Effective Blog Design

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Why does your company have a blog? Is it because that's what a social media guru or pushy online marketer told you to do, set one up? Is it because you genuinely have a really good time in your office and you want to share pictures, videos and fun editorial your staff develops with your readers? Is it because someone in your office is constantly reading cutting-edge news that he/she believes other people would benefit from? Or maybe you're using your blog to educate readers on aspects of your industry and what you do in a regularly updated and informal way.

Whatever the reason, a company blog has the potential to generate a lot of traffic to a website and build trust and interest amongst readers/potential clients. It is therefore worth designing it in a way that will draw people's attention to its most important parts, and to where they can easily find what they're looking for. Web agency Headscape's founder, Paul Boag makes a few suggestions as to how to achieve this.

1. New User Guides: Keep new blog visitors on your site as long as possible by providing them with the exact information they need. Create a guide that speaks to your readers needs. If, for instance, you are a web design agency you might create A Guide for Getting the Most Out of Your Web Presence. You could then list a few types of clients and lead them to relevant information within your website, i.e. "Are you a small business in need of a website?"; "Are you an online retailer in need of an ecommerce platform?"; "Are you looking to optimise your website?" Readers will appreciate being lead step-by-step through a process that feels foreign to them. Moreover, the information and solutions you're providing them with are your own.

2. Highlighting Feature Posts: Typically the homepage of a blog is a chronological list of its most recent posts. Why not amend this to include most popular posts or older posts that deserve being featured again? Recent posts aren't necessarily the ones you'll want your readers to be focusing all of their attention on, with a slight design adjustment you can decide what is emphasised. Moreover, it is well worth including a 'popular posts' section within your sidebar.

3. Related Posts Plugins: Related posts might be the most common way of encouraging users to explore your archive. By embedding this plugin into your blog structure, you are increasing the chances of readers staying on your site longer and engaging with your content more.

Clearly, having an effective blog requires more than a strong content strategy. When it comes to the web, it's important not to leave readers to their own devices, if you want results, you'll have to help lead them to where you want them to go.

About the Author:
Adaptive Consultancy is a London-based digital agency specialising in web development, design, ecommerce and internet marketing. Services include SEO, paid search, email and social media marketing. More on web design and marketing visit http://www.adaptiveconsultancy.com/website-design



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