Make your blog a living library

When building a website or blog, remember these two words: instant gratification.

Your website should be a place where people can ask questions or run searches and get quick answers. When I had a question about how to make some custom modifications to Newsvetter's Wordpress theme (Thesis), for example, I turned to the user forum for answers.

Bingo. In most cases, the question had already been asked and answered, so I was able to get the information I needed within seconds from the archive--or, for all the geeks out there, the "knowledge base." And if that didn't work, I could post my query on the Thesis forum and have an answer within a day.

What makes this efficient system even more impressive is that the answers were simple and easy to implement, even though I know next to nothing about things like HTML and CSS. Best of all, these expert Samaritans gave me what I needed with no strings attached. If you can replicate this model of "information altruism" on your site or blog, you will quickly draw a steady and loyal stream of readers.

Thesis, of course, has the benefit of drawing on a seemingly endless well of skilled and experienced contributors in its community. But just like you, it had to start somewhere. So here are some tips on building your way toward a living library of resources:

• Make sure that your site content addresses specific points directly. There's a reason that people love "how to" posts.
• Don't post and forget. Know what you've already written and link new content with the old. By linking prolifically to previous related posts, you will show depth and institutional knowledge, as well as multiple tiers of sophistication that can cater to each reader's level.
• Make your content easy to find. Organize your site by subject matter rather than simply by archives that sort only by date. Try to limit these categories to 10 or fewer. An overabundance of categories defeats the purpose and will deter readers from searching.
• Assume your readers (like me) don't know squat about your subject matter. If you find that some questions are simply too rudimentary and time-consuming to address, at least tell me where I can learn the basics. With any luck, you'll be able to link to helpful material somewhere in your burgeoning archives.
• Organize your site with common sense and free of clutter, with impatient readers in mind. Ask yourself: Do I really need that Flash widget or Java ticker in the right sidebar? Does it truly provide something valuable for most readers, or is it just a distraction?
• Keep it short and simple. Try and keep the majority of your posts to under 500 words (better if it's between 300-400 words). And that doesn't mean you can break them into Parts I-III.
• Before you write, think about what the headline should say. There's an old copy-editing rule that, if you can't figure out what the headline should say after reading the story, then there's probably something wrong with the writing. This will help avoid that conundrum.

Don't worry if you don't nail down all these points on the first try. Your site is a perennial work in progress, constantly evolving to follow the dynamic nature of the medium.

You can also make use of various analytical tools, many of them free, to learn what people are clicking on (or not) and figure out why. Remember, the beauty of this medium is that you can always change your site--and should.