6 Top Tips to Look like a Blogging Pro (and not a Newbie!) -

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If you’ve been following my blog and have been considering jumping into the blogger pond and are now looking at my guides, and want to look professional, you need to make sure you're making the best first impression. You don't want to look like today is your first-day blogging. The goal is to look like you've been here awhile even if you haven't. But guess what, there is good news! These 6 steps are easy to implement and look like the professional you want to look like. Here are my top six tips you need to know if you want to look like pro blogger:

Table of Contents

1. BUY YOUR OWN DOMAIN.

This is absolutely numero uno! I've you've been reading about blogging, you've heard you need your own domain. First, having a URL that includes .blogspot or .wordpress looks like a newb. It just says you weren't investing in yourself. If you're truly in it for the long haul and want to be taken as a professional, you need to buy your own domain name.

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2. BUY A THEME OR GET A DESIGNER.

People look at your design. How many times have you stumbled on a blog, maybe through search or Pinterest, and came upon a blog that your first thought was, this is not professional? Worse yet, I sometimes wonder when I have if I'll get a virus and close it quickly! You want a great look so people want to stay. Luckily for you, you don't have to break the bank for this! There is a multitude of themes that you can download install yourself and are budget friendly! Then you simply customize to your liking!

3. ADD A FAVICON.

One of the first things you should do after uploading a theme is to add a favicon. That little pic you see that is next to your URL. While it may seem inconsequential to you, it adds to the professional appearance.

4. PROFESSIONAL PHOTOS.

Many newbie bloggers use a selfie. In all actuality, it probably looks like a selfie and not professional. Professional photos are instantly more attractive and get you noticed.

No, you don't need to hire a professional. Get a friend that's willing to help to get the look. Wear attrative, professional attire, and take several. When you've taken the right one, simply upload to your site and match to all of your social media.

5. TERMS OF SERVICE, PRIVACY POLICY AND AFFILIATE DISCLOSURE.

Another one of the first and most important things to work on is your terms of service, privacy policy and affiliate disclosure. This shows you mean business. There are online generators to help, not to mention you can use an admired bloggers as reference. Once you've completeed them, include them so they appear on every page.

6. WHAT TO AVOID

There are a few things to avoid that appear unprofesional and will annoy people. Avoid these:

Music or videos. When I come accross these, I immediately close the page, how about you? Don't be that annoying person.
Excess ads. We all want to make money. However, too many ads chase people off. Not too mention it drastically slows down your site. You don't want to do that because I know for me, when a site takes too long to load, I just close it and move on. Do you?
Too many photos. Unless it is a travel post, having too many photos is a detriment. It slows down load time. I do include several for travel because you want a photo to feature each place you visit.