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Although I intended to only have two parts, I realized I had more thoughts on the topic than I had anticipated, so I added another part to my Tips for New Bloggers series! If you missed them, be sure to check out Part 1 and Part 2. Today’s part in the series is going to focus on how to get more readers. I know I said in Part 1 that you shouldn’t care about how many readers you have – but I definitely know how it feels to be writing every day and feeling like there’s no one reading (except for your Dad – thanks Dad!), so here are some ideas to get your blog out there!
1. Post links to Twitter and Facebook: I get a lot of my daily site visits directly from Twitter and Facebook, so I always make sure to post links to my blog posts each day on both Facebook and Twitter, usually several spaced out during the day. To do this without having to be attached to my computer, I use a website called Buffer which allows you to set up times to send out Tweets or Facebook posts. In Tweets I often include hastags or @____ if my post includes a comment about another blogger or about a company. That’s a great way to let them know about your post, and sometimes get a retweet.
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2. Interact with other bloggers on Twitter: Twitter is a great tool to discover new blogs, I regularly look through my tweets to see if bloggers I follow tweeting links to other posts that they like. If you do this for other people, they’re more likely to check out your blog and see who you are! You can also engage in conversation on twitter, just be sure to not over-do it! I can easily tell when someone is just trying to get attention on Twitter versus actually having something to say.
3. Join Link-Ups: Many bloggers have weekly link ups, including What I Ate Wednesday, Marvelous Monday, Strange But Good and more! If you write a post that fits in to their link up, be sure to join and add a link to their blog. As much as I’ve debated the pros and cons of What I Ate Wednesday posts with other bloggers, I have to admit that I have gotten more readers through that weekly link up than any other source.
4. Comment on other blogs: Just like with Twitter, be sure to only comment when you have something to say so that your comments are genuine, but definitely comment! I get several clicks a day from my comments on “bigger” blogs. Many people look through comments to find new blogs to read, I definitely did this when I had just started reading blogs!
5. Write Guest Posts: Writing a guest post is a great way to tap into another blogger’s readership. Sometimes bloggers send a call-out for guest posts if they know they’ll be away from the computer for some time, or you can always reach out to a blogger and ask about guest posting. I do recommend asking a blogger that you’ve had interaction with and not someone at random. A person’s blog is usually a very personal space and they don’t often like to open it up to someone who they don’t know if they can stand behind. Don’t be insulted if you get turned down – some people are very picky or just don’t do guest posts at all (like me!).
6. Write good content: This is probably number one for getting new readers, if you write good content then your readers will come! Once someone reads a post they really relate to or enjoy from your blog, they will usually come back. They will also usually share that post with other people, which has a snowball effect. The better your content, the more readers you will get. You just have to be patient!
How do you discover new blogs to read?
Do you use Twitter?
Do you comment on blogs often?
