Tell the World About Your Blog

 

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Tell the World About Your Blog
Written By: Wendy Ogryzek, June Bachman and Teresa Mitchell ~ 10/14/2008

Let’s recap. In part I of this article we shared with you that a business blog creates an opportunity for two-way communication with your clients and shows your organization as innovative and open to feedback, while extending customer service to clients.

While a blog can be a separate website, it is best when the blog is contained within a website; it is a page on your website, not a separate website that you have to manage and update.  Regular blog posts add content to your website at specific intervals, an important component of organic search engine optimization.  (…something that we try to inspire!)

DRIVING TRAFFIC TO YOUR BLOG
Now that you have a blog … and are updating it regularly … it is time to focus on strategies for driving more traffic to your blog.  After all what good is your blog, if no one is reading it!

There are several strategies from which to choose, for driving more readers to your blog.  We suggest exploring the options below and pick those that will work the best for you!


The First Step – Focus on Your Content

Content … heck, a terrific resource about content can be found in the book we wrote 16 Ways YOU Can Market Your Website.  Here are some “content principles” for you to apply to your blog postings:

  • Commit to regular blog posts
  • Choose several keyword phrases and use them repeatedly in your post
  • Write posts that will stand the test of time - and not be obsolete next week
  • Interview interesting people via email and include the info in a blog post
  • Be up to date with breaking news: be the first to write how "breaking news" relates to, affects, or impacts your industry
  • Use your authentic voice, include your perceptions, opinions on a specific trend or product
  • Solve a problem or just offer trustworthy information
  • Use your content as a branding tool for your expertise
  • Read 16 Ways You Can Market Your Website!

 

The Second Step – Promote Your Blog via Blog Directories & Search Engines

One of the best, most effective ways to promote your blog is via blog directories and blog search engines.  Basically, you are submitting your blog to be included in these directories and search engines.  By doing so, others (those who read blogs) can easily find your blog … read your blog … subscribe to your blog tags and become diehard fans!

When you submit your blog to a directory or search engine, be sure to take advantage of the tags that can be added.  Technorati and Blog Catalog are examples of blog directories that catalog or organize blogs according to their topic(s).  A tag is essentially a keyword or descriptive phrase for categories and sub-categories.  By adding tags to your blog you allow the web user to easily find your blog from the tags offered in a particular blog catalog. For example, if I were a “blogging stone sculptor” I would want my blog cataloged under the umbrella topic “Artists.”  Since I am an artist working in a specific medium I would then tag my blog “Sculptor” and “Stone Sculptor.”

Here is a list of just a few blog directories and search engines to get your started:

Summing It Up: Blogosphere Traffic Cops

To be a traffic cop in the blogosphere and drive/direct traffic to your blog (and your website) you need a badge - and to earn it you need to apply the following to your posts:

  • Focus on your content
  • Submit your blog to blog directories and search engines
  • Tag your blog posts
  • Use keywords in your blog posts
  • Post comments on others' blogs
  • Include your domain / email address as part of your unique blog signature (remember to hurl your url at every opportunity)
  • Link to other blogs as appropriate
  • Include email sign up for updates
  • RSS Feeds - make it easy for people to add your blog to their "readers"
    - Google Reader
    - Bloglines
  • Encourage others to "share" your posts ... have a link on your site that goes to the most popular blogging communities, so that readers can easily share and tag your post for others
  • Register your blog with a summary and descriptive keywords
  • Use contests to build readership
  • Have a "true stories" section in your blog - invite readers to submit their stories. This could be about how they used your product/service
  • offer an incentive to encourage submissions / like a discount or win free products

So there you have it … we’ve only begun to scratch the surface regarding how to go about driving more traffic to your blog.  So – if you have questions, post a comment to our blog … and we’ll do our best to get you the answers.


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