Where to Find Good Paid Blogging Advice
September 23rd 2007
Blogging has become a huge industry these days, not just in terms of design and development, but of blogging advice too. There are hundreds of blogs out there on all aspects of blogging, from writing content, to making money. There are even some on blog design! Imagine that.
Although all of that advice may be available for free, it isn't readily available. It will take you many hours of trawling to find those few gems that make it all worthwhile. Rather than wasting time sorting out the signal from the noise, you have the option of paying for some solid guidance and advice.
Anyone can pose as a consultant though, so this post is about the places where I personally would spend my money if I wanted blogging advice (No affiliate links anywhere. Just honest opinion).
Blog Consulting
I'll start with Skellie, the person who prompted this post. It may have been there all along, but today was the first day that I noticed Skellie's blog consulting page. I couldn't recommend Skellie's blog any higher. It is one place where you will always find unique, and useful advice. If you're looking for advice on content creation and building a blog that readers will enjoy, then Skellie is undoubtedly the woman for the job.
There are two other blog consultancy services which I would highly recommend. The first is Omiq, from Chris Garrett, and the second is BlogLOUDER, from Adnan. Both offer a range of different consultancy services, and both write blogs that I'm subscribed to, but I would say that Chris's specialty is creating viral content and various forms of user interaction. Adnan's specialty on the other hand is the original creation of the blog, and its underlying strategy.
Written Advice
Of course, consultancy isn't the only way to go. Another option is to purchase premium advice. The 6 Figure Blogging pack from Darren Rowse is full of money-making advice, from the ProBlogger (though I'm not sure when it was last updated).
Blog Mastermind is a more recent addition, from Yaro Starak. For a monthly subscription fee you will receive a range of articles, podcasts, videos and access to a private forum for advice. You will find adverts for this mentorship everywhere, and that fact alone would convince me that Yaro is an expert at marketing and monetizing, at the very least.
Every option listed above will provide great value to your blog, yet they will all be expensive to some extent. The option that provides the most bang for your buck would have to be the fantastic looking Blogging Tips book, by Lorelle. Whilst I haven't managed to get a copy of it myself yet, I've been reading Lorelle's blog for a long time. Knowing Lorelle, I would say that at $12 this is one of the most under priced books you're likely to come across.
What's Been Happening On Pro Blog Design?
As always with these Weekly Wrapup posts, there's a little section on Pro Blog Design news. Firstly, I've joined in Daily Blog Tips Tips and Tricks Writing Project. Out of the 122 submissions, my 5 favorite articles were:
- Top 10 Tricks for Driving Traffic Away From Your Blog, by Ben - Some surefire ways of getting rid of those pesky readers!
- 101 Tips for Better Photos, by Ciaran - A great post for anyone with a casual interest in photography.
- Is You Blog Easy to Read?, by Pat - Few things outrank legibility on a blog.
- 10 Easy Ways to Improve Your Blog Posts, by Tejvan - Some may seem obvious, but its nice to see the normal blog tips in a clear checklist like this.
- 9 Tips To Be More Creative, by CSS - What are we without our creativity? Nothing, so foster it.
Secondly, I want to get your opinion again. This time, on the Popular Posts section of the sidebar.
Most Popular Posts sections list the most popular posts a blog has ever had. However, Skellie (Yep, that Skellie) has recently given me the idea of changing this to being the most popular recent posts. On her blog, she adds a new post to the list quite frequently, and even uses images as the titles, keeping the list fresh. Would you like to see something similar here?
Twitter
September 23rd at 11:58 am GMT
Comment #1
I find the popular posts thing a tough one to call because I think I've read all your posts! However, the picture version of the list that Skellie does is very cool and I think it's a great idea. On the other hand, if someone really wants to read your popular posts they'll probably click on a link in that list whether it's got an image or not.
In terms of whether the posts are recent... seems to me everything here is recent and it might be something you need to keep in mind for the future when the blog is a bit older?
September 23rd at 12:14 pm GMT
Comment #2
Thanks for the recommendation, Michael, I really appreciate it. I'm waiting for the day when you offer paid blog customization and design advice, as I think it could be a real money-maker for you
My advice for the popular posts would be to mix up older and more recent popular posts, which is a strategy I've been using more of lately. I think that method both highlights content new visitors may not have seen while driving some extra traffic to your more recent work.
My most essential piece of advice, though, would simply be to change up the highlighted content. If it stays the same for long periods of time then repeat readers will stop engaging with it, thinking they've already read the posts. One advantage to using small images is that it's immediately clear when something has been added/subtracted, whereas it's not as immediately apparent with text.
Changing up the highlighted posts, and making it clear that you've changed it, is a great way to keep the element fresh and interesting for new (and regular) readers.
I'm looking forward to seeing what you do with it
September 23rd at 1:51 pm GMT
Comment #3
Thanks for voting for my article. It looks like you have a great blog going here; I just subscribed.
September 23rd at 7:48 pm GMT
Comment #4
I have a bunch of bookmarked blogs that I read every and this is one of them
Problogger is the BEST blog ever though.
September 23rd at 10:40 pm GMT
Comment #5
I like how Skellie uses the imagery to highlight those articles.
As for switching them around, to show recent posts, there are pros and cons. Your first-time visitors will miss your all-time popular posts, so the switching would be of more benefit to regular readers.
That being said, your regular readers are more likely to have already seen your more recent posts.
Off-topic, great choice of theme mod, Skellie.
September 23rd at 11:27 pm GMT
Comment #6
Kristarella - lol - Yeah, you've probably read everything!
Skellie - No problem, you deserved it! And thanks for the advice. I think you're right. If that section gets stale, it will be of little use to anyone, and images would certainly help prevent that.
If I stick to text, I might use a little randomness to help perhaps?
CSS - No problem, and glad you liked the blog. Hope to see you around a bit!
Warrior - Glad to hear it! And ProBlogger is a fantastic blog. Darren's a great guy.
David - That's true. Thanks for giving the counter argument. Sorry to copy Skellie completely now but, she uses a complete featured category. Perhaps that works well for new visitors also, because they can click the link and go through all of the featured posts if they want. They won't miss anything then.
September 24th at 5:03 am GMT
Comment #7
I have to say I'm with David (pleasure to be in his company), I think if i were new i would want to see your most all time popular. MAYBE if you have one that is gaining on them fast and you can tell it will be add that.. but it would be sad for a new person to miss out on a pillar post just because they joined the game late and that was an older post.
I haven't seen the images but am about to check out the blog.
I'm with skellie on you should be making money from this. I know you have stated that is not your goal... but you would be great with consulting. You have the personal skills and the knowledge. Those 2 don' always come hand in hand. I know you have helped me a lot.
September 24th at 12:10 pm GMT
Comment #8
Mommy Zabs - I see what you're saying about not wanting people to miss out on pillar articles, but I only get to list 5 articles there. They are always going to miss out on something.
For instance, the recent Trackbacks article has been popular enough to deserve being featured, but there wasn't room for it.
As for the making money, thanks for the complement. At some point I will add a Services page I suppose, and make money that way (And it would be from doing something I enjoy, which is great.
), but I don't think I'll go back to making money from adverts. At least, I'm not planning to anytime soon!
September 24th at 1:57 pm GMT
Comment #9
There has already been a lot said here, my only recommendation would be for people to do their due diligence before going with someone. As you said, there are a ton of people giving blogging advice (from the development and design side to the writing and growth side). Really look at the history of who you are considering hiring!
September 24th at 2:00 pm GMT
Comment #10
Agreed Sarah. When you're going to spend a fair bit of money, it's definitely worth taking the time to find the best value for your money.
September 25th at 6:38 am GMT
Comment #11
*This comment may seem off-topic but do read....*
I, for one, am happy to see that there are many here that supports good blog designs.
I feel at home. Adapting proper web design & web standards is at an appalling state over here in Malaysia.
I'm sure I can provide good counselling to people about blogs, web design and how to go about it but seriously, most people (in reference to where I am from) just care about monetization and nothing else.
so therefore, blog consultation on my side of the planet is virtually nil.
If I was a monetization consultant, then yes, I'll probably get a flood of contacts by now.
September 25th at 5:24 pm GMT
Comment #12
Hey Michael - I just wanted to say thanks very much for the shoutout for blogLOUDER. It's very much appreciated and to be up there with the likes of Chris Garrett, Problogger and Yaro means a lot to me.
In terms of Popular Content, I would always say to have your best posts ever displayed. In this way, your best posts won't get left in the Archives, and you can show-off to new visitors and entice them to subscribe and stick around. Good luck in the Daily Blog Tips Comp as well!
September 25th at 9:36 pm GMT
Comment #13
goldfries - Over time, that will improve, thanks to people like you. There are many countries like that. My favorite example was the Philipines, where a company held a huge competition to promote SEO. Anyone in the Phillipines could enter, and they just had to make a site that would rank in the top few for the phrase ituloy angsulong (A made-up phrase!)
Seems to have been very successful, and must have raised SEO standards in the country.
Adnan - No problem, and thanks for the advice. I get the feeling this may not be the fastest decision I ever make! xD
September 26th at 5:17 am GMT
Comment #14
Interesting Michael, now it's just small companies like myself and a few friends who are pro-standards.
the big guns out there. they don't look like they're heading that direction, web design is not a luxurious industry here.
September 26th at 1:52 pm GMT
Comment #15
Someday it will be though. Especially as things become more and more globalised and companies start to consider global practises more strongly.
Plus, standards design is better. Your company will be saving time, whilst creating better, more easily manageable pages. Over time that will pay off, regardless of what other design firms are doing.
September 28th at 4:06 am GMT
Comment #16
Yup, in fact it's my selling point.
Actually, it's to my advantage if the other companies don't practise web-standards because it'll be my selling point.
I use CSS, XHTML, and avoiding tables unless necessary.
It's all good for me.
September 28th at 4:27 am GMT
Comment #17
I follow yours and Skellie's blog for good advice. And yes, you should have the popular posts thingy on your sidebar which will be beneficial especially for your newer readers (which I am sure are increasing by the numbers daily, if not weekly)
September 28th at 5:46 pm GMT
Comment #18
goldfries - Just right. If you can get across the advantages of your coding to the clients, then that should work well in your favour, as you said.
pablopabla - Thanks for the advice. I'll definitely be considering re-adding it!