How To Increase Your Blog Traffic

I’ll be honest with you. I would much prefer that it was 1950 and this internet stuff did not exist. I know, terribly dinosaur of me, but that’s just the way I feel. I would have much preferred to be judged by the quality of my writing and not my mastery of the technological gadgets arrayed before us.

Today an online presence is practically mandatory for a writer. I choose not to be depressed about that fact; it simply is a fact and one I need to deal with, and for most writers an online presence includes a blog.

A blog allows a writer to stay in contact with his/her readers. It gives a writer a platform from which their voice can be heard on a regular basis and potentially seen by hundreds of thousands.

A blog should be useful and entertaining. Useful…..a blogger must provide value to the reader. Entertaining…..we all want to find enjoyment when we read, and the higher the entertainment value the better. Face it: if you are a blogger you are one of millions, so you had better either provide a use for the readers or make it damn fun to visit. Otherwise they have many more blogs to choose from.

The following tips will serve you well as you embark into the scary world of blogging.

POST ON A REGULAR BASIS

We are all creatures of habit. We like to know that the bus is coming on time. We like it when the garbage is collected on its given day, and we like to know that someone’s blog will be there when it is supposed to be there.

Choose a regular schedule for posting on your blog and then stick with it. Do not randomly decide to skip a day, leaving your loyal readers hung out to dry. If you want to lose readership then by all means confuse your readers and don’t show up with a scheduled post. I promise you they will disappear and go find something else to do with their time.

Do not post infrequently and do not post too often. Find a comfortable schedule and then stick with it.

WELCOME COMMENTS

Blogging is about interacting with the online community. How can you interact if you don’t welcome comments?

If you are not welcoming comments you are basically asking your readers to read your swill but at the same time telling them you aren’t interested in what they have to say. As my dad used to say, that kind of attitude goes over like a lead balloon.

Besides, comments are also entertaining and can serve as great food for thought and possible future blogs.

BE POSITIVE

Be welcoming and continue to be welcoming in the weeks and months ahead. Unless your blog is, by nature, a sarcastic site where it is no-holds barred, refrain from being a sarcastic butthead.

If you want visitors then make your site welcoming and continue to do so. With millions of bloggers to choose from, why would someone choose your bitter and negative blog? Make your blog a comfortable place where readers can kick off their shoes and visit with an old friend (you) for awhile, thus allowing them to escape their world for a few enjoyable moments.

USE QUALITY PHOTOS

Everyone wants to have photos in their blog, and there is a very good reason to do so: readers respond to visual stimulation.

In my blog “Artistry With Words” I use a picture each day as a writing prompt for other writers. In other blogs I have had I have attempted to use pictures that are inspiring and thought-provoking. I want my readers engaged and believe me, pictures can be very engaging.

They can also be a huge turn-off if you are using low-quality shots.

It goes back to another thing my dad was fond of saying: if it is worth doing then it is worth doing well.

STAY FOCUSED

One of the problems many bloggers have is that they roam off on tangents that are unrelated to their blog. Remember that your blog is serving a purpose. You are responding to some need of the reader.

We all have a tendency to stray from time to time, and that only serves to confuse our readers. Make sure you stay focused on the purpose of your blog.

BECOME ACTIVE IN BLOGGING COMMUNITY

If you expect others to read your blog then I highly suggest you read their blogs as well. Yes, time is always a factor, but if you expect and want others to read your blogs then it just stands to reason that you reciprocate. This should be a no-brainer but it is amazing how many times I comment on the blogs of others and never hear from them.

Burn me once, shame on you. Burn me twice, shame on me. J

REPLY TO COMMENTS

I have noticed an increase in the number of blogs that have a section at the bottom that says I may be too busy to respond to your comment but I will make sure I visit your blog. Well, that is all well and good as far as visiting other blogs, but what kind of b.s. is it to not comment on comments?

If someone has gone to the bother of taking the time to comment on your blog, then the least you can do is be courteous enough to respond to their comment.

K.I.S.S.

Keep It Simple, Stupid!

Blogs are not meant to be 2,000 word essays. Blogs are instant information in small chunks. As a reader I am visiting your blog to pick up some words of wisdom and to meet my needs. I do not have the time to read a short novel. Give me what I want quickly so I can move on.

If you want to write a novel then by all means, write a novel and publish it as such. Online, readers are looking for quick information and guidance, with the emphasis on short.

SPREAD THE LOVE

Maybe I’m all mixed up in my thinking, but I do not look at other writers as competition. Instead, I look at them as my peers, and as such I refer to them often in my blogs.

Listen, this is a tough business, and I want to surround myself with quality writers and people who think in a similar manner. Writing is a profession that breeds loneliness, and I don’t want to be lonely. I like helping other writers and I believe that what goes around comes around. If I spread the love today then that same love will come back to me tomorrow. If I can help another writer by mentioning them then I feel good, they feel good and we writers will have stuck together as a community.

Yes, an online presence is necessary in the year 2013. This online beast is not going to disappear, so the quicker you understand it and use it, the quicker you will see success as a writer. If this sixty-four year old throwback can learn to blog then you can too.

Remember that you must provide a value with your blog. Remember that you must be entertaining with your blog. Remember that each blog post brings you one step closer to success as a writer.

Happy blogging, and if I can ever be of any help to you… well, you know where to find me.

2013 William D. Holland (aka billybuc)