How To Create a Killer Resource Section for Your Blog

Building your blog into a killer authority website in your niche does take a lot of time. For starters, you are going to have master the art of content creation. Content was king 10 years ago, and it’s still king. But there is more to top blogs than just content. When you get close to the very top, every little detail can make a difference. At the end of the day, your visitors have a limited amount of time and so many blogs to go through. They usually tend to go to the website that provides them with the best value for their time.

One of the best ways to provide value to your readers is by “pimping” your blog’s resource section. If you are going to have a resource section on your blog, you may as well take the time to provide real value to your readers through it. Many new bloggers slap a “resources box” in their sidebar and add all kinds of links to it without thinking about the merits of those links. Your resource section should either guide your visitors to places to can find more information about your niche or introduce them to products and services that they may find useful. So it does take a bit of time to put on a decent resource center on your blog.

If you have no clue what to put in your blog’s resources, here are 7 things you may want to consider adding to your blog:

• Products That You Would Recommend: these can be affiliate products. But you want to make sure these products are of high quality and can come in handy for your readers. For instance, if you are blogging about the art of making money online, you can direct people to products that can help them achieve that goal. Just make sure you know exactly what you are referring people to.
• Tools: everybody loves free tools. If you have taken the time and effort to create a free tool section for your readers, your resource section is a great place to add a link to your free tools. You can also refer people to paid tools if you find those tools to be worth the money.
• Training Material: it’s not tough to assume that some of your readers will look for more ways to learn things about your niche and know everything they need to know to master it. Providing them with links to decent training materials can help them save money and effort. It can help you gain their trust as well.
• Books: if you have written a book or know a book that is a must read for those involved in your niche, it never hurts to link to it from your resources section.
• Best Posts: this is a must do. There is no reason you should not post to your top blog posts from your resource section. Your visitors will appreciate having access to posts you cherish the most.
• Wiki/Forum: you can link to your Wiki or blog’s companion forum from your resources section to get more people to visit your other online properties. Great way to grow your forum community or get more people to interact with your Wiki.
• Affiliate Product/ Partnerships: this is a bit iffy. I don’t mind pointing people to an affiliate product as long as the product works and I have tried it myself. The problem here is transparency. You should let your visitors know that you are getting paid from the links on your blog. Also, don’t go overboard with these products. Recommending things that just don’t fit your niche does not make any sense. Don’t give people the impression that you are just trying to make some quick bucks from your blog. There is nothing wrong in linking to your partners either (just make sure you have chosen the right ones).

There you have it. 7 simple ways to pimp your blog’s resource section and provide more value to your readers.