Blog Improvement Advice From Problogger Easton Ellsworth

Easton Ellsworth blogs at Know More Media, a blog network with a focus on business. He currently blogs for Business Blog Wire, an excellent blog, covering daily blogging tips and advice. He’s also a Know More Media editor, and in the past helped to to run the Know More Media Author Certification program, which was created to help bloggers improve their blogging skills.

Easton stays mighty busy. He’s been blogging since 2005. Besides his blogging and editor duties, he’s also a stay-at-home dad, and he’s writing two e-books about blogging. Whew, are you feeling lazy yet? Busy or not, he’s also a cool guy who took some time to answer some questions about blogging. If you’re looking to improve your own blog, his answers can really help.

Read the interview:

Q: Did you ever expect to be considered an expert on blogging topics, or is this a surprise role in your life?

Easton: Total surprise. There is always so much to learn and so little time that I wonder if anyone out there truly is a blogging expert. Certainly I’ve poured a lot of sweat and tears (no blood yet, thank heavens) into my blogging.

Q: At Business Blog Wire you focus often on how bloggers can improve their blogs. Do you think that most bloggers can improve their blogs?

Easton: Anyone can blog (thanks for the line, Ratatouille)! And yes, I think most (if not all) bloggers can make their blogs MUCH better, including me. Why? Because that’s the nature of the beast. Blogging is so new, and yet it’s always changing – so it’s always easy to find new things to learn and apply.

Q: How is blogging a constant learning experience?

Easton: The same way that writing and talking and listening and reading are. Blogging combines all four of those things, plus several others, so you’re really bombarded with learning opportunities. The real challenge is deciding what to spend your time improving.

Q: What are three easy blog improvements that will pack a large punch?

Easton: First, make a friendly About/Contact page, or have it be two separate pages, that makes it super easy for visitors to get to know you, and talk to you.

Second, post on a consistent schedule – for example, every weekday morning, or every Monday and Thursday. Visitors like knowing when to expect new content.

Third, leave your blog each day for a few minutes and go improve someone else’s by leaving a thoughtful comment or blogging tip with them. A little goes such a long way. I know some bloggers who have said they will never forget that I was the first person who commented at their new blog, or that something I said changed their vision of blogging. And that can happen to anybody, so get out there and help people. As you sow, so shall you reap.

Q: Can you tell us a little about your new e-book? (note: at the time I asked this, he had one book coming out).

Easton: The e-book has changed names and focus just a bit. I’ve created a website called Visionary Blogging that teaches the methods that I go through in the books. That’s right, there are now two books. The first should come out in a few weeks and is about how to improve yourself as a blogger, and the second one will come out soon after that and be about how to improve your blog in a variety of ways. I’ve poured my heart and soul into them so I hope they make a positive difference for a lot of bloggers.

Q: One item that your blog has that many blogs don’t is a disclosure policy. Your disclosure policy at Business Blog Wire is simple, in fact it’s only six words – “I will be honest with you.” Can you explain why you have this policy at your blog and also the significance of your statement?

Easton: I’m glad you found that, Jennifer! That simple declaration sums up how I feel about blogs – and perhaps especially company blogs and professional blogs. You’ve got to be sincere and real with people. Fakery is so damaging. Blogs lend themselves to relationship building, and you cannot build a good relationship where trust does not exist.

Q: What does the future hold for you as a blogger and for your blog Business Blog Wire?

Easton: More hard work, that’s for sure. I see myself holding on to Business Blog Wire for at least several more years – I feel so at home there. I see myself helping thousands of other people to learn how to blog well and improve themselves as people who blog (not just as blogging automatons). The real fulfillment will always lie in helping individuals improve and forging meaningful bonds with people through this simple tool we call the blog.

To learn more:

If you’re interested in Easton’s tips and tricks or his blogging books check out Visionary Blogging – a site chock full of good stuff already like a Blog Scorecard that allows you to rate and improve your own blog, and free blog help. You should also visit Business Blog Wire. Easton is not only a great blogger, but a nice down to earth guy offering friendly, realistic advice you can use today to improve your blog. You won’t regret visiting any of these links.