One of the questions that keep on coming up in blogging forums is the one on the right tone to use. Should blog posts adopt formal, serious tones like newspaper articles? Or should blog posts adopt more casual (and therefore less serious) tones?

The truth of the matter is that different tones are appropriate for different types of blogs. This is to say, in other words, that we don’t have a one-size-fits-all recommendation, when it comes to blog posts’ tone. There are some types of blogs that should adopt serious/formal tones. There are other types of blogs that should adopt less serious/casual tones. The main consideration here is therefore that of what the blog deals with. And what would be an ideal tone for a medical blog may not be the most ideal tone for, say an entertainment blog.

Therefore in making a decision on the tone to use in your blog, you first of all need to consider what the blog deals with. To use the example we have just cited above, the best tone for a scientific blog would not be the most ideal tone for a celebrity gossip blog. To drive the point home, you can take a case where you are invited to write a blog post on a technical subject (like, say, how to use the GM global connect login system). Surely, the right tone for you to use in that case would be different from the one you’d use while doing a blog post on a celebrity wedding or on an upcoming awards gala…

Further, in making a decision on the right tone to use in your blog, you need to consider who the targeted visitors for the blog are. What would be an ideal tone for a blog that is targeted at young (easygoing) college students may not be the most appropriate tone for a blog whose target audience is made up of aging (stern) professionals.

Here are some tips for people who are just getting started with blogging:

1. Manage your expectations: Whereas it is important to be optimistic while starting out as a blogger, it is also important for you to be realistic. You need to be realistic with respect to things like how long it would take you to establish a good blog, how long it would take for the blog to attract a decent audience and how long it would take for the blog to start earning you money. Otherwise you would be setting yourself up for great disappointment.
2. Blog about topics that you are passionate about: You are more likely to be successful as a blogger if you focus on topics that you are truly passionate about. These would be topics that you can comment authoritatively on. Remember, at its core, blogging is all about giving commentary on various issues.
3. Blog about things that people are searching for: This is where things like keyword research come into play. If you want your blog to eventually get a lot of traffic, you need to ensure that you are blogging about topics that people are actually searching for. This, of course, can come into conflict with the second tip above – like where you find that the topics people are searching for are at odds with the topics that you are truly passionate about. For instance, your research may reveal that people are interested in knowing how to use the prepaid cards portal, at www.prepaidcardstatus.com. Yet, as per your passion, you would rather be blogging about fashion or about cooking issues… It can be a bit hard reconciling between blogging on what you are passionate about and blogging on the topics that people are searching for. But it is a challenge you have to tackle, one way or the other.
4. Know who your target audience is: It is only after identifying your target audience that you would be in a position to figure out the specific topics you are to blog about. You can then also figure out the style you are to use in your blog posts.
5. Set realistic targets for your blog: In this regard, you need to figure out how much time you will be (realistically) spending on the blog per day. And how many blog posts you will be (realistically) making per day. And how many social media posts you will be (realistically) making to promote your blog per day… and so on.
6. Monetize your blog in the right manner: You need to undertake some research, to understand what monetization options are available to you, and what the pros and cons to each of these monetization options are. You then need to ensure that you monetize your blog in the right manner, and at the right time (for instance, after starting to get adequate traffic).
7. Know how to get traffic into your new blog: You have to understand that building a blog is just half the equation. The other equally important half is that of getting people to start visiting the new blog. So you need to understand what your options for getting traffic into your blog are. Then ensure that you put in the necessary effort, to eventually start getting decent numbers of visitors to your blog.

Last night, I was browsing through a bloggers’ forum when I came across an interesting question. Someone was trying to find out whether it is sensible to pay blog web hosting fees using a Target gift card. I found the question interesting because it was so unique. I mean, most of the questions posted in the forum tend to be on technical issues or blog monetization issues. This was the first time I was coming across a question on blog web hosting fees payments.

Most of the people who responded to the question did so by advising the person who posed it to find answers online. That is, by way of visiting the Target gift cards portal, at mybalancenow.com and the various Reddits where Target gift cardholders exchange notes. In saying that, they didn’t seem to understand what the person who was posing the question (the OP for ‘Original Poster’) was coming from. See, the Target gift cards portal is clear that you can’t use them (the Target gift cards) to pay for ‘monthly recurring bills’. So the deeper question that the original poster was grappling with was one as to whether the blog web hosting fees would qualify to be termed as ‘monthly recurring bills’. That at least is how I understood it.

If the blog web hosting fees qualify to be termed as ‘monthly recurring bills’, then it wouldn’t make sense to pay them using the Target Visa gift card. That is because, as stated earlier, the card is not supposed to be used in making such monthly recurring bills. Therefore chances are that if you attempt to make such payments using the card, the transactions could be declined.

On the other hand, if the blog web hosting fees don’t qualify to be termed as ‘monthly recurring bills’ (for instance, if you are under a web hosting package where payment is only made once), then it could possibly make sense to pay them using the card. That is because, according to the Target gift cards’ portal, there is absolutely nothing to stop you from making once-off payments using the gift card.

Lately, I have been visiting the local L Brands store whenever I wish to get ideas for my fashion blog. I am a fashion blogger, but like most writers, I often run short of ideas. Yet the blog has to be continually updated – which is what makes it necessary for me to visit the L Brands store every once in a while, in search of ideas.

One way in which I get ideas for my fashion blog at the L Brands store is by simply looking at the merchandise on display. It would seem as if L Brands has fashion researchers, who go to great lengths to identify what is ‘in fashion’ and proceed to have it stocked in the stores. There is also the scenario where L Brands acts as a trendsetter, when it comes to fashion. This is where, by stocking certain items in huge numbers, they end up pushing fashion trends in favor of those specific items. Thus by just looking at what is stocked in the L Brands stores, it becomes possible to tell what direction the fashion trends are likely to be headed.

The second way in which I get ideas for my fashion blog at the L Brands store is by speaking to the (store) attendants. The L Brands store attendants – also called ‘associates’ by websites like associateresourcesetm.com – tend to be very knowledgeable about fashion trends. That is understandable, given the fact that it is what they deal with on a day to day basis. So just having chats with them gives me solid ideas for my fashion blog.

The third way in which I get ideas for my fashion blog at the L Brands store is simply by looking at the way the shoppers are dressed. The people who visit the L Brands stores tend to be very fashion-conscious individuals (fashionistas they are called) and by just looking at them, you can gain deep insights into current fashion trends.

A question arose recently, at a blogging forum, as to whether it is proper for a L Brands employee to run a fashion blog. This is the genesis of the question: a lady who works for another clothing stores chain has set up a fashion blog that has lately become very popular. The blog is reportedly raking her thousands upon thousands of dollars in revenue. Now one of the members of our blogging forum, who apparently also works at L Brands, was seeking our views on whether it would be proper for her to set up a similar (fashion) blog.

Most of the members of our blogging forum were of the view that there is absolutely nothing wrong with a L Brands employee (or for that matter any other clothing store employee) setting up a fashion blog. The blog would only become problematic if it started taking too much of her time, or interfering with her work. But as long as she only ran the blog during her free time (as ascertained through the l brands hr access portal), there should be nothing wrong with it.

The main concern may be in the fact that running a fashion blog while also working at L Brands may be interpreted as ‘conflict of interest’. But that is surely very far-fetched, unless one happens to be selling clothes through the blog – in which case the issue of being up in competition against one’s employer would arise.

Another complication is in the fact that the fashion blog owner may not have control over the ads that appear in it. Thus, whereas she may be working at L Brands, ads for companies that are directly in competition with her employer may appear in the blog…

And finally, running a serious blog can be a time-consuming affair. She may do it during her free time, but then that is the time when she is expected to be resting and preparing for the next day’s work. So she shows up at work while edgy, groggy, not well-rested – the works. That could possibly interfere with her work at L Brands.

But in the absence of such issues, there should be (in my view) nothing wrong with someone who works at L Brands also running a fashion blog.

Blogging is a skill that everyone can learn. It just requires you to be able to write. By writing, I mean being able to connect with the ready so that they reader will keep reading and become a repeat reader. One way of connecting with the reader is by you sharing your experience or putting yourself in their shoes.