67 Blog Best Practices

Here is a list of blogging best practices that apply to business blogs. If you're just starting out with a blog, these tips may save you a lot of time - and perhaps a little heartache as well. If you already have a blog, please let us know if you have additional tips or see items here you beg to differ with.

Strategy

1. Define your target audience(s) as precisely as possible
2. Decide whether blog will be primarily informational or editorial in nature
3. Determine a writing style: formal, informal, controversial, etc.
4. Establish broad topic categories
5. Articulate how your audience will benefit from reading your blog
6. Determine what action(s) you want visitors to take after reading a post
7. Define your commenting process: Will comments be allowed, will they be moderated in advance of publishing, etc.
8. Establish a commenting policy to set ground rules for what constitutes appropriate discussion
9. Ensure that writers and editors understand legal and corporate policy guidelines for issues such as confidentiality, libel, etc.
10. Create an editorial calendar detailing post frequency, the category of each post and a topic
11. Articulate goals to serve as measurements of success
12. Identify metrics to associate with each goal

Design and Functionality

1. Select either a two-column or magazine style format
2. Avoid dark background/light text color schemes: too hard to read
3. Make sure font size is readable for your target audience
4. Set up RSS subscription feed
5. Set up email subscription feed
6. Create a unique email address from which to send email subscription emails
7. Create a name for your feed that is clear and memorable
8. Add social media links to company Twitter page, Facebook page, etc., to sidebar or header
9. Place RSS and email feeds high on the blog sidebar
10. Set up a post category block on the sidebar
11. Set up an archive block on the sidebar
12. Set up a recent post block on the sidebar
13. Make sure post title links are clickable
14. Make sure author name(s) appear as desired on blog post home page and permalink page
15. Set up comment subscription capability if comments are allowed
16. Do not require readers to login in order to leave a comment
17. Add socialization buttons at top and bottom of each post
18. Important socialization buttons (as of this writing) include Twitter, Facebook Like, Google+ and StumbleUpon
19. Display 7-10 recent post excerpts on blog home page
20. Never assign more than one category to a post
21. Configure permalink URLs to display the post title
22. Make sure anchor text color is clearly visible
23. Check styling of H tags, block quotes and image captions for readability
24. Thoroughly test design and functionality (in all popular browsers) before going live

Search Engine Optimization

1. Train all writers and editors in SEO copywriting
2. In the editorial calendar, assign at least one keyword phrase to each post
3. Have an SEO specialist determine optimum word counts for posts
4. Include primary keyword phrase in the post's meta title and H1 title tag
5. Include keyword phrases in H2 titles and body text up to three times per phrase - if it can be done naturally
6. Add a related post plugin that displays 4-5 contextually (not randomly) related posts
7. Make sure blog platform allows for customization of URLs, meta titles and meta descriptions
8. Always optimize image titles and file names
9. Seek to optimize image ALT descriptions and captions
10. Avoid tags and multiple categories assigned to a post, as they create duplicate content issues
11. If an extensive blogroll is desired, place it on a unique page rather than on the blog sidebar: too many outbound links can dissipate authority

Writing Tips

1. Blog posts can be less formal than business Web pages: write as if you are talking to a real person
2. Keep paragraphs under six lines whenever possible
3. Use bullets and numbered lists to break up text
4. Word counts of 300-500 are sufficient for most editorial and basic informational posts
5. Word counts of 500+ are fine for detailed informational posts - but the information must be valuable
6. A high impact blog post often tackles only one issue or makes only one point: avoid the tendency to say it all
7. Place images above or at the top right of the post: this positioning flows easily with the reader's eye
8. Especially for a complex post, have one or two people preview it for clarity
9. Start with your conclusion and work backwards: a good business blog post has a point

Socialization

1. Use standard socialization buttons so readers can quickly locate them and understand what they do
2. If comments are moderated in advance of publishing, make sure a system is in place to publish them quickly: slow approval discourages commentators
3. Respond thoughtfully to every comment (using common sense as a guide)
4. Learn to recognize and do not publish spam comments
5. Leave posts open-ended enough to encourage readers to expand on or react to key points
6. Conclude posts with a question or provocative statement
7. Popular posts most often shed light on complex issues, present a creative point of view and/or consolidate valuable information and resources
8. Post titles and subheads are read far more often than body text, so they should be written to attract attention and yet remain relevant to the subject matter
9. Soliciting guest bloggers is an effective method of attracting new readers and building a social network
10. Becoming a guest blogger is also effective for attracting new readers and building a social network
11. Authenticity is a key trait for building a community: it's OK to say "I don't know," or "I made a mistake."

OVER TO YOU

What blog best practices tips can you add to my list?

Do you see tips above that don't belong?