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My first attempt at a niche blog, please review

by Steffy
20 replies
I've put together my first niche blog and I'd like some opinions on it please.

Is there anything wrong with it?

What changes could I make?

I've searched through the forum for advice as I've gone along but there is so much info and if the truth be told, it sometimes gets a bit confusing.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

http://clownfishguide.com/
#attempt #blog #niche #review
  • Profile picture of the author franamico
    Nice work!

    Please find my comments below:

    1) I would create a nice header (go to fiverr.com and get one for $5)
    2) You need to select a page as a landing page where to place nice optin box
    3) Your articles appear all i a row. This is bad froma SEO perspective. Make sure
    they appear on the sidebar as a list instead.
    4) Your optin box on the side is too small and the graphic might be greatly improved.
    5) If you want to build an authorithy site keep it niche focussed. No distracting banners.

    Hope that helps!
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    • Profile picture of the author Steffy
      Originally Posted by franamico View Post

      Nice work!

      Please find my comments below:

      1) I would create a nice header (go to fiverr.com and get one for $5)
      2) You need to select a page as a landing page where to place nice optin box
      3) Your articles appear all i a row. This is bad froma SEO perspective. Make sure
      they appear on the sidebar as a list instead.
      4) Your optin box on the side is too small and the graphic might be greatly improved.
      5) If you want to build an authorithy site keep it niche focussed. No distracting banners.

      Hope that helps!
      Silly question, but without ad banners how would I make money from the blog?

      I'm not selling a product, I'm passing on information. :confused:

      Thank you.
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  • Profile picture of the author Monja
    nice job you did!
    my question would be though - how do you make money? the context based words in the content are not that targeted if i checked right.
    also, i´d use some contrast and get a calm background. i know it is tempting and the background is different but it makes you look more professional if you keep it simple and clean.
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    • Profile picture of the author Flamboyantegg
      Originally Posted by Monja View Post

      i´d use some contrast and get a calm background. i know it is tempting and the background is different but it makes you look more professional if you keep it simple and clean.
      I agree 100% with this. First thing I noticed when I landed was that all my attention was drawn to the fishes in the background and the text shading/lack of contrast made it realllly hard for me to read the content.

      Once I forced myself to start reading it was good, BUT (speculation) I don't think the people who organically land at your website are going to be as forgiving as I was with the amount of time they spend getting into the right "mode" to read the content. If that makes sense?

      Cleaner would be nice, but not bad by a long-shot

      EDIT:

      I kind of love the worm on the hook. Keep that if you can, when/if you do a redesign. THAT is the sort of unobtrusive but interesting thing that keeps people on a page.
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      • Profile picture of the author Steffy
        Originally Posted by Flamboyantegg View Post

        I agree 100% with this. First thing I noticed when I landed was that all my attention was drawn to the fishes in the background and the text shading/lack of contrast made it realllly hard for me to read the content.

        Once I forced myself to start reading it was good, BUT (speculation) I don't think the people who organically land at your website are going to be as forgiving as I was with the amount of time they spend getting into the right "mode" to read the content. If that makes sense?

        Cleaner would be nice, but not bad by a long-shot

        EDIT:

        I kind of love the worm on the hook. Keep that if you can, when/if you do a redesign. THAT is the sort of unobtrusive but interesting thing that keeps people on a page.
        I'm going to need to start editing the code then.

        I might have to hire someone for that, or take a crash course.

        Thank you.
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    • Profile picture of the author Steffy
      Originally Posted by Monja View Post

      nice job you did!
      my question would be though - how do you make money? the context based words in the content are not that targeted if i checked right.
      also, i´d use some contrast and get a calm background. i know it is tempting and the background is different but it makes you look more professional if you keep it simple and clean.
      I'm using Adbrite for the ad's, they decide the context based words. I gave them a bunch of relevant keywords and assumed they would use them, but obviously not. :confused:

      Thank you.
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      • Profile picture of the author Monja
        maybe adsense is the better choice? i´m not familar with adbrite, sorry.
        however, maybe add some amazon based links e.g. books which fit to your niche.
        or check out clickbank if they have something for you - digital products have a very high commission
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        • Profile picture of the author Steffy
          Originally Posted by Monja View Post

          maybe adsense is the better choice? i´m not familar with adbrite, sorry.
          however, maybe add some amazon based links e.g. books which fit to your niche.
          or check out clickbank if they have something for you - digital products have a very high commission
          I'm banned from Adsense.

          I tried signing up with a different account, but no go.
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  • Profile picture of the author rosetrees
    The articles are horrible. Write some engaging, informative articles that people actually want to read. Not articles full of repetitive, filler text.

    Pay attention to the flow of your articles. The first two sentences of the first article are unrelated and shouldn't even be in the same paragraph.

    I would make the site less like a blog. By all means have a blog attached to it for adding interesting tit bits, latest offers, etc, but for the main site I would use pages, with a top menubar, to make it flow better for visitors.

    Then you can have a section on breeds and which are best to keep in which conditions, etc.

    A section on aquaria, sizes, types etc (perhaps with links to Amazon for monetizing)

    A section on diseases - again with links to Amazon for books etc

    I like the theme - it's fun, although I did find the "thing" that creeps down the left hand side a bit distracting.
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    • Profile picture of the author Monja
      to be honest - if if i order from odesk and pay 10$ per article i don't think that these articles are as engaging as i want them to be - really, the best is to do it yourself and realize that each piece of content is something you put your name under... and do you want to put your name under crap?
      when we scream that this or that is not working, the question is if we really gave our very best in all areas - from content creation to website design, to social engagement. so if you say no and just expect that the only thing which makes you really different - your content - can be done 12 times for 5$ - this might be a reason to fail...
      not saying you'd fail, just thinking out loud about quality and buying articles in general - been there, done that and i´m healed now and writing myself


      Originally Posted by rosetrees View Post

      The articles are horrible. Write some engaging, informative articles that people actually want to read. Not articles full of repetitive, filler text.

      Pay attention to the flow of your articles. The first two sentences of the first article are unrelated and shouldn't even be in the same paragraph.

      I would make the site less like a blog. By all means have a blog attached to it for adding interesting tit bits, latest offers, etc, but for the main site I would use pages, with a top menubar, to make it flow better for visitors.

      Then you can have a section on breeds and which are best to keep in which conditions, etc.

      A section on aquaria, sizes, types etc (perhaps with links to Amazon for monetizing)

      A section on diseases - again with links to Amazon for books etc

      I like the theme - it's fun, although I did find the "thing" that creeps down the left hand side a bit distracting.
      Signature

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      • Profile picture of the author Yogini
        I agree with Rosetree that it is best to have more engaging in-depth articles. Also, on amazon you can find both books on clownfish as well as remote control clownfish for kids.

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        • Profile picture of the author Steffy
          Okay, I've got rid of the fish and the worm in the background.

          I've got rid of the Adbrite ad's and added an Amazon ad in the sidebar and another Amazon ad in a link in an article.

          I'm planning on having an ad link on every article, once I have tweaked the articles. I have tweaked one article and hopefully it is an improvement.
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          • Profile picture of the author neotech
            Nice website, are you still glad you asked for advice...? (lol), Just kidding can see you have taken everything on board.

            I would add that the email subscription box should be at above recent posts.

            You want your visitors to get your information so you need to give them that opportunity immediately!

            I notice you said it was an information site, and that's cool, but at some point hosting fees need to get paid?

            All the advice on the site presentation here has been good, but one thing is missing Traffic! Advice. You need to start writing articles and getting your information out there...contrary to popular belief, if you "build it", they wont come.

            You keyword choice is awful i might ad "clown fish guide", gets less that 10 visits a Month! It recieves 110 searches under broad match.

            That means people could be searching for things other than clown fish information, such as a clown fish costume!

            Some things you may want to add:

            You can also add a link to a sitemap.
            Categories in the side bar
            List of terms and meaning page

            I took the liberty of doing a quick keyword search here are some better keywords, they all recieve between 2,900 and 140 searches a month each, on exact match

            clown fish
            clown fish facts
            what do clown fish eat
            clown fish pictures
            clown fish habitat
            clown fish facts for kids
            clown fish care
            black clown fish
            clown fish for sale <====== 2nd lowest comp (46/100) , 2,400 searches (m)
            clown fish scientific name
            clown loach fish
            freshwater clown fish
            clown fish adaptations
            clown fish aquarium
            clown fish breeding <====== lowest comp (41/100) 1,900 searches (m)
            where do clown fish live
            clown fish predators
            clown fish reproduction
            clown fish prices
            clown fish anemone
            clown fish and sea anemone

            It's a good idea to change the main keyword, you should start pulling in some visitors after you have submitted about 10 articles to some directories. using that keyword as the anchor text *clown fish breeding*, hint!

            Recommend ezinearticles.com, sooperaticles.com

            All the best look forward to seeing you as the Authority site on Clown Fish
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            • Profile picture of the author Steffy
              Originally Posted by neotech View Post

              Nice website, are you still glad you asked for advice...? (lol), Just kidding can see you have taken everything on board.

              I would add that the email subscription box should be at above recent posts.

              You want your visitors to get your information so you need to give them that opportunity immediately!

              I notice you said it was an information site, and that's cool, but at some point hosting fees need to get paid?

              All the advice on the site presentation here has been good, but one thing is missing Traffic! Advice. You need to start writing articles and getting your information out there...contrary to popular belief, if you "build it", they wont come.

              You keyword choice is awful i might ad "clown fish guide", gets less that 10 visits a Month! It recieves 110 searches under broad match.

              That means people could be searching for things other than clown fish information, such as a clown fish costume!

              Some things you may want to add:

              You can also add a link to a sitemap.
              Categories in the side bar
              List of terms and meaning page

              I took the liberty of doing a quick keyword search here are some better keywords, they all recieve between 2,900 and 140 searches a month each, on exact match

              clown fish
              clown fish facts
              what do clown fish eat
              clown fish pictures
              clown fish habitat
              clown fish facts for kids
              clown fish care
              black clown fish
              clown fish for sale <====== 2nd lowest comp (46/100) , 2,400 searches (m)
              clown fish scientific name
              clown loach fish
              freshwater clown fish
              clown fish adaptations
              clown fish aquarium
              clown fish breeding <====== lowest comp (41/100) 1,900 searches (m)
              where do clown fish live
              clown fish predators
              clown fish reproduction
              clown fish prices
              clown fish anemone
              clown fish and sea anemone

              It's a good idea to change the main keyword, you should start pulling in some visitors after you have submitted about 10 articles to some directories. using that keyword as the anchor text *clown fish breeding*, hint!

              Recommend ezinearticles.com, sooperaticles.com

              All the best look forward to seeing you as the Authority site on Clown Fish
              Wow, thanks Neotech. All that info is amazing, it's really going to help.

              And, no I'm not sorry I asked for advice.

              Although I am new to this, I appreciate the honesty people are giving me. Telling what I need to hear as opposed to what I want to hear is far more useful to me.

              I appreciate all the advice.
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              • Profile picture of the author neotech
                My pleasure was sitting around not doing much...lol!

                I came across an affiliate offer that could fit in nicely with Clownfish

                You can signup at clickbank at the link below, if you haven't already

                https://www.clickbank.com/affiliateA...ignup.htm?key=

                And here's the link to that Guide...

                Saltwater Aquarium Advice <==== (*This is not an affiliate link*)

                You can sign up to click bank and promote this on your site.
                I take it Clown fish are saltwater fish.....?
                The sales copy for the product is disgusting, but the guy presenting in the video is passionate qualified and seems to know his stuff!

                The payout is almost 17 dollars a pop! which is pretty good...

                All the best again...
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                • Profile picture of the author Steffy
                  Originally Posted by neotech View Post

                  My pleasure was sitting around not doing much...lol!

                  I came across an affiliate offer that could fit in nicely with Clownfish

                  You can signup at clickbank at the link below, if you haven't already

                  https://www.clickbank.com/affiliateA...ignup.htm?key=

                  And here's the link to that Guide...

                  Saltwater Aquarium Advice <==== (*This is not an affiliate link*)

                  You can sign up to click bank and promote this on your site.
                  I take it Clown fish are saltwater fish.....?
                  The sales copy for the product is disgusting, but the guy presenting in the video is passionate qualified and seems to know his stuff!

                  The payout is almost 17 dollars a pop! which is pretty good...

                  All the best again...
                  Neotech, you're so much better than me at this.

                  Are you sure you wouldn't like to buy the site from me? I'll offer you a fair price.
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  • Profile picture of the author Monja
    sorry to hear that. guess it´s not that hard to get banned from adsense these days...

    i guess though that there are many different ways to monetize the site, maybe not the easiest are the best. so i´d go with amazon or clickbank
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  • Profile picture of the author newmarket
    Hi, your blog is perfect. But there is one thing you do wrong. It is you try to make money with your blog. Actually, the blog is not for making money. It should be for building relationship with your customers. Therefore, I just don't understand why there are people who are telling newbies that they need to do blogging to make money. It is so wrong. So contact with me if you want to know the reality of IM.
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    • Profile picture of the author Monja
      newmarket - i agree partly.
      sure you don't build a business around your blog but you blog around your business. so first comes: what do you sell and then how do you archive that?
      and in the IM world that is usually based on giving away really good content. so you need to go from there: design, content, monetization

      Originally Posted by newmarket View Post

      Hi, your blog is perfect. But there is one thing you do wrong. It is you try to make money with your blog. Actually, the blog is not for making money. It should be for building relationship with your customers. Therefore, I just don't understand why there are people who are telling newbies that they need to do blogging to make money. It is so wrong. So contact with me if you want to know the reality of IM.
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