Successful blogging takes a lot more than just being a good writer. It actually requires some decent math and data analysis skills. Writing for the sake of expressions is all good and well; however, sales are not secured by randomly publishing content. You need to stay on top of your industry and emerging traffic generation strategies that translate into revenue. The following five tips are some of the most popular strategies in the blogging industry. They’ve proven wild success for bloggers – but only because they were carefully planned and professional executed. Keep that in mind as you learn these strategies.
Infographics
Of course it’s important to write excellent copy, but using infographics can help draw the reader in even more. Making a great visual impact through charts, graphs, or illustrations can help your readers easily pick up more information. Humans are primarily visual learners and can absorb information presented through illustration much easier than walls of text.
It’s just more fun and engaging. There are many online and software programs you can use to create graphics to drive your point home. Businesses have blogs too. It’s a constantly growing trend as social media mangers, consultants, and marketers preach the necessity of blogging.
You might think, “I’m in a boring, non-tech-savvy industry. No one will care about an infographic I publish.”
That attitude right there will be the very pitfall of your social media campaigns. Here’s a good example: an auto parts company thought outside-of-the-box in the type of content they could promote on their blog. The result was Tale of the Tolls, an infographic depicting the history of tolls and other fun statistics. This infographic netted them over a thousand shares on social media!
Some general rules of thumb to follow when creating infographics:
- use appropriate colors, such as bright primary colors for a story about education
- use illustrations, such as spoons in a restaurant review chart
- use larger fonts for easy reading and <b>bold</b> to make stats dramatic
- incorporate your company logo to help with branding as people share and enjoy it
Guest Blogging
To increase exposure and your value as an author, consider writing for other blogs that cover topics relevant to your niche. This is a great way to increase your blog’s exposure, generate traffic and backlinks.
But most importantly, this is a great way to meet people.
Everyone preaches the SEO benefits and Google-Plus Authorship value of guest blogging. What seems to escape this practice is actually meeting and befriending fellow writers.
These are real people and generally, they are more than happy to share their experiences, thoughts, and blogging tips with you. By making the relationship reciprocal, both your readers and their readers can benefit from your content.
Make sure you write naturally and with authority, but don’t overdo your guest blogging. It’s a great way to meet fellow bloggers and drive some traffic, but don’t forget about your own blog!
Speaking of your own blog, you can also accept guest blog posts!
Contests and Giveaways
Setting up a contest or giveaway is a great way to connect to and engage with your readers. If you have a gaming blog, you can offer the latest Wii or X-Box game for your prize. One of my favorite blogs to write for is Dragon Blogger. They have entire section dedicated to giveaways. They recently held a giveaway for the new Google Nexus 7 and guess how many people entered the contest?
Over 59,000!
To run a similar contest, make sure you’re giving something away that relates to your blog (although most people generally will appreciate a chance to win a free phone!) You can buy the prize yourself or find a sponsor to provide the prize in return for free advertising and positive brand imaging.
Be sure that rules for your contest, including how to enter, the start and end dates, and how the winner is chosen, are clearly written out before the contest begins.
Also, contests are exceptional traffic generators. A solid and easy-to-understand and enter contest will be shared hundreds of times, even if your blog has a low traffic volume.
Webinars and Video Chats
Try teaming up with fellow bloggers for a webinar or video discussion. This increases your credibility as an authority on your blog topic and is an excellent way to engage with your readers. A new site called WP Bacon (the epic combination of WordPress and bacon) plans to feature episodes that essentially recordings of Google-Plus hangouts with professional WordPress bloggers, designers, and marketers.
Promote the webinar or video chat at least one week in advance through an email blast that includes information about what will be presented and has a link button for viewers to sign up. Avoid being too “salesy” in your presentation, but you should frequently mention your product or service and provide information that will help the viewer solve a problem.
Video chats with fellow bloggers and readers are another great way to engage with readers and increase traffic. Host a discussion on your blog topic and promote it on your blog as a special event. You can get started at sites such as Google Hangout.
Also, HubSpot offers free webinar guide that serves as a strong rule of thumb.
How-To Guides
Speaking of guides, this strategy is one of the most popular in blogging history.
Learn what information your readers are looking for, and create a useful resource that satisfies that need. The best way to do this is through a how-to guide in either a PDF or video format.
Start off by researching your audience and the marketplace. Ask questions like:
- What process makes your job the most difficult?
- What do you wish you could do better or more efficiently?
- Tell me about a day in the life (in your reader’s shoes)
Once you’ve established what needs to be addressed, determine the best way to present that information.
A PDF document with a great layout and color scheme is a visually appealing way to draw readers in; whereas a video presentation can show off your personality and give you the opportunity to put on a show. Videos, just like infographics, are much easier for people to digest. Whatever you choose, don’t forget to promote your guide and display it prominently on your blog.
Remember all the friends you’ve made through guest blogging? Let them know about your new resource and give them a full disclosure. Is your resource $20? Offer it at discount exclusively on the blogs you’ve written for.
Always focus on creating mutually beneficial relationships.
Thanks for reading!
Hopefully, these tips will help give your blog the boost you’ve been looking for. Do you know any other tips fellow bloggers can benefit from? Let us know in the comments!
Cheers!