This is a guest contribution from Ryan Currie at Spokeo.
Blogging is an art and it takes practice to really get right.
There are few things more frustrating than pouring your blood, sweat, and tears into a masterfully crafted blog post only to see the analytics at a standstill days after posting.
Here are a few tips for bringing more people to your blog, consistently.
1. Find out what people want to read
Social media is a blogger’s best friend. Not only can you use social to share your latest blog post, you can use it to source upcoming blog material too. Check out Twitter’s trending topics and take notes on common themes among your Facebook friends’ status updates.
Don’t pander to an audience, but keep in mind what people want to talk about.
2. Self-promote like you’d network for a job
Image thanks to digitalart on Freedigitaslphotos.net
There’s no shame in promoting your blog! Not only should you have social widgets at the bottom of each blog post, you should be posting your work on every site you’re active on.
Keep a link to your blog in your email signature and feel free to tell people about it in everyday conversation when appropriate.
3. Speak to a more specific audience
It sounds counterintuitive, but getting more specific with your blog posts is a surefire way to build a niche audience. For example, there are millions of food blogs out there, but exactly how many specialising in gluten-free baking?
Find a niche you can really invest in and you’ll naturally build a loyal audience that shares your content for you.
4. Score a guest post
Guest posts are a great way to bring new eyes to your site. Reach out to bloggers who make sense for your area of expertise and write a really awesome post for their site.
One link to your blog in the boilerplate of a terrific post can catapult your numbers.
5. Reform your titling strategy
Like it or not, good titles are important. Consider what you’d want to read online and how people typically interact with web content. Make your title concise, interesting, and sharable and you’ll be surprised how many clicks you can get. Numbers work well as do current topics in the news and never underestimate the power of a superlative like “best,” “most,” or “biggest.”
6. Post more regularly
Very, very regularly! Whether it’s twice a week or twice a month, people have to know when to expect new content on your blog. The more consistent you are with your posts the more of a loyal audience you can attract and the more plugged in you’ll seem.
Once people learn your blog is a resource for a certain topic that’s updated regularly they’ll keep coming back if they like what they read.
7. Write about things you truly feel passionate about
It really is that simple. Readers can tell when you’re phoning it in and when they think you’re baiting them with topical posts that you’re using to hit numbers. The more authentic you are when blogging the better response you’re going to get. Be thoughtful, use research, and know what’s going on in the blogosphere but above all else write about what you know.
Page views aren’t the end-all-be-all of blogging, but they’re important, particularly if you ever hope to monetize your blog. Keeping these seven tips in mind can get you a long way towards your goal of gaining a steady stream of visitors, one at a time.
Ryan Currie is a Product Manager at Spokeo, a leader in people search and reverse phone lookup services. In addition to working on Spokeo, he also enjoys history, pop culture, and following the latest new in the movie industry.
