Quiz: What Type of Blogger Are You?

This blog post was written by Bobby Gaglini, who works on the external marketing team at Vistaprint, and specializes in search marketing.

What do taking a picture, making a video and writing an article have in common? They’re all engaging forms of content — and perfect to use in your personal or company blog. As I mentioned in my previous post about the various ways to create blog content, “content” does not necessarily mean writing. It can be anything that grabs the reader’s attention and entices them to digest the information you provide. In the blogging world, there are three main types of blogs: written posts, photo and video. A well-rounded blog will have bits and pieces of all three, but if you’re struggling to start a blog, it’s a good exercise to find out what type of content you naturally lean toward. Take this brief quiz to find out.

1. When it comes to your small business, you think the best way to highlight news is to:
   a) Make it visual…snap a picture of it.
   b) Write a newsletter or announcement.
   c) Create a behind-the-scenes video of everything that went into the launch.
2. Your product is best showcased:
   a) On a photo site (Flickr, Instagram, etc.).
   b) In a blog post or news story.
   c) Through a video.
3. Does the thought of writing more than a few sentences make you feel:
   a) Unsure — a few sentences is usually all I need.
   b) Happy — I typically need at least 100 sentences to get my point across.
   c) Queasy — Writing? No, thanks!
4. On vacation, you are most likely to:
   a) Take a bunch of photos to remember the trip.
   b) Write down your trip highlights in a journal.
   c) Make a slideshow or video upon returning.
5. When advertising or getting your company name out to the public, are you likely to:
   a) Post flyers, posters or car door magnets.
   b) Send out an introduction letter to close friends and potential customers.
   c) Create a video to generate buzz.

Tally up your answers. If you were mostly:
As — An image-heavy blog might work for you.
Bs — A traditional written blog is more your speed.
Cs — Try a video-based blog.

A: A picture says a thousand words.
For you, taking pictures is a great way to showcase or tell a story.
Pro tips: Even if customers don’t always see the visual beauty in your work, you do. Use this to your advantage. Every other post, snap a photo of something interesting involving your work. Whether it’s a person, an inanimate object, or something else, take a photo, and write a couple of sentences explaining what it has to do with your work. Instead of drudging through mountains of text, you’ll only need to write a few sentences.

B: The pen is mightier.
You like writing…so write! When creating your posts, think about breaking up the text using italics and bullet points so it’s easier for your reader to digest.
Pro Tips: Before writing, develop a few articles that you think your customers or fan base would enjoy — whether it’s about your company, news related to your business or interesting tips and suggestions related to your work. Don’t forget that your love of writing will also make search engines love you, as they can only read text and not images or videos.

C: I’m ready for my close-up.
In your ideal world, everything would be captured on film. Fortunately for you and your company, video is a terrific way to get people to view and participate on your blog.
Pro Tips: If your company went through an interesting evolution to get where it is today, create a short video explaining that. Or, if your business is very technical, create a short list of “how-to” videos explaining your work using a whiteboard or graphs for your customers to understand. Once again, since search engines cannot watch videos, it’s imperative to write a few sentences on what the video is about.

This is just a quick exercise to get you thinking — and creating! Although choosing one of the above-mentioned forms of content is a good place to start, blending different mediums into your blog, on topics relevant to your business, will make your blog a destination for customers both potential and current.