Blogging has become extremely popular in recent years. At present, there are now at least 600 million blogs, and around 2.5 billion blog posts are being published yearly. Despite the staggering number of bloggers, writers, and content creators, there’s more to what they do than just publishing articles and pretty pictures. To succeed in the digital space, you need a variety of tools to help your work stand out. And here are some of them.
A good platform
Choosing the right platform for your blog comes before everything else. If you’re a beginner, you’ll want something that’s easy to set up and doesn’t require coding skills. However, you should also consider a platform that’s flexible enough to accommodate your growing blog and audience. WordPress.org (which is different from WordPress.com) is the most popular blogging platform, offering endless customization options. You can add features such as forums, an online store, and paid memberships (so you can monetize your blog in the future). Squarespace is a great platform if you want to create a blog that’s heavy on images and videos. It’s not as customizable as WordPress.org, but it lets you create aesthetically pleasing content quickly. Do your research on the features present on these different platforms, so you can find the best fit for the kind of blog you’re planning.
Analytics and scheduling software
Analytics tools help you analyze site traffic. For instance, you can track metrics for page views, pages per visit, time spent on pages, and returning visitors. Google Analytics is a free and powerful tool you can consider for this. When you know the behavior of your audience, you will be able to deliver better results by tailoring your content to appeal to them more. Meanwhile, scheduling software, as the name suggests, helps you schedule your content — allowing you to have a consistent presence on social media. Social media is very important when you have a blog. After all, you want to promote your articles if you want visitors. Hootsuite is a popular platform, as it lets you manage many social networks, such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Tumblr.
Editing tools
If your blog leans more towards visuals, you definitely need something more powerful than MS Paint. Canva is one of the best tools on the web where you can create and customize images for your blog or social media posts. This tool makes designing easy; you don’t need to be good at graphic design to find your way around the platform. For those who are more skilled and want something more elaborate, Adobe Photoshop is always a reliable option. This powerful design software allows you to do advanced editing and retouching, create 3D artwork, and combine images with multiple effects and layers, among others.
A proper laptop
A proper laptop is absolutely essential for any digital professional. However, the laptop you need will depend on the tasks you need to accomplish on a daily basis. For instance, HP’s line of Envy laptops are known to have multiple uses — be it for graphic design or running multiple applications simultaneously. This is because modern PCB manufacturers now use stackup impedance calculators, which help determine the sheet capacitance between the power planes — ensuring there are enough power paths to deliver maximum power throughout the device. On the other hand, if you’re looking for something simpler but still gets the job done, the ASUS Vivobook 2020 can handle Photoshop work. Its specs include the Ryzen 5 processor and 8GB of RAM.
A reliable camera
Sometimes, a smartphone’s camera isn’t enough. To get the best quality images and videos for your blog, so you’ll need a camera. A camera also gives you more creative control than a smartphone with limited features. There are a variety of cameras out there that serve different purposes. Point-and-shoot cameras such as the Canon PowerShot ELPH 180 are perfect for beginners who simply want better image quality without having to know about the technicalities like exposure control. Action cameras, like the GoPro HERO9, are great at capturing movement, whether you’re biking or even skydiving.
Starting a blog may take more effort and time than you originally thought. However, once you have the right tools, you should have a much smoother time.
