Including certain pages on your blog, such as “about”, “contact” and legal pages, is essential to give your site a level of trustworthiness and give your readers confidence when dealing with your site.
Also, depending on the purpose of your blog, some of these pages can become mandatory. For example, if you want your blog to display AdSense ads, it must have a privacy policy that includes certain cookie information as laid out in the Google AdSense terms of service.
Whatever the functionality of your site, there are many helpful blog posts that cover this topic and you will soon learn what pages are a good idea to include on your site, or are indeed compulsory.
However, depending on the type of blog you are creating, I have noticed one blog page that does not get much of a mention and is quite often overlooked.
Resources Page – Do You Have One?
If you have a blog that contains posts which explain how to use products that you use – like this blog that you are reading now – why not create a resources page and list all of these products under one roof? The advantage being, if your visitors are interested in the products you use, it will provide them with a comprehensive list all on one page.
A resources page could also help increase the time visitors spend on your site. By linking out from your resources page to other demonstration posts you have on your blog, you are giving your readers the opportunity to remain on your site and check out other tutorials you have published.
To see how this works take a look at my resources page by clicking on this link: Tools of the Trade
Keep it Updated
Having a resources page like this does come with a level of responsibility – you must keep it updated.
If you stop using a certain product, be sure to update your resources page and explain why. It may not be because you don’t recommend that product anymore, but maybe because you have moved on and found something more suitable for your own personal needs.
Don’t Misuse Your Resources Page
If you do decide to create a resources page then keep it just as that. What do I mean by this?
Have you ever clicked on a resources page that is crammed with nothing but affiliate links and it’s blatantly obvious the page owner has no knowledge of the products and does not actually use any of them.
If you have come across this type of page yourself you will know exactly what I am talking about. My personal view on this is that this type of page can seriously damage the reputation of you and your blog – so don’t bother doing it.
That’s not to say you shouldn’t use affiliate links on your resources page – I do. However, I also recommend free products I use as well as the paid ones.
Rules for my Resources Page
I have a couple of rules that I stick to regarding my resources page. Before I list a resource on this page it has to fall in one of the following categories:
1 – I personally use it and think it would benefit my readers.
2 – I have personally used it but no longer do, however I still believe it would benefit my readers. In this case the resource page would be updated with this information.
I also use some paid tools that I am not yet willing to recommend on my resources page. Why? Because I have found some of them to be buggy or to not quite work as promised. And until they are fixed and do what they are supposed to do without any issues, they will not appear on my resources page.
I think the underlying rule here is honesty and transparency. If you are not happy with a product you have purchased, do not recommend it on your resources page just for the sake of an affiliate commission.
I hope this post sets out the benefits of having a resources page for both a blog owner, as a means of keeping the interest of readers and perhaps earning a little commission, and for readers as a central source of product information and links to additional tutorials.
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