25 Christmas Blog Post Ideas

It’s December first and you’re officially allowed to get excited about Christmas – you have my blessing! Go crazy: play your Christmas tunes, wrap your presents, and spread the festive cheer!

I know many bloggers are now officially off to do blogmas – blogging every day until Christmas. That’s 24 or 25 blog posts from now until the big day, which is very hard work. And  I know even more bloggers would like to do blogmas but fear that they will run out of blog post ideas and be unable to complete the project. Well fear not, for I have 25 Christmas Blog Post Ideas to share with you right now!

5 Reasons Why You Can’t Come Up With New Content

Have you ever sat down to write for tomorrow’s deadline, only to find yourself stuck before you’ve even begun? Thinking about your topic and not knowing what to say or where to begin? 

Here are 5 reasons why you can’t come up with new content and how to fix them!

10 Must-Have Apps For Every Blogger On The Go

Blogging is a demanding activity that requires a lot of time and effort. But most of us can’t afford to sit at home every day typing up our stories on a computer or laptop. It’s tough, but that’s the way it is – we didn’t choose the blogging life; the blogging life chose us.

So whether you have to do your blogging en route to work or while queuing in a supermarket, here are 10 must-have apps for every blogger on the go to make your life just that little bit easier:

Most Common Mistakes Made By New Bloggers #2

Are you a new blogger terrified of making common blogging mistakes? Are you an old blogger who has already made them? This is part 2 of Most Common Mistakes Made By New Bloggers, helping new bloggers avoid the unnecessary troubles, and allowing us ‘oldies’ to laugh about the silly errors of our origins.

#2 YOU’RE NOT ENGAGING WITH YOUR READERS 

Most Common Mistakes Made By New Bloggers #1

Blogging is a skill like any other: some will find it relatively straightforward and master the craft in next to no time, while others take their time stumbling around and learning from the mistakes they make as they go along.

But regardless of how quickly you pick up the craft, you’re bound to make a couple of mistakes. So here’s a list of the Most Common Mistakes Made By New Bloggers (and how you can avoid making them) to help any new bloggers avoid the unnecessary troubles, and allow us ‘oldies’ to laugh about the silly errors of our origins.

Blogging: Sticking it Out vs Taking a Break

If you’re a blogger or a writer, then burn-outs are no news to you. However, if you’re new to writing, then burnouts are something to be aware of; being prepared for such an occurrence can save you a lot of stress and help to ascertain that your blog doesn’t suffer in the meantime.  

10 Things You Should Do Before Hitting “PUBLISH”

You’ve written a fantastic blog post and think it’s ready for the inevitable future of praise and glory. But wait. Did you forget something? Have a look at the 10 Things You Should Do Before Hitting “PUBLISH” and make sure you haven’t!

1. CHECK YOUR POST TITLE

Your post title should give a rough indication as to what the post will discuss, so try to keep it relevant to the post. Misleading titles may result in a higher number of clicks but the readers will quickly notice if your post does not deliver what it promised, leaving you with a higher bounce rate and lower session time. 

The optimal post title will usually have between 6 to 10 words and include some powerful or emotional words that will peak your readers’ interest.  If your post contains a list, you should also specify how many points will be discussed (like I did in the title of this post). To check the quality and effectiveness of your blog post title, type it into the Headline Analyser. Then, tweak it word by word until you’re happy with the score. Just remember that a better title is one that flows and reads naturally; not one with the highest score. So use with caution.

2. ADD LABELS

Much like your post title, the post labels will act to describe what your post is about. By crafting relevant labels you will be able to sort your posts into categories, link to related content and your content will be more easily located through Google search.

3. ADD LINKS TO PREVIOUS POSTS

Whether your post mentions something you’d previously discussed or if it is simply written on the same/similar topic, it wouldn’t hurt to link a few of your previous posts. This can either be done throughout the text (if the information is truly relevant and either adds to or explains your point), or at the beginning/end of post to direct your readers to previous posts within the series or other relevant content.

Not only will you increase your SEO by building links to your posts, but you will also reduce your site bounce rate as readers will be far more likely to click on a suggested post rather than go searching for it through your archives. Win.

4. CHECK YOUR LINKS OPEN IN A NEW TAB

Any links you decide to include in your post should open in a new tab so as to not redirect your readers to a different page halfway through your post. Not only is that annoying for you and your readers, but there’s also a good chance that your reader will not come back to finish reading the rest of your post.

If you blogging platform does not offer you the choice of opening the link in a new tab, simply add target=”_blank” to your link code. 

Example: <a href=”webiste link” target=”_blank”>Phrase/Image that will send readers to the website</a>

5. ADD IMAGE PROPERTIES

I won’t pretend to know much about SEO because quite frankly, it scares me. What I do know is that describing the image or using the post title within the ALT text field of the image properties is a quick little thing that will go a long way. Firstly, keywords will push your image up through Google Images; secondly, users who cannot see images (whether due to a slow Internet connection or their own browser preferences) will be able to see the ALT tag and know what the image space should contain.

6. SHORTEN PERMALINK

Unless you decide to do it yourself, your blogging platform will generate your blog post links for you using as many words from the post title as it can fit. All too often this will result in a very long link that doesn’t really indicate what the post is about as the last few words of the post title did not fit into the link. Generating your own link will allow you to be more concise and descriptive, keeping the link slightly tidier.

It is strongly advisable to do this before publishing your post. While it is completely possible to change your permalink after publishing, you should keep in mind that all links shared on social media to promote this post will break and no longer lead to the post-in-question.

7. ADD A CUSTOM SEARCH DESCRIPTION

Unless you write a custom search description, Google will simply use the beginning of your post to appear as a blurb within the Google search. While this may work perfectly well for you and your blog, results will depend strongly on your writing style. 

Your search description should ideally be one of two things: a captivating sentence that intrigues the reader into clicking the link to learn more, or a very brief description of the post letting the reader know what they will get out of clicking your link.

8. PREVIEW POST

You should always, always, always preview your post before publishing to make sure that your post layout has no awkward spaces or unwanted text formatting. Bad formatting will hurt your views.

9. PROOF READ

With a million ideas running though your head followed by the countless different ways you want to phrase your sentence, it’s all too easy to forget to check whether the rest of your sentence/paragraph still makes sense. So when you think you’re ready to publish your post, give it a quick read over and make sure it flows nicely.

10. BACK UP

We’re the generation that is very much accustomed to the digital life and feel relatively safe with all our content and data being stored online. But do you ever worry that all those photos you’ve been meaning to print off will just disappear with a little glitch or a virus? How about your blog posts that exist only on your blogging platform? Website shut-down, disabled account, or a simple anger or sadness driven “delete all” can result in the loss of all that hard work. Back it up into a Word Document and store it on an external hard drive to be safe!

○ Till next post ○

How To Give Your Old Posts a Boost

Are you disheartened by the low view count of your old posts? Are you putting your best ideas on hold until you build up a larger readership? It’s an all too common dilemma of wanting to hold off on posting your best content until you’re certain that enough people will see it, but if you save your best for last, how will you ever grow your blog?

Regardless of the size of your following you should always post your best and brightest ideas. But if you’re worried about them getting lost amongst the archives and not getting the attention they deserve, here are 5 tips on how to give your old posts a boost and bring a new wave of traffic:

1. ADVERTISE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Social media is your blog’s best friend and highest traffic source, so you have to learn to use it regularly and expose your content to new audiences. Many bloggers are in the habit of promoting their newly published posts but completely forget about mentioning some of their older content. Remember that social media is a very fast-paced environment and promoting your old content is just as important as promoting your new posts. In doing so, you will reach new readers who weren’t around the last time you promoted said post and remind your long-term followers of content they may have previously missed or found irrelevant at the time.

Here’s a few things you can do to give your old post a boost right now:

• Tweet about it. Craft a witty tweet and make sure it’s seen by hundreds (if not thousands) of blog readers. Learn how to promote your content on Twitter. 

• Pin your best post image to Pinterest. Create a board dedicated solely to your blog posts, but don’t forget to also pin your content to other relevant boards. For maximum exposure, join a group board dedicated to the subject of your posts, or blogging as a whole. 

• Share your post on a Facebook group for bloggers. There are many Facebook groups dedicated to helping bloggers improve their blog, make contacts and promote their content. Here’s two to get you started: Blogging Boost & The Blog Loft.

2. UPDATE YOUR CONTENT

This is a very subjective point that relies heavily on your outlook on blogging and personal preferences. Some bloggers will be all for updating their content to remain relevant and be the best it can be, while others will decide that what’s done is done and old posts present the journey of their blogging career, and thus should be left untouched. That’s your decision to make. But as time goes on, some of your posts will become outdated due to no longer relevant information or simply the lack of new additional information. 

Having personally written a post about useful blogger resources, it would only make sense for me to go back to the list and add any new resources I find. However, that’s not to say that you should be updating your posts on a regular basis – let your “update” information accumulate, rather than updating with every little bit and bob. 

P.s. If you don’t wish to update your old content, you could write a more up-to-date post and link to it from the old post!

3. UPLOAD NEW PHOTOS

The value of an image within a blog post cannot be overstated and similarly to having outdated content, you will often look back on your older posts and realise that the photo you had chosen is of low quality, irrelevant to the post, or you’ll find that there’s no photo altogether. But whether it be for lack of skills or resources available at the time of posting, you should rectify the situation with a new high-quality, relevant, and Pinterest-friendly photo that will give your post a more professional look and attract more readers.

4. UPDATE YOUR LABELS

Your labels act as keywords and using accurate and popular keywords can put your post on the map, attracting a whole wave of new readers. Not only that, but labelling similar posts with the same labels will allow you to create post categories and display them in your navigation bar. As such, a reader who may only be interested in your recipe or how-to posts will no longer have to scroll through endless posts to find what he/she is looking for. Instead, they will have easy access to both old and new posts on a topic that interests them. Easy navigation will also keep readers coming back to a multi-topic blog. 

5. ADD RELATED POSTS

Put your recently updated labels to good use and introduce a Related Posts section at the end of each post, linking your readers to similar content within your blog. Not only will your old posts be advertised with every post, but it will also encourage readers to click on other articles and reduce your site bounce rate. Remember that new readers will have no idea what topics you had previously written about and will only stay on your site if you intrigue them with another post. 

Do YOU try to promote old posts, or focus solely on your new content?

○ Till next post ○

How To Promote Your Content on Twitter

You know what’s better than writing a great blog post? Writing a great blog post that gets the attention it deserves. There’s nothing worse than pouring your heart and soul (as well as hours of your precious time) into crafting a blog post you’re proud of, and then being the only one to read it. So here are 8 ways to promote your content on Twitter and ensure you’re not the only one to appreciate your content:

1. CRAFT INTRIGUING TWEETS

If you want to capture your audience’s attention, run-of-the-mill tweets saying “read my latest post” are simply not going to cut it – at least not until you have a vast and loyal readership that want to keep up-to-date with your content. “Read my latest post” is simply not an inviting phrase that would attract new readers – especially if you don’t even mention what your post is about. 

So instead of tweeting “Hey, read my latest post on xyz” why not try a more provoking “X things you didn’t know about xyz” or “things you should know about xyz before you purchase it!” These tweets tell your audience that you’re not just fishing for views – they will get something out of reading your post too.

2. CUSTOMISE YOUR TWEETS 

In order to have the most success at attracting new readers, you will have to advertise the same post more than once a day and ascertain that your tweet has the chance to be seen by everyone, including those who live in different time zones.

You should however, keep in mind that these tweets will remain on your profile for all to see, and a profile spammed by the same tweet is not going to do well to attract new followers. So every time you promote a blog post, find a different way to introduce it: describe what your post is about; ask a question that your post will answer; quote a part of your post. Then, alternate between these tweets.

3. DON’T OVERDO IT 

Publishing a new post is exciting and it’s only normal to want the whole world to see it, but keep in mind your current followers. Trying to appeal to new readers is all fine and well but remember that your current audience would not want to be spammed by the same tweet 20 times a day, so find the balance between promotion and regular tweets, as well as promoting some of your older posts or your blog as a whole, for variation.

4. USE  IMAGES 

Yes I’m aware that an image takes up 23 characters of your already very limited space for expressing yourself. But you know what? When your whole dashboard is full of text that changes every minute, it’s an image that will make you stop and read the tweet. It’s the image that will catch your readers’ attention amongst the sea of writing, cause them to pause, and hopefully click the link. A picture’s worth a thousand words, and you only need 23 characters.

5. MENTION RETWEET ACCOUNTS 

Every time you advertise a blog post on twitter, make sure to mention a couple twitter accounts that are dedicated to retweeting bloggers and exposing their content to a larger audience. My favourite retweeters are:

@LovingBlogs, @blogginggals, @FemaleBloggerRT, @UKBlog_RT, @UKBloggers1, @TheBloggersPost, @RT_Bloggers, & @BBlogRT (for beauty  related posts). I use at least 2 of these in every promotional tweet.

6. MENTION COMPANY ACCOUNTS 

If you’ve written a whole post about a company or its product, why not mention them in your tweet using the company’s handle? Not only will your tweet become visible to all who search the handle, but it may also be retweeted by the company to all of their followers. And really, once you’re on their radar, who’s to say they won’t offer you a partnering opportunity?

7. BE ACTIVE 

Twitter is probably the most fast-paced environment on the internet; one second your tweet is there, and the next it’s buried under a 100 new tweets. It’s old news. Worse yet, it’s no news. With the tweets rolling in at a 100 posts a minute, it’s far too easy for your tweet to get lost amongst the sea of others and get overlooked. 

That’s why you have to be active and persistent, making sure that if one tweet was overlooked, the next one will be noticed. And don’t forget to appeal to the audience from across the globe and schedule tweets for when you’re out or asleep.

8. LINK TO YOUR BLOG IN YOUR BIO 

Regardless of whether you’re online or not, your earlier activities and scheduled posts will be bringing people by your profile throughout the day, curious about who you are and what you do. So why not leave them a link to your blog so they can learn about you and decide whether or not they’re interested in what you have to say?

How do YOU promote your posts on Twitter?

○ Till next post ○

8 Tips That Will Improve Your Photos

Have you ever heard the saying “eyes are the windows to the soul”? Well, images are the windows to the blog and whether you like it or not, your readers will judge your blog based on its visual appeal. 

So here are 8 tips that will improve your photos and make your blog more visually appealing:

Disclaimer: this post contains sponsored content.

1. GET TO KNOW YOUR CAMERA

While (semi)professional cameras are not necessarily the only way to shoot decent photos, they do offer more flexibility, customisation and higher quality results. If you’re looking to buy a semi-professional camera, I would strongly recommend the Panasonic Lumix G5 or any of the other Panasonic Compact Cameras. 

I’ve had my G5 for just over a year now and I’m gonna be honest, I’ve only just now begun to experiment and learn more about it. Up till now it was a point & click operation, with some hoping and praying for a good result. But whether you use a smartphone or a semi-professional camera, you have to know how to work it before you can achieve the best results. So go and dig up your camera manuals, watch some YouTube videos, and break away from only using the pre-set options.
 

2. CHOOSE AN APPROPRIATE BACKGROUND

No matter what the subject of your photo, you should always choose a simple, uncluttered background that will help your object stand out to the viewer and not attract attention to the background of the photograph thus distracting from the focus of your shot. To achieve this, it is best to use single colour backgrounds or very soft patterns that do not draw unwanted attention. To make the process easier you could buy a light box or make your own.
 

 

3. LIGHT UP YOUR SET-UP

I’m sure you’ve heard that when it comes to quality photos, lighting is key. Well, it’s true. Dark photos which vaguely display the object’s silhouette without showing its key features are next to useless for your readers. Truth is, if you’re reviewing an item that could be bought in stores, the readers can just as easily look the image up on the internet. So why have it on your blog? Visual aesthetic. And badly lit photos are not at all aesthetically pleasing.

Most bloggers would swear by natural lighting and recommend nothing else, but if you live in the north of UK or some other perpetually overcast country, you may realise that natural light is simply not enough. In some cases, a room light will do the trick, while others you may require a video or studio light. I have a simple LED light attached to my camera that does the trick no matter what the weather outside. 
 

4. EXPERIMENT WITH ANGLES & PERSPECTIVES

Remember when I said that blog pictures are mainly there for visual aesthetic? That means you should try to make every image as interesting and attractive as possible to appeal to your readers. One way to do this is to try out different angles and perspectives of the same object. Try taking photos straight-on, from ground level, or from up top is a good place to start. Same object can look extremely different from a different angle, so find the perfect sweet-spot of your object.
 

5. FOCUS ON THE SUBJECT

Nothing says professional like a close-up with a blurred background (a.k.a macro picture). And when it comes to the blogosphere, we eat them up like candy. Lowering the aperture setting (f) of your camera will help to create a better distinction between your object and the background. Lower aperture = blurrier background. 

For even more definition to your close-up object, you could get a macro close-up lens for under £10, which I use for all of my close-ups.
 

6. EDIT YOUR PHOTOS

Editing your photos (whether you’re using filters or simply adjusting the brightness & contrast) is a quick and simple procedure that can have significant results. Next time you take a photo, try adjusting the white balance, sharpness, and brightness & contrast to improve your image. If you don’t have a photo editing program, here’s a list of blogger resources including some great photo editing websites. You can also see my step-by-step photo editing process here.
 

 

7. TAKE A LOTOF PHOTOS

Simply put, more snapshots means more choice. Your friends and family will most likely throw suspicious glances in your direction as you proceed to take 30 shots that seem to be identical, but don’t be put off; allow yourself the luxury of selecting a photo rather than being stuck with the only one you have. Remember that a slight change of perspective or a brighter light can mean the difference between an average photo and the perfect snapshot. 

8. SAVE IN .PNG & .JPEG FORMAT

Saving your photos in .png format will offer best results as it will preserve your photo resolution and avoid a pixelated finish once uploaded to your blog. However, keep in mind that .png format can often take up a lot more storage space and clog up your hosting site, as well as result in a longer load time for your blog page, so use carefully.  When it comes to my blog, I usually opt for uploading a .png cover photo (as this will be pinned to Pinterest and needs to be of higher resolution) and upload the rest in a .jpeg format, though re-upload a .png version if the previous turns out to be too grainy.

Have YOU got any other tips for taking better photos?

○ Till next post ○