The first step in achieving this is to have a well-designed blog. Here’s a list of the top five rules to keep in mind:

1) Simplicity. There are tons of widgets, plug-ins, etc. that you can add to your blog. However, be careful! You do not want to overload your web site with these additional features. If you go overboard, your readers will just end up distracted or annoyed by all the clutter. Choose sidebar features wisely and keep it to a bare minimum.

2) Easy Navigation. Make sure your navigation links are in a very obvious place, such as across the header or at the top of either sidebar. You don’t want your readers to have to go searching for page links.

3 Chose the Right Color Scheme. Pick a color scheme that coordinates with your theme, logo, whatever….but make sure that it is pleasing to the eye and allows content to be easily read. Having a white background with dark colored text is preferred.

4) Easy to Identify. Within their first 5 seconds of visiting your blog, your readers should be able to tell what the site is about. You can accomplish this by making sure your headline and/or tagline is prominent at the top of the page. It is also a good idea to include a small description.

5) Include feed links. More and more people today are taking advantage of feeds. To benefit from this, make sure to include links to your blog’s feed. Display them in attention-grabbing locations with wording along the lines of “Subscribe to our blog” or “Receive notification when we update our blog.”