PC gaming has had a strong following since before the Internet was even a thing (at least in consumer terms). Today, there are countless online communities dedicated to both online and offline gaming. Competition for the gaming PC dollar has also been fierce for a long time. One persistent problem in the world of gaming hardware is the sheer amount of erroneous and biased information out there. This is true even among bloggers, and that leaves you with an opportunity.
If your aim is to develop blog content that is accurate, factual, and engaging at the same time, keep reading. I’m going to give you some advice for putting together a blog that positions you as an authority and builds trust among your readers.
Start With the Basics
There are a few things that you need to establish before even developing PC gaming blog content. Having all the pieces in place ahead of time will make it much easier to launch your blog and quickly build a community around your efforts.
Here are the key elements you need to have ready before your launch:
Domain and Website – The more original the name is, the better. It doesn’t even have to relate directly to gaming. Your branding should establish your purpose. Your domain name should simply be interesting enough to get people’s attention, so they get introduced to your brand.
Unique Branding Strategy – Put some thought into how you want to brand your content. Remember, this is how you will identify yourself to your readers. So think in terms of high-energy, tech-savvy messaging and build a brand that will be a good mouthpiece for these things.
Social Media Pages – Once you have your branding established, start building your social media pages. You haven’t promoted anything yet, so just get your pages up and maybe even follow a few other blogs or hardware manufacturer pages.
Publishing Schedule – Decide how often you want to update your blog and have a plan for publishing blog content. Also, plan all your support content like emails and social media posts for starters. (We can suggest other relevant types of content if you need a little more direction.)
Read and Follow High-ranking Blogs in Your Niche
One of the easiest ways to figure out how to approach your audience is to follow the example of content creators who have figured out how to approach theirs. Don’t fall into the trap of rewriting content, though, especially content produced by major influencers in your niche. Think in terms of content areas, not specific topics.
You can cover the same topics, but your voice has to be unique. Your readers want to know your thoughts and perspectives. What they don’t want is to sit there and read reiterations of things they’ve already read on your competition’s blog. Instead, successful bloggers find their own voices. While this is much easier said than done, if you take the time to get to know your audience and pay attention to the posts that get the best engagement, you will figure it out.
Start With at Least 5 Blog Posts
If you want to set your blog up for good SEO from day one, it’s vital that you have enough content for search engines, particularly Google, to index your site. Google also won’t allow ad placement on sites that don’t have enough content at launch. This is a huge part of content marketing, so don’t cut corners on this one. Start with as much content as possible. The minimum is five posts of at least 500 words each.
HINT: for this type of content, a 500-word piece is not likely to be adequate. Think long-form content – 1500 words or better of vetted, verifiable information that maintains a high level of accuracy and engagement potential.
ANOTHER HINT: You can use your blog posts to capture email addresses. You can include a squeeze page on your post pages or include calls to action (CTAs) to subscribe to your email list with links to your opt-in page at your autoresponder provider’s site.
ONE LAST HINT: Gamers, particularly PC gamers, already have strong opinions about the hardware they use. Don’t try to persuade in your blog content; just inform. For example, just because people like a specific graphics card doesn’t mean it’s the best. Let the quality of the information do the persuading.
Be Visible on Influencer Pages
Interacting on pages where your potential readers live is a great idea – and you should start right now. Well… at least start getting the lay of the land. Participating in discussions (or just observing them at the beginning) will give you tons of ideas for what to do with your blog. You’ll learn what potential readers find important, and you will likely pick up a few followers along the way.
However, here’s the thing: don’t go on other people’s pages and start promoting your content. It’ll be plenty obvious that you run a branded page. Just listen, react, and contribute positively to the conversation when appropriate. Let the interest in your brand come from the way you present it on influencer pages. When you get bold enough, you can also approach influencers and ask them to give your page and your content their endorsement. You might also get some of them to guest blog for you!
Curation and Copyright
If you decide to go the curation route, please be sure of a few things. First, the actual hardware manufacturer is always going to be your best source. Don’t look to third-party blogs for information you can get from their site or with questions you ask them directly.
Next, understand that you’re probably not the only blogger using this same content. Too many instances of the same content posted to blogs will negatively affect SEO. Ask yourself if you really need to post their content or if you can successfully create your own based on the source content.
The latter is easier than you might think, especially with the help of a tech content creation partner like BeezContent. We work with clients like you every day to plan, prepare, and publish quality marketing content that gets results. Contact us today to learn more.
