Whether you keep a blog as a hobby, to make money, or as part of your business, you will want people to read it.
The rise in digital marketing has made it easier than ever for bloggers to promote their sites and content, and get found in the process. Blogging is massive growth industry, so if you want to compete and become successful, it’s incredibly important to implement some marketing strategies.
Otherwise, it’s very unlikely that people are just going to stumble upon your site.
Social Media
Using social media correctly is one of the easiest ways to grow your blog. Different platforms work in different ways, but here’s a brief guide to the main ones:
- Facebook. It’s notoriously slow to grow a good following on Facebook. So, stick with it. The best way to get a head start is to link your blog page to your personal account. Other ways include joining Facebook groups and using them to promote yourself, whilst making sure you follow the group’s rules. Another key with Facebook is to share other people’s content. Whether this is posts from other bloggers, or funny memes: your readers don’t want it to be all about you.
- Twitter. Unlike Facebook, you can grow a following quickly on Twitter just by chatting to people and engaging with them. Reply to messages, share others posts, and retweet content you enjoy. Don’t just share your own stuff: this annoys people and will get you unfollowed quickly.
- Instagram. Instagram is a surprisingly useful marketing tool, if you stick to your niche and keep your feed attractive by sticking to the same filter. Have a private account for anything else.
- Pinterest. Pinterest is useful for food bloggers, or those selling products, especially if they are crafty. Again, it’s important to not only pin your own pages. You should also aim to add other original content as well and not just re-pin.
Email Marketing
Email marketing can be a great way to target new readers and it can be used to encourage return visits. Build your email list by adding subscribe buttons to your site, or using theemailfinder.co to check relevant domains and find the emails of potential new readers so you can send them an introductory email.
Be sure to make your emails interesting and insightful to keep people wanting more.
Guest Posting
Many blogs accept guest posts and some will even offer you payment. Work with bloggers you know or write for trusted websites. Be sure to link back to your site, if you are allowed.
This will improve your domain authority, increase interest in you as a writer, and slowly build your audience.
Engagement
The key to success for most bloggers is engagement. Get to know your readers. Include a call to action in your posts and social media updates, and reply to people’s comments.
Make them feel valued and a part of your blogging family. They will respond by sharing your content for you as well as returning to your site.
Remember, blogging is meant to be fun. So, experiment with different marketing strategies to find which you enjoy, and which work for you.
Wade Harman
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