What is your blog about?
Are there bigger, better-known blogs that publish content in the same general niche?
If you aren’t the biggest fish in the pond, people are very skeptical about the quality of your content.
They won’t care about you unless you give them a really good reason to.
And they certainly won’t subscribe to your blog if you don’t know how to communicate your value proposition.
What Makes You Special?
When you come to a new blog, what are your first thoughts?
If you’re like most people, your thoughts go something like this:
“What’s this blog about?
I doubt it’s as good as [blank], but let’s take a look…
Nah, nothing looks really interesting. Not worth my time.”
And then you leave.
One thing that can really help you stand out is your headlines.
If they capture your visitors’ attention and make them read your posts, you have a fighting chance of converting them to subscribers.
But your headlines won’t make much of a difference if you don’t have a strong value proposition.
Your value proposition is the collection of the most compelling reasons people would read your blog and subscribe to it.
For example, your blog might be the only one that offers information about a specific topic.
Maybe it combines two topics in a new and interesting way.
Or maybe you make expert-level advice easy to understand.
In any case, you need to offer something unusual to succeed.
Don’t be afraid of being the freak
If you’re not special enough to be considered a bit of a freak, you’re simply not unique enough.
Your visitors need to get a feeling that you do something only a few people do.
Or that you do it better than almost anyone else.
In most cases, it’s far easier to find a unique angle for your blog rather than convincing visitors that you’re the best in the world at what you do (even if that’s true, it’s difficult to prove).
There are several ways you can make people notice your specialty.
But before you can use any of them, you need to know what your specialty is – your value proposition.
You’re likely to already have all the necessary pieces for a strong value proposition, but maybe you haven’t realized what they are.
If you need help figuring out what makes people interested in your content, take a look at this quick 5-step system for finding the core of your value proposition (it’s free).
When you know what your specialty is, it’s time to make it shine.
The tools you have
Once you know what can make your visitors pay attention to you, you need to show it.
Otherwise it won’t make a difference to your success.
And you have a lot of tools at your disposal.
Here are just a few of the most important ones:
Your tagline
Your tagline needs to give visitors a clear idea about what they can find on your blog. And it should tell them what makes your blog different from other similar blogs.
For example, “BIG traffic ideas for small marketing budgets” gives people a clear idea of what Traffic Generation Café is about, and why you should pay attention to it.
Your headlines
(all of them, not just post titles)
People rarely use headlines to communicate their value proposition, yet most visitors only read your headlines, so they’re ideal for telling readers what makes you unique.
Your posts
If you write about a common topic and don’t make it somehow very unusual, people have no reason to think you’d be anything but normal.
And people don’t want to read yet another “normal post about a common topic.”
Your “about” page
It’s one of the most important pages in a blog (often the second most visited page).
If it doesn’t clearly tell visitors what makes you different and why they should stick around, you’re practically kicking them away.
Your byline
At the end of each post, you’re likely to have a small blurb about what you do.
Make it count.
Don’t just say, “John Doe writes a blog about blogging. Get his ebook about blogging.”
Instead, give people a reason to believe you’re not just like everyone else.
Common pitfalls
Of course, as with so many other things, having the tools is different from knowing how to use them.
What if you believe you’re doing everything right, but you’re not seeing the results you’re after?
You’ve probably made one of the typical mistakes I see people make all the time.
Being a generalist
People aren’t stupid.
However they’re not mind readers either.
Don’t expect them to guess what you mean. Instead, make your specialty clear.
For example, more than 50% of taglines hardly tell visitors more than the general topic of the blog.
It should state what makes you different.
- “Lose weight quickly,”
- “Marketing tactics for bloggers,” and
- “Design tips for beginners”
…are all vague taglines.
They don’t give visitors any reason to believe the site is unique and worth their time.
- “Plant-based diets for lasting weight-loss,”
- “Taking your blog from 0 to 1,000 subscribers,” and
- “Expert design principles and ideas for new illustrators”
…all describe the blog in much more detail.
They don’t just make a vague promise. They give you a reason to stay on the site and learn more.
Basecamp does a great job being specific:
Marketing talk
It’s very easy to go overboard with your claims.
Calling your blog the “best” in any way is likely to sound like an exaggeration; it’s “marketing talk.”
- “The best way to lose weight,”
- “The most effective marketing tactics for bloggers,” and
- “The best design tips for beginners”
…all sound presumptuous.
People probably won’t think you’re lying. They just don’t believe it’s quite true.
And they won’t remember it for more than a few seconds.
So, avoid superlatives when you describe what makes you worth paying attention to.
No proof
Even if you have a great value proposition - one that gives visitors a great reason to stick around and subscribe to your blog - it won’t make a difference if you can’t prove it’s true.
Even a promise that sounds possible won’t be believed if there’s nothing to prove it.
So, before you start telling people why they should read your blog, consider whether you can prove your words.
A claim that has nothing to back it up is weak.
And people can smell that a mile away.
They won’t necessarily consciously notice the lack of proof.
They just don’t believe what you say. And they won’t read your blog.
For example, I avoid making claims about my site, my services, or myself.
Instead, I show testimonials from experts.
That way I don’t have to find proof for my own words, which are always scrutinized.
Your Turn
What makes your blog worth reading?
And can you back up those reasons? Do you have testimonials, studies, or the expertise to be believable?
Use the comments to tell us.
And if you have a question, don’t hesitate to ask.
Peter Sandeen
Peter Sandeen spends much of his time knee-deep in snow (he lives in Finland) with his wife and dogs. Apart from that, he gives clear, straightforward advice on creating strong value propositions, improving your conversion rates, and building effective marketing strategies.
Sigh… back to the drawing board. Think my “About” page needs an overhaul becuz it’s just too generic.
Didn’t think of the “About” page as a marketing tool because frankly, I don’t usually visit that page on peoples’ sites; I look at the titles of recent posts and dive in to a few. But what I do or don’t do isn’t necessarily the norm.
The “About” page is one of the most visited… Thanks Captain Obvious! Now it’s time to vamp up my own a bit and give my unique selling point.
Appreciate the post, hope I see more!
Keep Stepping,
Kurt
Personally, I almost always visit “About” pages on new to me blogs - mostly to see why I should listen to anything this person says, check out their credibility. So yes, I’d say it’s extremely important, Kurt.
Hi there!
Nice writing! Wirh all the competition out there right now, the best way is to be yourself. Like what you say, don’t be afraid to be yourself!
Stand up, look around and decide what you can do a difference for the world… 🙂
Reginald
Yes to being a freak. “Unique” content is NOT about passing Copyscape. It’s about having an original idea and running with it. This applies as much on your own blog as when guest posting on somebody else’s.
Saw one of your posts with an SEO poster, David - shared with G+ crowd, hilarious! Way to be a freak… 🙂
thanks Ana Hoffman for replying but can you please give any particular idea of the problem concerned if i confirm that the content quality is good, the domain age is good and the topics concerned are mostly of the general knowledge?
I wish I could do a thorough analysis of your blog, Yogesh, but you are asking me to do something that agencies charge hundreds of dollars for. 🙂 I simply don’t have the time and resources to do it for my commentators.
thanks again ana..
I understand that!
Its okay, I shall try and find it myself.
there is a problem here regarding the amount of traffic which i am getting in my website. It is horrible. However, this may be due to the fact that i write about the topics which may not be considered that much hot in the net like the tech articles but still i should have some of them to see that.
can you please elaborate what can be the problem?
It’s just about impossible to give a quick explanation that will fix everything, Yogesh.
It can be anything from less-than-great content, poor promotion, poor traffic targeting, etc.
Peter,
Very good information you’ve shared here!
Brings a lot of clarity as to how best you can communicate your USP or distinguish yourself amongst all the other blogs out there!
No argument that social proof works wonders in earning the trust of others … especially online!
Enjoy the snow as we’re now entering into warmer temperatures here in the states!
Thanks for the tips!
TJ
I haven’t added testimonials yet. I suppose this is something I’m lacking in. I take it for granted that readers will believe what I say, but as you pointed out, they won’t necessarily think it’s true.
Time for testimonials!
Hey Anne,
Yep, and even if people already would trust you, adding testimonials won’t hurt 😉
Cheers,
Peter
I love the testimonials Anna, something I haven’t added to mine yet. I’m always afraid of bragging. I guess if we don’t - who will right? I think you have inspired me to work on my about me page 🙂 Thank you - always informative!
I think testimonials help tremendously, Lisa; as you can see, I have a couple of them in my sidebar as well.
Go for it!
Hi Lisa,
If your testimonials aren’t hype-y, people won’t think you’re bragging. At least I’ve never heard that appropriate testimonials would be seen as bragging.
Ana,
Yours are great.
I wonder if I could get one more from someone ;P
I know, I know, Peter; it’s on my list. 🙂
I think its all down to good titles. If you have good ones that people are bound to take a look a look at your site. In addition, constantly producing good content will allow you to make a mark.
Hi Shalu,
I agree to some extent. Headlines make people interested. But when they’re really good, they’re just a way to communicate your value proposition 😉
Cheers,
Peter
Standing out is important and I feel we’re all unique, though you do need to put time into each area of what your blog and website consists of in order to make the difference between no one and someone visiting your site and caring.
That’s why when I was coming up with my blog’s tagline it took me a matter of seconds because once it came to mind, I knew I had to use it.
It’s not perfect but it certainly works for now and I like it.
What do you think?
Hi Eric,
It’s really good 🙂 (Though I don’t know your business, so I can only guess. But the idea seems really good.)
Sometimes it takes seconds to come up with a good tagline. sometimes it takes weeks. And only testing will tell you what actually works (you have no idea how many times great taglines lose miserably to ones that seem worse).
Cheers,
Peter
there is a thin difference between being freak and being mad; in an effort to impress your readers you can become freak but never be mad to present such ideas that are something more than flight of fancy. It is rightly said that first castle you have to build in their air then you must bring it down to earht and make it reality.
Hi Edson,
That’s a great way to put it 😀
And you’re definitely right. Being different and interesting is very different from being plain crazy.
Cheers,
Peter
You’ve certainly given us a lot of great points to think about Peter.
I know for a fact that I am considered a bit of a freak for my views on health in my offline life but I had not thought before that I should be regarded as one for my health niche business. Time for a change I think.
I’ve never thought of putting a blurb about what I do under each post on my own blog. Is this something you advise doing?
Sandy
Hi Sandy,
Good question. I doubt there is an answer that would apply to everyone.
The goal is to have people do something after reading a post. That might be subscribing, sharing, reading more, or something else. I have an “author box” in my site, but I’m planning to test removing it. And I won’t be surprised if it proves to be an unnecessary element.
Cheers,
Peter
I used to have an author box under my posts, but ended up removing it since I didn’t see it to be converting in any meaningful way (I also had an opt-in form in it for a while) and it might’ve been distracting my readers from taking actions I wanted them to take.
Again, as Peter said, one size doesn’t fit all.
I also think for newer blogs or for blogs where your readers are just getting to know you it might be a good idea to have the author box - might build stronger credibility.
Hey Ana,
Great point about newer blogs. Will have to test that with someone 😉
This post is actually pretty funny to me when there is only one sentence in the about page and expect reader to buy something. If the about page is only one sentence then they’re definitely have not put enough time on it and just want to let readers know that this blog has an about page.
Everybody should have a detailed about page which is so important to a blog.
Thanks - Ferb
Hey Ferb,
Yeah, having any pages with only one sentence seems like a waste 🙂
Where did you find that kind of an about page?
Cheers,
Peter
A very great post. But the thing is how to personalize and apply these tactic into particular cases. People look at model of “big blogs” and try to do the same things to achieve the same results. And as I can see the main idea of the whole post, make it personal that readers can feel and know the real you. The “common pitfalls” part have clarified that so well.
Hey Anh,
So true 🙂 Just because something works for one blog doesn’t mean it will work for anyone else.
Glad to hear it helped.
Cheers,
Peter
What’s up Peter,
Excellent point. This is why I try to talk about what is IMPORTANT it’s easy to get caught up with things that really don’t matter to anyone.
This is why I write.
Hey Darnell,
Yeah, and often the things that seem important to us, don’t really make a difference to our audiences…
Cheers,
Peter
So true, Peter. Many people try to be all things to all people and are really just shooting themselves in the foot in the process!
Hey Damien,
Yup. In some circles it even has its own name: “the beginning consultants problem” 😉
Consultants are notorious about starting as “marketing” or “management” or “[some other general topic]” consultants. And they struggle to get any work. Later on, they figure out what they want to focus on, and their results change…
Cheers,
Peter
Peter,
Really great work here buddy… I love the bit about being a Generalist so many of us, especially at the beginning want to be everything to everyone.
All the best dude,
Hanley
Hey Ryan,
Thanks 🙂
And yep, I have some personal experience of that. Though, fortunately, not as bad as it could’ve been 😀
Cheers,
Peter
You outlined some very critical points for a blog and I will share this with a friend. With so many blogs, you have to stand out from the crowd like you said. Why should someone read your blog? What’s in it for them?
Hey Tom,
Yep… Standing out from the crowd is really necessary. And many people seem to forget it 🙂
Cheers,
Peter
nice one, love the speaking not to be afraid of being the freak. i recently put it in an article in this way: take your nose as your usp. show your personality, be honest to yourself, do what you love. if you do what you really love you will be good in it, and sucessful. everyone IS unique. you only have to add selling and propose yourself, honestly…
Hey Sigmundo,
That’s a great way of looking at it. And it’s really difficult to appear different from what you really are. So, why not make it your advantage? 🙂
Cheers,
Peter
That is a point that resonated particularly well with me as well.
I mean you have to stand out. If you don’t be the freak, it get caught in the crowd and don’t stand out.
You outlined some very key things that I think many people overlook.
Show your personality
Be honest to yourself
Do what you love
Right on the money.