Turn Your Blog Into A Perpetual Valentine | Put A Little Love In Your Blog

Custom design graphic by Evan Austin
Custom design graphic by Evan Austin

Valentine’s Day is over but that doesn’t mean you can’t turn your blog into an everlasting valentine.

“Think of your fellow man. Lend him a helping hand.” (The opening line to the song in the video at the end of this post)  Do give a listen!

So how can you put a little love in your blog by lending a helping hand?

  • Answer questions from your commenters.
  • Share useful resources.
  • Craft “How To” posts.
  • ASK your readers what they need help with.
  • Create a tab that lists your products and/or services.
  • Let readers know you are open to guest posts.
  • Write a tutorial post.
  • Share case studies.
  • Provide a way for people to contact you.
  • Express your interest in joint ventures.
  • Create clear C.T.A.’s (Calls To Action)

Continuing with the lyrics from Al Green and Annie Lennox …

“Take a good look around. And if you’re lookin’ down, put a little love in your heart (blog).”

Everyone has rough patches in their lives — personally and professionally.  At least I haven’t met anyone who’s escaped them!  Solopreneurs, especially, can feel isolated and sometimes downright lonely. 

So how can you help people to start lookin’ up when they’re feelin’ down?

  • Tell stories about how you’ve overcome obstacles.
  • Incorporate bits of humor into your posts.
  • Share inspirational quips, videos, photos, articles, quotes, or cartoons.
  • Have a witty way about you?  Great!  Display your wit. Let it shine!
  • Lead your readers to an online gratitude journal.

Moving along in the song …

“I hope when you decide, kindness will be your guide.”

  • Don’t come off like a Philadelphia lawyer!  Strive for a casual tone and write conversationally.
  • Your online reputation matters.  Treat your readers and fellow bloggers with dignity and respect.
  • Take a deep breath (and maybe even some time out) before responding to derogatory comments.
  • Remember newbie bloggers are “new”.  They need guidance and direction, not negative criticism.

So put a little love in your blog!

“And the world will be a better place.  For you.  And me. You just wait and see.”

 

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This month, we’re trying something a little different for the Word Carnival. Instead of a topic, we’re going with a theme, and that theme is love. We hear it’s all you need. Check out all the other awesome Carnies here to catch their creative takes on this month’s theme.

  • Right there is need to love our Blog ! I’m professional a Blogger & I do love & care for my Blogs. I always do best thing for my Blog for having good ranking & polarity too.

    • Appreciate the visit, Christina, and good for you for loving your blogs! 🙂

  • Hi Melanie,
    You made me aware about my Blog to share this such a amazing post ! I understand I must need to fill love in my blog that can be good for my Blog ! I would like to full love in my blog as you have filled into your Blog. Thanks for this helpful article Melanie.

    • You’re welcome, Vivek, and thanks for dropping in to join the conversation.

  • Love your list of ways to love others on our blogs, Melanie. Plus I’m listening to “Put a little love in your heart” while I’m writing this comment. Fun!

    • I’ve always liked this song, Barb, and I’m so glad you dropped in and had some fun reading and listening!

      If you put a little love in your blog …
      It will love you back. 😉

  • Hi Mel,

    This was lovely post in your usual very creative way.

    I could appreciate all your points and there were two which stood out for me.

    One was about the guest posts. I’m starting to requests via e-mail for people want to writing guest posts at my blog, which is great. However, I need to put some information about this on my blog so that it is clear to everyone I accept guest posts. You have an open invitation to write a guest post for my blog, whenever you want!

    The other point I really liked was treating fellow bloggers and readers with respect. Without their support it would be difficult for us to keep going.

    Thank you.

    • Talking about guest posts, Hiten …

      I really enjoyed your recent guest post on the topic of “Mentors” over on the Inspiring Citizen blog. You hit all the highlights and covered all the essentials. Great post!

      Thank you for dropping in to join the conversation and you’ve brought up an excellent point. I’m in the same boat as you and I need to get off my duff and create a blog tab letting my readers know I’m open to guest posts.

      However …

      The most important information I will need to include is CRYSTAL CLEAR guest posting “guidelines”. Myself and many of my fellow bloggers have received requests from people who want to offer up posts that are totally irrelevant (and quite frankly, SALES-Y). Yuck. Not cool.

      Ooh!! An open invitation to craft a post for your blog, you say? Thank you kindly, Hiten. That’s quite generous of you and I will take your offer to heart. 🙂

      You’re right … respectfulness counts.
      After all, without the support of our readers and fellow bloggers, we’d be blogging for ghosts. (Not that ghosts wouldn’t enjoy our posts!) LOL!!

  • Very Nice article. Though these are basic things that everyone is supposed to know and follow but its these that we so often miss or neglect and that’s what, i suppose, differentiates a good blogger from a great one! Thank you for this lovely piece of information.

  • Love this awesome advice that is so often overlooked! Great resource and reminder to us all!

    • Very sweet of you to fly by, Laura!

      I’m glad there were a few piggy morsels of advice here for you to chomp on. 🙂

  • Love these tips, Melanie! I think my favorite is that you put creating clear calls to action underneath lending a helping hand – we don’t necessarily think of it that way, but it can actually really suck as a reader to reach the end of an article or an about page and not know what to do next. It has a distinct feeling of lacking closure and leaves you feeling a little “uh, okay, what now?”

    • Happy you dropped in, Michelle!

      I’m with ya here:
      ” … it can actually really suck as a reader to reach the end of an article or an about page and not know what to do next.” TOO TRUE! I bet you’ve had that experience many times over. I certainly have.

      Gotta say Congrats! on “Rock the System” on Amazon. You go, girl!! 🙂

  • Ok I’ve got Love is all you need stuck in my head (shoot me, I never liked it) and the image of Nick’s head superimposed over the picture at the top. Did someone spike my coffee this morning?

    These are all great points, and I (blushingly) admit I need to do a bit of housecleaning on my website. I’m with Carol Lynn regarding guest posts. Another idea I’ve heard of is requiring a payment to submit their guest post.

    Oh and the DIRE call to action… I need that too 🙂

    • Oh, Nicole!

      ” … the image of Nick’s head superimposed over the picture at the top” LOL!! Yes, I think there may have been a little something “spikey, saucy, and spunky” added to your java juice. 😉

      Having someone guest post can be a bit anxiety-provoking and I’m seeing a trend lately in charging a fee to become a guest author. On the flip side of that coin, I’m also seeing bloggers who pay for guest posts.

      I loved Nick’s suggestion to craft a DIRE call to action. You need one. I need one. We all need one! 🙂

  • Rich

    Well, well my Mel,

    This post is definitely an attention grabber! LOL!! First of all, I love the way you captured the February theme, by putting your post in the framework of a love song. This simple, clever idea makes people curious to want to read the content, and it makes it memorable. The message is clear to me. Show that you love what you’re doing, make others love what you say and reciprocate. Great post once again, honey!

    Secondly, this graphic from Evan is a bit out there, but that’s exactly the reason I like it. I’m not a blogger but I could see someone who is, identify with this. Every time you put the words on the page, you put yourself out there. Naked and exposed. Another way to look at it is, a blogger must have a total, naked attachment and commitment to his blogging “tool”. LOL! I always enjoy the interesting ways you present your posts, my Mel, and this one is no exception.

    Your Rich
    143!!

    • Thanks for joining the conversation, my Rich!

      The “Big Hairy Audacious Goal” in blogging (and business) …
      “Show that you love what you’re doing, make others love what you say, and reciprocate.” You nailed it!

      Since this month’s Word Carnivals theme is “Love”, I couldn’t resist calling upon music to be my guide in crafting this post. I love, love, LOVE music! (Of course, you already know that about me) 😉

      Glad you like Evan’s illustration. Me, too. He really captured the essence of putting a little love in your blog. His attention to detail and his right-brained talent are unsurpassed. 🙂

  • Great song, art Evan and blog advice tie in. Brilliantly creative. Of all the great advice in this post, the ones that will change my practices are sharing inspirational stories and asking readers what they need help with. I needed that reminder.

    • Hi Clare!

      Many thanks for your beautiful compliment. 🙂

      Glad to hear you’re planning to share some inspirational stories and questioning your readers about what you can help them with!

  • Love how you have integrated the lyrics of the song Mel, I couldn’t help but sing most of your post to myself, which is a really great way to hook your reader!

    Your second list which speaks to vulnerability is so vital. We are as always reaching out to connect with one another. LIke you said the Philadelphia lawyer isn’t going to crack that nut!

    Great summation of all we need to do to love our blog and have others love it back, a little like that luscious lady of Evan’s!

    • Thank you, Sandy!

      Tea was alluding to “standing out” and I’m a fervent believer in constantly striving to find new ways to “hook” readers. And since there are millions upon millions of blogs these days, it’s not exactly easy to accomplish.

      You, me, and Sharon make a nice trio as we sing along to this post. 😉

      Evan did a bang-up job, didn’t he?! I had NO idea what to expect and was totally surprised to see his illustrative interpretation of “putting a little love in your blog”. 🙂

  • Ok first of all, someone’s getting a little friendly with that computer, hm?? I wonder who drew that!

    I love to hear people tell stories. It makes things a lot more relatable and interesting, rather than one of those droning this-is-this-and-that-is-that posts.

    Although I might have to dissent on the guest posts… I just recently took that off my blog because I was getting inundated with pure junk. I’ll invite the good people to guest post instead! When all is said and done, I want to spread love where it’s due!

    • I hear ya on the “dissent” on guest posts, Carol Lynn!! I’ve been approached by some seedy individuals over the years whose content I would only post on a “Wanted for (you fill in the crime)” sign. UGH.

      I love your idea to “invite good people” to guest post. And we’re blessed to have a doggone hefty pool of those good people housed right inside the Word Carnival group. 🙂

      Your comment about loving to hear stories immediately brought to mind, “Facts tell. Stories sell.” And it’s true. Who doesn’t like to get roped into a good story?!

      Evan pushed the (graphic design) envelope this time, didn’t he? He’s one of the most eclectic, creative, and super talented designers out there! 🙂

  • I’m not sure where evan got that photograph of me… but that’s exactly what I did when I bought my first Mac.

    The thing that you’ve hinted at throughout this entire post is that you have to put yourself out in front of your blog audience. If they don’t make that personal connection with you, all bets are off. That’s one thing that I used to do really well, I don’t so much anymore but just because I don’t want to shock my audience with too many rebrands at once.

    I got caught up in the whole trend of marketing yourself under your business name having been marketed for three years under “I Am Nick Armstrong” with WTF secondary, which actually is a good idea for me because my business name is catchy.

    The moment I switched over, my conversion rate shot through the roof. Go figure.

    The other thing that really caught my eye here was this: Create clear C.T.A.’s (Calls To Action) — yes, absolutely, and not just Clear calls to action, but well-worded, directly-targeted calls to action. Make them DIRE to click on your C2A, like if they went without it, they’d surely perish.

    Awesome ideas in all, Melanie! 😀

    • Hey Nick

      “WTF” is, undeniably, a “catchy” business name! Stands for “Wednesday, Thursday, Friday”, right? The days of the week you do work for your clients?? 😉

      Hitting the nail …
      ” … you have to put yourself out in front of your blog audience. If they don’t make that personal connection with you, all bets are off.” You can bet your boots on that! (Those cowboy boots you wear)

      You said a mouthful …
      ” Make them DIRE to click on your C2A, like if they went without it, they’d surely perish.” BINGO!!

      So now I’m trying to picture you naked hugging your first Mac. LOL!!!

  • Love the list, Melanie, and I was singing along, too.

    • Good to hear that, Sharon. I’m singing right along with ya! 🙂

  • This is a great list, Mel (and a fun one). evan’s illustration is certainly eye-catching, too! You always know how to make things stand out, don’tchya?

    • LOL!! Evan’s illustration certainly is “eye-catching”, Tea. 😉

      Standing out in the blogosphere is the ever-lovin’ goal! And if you pour some love into your blog, maybe … just maybe … that love will help you stand out.

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