The first step to getting traffic is… getting traffic. No kidding huh? The second step is a lot more difficult, getting repeat traffic. Building a loyal following is crucial to making a successful blog. You want people who actually enjoy your content enough to come back. Having one-time readers is virtually useless, all it means is that a curious mind came along to read what you wrote, and is never coming back. Think of your blog like a business. A coffee shop can only make so much money if everyone in the metropolis shows up once. It can make so much more money if a fifth of the metropolis comes back every day. Repeat readers are the key for you to be successful. I’ve compiled a list of 3 tips to help ensure repeat readers to help you make sure that your readers come back!

1. Update Your Blog. I’ve mentioned this numerous times in this blog, but I cannot stress this enough (considering how many bloggers do not follow this obvious step). Make sure that you update your blog consistently. Make sure that you update on the same day every week, and make sure you update every week once or twice! Loyal readers check your blog whenever they expect it to be updated. If you update once or twice every week, expect 2-3 times as much traffic as you currently have!
2. Build a Community. By allowing commenting on your blog, you create a discussion and people will come back to continue the discussion. When you write a blog post with an open question left for debate, you allow your readers to participate and come back. Think of it this way, when your readers are discussing and commenting on your blog, THEY’RE updating your blog! They are coming back to your blog to continue the discussion and will increase your traffic! Comment on other blogs as well, return the favour.
3. Learn About Your Followers. The more you know about your readers, the more you will write content they are interested in, and the more loyal they will be. Loyal readers = frequent visitors. By getting to know your readers, they vouch for your blog and recommend it to others. The more they are loyal to you, the more they will come back expecting updates and the more they will discuss and comment on your posts.

The bottom line is that you should be consistent and update your blog often. The more you write, the more they read!

With more and more podcasts being made, you will find that less podcasts are quality podcasts. With the cheap technology and easy production, any bimbo will begin podcasting. What will seperate you from the average podcaster is your quality. Here are 3 common podcast mistakes that you MUST avoid:

1. Sound Quality. Do not use sound recorder. I repeat in bold, capitals and underline, DO NOT USE SOUND RECORDER!!! Invest in an actual recording software. Adobe Audition is an easy one, costs a bit though. Audacity is free, but the quality is not as great and is more difficult to use. Look for a software at your nearest computer shop, a podcasting software that is easy to use. Make sure that when you record, you do not use your computer microphone easier. The 3 most important hardwares you will need are: a good soundcard, a quality microphone (try a condensor microphone, with phantom power) and headphones. Make sure that your quality is clean and make sure you’re not reading off a script. Be natural.
2. Infrequency. Make sure you are consistent with your episodes. Nothing will piss off a subscriber more than expecting for an episode all week, only to find that there is nothing there! If you post every Friday, make sure you post every Friday! Don’t skip a Friday, don’t post on Saturday, don’t post Wednesday, post on FRIDAY. Here and there you can give a treat, and post Thursday night, but be consistent!
3. No Promotion. A lot of the time, people listen to podcasts through directories when they are looking for a new podcast to follow. If they listen to your podcast blindly (no pun intended), and like it, they will want to know where to find more. You need to remind your audience, at the end of your podcast, where they can go for more. Just say your website domain, or website name, and it will make it easier for them to find you and subscribe.

Just be professional, that’s the bottom line. A professional podcast stands out, and that’s something that people are looking for. It’s too easy to make a podcast nowadays, you need to be professional to be unique!

Podcasting using Wordpress is an easy and efficient way to set up your podcast. This site itself uses Wordpress as a platform, so you can trust me when I say that it is easier than eating when you’re hungry. 

Podcasts work on an RSS (Really Simple Syndication… no seriously, that’s what it’s called) set up. RSS syncs with your iTunes to give you real time updates on podcasts. Wordpress also uses RSS feeds to let people who subscribe to your blog know when a new post is up.

To sync your podcast with Wordpress, what you need to do is link the audio of your podcasts via URL (so make a podcasts folder on your server, and then link your posts to these audio files).  You then should put a link to your RSS file on your wordpress blog, it will look something like “http:///www.yoursite.com/?feed=rss2″.

Another option is to download the Wordpress podcasting plug in, http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/podcasting/ and just follow the instructions. Sign up for FeedBurner, and set up a simple RSS URL, and it will make your RSS look better as well as make it easier to maintain. 

Using WordPress for your podcast does not end there, think outside the box! You can use your Wordpress blog as the official site, and make your podcast the audios of your blog. If you are a DJ, you could use Wordpress to blog while using Podcasts to release new mixes. Or if you are a writer, use Wordpress to blog for announcements, and then Podcasts to read excerpts from your books! The possibilities are endless, just got to be creative!

Although podcasting has only been around for a few years, it has been consistently been increasing in popularity, and every day more and more podcasts appear. For this reason, you should make sure that your podcast is on point so that it can be successful. Here are 5 tips to have a successful podcast:

1. Plan It. Don’t just get on the microphone and blabber gibberish. You need to plan what your show is about, what content you will put on it, who your target audience is and how to market it. You also need to think outside the box, and think about hosting and your fees. How will you generate revenue? What will make your podcast different and better than other podcasts in your niche? What are you offering your audience, why should they listen to your podcast? Answer all these questions, and if you are confident in your answers, your plan is ready.
2. Be Original. With so many podcasts in the business, you need to make sure that your podcast is different from others. What makes your podcast different from the others? If your content is not original, at least present it originally.
3. Be Time Efficient. Don’t blabber gibberish. Get to your point, it is VERY important you do this. Users need to download podcasts, and unlike radio, they can forward through your show. If you are speaking garbage, they can easily forward through your content and hate your content simply because it is garbage. Downloading podcasts will be a hassle if half of it is pointless, they will stop wanting to download your podcasts. Everything must be quality material! 
4. Be Timeless. You will benefit if your content does not have a short-term shelf life. If your content is only relevant to the time it is released, it will not be as successful as something which will still be useful 2 years down the road. For instance, a how-to podcast will be relevant for years, as opposed to a daily news podcast. Choose your topic wisely.
5. Articulate. I cannot tell you how many times I listen to a podcast and cannot understand what the hell the host is saying. Articulate your words, forget about your voice for a second and think about getting your message across. Articulate!

These three anti-tips are things you should AVOID when making your blog. The funny part is that so many people fall into this trap, and ruin their blogs this way. Even though making a blog is an easy start-up, maintenance should never be overlooked.  Here are three ways to ruin your blog:

1. Infrequent Updates. Remember to update your blog! There are so many blogs that have never been updated since they started, and they begin to lose traffic that way and lose their subscribers/fans/followers. Remember to have a consistent blog updating schedule. You do not have to update every day, but try to update at least 1-2 times a week and make sure it is frequent. If you update every Monday and Friday, update EVERY Monday and Friday, do not skip a post. Your followers EXPECT you to update on a certain day, so update that day. You’ll anger your followers if you don’t.
2. Unprofessional Appearance. An ugly design can turn off a reader. As politically incorrect as it is, people judge books by their cover. If your blog does not look good, people will assume that the articles aren’t good either. The better it looks, the more professional it is. 
3. Graphics/Advertisement Overload. Too many ads is another problem. The placement of your ads is vital! Too many ads can make someone assume it is an “Adsense Site” (a site built just for ads, with unprofessional content). Too many ads, or even graphics, is annoying to the eye and will turn off readers. You should only choose ads which are relevant, and look good. Do not place your ads in places which will annoy the reader, for instance; do not use pop up ads. Pop up ads are annoying, and though they may be effective, they only are the first time. You will annoy potential-frequent-followers if a pop-up ad shows up. What’s worse is the full page ad! 

There are other factors which also ruin blogs, such as spelling mistakes or bad grammar. Proof read and  Spell check your content, and make sure it is GOOD content!