Reach out for topic inspiration - these days there are a wealth of sites dedicated to almost every topic under the sun, so have a browse around for ideas and learn from advanced bloggers. To attract a following you need to be fresh and unique though, so make the ideas your own and bring new perspectives through in your own style.

Bring out your personality while demonstrating authority - keep your writing informal and friendly, while demonstrating that you know what you’re talking about. As an example, if you’re writing about pet products, start off with a paragraph or two explaining why this is your subject of interest to establish authority.

Make your content scannable and accessible - these days people are not only super busy, but also bombarded with tons of info daily. To make your content easily accessible, it needs to have space to breathe rather than presenting the reader with huge amounts of compact info. Create reasonably short paragraphs, preferably with sub-headings to catch the eye. For example, if you’re writing on the topic of pets, think of something catchy for the title like ‘Top Things You Never Knew About Dogs’, then have each tip as a separate paragraph with a bolded sub-heading for each point.

Bring in a splash of colour - especially if your blog post is long, the content will be more appealing to the eye with a picture or two inserted that relates to what you’re writing about. These days there are a number of sites where you can get images for free (simply do a Google search for ‘free stock images’).

Begin well and end well - your first introductory paragraph should tell people why they should carry on reading, while your last concluding paragraph should wrap up your thoughts neatly, along with a call to action such as a link to watch a short YouTube video or a link to another of your related blog posts which will be useful to the reader.

Create a 'Call to Action' in your ending paragraph - this packs more power into each article by directing your reader to engage with you further. Here are some examples:

Build your list of subscribers:
“Want more valuable information like this? Click here to subscribe to my blog:”

Drive people to a product:
“For more information on Digital Marketing, visit our website here:”

Get people to view more of your blogs:
“Check out these related articles for more tips:”

Encourage people share your blog:
“Like this article? Please show the love and share it on social media with your friends!”

Go down the road of 'Scam' finger pointing - a common tactic of new or unscrupulous bloggers is pointing to rival products/services/companies as scams so they can highlight their offering as the best. This is a form of black hat marketing, it will not make you shine out as a positive influence on the world and gives articles a shady feel.

Take exact content from other websites - in case you weren’t aware, Google is strict about duplicate (copied) content and is getting increasingly adept at rooting it out. Stealing a blogger’s hard work is not only rude, you can get penalized. On top of this, if you want a loyal audience you need to bring something fresh to the table.

Infringe on 'Intellectual Property' - artistic and literary creations of the mind, including designs and images, are protected under law so be careful of this or you could end up in hot water. For example, taking an infographic from a website without listing the creator is a no-no, as is using exact lines from a book without crediting them to the author.

Make untrue or unfounded claims - both Google and trade bodies are really clamping down on this in the digital space. Your site could be suspended if you say things like ‘earn seven figures in one week’ or ‘make money without doing any work’.

Be careless with trademarks and branding terminology - if you’re writing about a product or company brand, take care to use the correct trademarks/ way of writing the brand names. Also be sure never to use trademarked terms for your own purposes since this can get you into legal trouble.

Go crazy with SEO 'keyword stuffing' - not only will this ruin the natural feel of your article making it low quality, but Google is increasingly clamping down on content written purely for SEO and could penalize your blog. Here’s a short, easy video which explains how to get the right keyword density in your articles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rk4qgQdp2UA

Write articles that go on and on - given short attention spans these days, blogs are ideal at around 500 to 700 words. If the topic you’re writing about warrants lots of content, rather split your blog e.g. Part 1 of 4. This also helps to keep your readers engaged in anticipation of the next installment.