How to track your blog visitors?

As a new blogger(webmaster),it is always interesting to know how many people are visiting your blog/site,pageviews,where they are coming from,which sites are referring,how many are coming via Search Engines(google,yahoo,etc) and what they are typing in the search engines to visit your site.
These stastistics are very handy interms of improving your blog and it is for FREE

If you search the google,you will find hundreds of sites which will track the visitors of your blog/site.But,some sites will provide more information about your visitors than the others.
So,how to do this?
Here are the best tracking sources interms of the feautures they provide.

Note:One thing is common for all the tracking sites.First you need to register,and provide the necessary information about your blog/website.Next,they will give you a html code and you have to embed it in your blog.
How to do that in blogger?
1.Sign in to your blogger dashboard.
2.Click on the 'layout' link next to your blog name.
3.Click on the "Add a Page element"
4.Select "html/javascript" and past the code they provide and SAVE THE CHANGES.

From then,your blog will be tracked and you can check your blog stats from time to time after logging in to your registrate's website.

So,here are the good ones:-


Sitemeter.com:This one is one of the Most Popular tracking source.This is as simple as 123. Just create an account,copy the code from your account and paste it in your blog as suggested above.
You have also the option to keep your blog stats PRIVATE.
They will give you the stats on how many pageviews(hits) per day,unique visitors,geolocation of the visitors,how many users online,and much more...As it is simple(not much animation),you site will load as fast as it is before.Stats are updated hourly.
You can setup a Free Account here


Histats.com:Unlike the Sitemeter which is very simple, this site will have very cool and animated counters.


Tracking is updated every 5 minutes.I personally using this site for my blogs.Like Sitemeter,
this is also have the option to keep your site stats PRIVATE.
They will provide Animated graphs about your site visitors and fully animative.
You can register with them here


Statcounter.com:Same here!As in the name,it is a stats counter.It is fast,free,and quick loading.
Invisible tracking is available and no ads on your site.All the stats are in real time and super fast.It is not much animated as histats.com.They will provide pageviews,unique vistors,visitors activity,search engine wars,keyword analysis,and many more..
Register a free counter for your blog here

5 Tricks to Make Your Blog Posts Look Better Than Everyone Else's

No one wants to read a blog that is so full of text it seems more overwhelming than a copy of War and Peace.  The best blogs not only include amazing content, but they also look good.  They invite visitors in to read more because they're visually appealing.  Fortunately, there are easy tricks you can use to make your blog posts look great and pique visitors' interests in your content. 

1. Images

Adding images to your blog posts breaks up text heavy pages and provides visual relief.  Images don't have to include just photos.  You can use screenshots, diagrams, charts, graphs, illustrations, and more.  Just be sure to use images that are copyrighted in a way that allows you to legally publish them on your blog. Check out these 5 sites for free images.

2. Video

Video adds visual and audio interest to text-heavy web pages such as blog posts.  There are many sites that allow bloggers to embed video content directly into their blog posts, such as YouTube.

3. Headings

If your blogging application offers pre-formatted headings that you can apply to specific text in your blog posts to make it stand out from the standard post content font, use them.  Headings can break up text to create a more scannable blog post, call attention to important parts of your posts, and help search engine optimization efforts, too!

4. Lists

Most blogging applications offer easy tools to create bulleted and numbered lists within your blog posts -- use them!  Lists add white space to your posts which provides visual relief to text heavy pages.

5. Color

You don't have to be an expert at HTML to change the color of text within your blog posts, and doing so can help the visual appeal of your blog posts significantly.  Just don't go overboard and use too much color.  Instead, save color for hyperlinks, headings, or particularly important text.  You can learn the basic HTML code for changing text color in this HTML overview for bloggers.

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10 Essential Blog Design Elements

Most popular blogs have a number of blog design elements in common. Read on to learn about ten of the most important blog design elements your blog must have in order to have a chance at success!

1. Readable Text

Your blog design must be easy to read. That means the fonts you choose should be large enough to be read on high resolution monitors, and they should be simple enough to be legible. In other words, don't choose a highly stylized font. Stick with Georgia or Verdana or another Web-friendly font. Also, make sure the text on your blog is easy to scan quickly. Follow the link to learn more about writing scannable blog posts.

 

2. Inviting Colors

Don't select colors in your blog design that are blinding or so light that it's difficult for visitors to read the text or even look at your blog for more than a few seconds. The easiest colors for people to read online are light backgrounds (white is best) with dark text and images (such as black, dark blue, dark green, and so on).

3. Easy Navigation

Make it easy for visitors to find your content. Don't hinder their visit by using interstitial ads or splash pages. In other words, don't give them a chance to click away from your blog when they land on it.

4. Short Pages

People don't like to scroll. Keep your blog pages short by configuring your blog settings to show no more than 10 blog posts on each page of your blog (5-7 is best). If your blog posts are long, consider using the HTML more tag to split your post into two parts so only the first part appears on the main page of your blog and the rest is available for viewing when a visitor clicks the provided link (often called a 'jump'). You can learn about the HTML more tag on the Wordpress support site here.

5. Search Function

Make it easy for visitors to find related content, specific content, and archived content on your blog by including a search box in your blog's sidebar or header.

6. Your Bio or Profile

While there are some successful blogs written by anonymous authors, most are written by a person or team who makes it very clear why they are the person or group to write about their blog subjects. Show the world who you are and why you're qualified to write your blog by including a comprehensive biography. The best bloggers build strong relationships with their readers, and your bio is the first place to make yourself seem human and personable. Follow the link for tips on writing your About Me page.

7. Contact Form and Social Links

The best bloggers build relationships with their readers, and part of that is making it easy for your readers to connect with you, share information, and get to know you. Make it easy for them to communicate with you by providing a contact form or a link to email you, so you can talk off of your blog. Furthermore, be sure to include links to your social networking profiles such as your Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn profiles to continue building relationships off of your blog.

8. Useful Footer

Don't forget your footer when you create your blog. When people can't find what they're looking for on a Web site, they often scroll to the footer to find site-wide links such as a contact link, site map link, and so on. Take some time to include useful links and information in your blog's footer, and make sure the footer appears at the bottom of all of your blog pages.

9. Subscription Links

Don't forget to include a link and button above the fold on your blog for people to subscribe to your blog's RSS feed. Subscribers often turn into your most loyal readers. Make it easy for everyone who visits your blog to subscribe. Follow the link to learn more about increasing RSS subscribers.

10. Silence

As tempting as it might be, don't use music on your blog. If you must include music, allow visitors to turn it on at their discretion. Do not have music automatically play when someone visits your blog. While music can enhance a blog, it is more often thought of negatively.

 

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Essential Requirements to Starting a Successful Blog

Want to be a top blogger? Keep these requirements in mind as you develop and market your blog.

A Subject People are Interested In

The most successful blogs are written about topics that have a broad appeal. The more people who are interested in the topic you write about at your blog, the more people will search for information on that topic and want to read about it.

Passion for Your Subject

As a blogger, you have to write about your blog's subject a lot. The writing is nonstop. If you don't love your blog's topic, it will show. Readers can detect when a blogger is just going through the motions rather than speaking from the heart.

Commitment

Successful blogging requires a massive amount of sweat equity and dedication. Building a successful blog requires more than just publishing a new post a few times a week. The most successful blogs are updated frequently (often several times each day), and the bloggers behind those blogs work relentlessly to promote their blogs and drive traffic to them.

Time

Building a successful blog requires a massive time investment. Growing a blog doesn't stop with publishing posts. Top bloggers spend a lot of time everyday promoting their blogs, researching and reading to drive traffic to it.

A Desire to Network

Socializing is a critical component of developing a successful blog. Blogging by nature is a social medium, and successful blogs become so primarily because of the strong sense of community surrounding them. Top bloggers take time to respond to comments and interact with their blogs' readers as well as network on social sites, forums and more all in an effort to further promote their blogs.

A Desire to Keep Learning

The blogosphere is ever-changing, which means top bloggers are always looking for new ways to enhance their blogs by persistently researching anything and everything related to blogging.

A Love of Research and Reading

Successful bloggers read a lot in order to stay updated on their blogs' topics and the blogosphere as a whole.

Creativity

A successful blog is typically updated very frequently. That means successful blogs always provide fresh, unique content to their readers. Writing that new content requires a great deal of creativity to keep readers from feeling bored or from feeling like the blog does not bring them any value.

Patience

Blogging success does not happen overnight. Be prepared to stay dedicated to promoting your blog for the long haul. Eventually, your hard work should pay off with increased traffic and a significant growth in popularity of your blog. The key is to not give up.

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5 Tips to Choosing a Blog Topic

Building a successful blog is a commitment in time and effort. Follow these five tips to choose a topic to write about on your blog that will put you on the path to reaching your blogging goals.

1. Choose a Topic You're Passionate About

A successful blog is updated frequently (often several times a day). If your blog has a chance at success, you need to keep your content fresh, which means you need to consistenly update your blog. Make sure you choose a topic for your blog that you feel strongly about and truly enjoy. Otherwise, writing about it will feel stale very quickly. You need to be able to stay motivated about your blog's topic for a long time.

2. Choose a Topic You Like to Discuss with Other People

Successful blogs require two-way conversation between you (the blogger) and your audience (your readers). As readers leave comments on your blog or email you to discuss your posts in further detail, you need to be responsive and receptive to them. Your blog's long-term success will depend on the sense of community you can create around it.

3. Choose a Topic You Don't Mind Debating with Other People

The blogoshpere is made up of people from all walks of life with varying opinions. As your blog grows, more and more people will find it, and some of those people may not agree with everything you write. Successful bloggers enoy discussing their blogs' topics from all angles and appreciate a healthy debate.

4. Choose a Topic You're Not Overly Sensitive About

As your blog grows and more people find it, many are apt to not just disagree with you, but actually disagree so strongly with you that they may attack you personally. You need to have a thick skin to deflect personal attacks and strongly opposing opinions.

5. Choose a Topic You Enjoy Researching

The blogosphere is constantly changing and one of the most unique aspects of blogs is their ability to provide fresh, meaningful content and discussions about a wide variety of topics. In order for your blog to be successful, you need to enjoy reading about your blog's topic and keeping up with news and current events related to it thereby enabling you to keep your blog's content interesting and relevant to readers.

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Top 10 Tips for Beginner Bloggers

Starting a blog can seem overwhelming, but in truth, it's one of the simplest ways to join the online community. Follow these tips to ensure your blog is positioned for success.

1. Define Your Goals

Before you start a new blog, it's essential that you define your goals for it. Your blog has a greater chance of success if you know from the beginning what you hope to accomplish with it. Are you trying to establish yourself as an expert in your field? Are you trying to promote your business? Are you simply blogging for fun and to share your ideas and opinions? Your short and long term goals for your blog are dependent on the reason why you're starting your blog. Think ahead to what you'd like to gain from your blog in six months, one year and three years. Then design, write and market your blog to meet those goals.

2. Know Your Audience

Your blog's design and content should reflect the expectations of your audience. For example, if your intended audience is teenagers, the design and content would be quite different than a blog targeted to corporate professionals. Your audience will have inherent expectations for your blog. Don't confuse them but rather meet and exceed those expectations to gain reader loyalty.

3. Be Consistent

Your blog is a brand. Just like popular brands such as Coke or Nike, your blog represents a specific message and image to your audience, which is your brand. Your blog's design and content should consistently communicate your blog's overall brand image and message. Being consistent allows you to meet your audience's expectations and create a secure place for them to visit again and again. That consistency will be rewarded with reader loyalty.

4. Be Persistent

A busy blog is a useful blog. Blogs that are not updated frequently are perceived by their audiences as static web pages. The usefulness of blogs comes from their timeliness. While it's important not to publish meaningless posts else you may bore your audience, it's essential that you update your blog frequently. The best way to keep readers coming back is to always have something new (and meaningful) for them to see.

5. Be Inviting

One of the most unique aspects of blogging is its social impact. Therefore, it's essential that your blog welcomes readers and invites them to join a two-way conversation. Ask your readers to leave comments by posing questions than respond to comments from your readers. Doing so will show your readers that you value them, and it will keep the conversation going. Continue the conversation by leaving comments on other blogs inviting new readers to visit your blog for more lively discussions. Your blog's success is partially dependent on your readers' loyalties to it. Make sure they understand how much you appreciate them by involving them and recognizing them through meaningful two-way conversation.

6. Be Visible

Much of your blog's success relies on your efforts outside your blog. Those efforts include finding like-minded bloggers and commenting on their blogs, participating in social bookmarking through sites such as Digg and StumbleUpon, and joining social networking sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn. Blogging is not a demonstration of, "if you build it, they will come." Instead, developing a successful blog requires hard work by creating compelling content on your blog as well as working outside of your blog to promote it and develop a community around it.

7. Take Risks

Beginner bloggers are often afraid of the new blogging tools and features available to them. Don't be afraid to take risks and try new things on your blog. From adding a new plug-in to holding your first blog contest, it's important that you keep your blog fresh by implementing changes that will enhance your blog. Alternatively, don't fall prey to every new bell and whistle that becomes available for your blog. Instead, review each potential enhancement in terms of how it will help you reach your goals for your blog and how your audience will respond to it.

8. Ask for Help

Even the most experienced bloggers understand the blogosphere is an ever-changing place and no one knows everything there is to know about blogging. Most importantly, bloggers are part of a close-knit community, and the majority of bloggers understand that everyone is a beginner at some point. In fact, bloggers are some of the most approachable and helpful people you can find. Don't be afraid to reach out to fellow bloggers for help. Remember, the success of the blogosphere relies on networking, and most bloggers are always willing to expand their networks regardless of whether you're a beginner blogger or seasoned pro.

9. Keep Learning

It seems like everyday there are new tools available to bloggers. The Internet changes quickly, and the blogosphere is not an exception to that rule. As you develop your blog, take the time to research new tools and features, and keep an eye on the latest news from the blogosphere. You never know when a new tool will roll out that can make your life easier or enhance your readers' experiences on your blog.

10. Be Yourself

Remember, your blog is an extension of you and your brand, and your loyal readers will keep coming back to hear what you have to say. Inject your personality into your blog and adapt a consistent tone for your posts. Determine whether your blog and brand will be more effective with a corporate tone, a youthful tone or a snarky tone. Then stay consistent with that tone in all your blog communications. People don't read blogs simply to get the news. They could read a newspaper for news reports. Instead, people read blogs to get bloggers' opinions on the news, the world, life and more. Don't blog like a reporter. Blog like you're having a conversation with each of your readers. Blog from your heart.

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Earning revenue through blogs

Starting a Blog - Blogging Basics for the Beginner Blogger

Starting a Blog teaches the beginner blogger or anyone who needs a Blogging 101 refresher course how to decide if blogging is right for them as well as how to choose a domain, host and blogging software. You'll also find step-by-step tutorials to help you get started as a successful blogger.

Before you start a blog, it's important to determine if blogging is right for you to ensure your blogging experience will be successful.

You Enjoy Spending Time Surfing the Web

Successful blogging requires a large time commitment and a great deal of sweat equity. Blogging doesn't stop after you write and publish a blog post. Instead, it requires promotion, visiting and reading other blogs and websites, staying abreast of news and issues related to your blog topic, and more. Most of your blogging activities will occur online. To be a successful blogger, you must enjoy reading, researching, spending time on your computer and surfing the web.

You Like to Write

If you abhor writing or writing doesn't come naturally to you, then blogging might not be for you. Building a successful blog requires frequent, meaningful updates, responding to comments, leaving comments on other blogs and more. Each of those success factors requires writing. To be a successful blogger, you must be able to write prolifically.

You're Passionate About Your Blog's Topic

Successful blogging requires that the blogger write frequent, meaningful posts about their blog's topic to attract new readers, keep readers interested and keep readers coming back. If you are only slightly interested in your blog's topic, it will be difficult to log in each day and come up with fresh, exciting posts and commentary. By choosing a topic you're passionate about, it will be easier to update your blog with a smile on your face each day.

You Can Commit to Blogging

Successful blogging is a commitment in terms of time and effort and requires a great deal of self-discipline and self-motivation. You must have the ability to fit blogging into your schedule and be commited to sticking to that schedule.

 

You're Comfortable Publicizing Your Thoughts, Opinions and Ideas

As a blogger, you will be publishing your opinions for the entire online community to read. While it is possible to remain anonymous and become a successful blogger, anonymous success is not the norm. To attract a large audience and appear legitimate in the blogosphere, more people have taken to sharing their identities and a fair amount of personal information online. As such, bloggers are exposed to negative responses to their posts, and sometimes those negative critiques can be hurtful. Successful bloggers can handle negative criticism.

You're Not Afraid of Technology and You Are Willing to Learn

Blogging requires some knowledge of the Internet and simple software. If you are afraid of your computer, then blogging may not be for you. Alternatively, if you are willing to learn, you can blog. Blogging and the Internet as a whole are ever-changing, and even the most successful bloggers are constantly trying to learn new things to further enhance their blogs. To be a successful blogger, you must be willing to learn how to get started and how to maintain and improve your blog in the future.

You're Willing to Take Risks

Much of successful blogging is related to taking risks from diving in and starting your first blog to launching your blog's first advertisement or adding the first link to your blogroll. To be a successful blogger, you have to be willing to try new things to enhance and promote your blog.