1. Don’t Go Off Topic

I don’t care if that’s what you’re thinking about at the moment, you can’t suddenly starting writing about cars, or posting music videos, if your blog is about How to Blog and SEO. You confuse your readers, and distract potential subscribers, because you aren’t giving them what they expected. Doing this can have a very drastic effect on your readers, even people who are fans of your site. And just because people liked it once, doesn’t give you license to do it again. Just stay to your niche, and target readers who want what you’re giving. If you jump around too much it’s very hard to get, and keep, a consistent reader base.

2. Don’t Ramble

I realize you’re struggling with what to write, but if you don’t have enough ideas to write about, don’t try and make up for it by talking a lot. Less words is always better! Bloggers want it short, quick, and too the point. So don’t get distracted with minor points, and stick to your topic.

3. Don’t Rant

Forget about John Chow, ok and Carlocab, ok and lot’s of other popular bloggers as well. Just because some people have had success ranting doesn’t mean you can. It’s very difficult to make people care about your rants, because you need to be somebody first. Very few people rant their way to success. But when you have success, then you’re allowed to rant though I wouldn’t recommend it… A post is supposed to be an informative article like a newspaper article. Decide before you create your blog if you’re going to make it into a ranting blog, or a information sharing blog, and then stick to it. Don’t try and mix the two.

4. Don’t Bring your Issues Into It

I’m sorry you’re really struggling with something, or annoyed with somebody, but to be perfectly honest, We Don’t Care. I’m sorry you’re hurt, but I’ve got my own life to live. That sounds harsh but if you want to keep your readers, then just follow my advice. If you want to Rant or Complain, then make a political opinion blog, or a personal journal blog. And then say whatever you want, but don’t bring your life struggles into an information blog, because people just get turned off.

5. Don’t Settle for Small Unoriginal Posts

If you’ve got nothing to say, then don’t waste our and your time trying to say it. Stop trying to write, and go figure out an idea, and then come back and write it. If your post is under 300 words or if it doesn’t state any new thing new or original, then it’s probably not worth posting. Be strict with what you post, you will see results.

6. Don’t Pitch Old News

If you’re writing a post that has already been made popular by some one else, then don’t try and jump on the success band wagon. Not only will you probably fall on your face, but you look dumb trying to sell somebody else’s idea. You’ll lost all your credibility, and people will not want to read your site.

I’m assembled these ideas into a Bullet List post for you to follow. Print it out and make a sticky note, and put it next to your computer or something. They will keep you from making your bad day even worse, by losing your visitors from your blog.

1. Stay to your Niche

2. Stay to your Post Topic

3. Keep your head

4. Don’t let feelings shape your posting

5. Don’t waste the Readers time with uninformed Posts

6. Don’t try to sell Old Information

There will always be those days when you’ve just got nothing. You think but nothings coming to you, and you sit their scratching your head thinking, “what can I post?” First of all don’t get frustrated, that’s just a part of blogging life, those days will come. The off internet life often can upset us, or take our minds away from blogging, that’s not uncommon. But you can’t just leave your blog for a month while you recover from losing your girlfriend. The question is, how can you get inspiration to write again, even when you aren’t in the mood.

Remember, a poorly written post is worse then not posting at all.

1. Make a List Post

Find some topic that people in your niche want to hear about, and create a list on it. Bloggers love lists, and honestly they can be the easiest posts you do. If your readers like them and they don’t take to long, then it’s a win win.

2. Check your Feed Reader

This is when a Feed Reader comes in handy, as opposed to using email subscriptions, you can go through all the posts very quickly. If you are at all serious about blogging you should be subscribed to at least 30 similar blogs, and reading them as consistently as you can. This is essential for several reasons but right now I’ll only go into one. It’s a great way to stimulate ideas. See what the other bloggers in your niche have been writing about, this should give you some ideas.

3. Check the top pages of Digg and Google Trends

there are lots of sites that can tell you what’s popular now. check out a few of them, and see which ones you could write about. Now don’t just be a copy cat writer, but if it’s the big thing in your niche, you should probably cover it.

4. Check all the most Popular Blogs in your Niche

In case you aren’t subscribed to them, check the popular bloggers. Most of these guys post every day and so I’m sure they’ve been where you have been. If you read their homepage and nothing clicks, try reading through the archives a little. I’m sure you’ll find an idea eventually.

5. Try emailing your Blogger friends

Again I’m sure they’ve been in the same place, see what sparked an idea for them.

6. Think of something you or another blogger did that you really liked

Maybe a Poll, or review, or series of posts, whatever it was, try and remember one you really enjoyed. Now don’t copy it, but sit down and try and think of a way you could twist it to make it original. If it was successful then your idea can probably succeed as well.

7. Do a Picture or Video post

Pictures say a thousand words, and videos are okay to copy from youtube. So find a youtube video related to your niche and post it, then write a few words below it. This way you can still post and give information, and get another 24 hours to brainstorm.

8. If possible Deal with the issue bugging you

This will rarely be an option, but if it’s an issue you can deal with, stop blogging and fix the issue, and then come back and write. If it’s something you can do, then get that done first.

9. Look at your Past Posts

Especially your most recent ones. See if any of them can be made into a part two, or even into a series. If you analyzed something, maybe you can start that into a weekly tradition or something at your blog.

10. Come up with a potential Word or Phrase

Say you want to write about making money blogging. Type into Google lists about making money blogging. If that doesn’t come up with anything change the wording around a little. Check out other lists on the subject, and see if you get inspired with anything.

11. Have a list of Potential Ideas

Don’t wait until the day of to write your post, plan ahead! Start a list of post ideas now, so that when the time comes you can look through a list and pick your topic.

With guest posting you can achieve large amounts of traffic, and links, without too much effort. But the question is, how can you maximize the great potential of guest posting, I’ve written up a list of guidelines, hopefully these can guide you in the process.

1. Guest post on the right Blogs
This is an essential guideline. If your blog is about hot dogs and sausages, don’t write on an animal lovers site. Find sites similar to yours, that have a similar audience. If you don’t know what sites those are, then ask your readers what other blogs they read. For me, in the SEO blog niche, there are dozens of great sites at my disposal. So I could not write a post a month that will generate a steady stream of traffic for a couple years. By guest posting on like minded blogs, and for like minded readers, your chances of having them like your site are greatly increased. I’ve found some of my favorite sites through guest posts that their owners did, so it definitely works. And keep in mind, shoot for the highest. Try and write on the most popular site you can, what’s the worst that could happen? You can always try for lower sites, but if you aim high, then maybe you’ll get a lucky break with a popular blog, and this will help the article be a lot more successful. If they reject your article, you can always send it to another blogger.

2. Make it an Original Post
If you are going to write a guest post, make it a new post. This is a huge chance for your site, especially if you’re doing it on a popular site. Not only are you advertising your site to all of that site’s readers, you are also advertising to that blog’s author. If they like it, then they will probably add links to your posts in the future. I’ve seen a lot of guest posts, that people already wrote on their blogs, and then reposted on another persons site. That is a very bad thing to do for a few reasons, mainly because you are cheating that blog owner, and also you are hurting both of your blogs. This is considered duplicate content, and so both of your sites will be penalized. That’s not really fair to hurt the nice guy who gave you the opportunity of writing on his site, is it? No, so be fair to him and to his readers, write a new post. *For most bloggers this is a requirement anyway.*

3. Make it a Quality Post
Take the time to make it a good article. Don’t write about the first thing that pops in your head, but take a couple days formulating your ideas and putting it together. Remember, this is a big signpost pointing back to your site, so make it as big, and cool, informational, and enticing as you can. The goal is to get people to click through to your site, so make them want to click through. It only helps them. Write a good semi-long post. Two to three paragraphs are not long enough for a guest post.

4. Make it Enticing
There are several tricks that will help your post be noticed. First, use pictures. Everybody loves when they can see what you’re talking about. Second, use bold and italicized for the important points, because these really help them stand out. Third, use lists and numbers. Make a title like, Top Three ways to… or 25 tips on… Everybody likes these types of articles (mostly because they are lazy). And finally, be as bulleted as you can. Nobody wants to read a five page blog post that should have really been a one page article. But if you can write a five page article that is to the point, and that tells people what they need to hear, then you have a winner article.

5. Guest post a lot!
Whether you are starting a new blog, or have been running one for a while, set up guest posts opportunities. Start emailing the bloggers you read, ask them if they are open to it. Most likely they will be willing, but only if you give them a really good article. Set it up so that you can do one guest post a week. Commenting is considered one of the top ways to grow a site organically. I believe that Guest posting can be just as good, if not better. It’s faster, and more people will see it and it will be on there forever – all bonuses that comments don’t give. Now don’t get me wrong, they are both great strategies, so hopefully you will be able to implement both of them.

6. Give them a reason to come back to your site
I would not recommend putting a link back to your site if you don’t already have great content on your site for those who click through to read once they get there. If I read a pretty awesome guest post, I would assume that the author was a pretty decent writer, and probably has articles that are just as good on his own site. If I get there and find our differently, I will be very disappointed. And so will your readers if you don’t have anything to give them.

7. Link to the Guest Post from Your Blog
If a blogger is going to be nice enough to let you write on his blog, then at least give the guy a link. Write a short post about how you just wrote a guest post on some site, and tell your readers to check it out. This helps both you and the other blogger our, because the blogger gets some visits on his site, and you get more publicity for your article. Also, if it was a good, successful article that helps the blogger out, then most likely he’ll be open to letting you guest post again.

8. Put Keywords in the Post
Find out what the keywords are for the blog your writing on, and add them subtly in your post. However, don’t keyword spam! This is just another way to make you more valued as a guest poster. You help everybody out, and everybody likes that. Don’t just rave about how good your site is, nobody likes that. If you help everybody out, then everybody will like you better.

9. Add a Paragraph at the end Thanking the Blog Owner
Swallow your pride, and write a few sentences thanking the owner for letting you post. Don’t over do it, but thank him in a few words. If you don’t want do this in the actual post, maybe you can do it on your blog. In that post I told you about earlier. The one that you were supposed to write to link to your guest post. C’mon, you didn’t forget already, did you?

10. Set up your Site in Preparation
Most likely, you will receive a sudden flood of traffic. So make sure you have two things in place. First, set up a big RSS subscribe button, so that you’ll get more readers from this increased traffic. Second, make sure you have one of your top posts as the one they read. The best strategy, is probably to write a brand new post the day your guest post gets put up. That way you have fresh content for everybody. Make sure you have a very informational post, because that is going to be your way to make the new readers stay. You have one chance to get them to come back, don’t blow it!

Bonus! Consider setting up WP Super Cache if you guest blogged on a very popular site, because you will see a spike in traffic. The last thing you want just when you are seeing a rapid influx of traffic is for your server to go down due to bandwidth limitations or anything like that.

So there you have it.

Community Discussion

Did we miss anything? What are your guidelines for guest posting? Have you ever guest posted? Sound off in the comments with any and all experience. (or lack thereof )

These are 10 of the top SEO tools the we use everyday on clients websites to get maximum results from our search engine marketing campaigns.

1. Compete Site Analytics- Compete gives you accurate data of monthly unique visitors to a website. This is extremely useful for competitive analysis of competitors, and also sizing up a prospective clients site for an SEO proposal. We have found it to be very accurate when we compare with Google analytics, or AWstats.

2. Google analytics- Every serious SEO or webmaster needs to be running Google free analytics software on their sites. The point of SEO is not rankings, or page rank its visitors! Stop guessing and start making statistically informed SEO decisions so that your effort can go into the things that are paying off.

3. SEOQuake Toolbar- This Firefox plugin is one of my favorite SEO tools at a glance I can see a site Page Rank, backlinks, Alexa ranking, domain age, and keyword density. The best part is it’s free.

4. Multiple Datacenter Search- Honestly Google does so much in the way of personalized search, geolocation, etc. that it can be hard to get the straight dope on where your ranking. The multiple datacenter search will show you search results for multiple google data centers so you can get a better feel for your rankings.

5. Wordtracker Firefox Plugin- If your like me you love Firefox for all the great extensions! One such extension is the Wordtracker Firefox Plugin you can see search volumes for search phrases on the fly without leaving your current page. Not as accurate as Google but great for naming Blog posts and making quick keyword decisions.

6. Google Keywords- The best overall free keyword research tool in my opinion. You can quickly be given hundreds of keyword suggesstions by entering keyword phrases, or by entering yours or competitors web address. This tool will show you monthly search volumes for each key word or phrase, and all suggested keywords can be exported to csv.

7. 301 Redirect Checker- 301 are useful for two reasons first so that search engines don’t see http://yoursite.com and www.yoursite.com as two sites. Also if a page moves the page rank can be reassigned to the new page through a 301 redirect. Make sure 301 redirects are set up correctly with this tool.

8. Yahoo Siteexplorer- Google notoriously under reports backlinks, and only gives you a sampling. With site explorer you can see what backlinks you have, and even better you can see competitors backlinks, and use those sites in your link building efforts. The best part is that it will export to a tab separated values file that can used in Excel.

9. XML Sitemap Generator- XML sitemaps are important to get your pages quickly indexed in a few minutes this tool will index your site up to 500 pages, and generate an xml sitemap. Be sure and sign up with Google Webmaster, Yahoo Site Explorer, and Bing Webmaster Center to tell these services the location of your sitemap.

10. Google Position Checker- With this tool you can see what position you rank in Google for a particular keyword up to the first 1,000 results.

Bonus! Backlink Builder- This tool searches your submitted keywords for sites that accept links directories etc.

Please take note, some SEO plugins can conflict and give you duplicate information, which is not good. So please, pick your favorites and stick with them. (Those that WILL conflict will be noted in their description.)

We all know that “Content is King,” but if your content can’t be found, it won’t be a help to anyone. But be honest with yourself, do you really want to spend hours on end on SEO? Don’t worry – you won’t have to if just let these plugins go to work for you while you focus on the main thing, and that’s content.

1. The Thesis Theme- Yah, yah, yah I know it’s not a plugin, but if your serious about SEO you’ll look into the Thesis Theme. The Masters have run head to head testing against other WordPress themes, and Joomla sites in the several niches, and there is absolutely no comparison. All other factors being equal, Thesis will trounce a basic WordPress or Joomla installation when it comes to SEO. The secret is how it divides the code related to content, and design so search engines see clean, indexable code.

2. Google XML Sitemaps – This plugin will generate a XML sitemap for Google, Bing, Yahoo and Ask.com which allows to index your posts faster my favorite part is the fact that it pings each service when new content is added. This is a definite must have for those serious about SEO make sure to sign up with Google Webmaster, Yahoo Site Explorer, and Bing Webmaster Center to tell these services the location of your sitemap.

3. HeadSpace2 – This plugin allows you granular control over meta-data, such as tags, titles, descriptions, etc. You can also use this to add specific JavaScript and CSS to pages for various analytics software. Headspace automatically suggests tags for your posts and allows you to create custom titles and descriptions that can improve your page ranking and indexability. (This WILL conflict with All in One SEOd and Meta Robots.)

4. Redirection – For any number of reasons you sometimes need to move a page from one spot on your blog to another, but if not done correctly you risk losing that pages status in search results.  The Redirection plugin saves you time and headaches with 301 redirects, it captures a log of 404 errors so you can work on correcting them, and sets up an RSS feed for errors.

5. All in One SEO Pack – One of the most popular plugins of all time for WordPress, this plugin SEO swiss army knife from helping choose the best post title and keywords, to helping you avoid duplicate content and more. If your running Thesis this may be a little redundant as it handles alot of the same features. (This WILL conflict with Meta Robots and Headspace.)

6. Automatic SEO Links – Ever looked up from Wikipedia and realize you’ve been reading for like an hour that is because of their thorough interlinking between articles. Interlinking has two benefits it will spread link juice deeper into your site, and also it will make your site more sticky as users more easily can find key content. Automatic SEO Links allows you to choose a word or phrase for automatic linking, both internal and external, set anchor text, and choose if it should be “nofollow” or not.  One of the best features of this plugin is that it will only do this for the first occurrence of a word in a post so you don’t look like your just spamming.

7. SEO Slugs – Using your entire post title as the slug for an article can make web addresses to long and throw useless keywords into the mix .  The SEO Slugs plugin strips out all of the common, unnecessary words from the permalink to save you time.

8. Nofollow Case by Case – Because of the democratic nature of the web thanks to Google every vote (backlink) from other pages moves you up the ranks. Because of this system the Masters are big fans of DoFollow comments – it’s the blogospheres version of kissing babies. Take care of people and they will take care of you. This plugin removes the “nofollow” attribute from your comments, allowing you to share some linkluv which will encourage commenting. It can also nofollow specific comments on a case by case basis. (Hence the name.)

9. SEO friendly and HTML valid subheadings – Some themes for WordPress will confuse your sub-header tags based on the page they are to be displayed on, but this plugin will automatically reset them to make them more SEO friendly by moving them down one spot in the hierarchical tree.  In other words, h2 becomes h3, h3 becomes h4 and so on.

10. SEO Friendly Images – I have found many essential sites while using images search. Images can be an untapped source of traffic as people search for images on your niche, and this plugin helps you with making sure that you have “alt” and “title” tags on all of your images so that the search engines can properly index them.

11. Meta Robots WordPress plugin – A quick, and easy solution for adding robot metadata to any page of your choice on your blog.  You can use it to make a variety of links nofollows such as: front page links, search pages, author and dated archives,  your login page. (This WILL conflict with AIO and Headspace.)

12. SEO No Duplicate WordPress Plugin – If you must have duplicate content on your site for some reason, SEO No Duplicate allows you to select which version of a post the search engines should index while ignoring the others.

13. SEO Blogroll – If you worry that the people you link to in your blogroll are feeding off of your PageRank?  With SEO Blogroll you can make separate sections for various groupings of links, with an unlimited number in each, and all of them will receive the “nofollow” attribute.

14. SEO for Paged Comments – With the introduction of paged comments in WordPress 2.7, there was a potential problem with search engines thinking you had duplicate content as the post would appear on each page.  This plugin aims to take care of this issue for you until the folks at WordPress change things up.

15. SEO Tag Cloud Widget – Tag clouds can be a unique way for website visitors to visualize your blogs theme unfortunately they are notoriously unreadable by search engines. The SEO tag cloud widget changes all that, your tag cloud will be converted to SEO friendly HTML markup that can be indexed.

Bonus! Permalinks Moved Permanently This plugin is great for if you ever change the permalink structure of your blog. If a 404 is detected, it will take the last part of the post slug, and search your current posts for that same slug. If it finds a match, it will do a 301 redirect from the old link to the new. We used to use a custom permalink structure, /%category%/%postname%/, for our blog here but decided to remove the %category% part. I found that we were getting more 404′s than before (using Redirection) and we needed a way to get this done more effectively. Permalinks moved Permanently did what we needed. (Don added this. I tried to get him to stick with just 15, but NOOOOO. So this ones for free. lol)

One more thing, this list was inspired by Nick over at SiteSketch101. Check him out if your looking for how to blog.