5 Ways To Make Your Blog Look More Professional

If you’re serious about making money from your blog and turning it into a business. Then you need to make it as professional looking as possible to make a good impression on brands and potential collaborators. There is a great deal that goes into turning a blog into a business from legal issues to marketing and branding. Here are five easy ways to make your blog look more professional this week.

Get self-hosted

While your free blogging platform might have been great for the beginning of your blogging journey, going self-hosted is the next logical step for creating a professional blog. Obviously, you still need to have your domain registered with a registrar (if you don’t have one already, you can have a look at different domain registrar reviews) otherwise you won’t be able to self-host your domain. Yes, it will cost you money, but if you’re serious about running your blog as a business then this is an investment worth making. Read more about the benefits of going self-hosted and make plans to set out on your own. I have been self-hosted from the beginning and I recommend Dreamhost. They have excellent customer service and are dedicated to keeping the internet free and open to all (net-neutrality)  Click on the add below for exclusive savings on an annual plan for my readers. 

Take better photos

Blogs that are visually appealing are likely to make a better impression than those that are flat or feature a lot of text. While most of blogging is about the writing, strong visuals also help to sell your content to the reader. You want to break up long text with nice photos or graphics to make your posts look more appealing. You can use stock photos from free sources such as Pixabay but also put in a mix of your own pictures and graphics.  People read your blog to learn about you so they want to see you not some stock photo model.  You don’t even need a fancy camera to take better photos, you just need to know how to make the most of your camera and earn some tips for better phone photography to help you create stand-out blog content.

You also need to use photo editing programs. I use PicMonkey to edit my photos and create all the great graphics I have on my blog and use on all my social media.  They have a free version or you can go for the Pro-version like me for more options.

Treat it like a business

If you’re serious about making money from your blog, then you need to look the part. Check with your state about filing for a business license or incorporating as an LLC.  Open a business bank account to keep all of your income separate and create an invoice template to send for your services. Get a post office box at your local post office or you can get a business address on Wall Street or in Las Vegas with physicaladdress.com   This will mean that you don’t have to reveal your personal contact details online and it will help keep things looking professional and secure. Use your new PicMonkey account to design some stationery such as letterheads, email signatures and business cards to use consistently when dealing with potential collaborators and sponsors.  Remember to check out my entire series on Branding for more ideas about looking professional. 

Under the hood

While your blog might look great to visitors, is everything working as it should be? A slow-loading site or broken links can turn readers away, so make sure that everything works as it should. Make sure your photos are compressed so they load faster and that you don’t have any unnecessary plugins slowing your site down. While you’re at it, conduct an SEO audit of your site to make sure it’s properly designed to boost your search engine rank to help you gain more readers organically. Check your domain authority, Google and Alexa ranking, analytics, and find out who is linking to your site. Link building is absolutely necessary for a successful blog.  One of the easiest ways to link build is by joining linky parties with other bloggers. If you’re not already keeping track of all your blog stats, you need to.  

Put the hours in

If you want to turn your blog into a business, you need to start treating it like one. You just work on your blog when the mood hits if you want it to pay for itself or be an income for your family. You have to look at it like a job because that is what it is. Set yourself some working hours and learn to be better at working from home so that you can put the hours in and achieve better results.  If you want your blog to pay, you have to invest your time in it.  Blogging is not a get rich quick scheme and very few people ever make enough money from blogging to buy that Lamborghini but you can make enough to be a second income or even a first if you put the time in. The more you put into your blog, the more you’ll get out of it. Most bloggers take a couple of years before they see any real income so don’t give up. It’s an investment, not a lottery ticket. 

Blogging is a tough business, but if you’re serious about making it work you can turn it in a profitable venture. Focus on making your blog look more professional and wait as the rewards come in. Hard work really does pay off, so put the effort into your blog to make it a success.

What are some tips you want to share?