If you’ve been to any of my classes you know that though I preach the Gospel of PR to and for small biz owners and entrepreneurs on a daily basis, I also know that in order to truly build buzz, visibility, and validation for your business you need to also be actively and strategically engaging your social media followers, newsletter recipients and your blog. Today we’re going to make your business even more powerful and productive in one of those areas: Your Blog.
That’s right, today I’m sharing 3 fast-acting, powerful and free strategies to make your blog a magnet for readers not just once – but repeatedly! If you’ve got a blog right now – or are planning on creating one for your business or yourself in the future – you’re going to want to start using these tips right away, because I’m guessing that you want as many people as possible to see see the content you’ve been spending your time creating and writing.
An even bigger and better picture way to look at it is: The more people you attract to your blog, the more it can serve them, making their lives go better, faster, easier, healthier, more entertaining – YOU GET IT.
So let’s get down to business, because these strategies are going to rock your world – and your blog – as they have for the clients and businesses I’ve taught them to, and you know what – I use them on the blogs I write for as well!
It’s going to be a good day. Let’s do this!
BLOG BOOSTING STRATEGY #1 – Create an Ongoing, Consistent Series.
Guys and gals I’m not saving the best for last like a Vanessa Williams song today, I’m leading with one of my FAVORITE blog boosting tips, and this one holds a special place in my heart. It is, the Blog Content Series. Not only is a Blog Content Series fairly straightforward to set up and start doing, but I’ve seen repeatedly how powerful it is in terms of creating return and regular readers and rewarding, magnetic content to create and share. This is the way you get people addicted to your blog, your offerings, you, and your brand.
So what does creating a series mean? It means you’ll be creating an ongoing, specific and repeated type of content post that occurs on a regular basis, for instance weekly or monthly.
Maybe you curate a monthly list of themed must-haves that go with your biz niche (fitness must-haves, fashion must-haves, pantry necessities, etc.), If you’re a food blogger perhaps every Monday you share a new recipe. Maybe you create an ongoing interview series with people who are industry-relevant or would be interesting to your ideal audience and customer. Product creators could share a regular photo series of “real” people using or wearing their product. I would even encourage you to share a “behind the scenes” of my work-space type series.
Do whatever “feels right” to you and connects with your blog, your brand and your readers. The only rules for making this work – in other words – making sure people are falling in love with and then regularly returning back to check out the latest in your blog series are:
#1 You have to make it happen at the same time every week/day/month: Same Day, Same Time so it becomes a habit and regular “date” with your readers. Think of it in terms of a TV show – back before the times of DVR and Hulu. You got pumped all week for the day the new episode of 90210 or The Simpson came on! Get your audience excited about your series by having a regular time it runs – If they don’t know when it’s going to turn up next they’re not going to tune in as eagerly, if you share it consistently it becomes a habit for them.
#2 Give Your Series a Name and a Hashtag: Just like a TV series, your series should have a name and while you’re at it, it should be given a hashtag. Oh yeah, now we’re making it official. Be sure your title isn’t too long or confusing, and make sure your hashtag matches it. Use that hashtag when you’re promoting it on social media and soon other people will as well! Spreading your blog and your brand!
The cherry on top of hashtags? As you use them more and more, they’ll allow people to search and find your past series posts by searching for that hashtag on social media feeds!
BLOG BOOSTING STRATEGY #2 – Conduct Interviews on Your Blog. Regularly.
Let’s talk a little bit more about those interviews I mentioned above because they’re could be BIG for your biz in terms of blog readership and visibility boosting. Here’s the deal: Even though this blog is your it doesn’t need to be – and shouldn’t be – all about you. Really. In fact, interviewing people (whether outside of our inside of your business) can be pretty awesome. I do it regularly, whether I’m interviewing well known members of the press or media/PR industry (like here) or interviewing small biz PR success stories (here). Here’s why:
#1 – Creating interesting, thought provoking questions for someone else to answer is less labor intensive than writing your own full blog posts.
#2 – It brings in a fresh, new, exciting perspective, point of you and PERSON into your content. New and fresh are good, and they keep your readers engaged.The only thing I’ll say about this is be sure the person you’re interviewing is presenting a story, content or insight that will be of value or interest to your readers.
#3 – The person you’re interviewing is going to want to share their interview with their friends, family, followers and community which means you’re going to get new traffic and readers to your blog and website, which can lead to new followers online, on social media, new customers, new newsletter readers…you get it!
Student success story Nadia Murdock, founder of Nadia Murdock Fit runs the Fitness Files series, in which she interviews well known health and wellness personalities about their fitness and wellness habits. It’s interesting, it’s addictive if you’re a fitness fan, and it’s a perfect content match for her readership and clients.
BLOG BOOSTING STRATEGY #3 – Get Personal. The Right Way.
Do you know what increases the chances of someone reading your blog, getting “addicted” to it, – as well as buying from you, following you on social media and becoming a long term fan and cheerleader for your business in general? When they a) trust you and b) feel personally connected to you.
Do you know one of the most fast, powerful and authentic ways to make that happen? Share bits and pieces of your own personal story and self in your blog.
I’m not saying go into detail about your most painful high school breakup or your Aunt Martha’s joint problems (unless they directly relate to your business or blog topic) but I AM saying you need to pull back the curtain and do a little bit of personal revealing of who you are, what goes on in your life, why (on a personal level) you do what you do and how you, in effect, are very similar to your readers.
Sometimes I call this the Oprah Effect. One of the reason people loved Oprah so much when she did the Oprah Show was not just because of the “YOU get a car and YOU get a car and YOU get a car !” moments, but because she got personal about her own journey, her struggles, her weight challenges and her life in general. She wasn’t afraid to laugh and cry with her audience, and because of that they connected with her.
Your readers don’t just want to learn from you or be entertained by you, they want to CONNECT with you, and the way they’re going to do that is by you getting a little big personal.
Sure that can sound or feel scary if you’re not used to doing it, but once you start, you’re going to see and feel the change professionally and personally (flexing those Discomfort Zone muscles changes you in many ways, trust me).
How can you share a little bit of YOU on the blog? Here are a few ideas:
Start with the most basic: Tell the story, in your own, authentic voice, about why you’re writing this blog or why you’re running your business. If you’re saying to me “but it’s already in my ABOUT section” that’s quite all right. This is going to be less “official” and more conversational, as if you’re sitting down at a coffee shop or over a glass of wine and saying “hey, here’s my story, here’s my A HA moment, here is what happened in my life that led me to start this business or this blog!” Make it real, make it authentic, make it interesting and make it personal. Don’t hold back.
A GREAT example of this can be found on here on Nadia Murdock Fit’s blog that I mentioned earlier. Nadia is a fitness and wellness coach who went through her own health and weight struggles which led her to her business and blog, and though it wasn’t easy to bare it all and tell her story on her blog, she did it anyways, and it resonated with her readers. After all, it’s easier to connect with and trust a health coach that has shared similar struggles and experiences and has been where you are – and that’s exactly what her readers felt!
Share A Day in the Life: YOUR life. Use some really authentic copy along with pictures or video to let your readers come along with you for the day – from waking up and breakfast to your nighttime rituals. This personal peek into your life is going to let them see a bit more of the “real you” and they’re going to digitally bond a bit with you – trust me.
More important than any strategy you use will be two big things: You’ll want to make sure your content creating and posting is consistent, not matter what it is, because without regular content you can’t have regular readers. You’ll also want to be sure you’re sharing your blog posts with your social media communities and newsletter readers as they may not be checking for new content regularly. Yet!
Now get to creating a series for your blog. Start planning interviews that are truly engaging. Remember, this content isn’t all about you, it’s all about content that allows you to serve others with the value only you put out into the world!
Have any questions?
Shoot us an email (support@sabinaknows.com), engage in the Press for Success Facebook community, or schedule a one-on-one call with me to dig deeper.
Happy Blogging! I look forward to reading your blog posts! Don’t forget to Tweet them to me when they go live!
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