Branding is an extremely important element to the success that every serious blogger should devote time and attention to. In my experience, many bloggers don’t and are in essence wasting prime opportunities to advance their image and income simply because they neglect their brand.
Are you one of them?
What is Branding?
When somebody hears your name, do they immediately know what you represent? Your brand is that concept that people think of when they think of you. If someone doesn’t know who you are, that brand should be obvious as soon as they visit your blog.
Ways to Build Your Brand
When a visitor stops by your blog, is it immediately obvious to them what your blog is about? Do you provide a slogan or tagline that provides detail? What about images? Are you sharing images of yourself that readers can associate with your topic? What about a description or an “about page” that provides a greater glimpse of who you are and what makes you an authority on your topic?
Consider the title bar of your blog’s homepage. Does it have more than just your name in it? Does it contain descriptive words of what the site is about? If someone does a Google Search on your name are they going to find your name with your descriptive words next to it? This is an opportunity to do some “immediate branding.” Get your name associated with your topic even before they visit your site.
Once you’ve established the basics of branding, you need to remain consistent and true to the brand you are building. You’ve heard it before – “If you build it, they will come.”
This is the primary reason personal blogs, as a rule, don’t make much money. Personal blogs are generally all over the place because it reads more like journal or diary. While it’s fun, it is not a business. If I decided to start blogging on Gayla Baer dot com about my kid’s football games or my grandmother’s homemade apple butter, I’d be so off topic that it would dilute my personal brand.
If you aspire to make money with your blog, you need to focus and stay on topic. If you do go off topic, the subject matter should in some way support your brand. There are ways to go slightly off topic while supporting your brand – just think about how you can spin your post and revert it back. If you can’t, it’s probably best to avoid the post altogether.
Final Thoughts
When somebody thinks of you or visits your blog, can they immediately tell what you are about? If you’ve had a blog for some time, does your name position itself with any particular topic or niche? If not, you might want to devote a little time to developing your personal brand.
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