How to Boost your Blog Traffic

 

How to boost your blog traffic?  There is no worse feeling as a blogger than the one you get when you realize that no one is reading your blog.  You have created your blog in a niche that you are passionate about, written your blog post, inserted the perfect photographs, checked your SEO and clicked publish and you wait and wait and wait.  You expect that people will automatically flock to your blog because you have put so much work into it and in your eyes it is perfect.

Believe it or not it doesn’t work that way.  You can’t expect that people will just stumble upon on you and that they will be so overwhelmed by your post that they will share it all over the web.  You have to decide that you want your blog to be successful and having made that decision you must put the same amount of work to making it successful as you did writing that perfect post.  Blogging success doesn’t happen without work and it doesn’t happen over night.  So what can you do to boost your blog traffic?  Follow these 5 steps to blog success.

1.  Know your Audience!

Before you can even consider being successful as a blogger you have to know your audience.  Who is your blog trying to reach? What problem are you trying to solve? What is it that your audience wants to hear from you?  These are important considerations if you want to boost your blog traffic.  While you have created your blog in a niche that you like and have knowledge you are writing for your readers and not for yourself.

Creating valuable and helpful content only occurs when you know your audience.  It does you no good to write on a topic that your readers are not interested in.  Your content is the most important part of boosting your blog traffic.  In order to determine what your readers want you should first ask yourself whether you would like to read it, then decide whether the post answers a question or problem the reader is searching for.  Is it a topic of general interest with a specific solution?  Use Google and Pinterest to search for content ideas.  If you simply type in How to . . .  in the search bar you will instantly get ideas for valuable content.

But, make sure that you are staying true to your niche.  You will not get a devoted following if you are not keeping to your niche.  Your followers expect to hear from you in their area of interest.  For example, my niche is sewing and crafting.  My readers expect to get simple and inexpensive sewing and crafting ideas so I create projects and tutorials for them to follow.

2.  Promote! Promote! Promote!

You have to promote your blog and your blog posts to people who will care about your niche and want to follow you.  The answer is Pinterest and social media.  I primarily promote my blog and blog posts on Facebook, Pinterest Twitter, and Instagram.

Create a Facebook page that is solely dedicated to your blog and its content so that you can hook up with others who are interested in the same thing.

Join Facebook groups in your niche and in blogging generally. I am a part of several great Facebook groups where I regularly share my blog posts and connect with other bloggers, sewers and crafters.  You can easily connect with thousands of people in one group.  I routinely share my sewing and crafting posts in my sewing and crafting groups and I get new traffic to my blog as a result. I also get ideas for future projects that the group is interested in.

I am also a member of several blogging groups where members share their recent posts and exchange ideas on blogging. I have just started my own Facebook group that you can join to get and share blogging ideas.  You can join it for free at Passion for Blogging 101, https://www.facebook.com/groups/passionforblogging101.

Instagram and Twitter are also great places to promote your blog and your blog posts. I automatically post to these sites with a free plugin called SNAP auto poster so I don’t have to spend a lot of time posting to these platforms.  One platform I will spend some time on is Pinterest.  Unlike Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, Pinterest is not a social media site so much as it is a search engine with pictures.

3. Pinterest

Pinterest is the number 1 source of traffic to my blog.  I owe my 100% increase in blog traffic to Pinterest and Megan Johnson’s ebook Pinterest Ninja.  She outlines step by step how to boost your blog traffic using Pinterest.  It is a one stop shop for all things Pinterest and I highly recommend her book.  If you want to purchase her book just click here.

My blog would not have increased to this degree without the tips and tricks she shares in Pinterest Ninja.  I wholeheartedly recommend that you spend a few dollars to purchase this great source.

In addition to Pinterest Ninja, I recommend a subscription to PicMonkey as the perfect, most intuitive graphic design program on the web.  It has dozens of Pinterest templates and blank canvases to create the perfect Pin.  Really pin worthy pins will drive significant amounts of traffic to your blog. Because Pinterest is a photography based search engine the perfect pin is important and PicMonkey is the best way to create those pins.  Click here to get your free trial of PicMonkey now.

4. Newsletters

You will want to create a mailing list so that you can create a personal contact with your followers and keep them coming back to your blog.  You can send your blog content directly to your readers so that they do not have to hunt for it and they can automatically click on your blog’s link.  You will want to send them freebies, exclusive posts, and tips.  Creating this personal relationship will result in your readers coming back for more.

One of the best ways to create a large and ongoing email list is to use Convertkit.  Convertkit makes it easy for you to create downloadable incentives to encourage your readers to sign up for your email list.  For example, I created a free printable blog planner for bloggers and a free downloadable ebook on handbag making for my sewing and crafting followers.

Using Convertkit and incentives has increased my email list by 150% and I am sure that it will do the same for you.  

5. Make it a Routine

Creating blog posts promoting them on social media and Pinterest requires a routine.  If you truly want to be a successful blogger you need to be consistent in the steps that you take to promote all of your blog posts and your blog.  Post routinely and be consistent in promoting your blog on social media and create that perfect pin for Pinterest.   In this instance, organization is the key to success.  Consistency and routine are rewarded by search engines especially Pinterest.  It also keeps you well-connected with your increasing followers.

If you want more information on how to start and maintain a blog buy my ebook Passion for Blogging 101.  It gives you a start to launch plan for starting and maintaining a money making blog.

 

 

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