5 Tips to design great blog layouts

Once you have made the decision to start blogging, the excitement of designing your website takes over.  One of the awesome things about owning a blog is that you can design it exactly as you wish, ultimately corner that little bit of cyberspace and have a huge amount of fun playing around with your blog layouts.

It is an incredibly exciting feeling when you first go live with your new site, but it is important to keep that excitement in check whilst putting the design together.  Your content maybe awesome, but if you don’t have blog layouts that inspire, then your content will be lost.  Your content and your design should go hand in hand, so pay attention to both.

 

There are so many blog layouts to choose from, so how do you know what to choose?  Here are a few tips to keep in mind which will keep that design looking great.

Choose your blog layouts according to your target audience.

It is important to keep in mind who the target audience of your blog will be, and design it for that audience.  In our post about how to start blogging, we talked about deciding whether your blog is going to be for business or pleasure.  If it is for pleasure then there is nothing to stop you from designing it to suit your taste entirely, but if you want to create a blog that will generate traffic and interest, you need to give the design a little more thought!

Your design will ultimately assist with obtaining return readers, subscribers, building connections and even be the difference between earning money or not.  You must keep in the forefront of your mind at all times, who the target audience is going to be and design the blog accordingly.

Invest in a design

Blog layouts have a huge variation according to the design template that is installed.  Whilst there are many wonderful free blog templates available, there may be a premium or customised design which will be better suited to help build your brand.  Research what others in your niche are doing and then evaluate whether your site can match the competition.

Take a good look at the blog layout you are using.  Is it enough to attract the readers you desire?  If not, it is time to make the change!

Great blog layouts have lots of white space!

When you have been reading blogs, do you find that some are just naturally pleasing to the eye whilst other’s feel clumsy and cluttered?  Have you given much thought as to what the difference might be?

Blog layouts that have lots of white space are those that are well organised, easy to read and not overwhelming to a reader.  We all like fresh air, so bring some of that fresh air to your blog.  Don’t be afraid of using white space because it provides freshness and clarity.  Your blog layouts will certainly benefit from it!

Add widgets

There are thousands of widgets that you can add to your blog that will assist to personalise it.  Not only will the widgets help to personalise the look and feel of your blog, but they will also assist to increase activity on the blog.

Share a little about yourself

As well as focusing on the blog posts, it is a good idea to personalize your site so readers can connect with you and start to build a relationship.  Why not try making some videos or share a photo of yourself.  Bringing a personal touch to your blog and talking about your experience in your chosen niche will help you stand out amongst the competition.  A great way of personalizing your site is to write an “About me” page.  You can use this page to connect with your readers in a deeper way by giving them an idea of who you are and the journey you have been on.  It is important that your readers see you as a real person and not a robot behind a computer screen.  It is a great idea to have this about me page near the top of your site, so that readers can see it easily. Blog layouts that have the about me page hidden are ultimately hiding themselves….so show yourself off and connect with people!

These are not hard and fast rules of what you should and shouldn’t do with your blog layouts, it will take some time and experimentation on your part.  The wonderful thing about owning a blog is that you can change the layout, the colours, and the overall feel in just a few clicks of the button and you can keep changing it until you feel it is the right fit for you and your business.  Take it one step at a time and before you know it, you will have the professional looking blog you desire.

How does your blog design look?  Have you made many changes to it since you first started?  What tips would you recommend for a great blog layouts?

I look forward to hearing from you!