Tips for Blog Beginners

1. People won’t know your blog is out there unless you tell them. To increase traffic to your site, leave comments on blogs you like, and include a link to yours. Join networking sites like Facebook and MySpace. But if your blog is intended only for family and friends to see, find a hosting service that will restrict it to those who have password access.

2. Post as frequently as you can; successful bloggers update once a day or even more. Visitors may lose interest if your blog stays inactive for days or weeks.

3. Get creative. Experiment with designs and typefaces. Add links to your favorite sites, video feeds or news stories. Find sites that offer free photos you can upload to your blog. You might choose to allow ads on your blog, which will earn you a little money every time a visitor clicks on them.

4. Don’t post your home address, e-mail or phone numbers. Instead, add a visitors’ section for users to leave their own comments and e-mail addresses.

5. If you’ll be posting medical information, consider including a disclaimer that your blog reflects your opinions and isn’t meant to be used as expert advice.

6. Think before you post. Your words will be out there for the world to see, whether it’s your deepest fears, the details on a fight with your mother-in-law or gossip about your company. (That last one could even cost you your job.) Getting rid of a post you regret isn’t as easy as hitting the “delete” key, either; the information may still be retrievable, or someone may have already copied it elsewhere. When in doubt, sleep on it.

Need more guidance? Check out the advice at About.com, ProBlogger or the book Blogging for Dummies by Brad Hill.