THE Guide to Patch Tips and Tricks on Blogging

Written by Joanna Schneider

Patch is the place to connect with neighbors, local businesses and nonprofit organizations in your town. In addition to the professionally reported news you've come to rely on from Patch, one of the most vital pieces of our platform are the community voices we feature from users like you.

By starting a blog, you've already taken the first step towards sharing YOUR story on Patch. Your blog is a place to share everything and anything you'd like (so long as it plays by our Terms of Use).

Maybe you just started your blog or perhaps you’re already an old pro. Either way, we’ve put together some tips every blogger should check out (trust us, they're helpful!):

• Want to change your blog name, description or photo icon? Want to add additional managers to your blog? Here are all the how-tos on updating your blog settings and user profile plus step-by-steps on starting a new post.

• What makes a great blog post? How often should I post? And other FAQs for bloggers.

• 5 Easy Ways to Make Your Blog Shine  Tips to maximize the Patch platform: how to promote your posts and grow your audience  

• SEO Tips for Bloggers  Tips for getting more readers! Be Google friendly and user friendly -- everything you need to know about SEO.

• Become a Prolific Blogger in a Snap  Best practices for cultivating an audience and creating (easy) posts people want to read.

• 5 Ways to Grow Your Blog Audience Through Social Media  Social media insight and tips from Patch social guru Penny Riordan.