How to Make Your Blog Stand Out in a Saturated Blog Market

There’s only so much market demand for any given good. So what do successful businesses do in order to make their product stand out? They specialize. Pick one thing that is going to make your widget better than all the other widgets. Whether that’s an innovative new design, nifty packaging, or outstanding customer service. Pick one aspect of your product that will make it shine brighter than the others.

The same goes for blogging. There are millions of blogs out there, so chances are if you have an idea for a blog, someone’s already thought of it. But don’t worry, that doesn’t mean you can’t still carry out your idea, you’ll just have to get creative. What could you do to make your blog better or different? Here are 6 creative ways to make your blog stand out in a saturated “blog market.”

Good Design

It turns out, you can judge a blog by its cover, and people do. I’m not saying that having a sleek design with all the bells and whistles is going to guarantee a lifelong cult following, but it will draw the eyeballs to your blog. The key is to have great content to back it up, so that people don’t run away once the initial shine wears off.

You know those websites you go to and immediately leave because they look like they’re an original model? While that may be an attractive feature for an antique or collector car, the same doesn’t hold true for websites. Make sure your website is up to date and functional. If people can’t navigate and search on your blog with ease, they probably won’t spend much time there. You may have the most useful content in the world wide web, but if it hurts to look at no one will ever stick around long enough to know.

Spend Time on Your Title and Headings

A great title will bring the right readers to your blog. I say “right” readers because if the title is boring or non-indicative of the content you write about, you probably won’t get a lot of readers to stop by and check out your blog. If you do get readers to your blog but the headings throughout your blog are no good, people will evacuate quickly. Reading a blog is not the same as reading a novel. You don’t have to catch every detail so you skim for the most important information. Headings are the road maps that guide readers to the content they care about. Much like your title, if your headings aren’t top notch, there’s a chance readers won’t stick around to read into what you have to say.

Do a Twist on an Old Classic

A quick search on Technorati or Google Blogs will give you an indication of the number of blogs already existing on a certain topic. Don’t get discouraged if that number exceeds 1,000. Simply think of a way to put a spin on your topic.

Perhaps the theme of your blog was going to be “Going Green” and you’re going to blog about different energy-saving techniques. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but lately EVERYONE is going green, so chances are there are already a few blogs out there on the benefits of a green lifestyle. Is there a way to narrow that topic down into a more specific niche, like “Going Green in Wisconsin” or “Going Green in the Workplace.” Maybe you could broaden the topic to include things like sustainable energy and conservation. Make it the most all-encompassing environmental blog out there and the only blog people need to visit for answers to their environmental questions.

Writing Style

If writing is your strong suite, focus on delivering the best writing techniques for every post. Develop your own style of writing that makes people choose your blog over the next. I wrote about writing compelling content for your audience, call upon your writing skills to draw the readers in.

Maybe writing quality isn’t your strong suite, but you have an amazing sense of humor. Incorporate a little comic relief into the blog wherever you can. A lot of people can’t pull off “funny” so if you can you’re sure to stand out. Given the choice between a dry, text-book sounding blog and one that leaves readers with a smile on their face, I’m pretty sure I know the one they will choose every time.

Promotion

Unless you’re extremely lucky, you’re blog probably won’t get discovered by thousands of readers on accident. You’ll have to put a fair amount of work into promoting and advertising your blog so that people can find it. I’ve stressed the value that social media has in promoting your business and your blog but I’ll say it again. Networks like Facebook and Twitter are great platforms to use to promote your blog. If you feel comfortable enough tell your family and friends about it. Ask employees and coworkers to spread the word and attach a link to the blog at the end of your e-mail signature. There are tons of great tools to use that can help you draw attention to your blog and make it stand out from the rest.

Give Readers Some Eye Candy

If your blog posts consist only of words, that can make for a pretty dull sensory experience. Use images, graphics, charts, and screenshots whenever you can. Especially if you’re trying to explain something technical or talking about statistics, any kind of visual effect will enhance the point you’re trying to make and clear up any confusion associated with a difficult concept. If you do this consistently people will take notice and come to know your blog as the one with the great graphics.

There’s no arguing that it’s harder now to make it big with your blog than it was 10 years ago. But that doesn’t mean you can’t still be successful in creating a blog that stands out from the rest. The competition isn’t a bad thing. In fact, it pushes people to make better blogs with higher quality content and better design.