component when it comes to blogging has also become an important search signal. Website and blog history matters for overall search ranking results. Blogs that can stay focused on consistently delivering unique content over extended periods of time become more valuable to their end users and search result rankings reflect this. A blogger that recognizes the critical content factors early enables their blog to transcend the basics of blogging and move to a higher level.
Becoming a trusted information outlet and resource to end users, the Holy Grail of blogging is the domain of blogs that employ the critical elements of quality content early. They are the blogs that are not only on their way to developing a loyal web audience, but also a thriving web presence.
