Yesterday, I shared a series of questions to help those bloggers seeking a little clarity when it comes to what their blog could be about.
Today, I wanted to share 3 more questions – these are not so much focused upon YOU as a blogger but upon your readers.
Hopefully they’ll also help you achieve a little clarity.
- Who are your readers?
- What do they need?
- How will they change as a result of reading your blog?
Answer these 3 questions and you will actually have a pretty good purpose statement for your blog.
You could certainly go into some real depth on each question but even doing it at a low-level will be helpful.
For example on dPS I would answer the questions as:
My readers are camera owners (who they are) who are not using their cameras to their potential (their need). Reading dPS will help them to gain creative control over their cameras (the benefit).
I shared these questions on my Google+ account a few weeks ago. Yesterday, I received an email from a blogger who set aside 15 minutes to answer them. She told me that in doing so she realised that she’d created a purpose statement for her blog which she also turned into a tagline for her blog.
Give it a go and let us know how you answer the questions in comments below.
For my computer blog, my audience consists of people looking for computer tutorials and sometimes some secret tricks. And at my blog, I try to fulfill all their computer related problems and solve all their troubles by providing some troubleshooting tips and tutorials wherever needed.
For my ‘blogging’ blog, my audience consists of people who want to make their blog better in every aspect and at my blog, I try to provide them the best blogging tips which are used by me in my blogging life too.
Hey Darren, thank you for providing me those questions.
You have to have a purpose to what you do with your blog, and the main purpose with it is to help or entertain.
Either or.
I need to add my purpose statements into the articles I write for my blog.
Thanks!
Samuel from internetdreams.com
This definitely helps to bring clarity to one’s blogging. What I come up with after answering these questions is: My readers are seeking to get more fulfillment out of life. Reading my blog will empower them to live the life they dream of.
I’m not satisfied with the wording yet, and I’m wondering if it’s still not specific enough. But in the self-improvement niche, it’s hard to get really concrete.
Sometimes I feel as if it’s just easier to blog without a specific purpose in mind, but you’re right, having a clear purpose is essential if you want to build a proper following. Thanks!
I love this! It’s so important to know who are idea reader is and then write for that person. It’s been easy for me, because my idea reader is very much like me. I created my blogging goals a year ago and it changed the course of my blog for the better. I took inspiration from Mom Bloggers who share what it’s like to be a mom, a new mom, a teen’s mom, etc, and applied that to being a dog mom and it really spoke to people who were experiencing the same thing.
I check in with my readers to make sure that they’re getting what they need by offering the chance to “suggest a topic” – I try to only do this when I can write and publish the topic within a week. It’s been another great way to meet their needs and encourage interaction.
Thanks Darren for the useful tips.
Just started a blog a few months ago to help expand my business, and I really appreciate you providing these useful guidelines, which will make my future post much more specific and detailed
Andrew.
fantastic post!
I’ll try and see whether I can really sit down and answer these 3 questions. I tell you, when I saw and read them on a first glance, I thought, “well, just 3 questions?”. But now, I’m still really thinking about how I can answer these questions.
Let me ponder more on it. I believe that this will really help me know exactly what I really want to do with my blogs.
Thanks for this post Darren.
My readers are new-to-online marketing entrepreneurs who want more clients but don’t know how to use online marketing to get there. Reading my blog will give them places to get started, goals to consider, and a feeling that it’s not as hard as they think it.
Excellent post. your three questions have summed up every thing. Why are you writing the post and for whome you are writing the post is the main thing.
Thanks
Hi Darren,
Glad you want to share your tips on dPS. Blog purpose are often confusing about what the purpose is and what readers can expect, and your guide is a practicable tips that (I believe) easy to follow
I think Blog purpose statement identifíe a project you will be facing in the near future and apply the principle of mental creation. Write down the results you desire and what steps will lead you to those results.
Thank you for sharing these three questions. They will make it much easier to create posts. Anytime I write a post, I try to put myself in the place of my readers. Thanks, great post.
Excellent approach Darren, and a position all blogger should be considered seriously. Thank you for the invaluable advice you provide and sharing.
Thanks for sharing important information with us. yes, there various types of tips and technique to writing blogs by implementing these tip anyone can become good writer etc.
Well hello Darren, thanks for highlighting this essential point. I am currently trying to create a content plan using Evernote and I noticed in the notebook for my blog a note called Blog outline, in there I have roughly what you describe, the ideal visitor demographics and a paragraph describing in what areas my content must help others to be considered for publishing. We cannot be everything to everyone but we can be something to someone.
A blog or weblog is an online diary, whether you like it or not people will have the opportunity to read what you have written, and since this is the scenario it would be better to write in the best way possible to make the readers (be it by chance or by purpose that they dropped by) understand the things you are conveying. Who knows they might be entertained and would be coming back for more……
Nice one and very interesting………
I have always been told to narrow my niche. I have a motivational blog
My blog basically caters for anyone who wants to grow in different areas of their life and my blog gives them tips on how to do so….
Doing this also helps you realize what type of content you need to produce which would be best for your readers. I tend to think about this kind of stuff before I even begin launching my blogs, so that way I’m more organized when it’s actually time to do it.
Understanding who your readers are really brings clarity to the kind of writing you must be doing. Isnt that right Darren?
Sure, Blog purpose statement will network with others as much as possible through social media, building community, and always look for new opportunities to reach out.
Great questions!
I would also ask my self the fallowing things:
1. How can I improve and evolve the visitor experience on my blog?
2. Do my readers know what they want or should I point them what they should know?
3. What can I offer to my visitors that other blogs can’t?
I think a good idea to have in mind is to look forward and contribute to the evolution of blogging. Do something that nobody has done before!
Thanks!
I blog to share my experience and passions in parenting, photography and food at the moment. Those are certainly very interesting and important questions to answer.
great.. my reader is who want to change their personal finance life.., they need about finance information and maybe they can follow what I’ve wrote in my blog.. that’s 3 answer..
i am motivational blogger but don’t have much expertise what should i do ?
Neat trick. Mine would go like this: My “readers” are bloggers and webshop owners who may need guestbloggers or product reviews. My website is made to help them achieve such faster and easier. :)
Hi Darren
As usual spot on advice. I wrote about this recently when trying to identify the “Perfect Blog”, needless to say I didn’t and decided that what’s perfect for one blog or blogger isn’t for another.
As far as I can see understanding your readers is what matters, knowing what they want is paramount and making sure you deliver is your only purpose.
Regards
Rob
Hey Darren !
You are fantastic. This is the solution to create a blog purpose statement. These are simple steps, indeed.
Just three answer of the questions can provide us the complete guidance to create a blog purpose statement. I got what I needed.
Thanks.
Eli
These questions are so important and with these 3 question, who your readers; what they need and what they get can really save up a lot of their time and make them happy to be your number one fan.
I think in the end it all comes down to the part of solving a customer problem. If you are able to do that you will have your readers and also make the money. Every blog needs its purpose and when you are able to clearly define that you will be able to succeed as a blogger.
Thanks for the tips. Writing’s a necessary evil for me. I’d prefer to leave it to my staff but I feel it’s too important to trust them with just yet so I keep doing it myself. Problem is after so much of it I feel like I’m just going in circles writing the same things. These little tips give me a new way to think about things and often that ends up getting those creative juices flowing again. Thank you once again.
My readers love to travel and know more about world and India in particular. My blog gives them an opportunity to do that and also helps them to get information about various aspects of travel. It not only satisfies the travel bug for a while but also helps them plan their travel.
Hi Darren,
This is really an eye opener for me. My blog is all about healthy living. I have healthy breakfast to lunch even some smoothies and juices. All what I want to give my readers how they can live and enjoy life. I think I need to be more specific. Thanks for sharing this. Great.
Thanks Darren for making the complex process into 3 easy steps. I will use the same process for myself & for my clients.
This is interesting, I had been concentrating on getting as many keywords into my title, begging for traffic from Google. But I like this approach. Write for readers, not for spiders!
While I have a very clear vision for my site (to offer support and a bit of fun to moms and grandparents), answering these questions will add laser focus my mission.
Food for thought. Thanks.
Popping in from Oh, Mrs. Tucker!
I have a blog which is not a niche blog. So my target audience is pretty much everybody. And I am not sure what statement i should put on the blog. Your suggestions will be appreciated.
Thanks
Hi, I started my new blog one week ago or so and for me its very helpful to make mind maps- about the purpose of my blog, the topics a s o….and one mind map is about my readers- what are they looking for, what do they expect and how can I help them in the future.
The Purpose of a blog is a great idea, I’ve been reading a book about building a cult and the author highlighted that having a purpose which relate to your followers as the main reason for community success.
There is also a good read at (Help scout) discussing brand loyalty.
i think this is the perfect things which are the basic and simple before creating a blog. But i reckon adding the pictures and info graphics will be the added benefits to your BLOGS.
Thanks. Those are useful three questions to keep checking back to and helping ensure you’re not straying from your initial plan over time.
Ah, “What do they need?” So many times people ask what they want to force feed, rather than what the client needs. There is a balance and that is a great way to approach it.
I always like to share blog with my friends which provide trustable and complete new information on any topics.