I started my blog a little over six months ago and in the beginning (and up until a month ago really), I didn’t have a clue about building engagement and increasing my blog traffic. I was posting stuff to the internet and getting despondent when it only got a handful of views, it’s no surprise really and now that I look back the change was all down to implementing these few routines.
Getting Twitter introduced me to a blogging community that I had previously been oblivious to. This is such a wonderful world of like-minded people who not only love to write posts but to read them too. Fellow bloggers are initially going to be your audience and Twitter was hands down the best way to interact with them. Which leads me on nicely to…
Twitter Chats
Twitter Chats have not only introduced me to some amazing content but also introduced others to mine. At the end of the chat, there is always an opportunity to leave a link to your latest blog post. I try to comment on everyone else’s in the thread, which can take up some time I will admit but is completely worth it. On days that I participate in a chat and make the effort to comment on everybody’s posts I always see a boost in my traffic and my comments. It’s the ‘I scratch your back, you scratch mine’ kind of effect. I’ll leave a picture of the chats below!
Facebook Groups
Now I don’t have a separate blog facebook page and in fact, none of my friends on facebook even know that I have a blog but I still make use of the Facebook platform for promoting content and participating in threads. Now threads for anyone who doesn’t know are basically a chain of people who all commit to whatever the thread is about, for example, in a blog comment thread, you post your link and then comment on the five above you, therefore the five people below you will comment on your blog. They have threads for everything on these groups, Pinterest, Instagram likes, StumbleUpon, Twitter re-tweets, you name it there’s a thread for it. You don’t have to participate in every thread and it may seem a bit like false traffic but the truth is I have found people that I now follow on these threads, and so I’m sure it works both ways around. My two favourite Facebook blog pages for this are Blogstart which is smaller and more personal, and The Blogging Squad which is a lot bigger but there are more options. These are closed groups so you do have to ask to join but everyone is accepted, even complete beginners.
StumbleUpon
I had never heard of this before until I read a post by Anna Nuttall about how she boosts her own traffic. I immediately created an account, got to grips with the site and started Stumbling. StumbleUpon is basically a place to add your blog post links to and when users ‘stumble’ a random page is generated based on the interests that they sign up with. So for instance, if you post about food then you would put your post in the ‘Food’ category and then tag it with food based words such as ‘foodie, breakfast, fine dining’ and then you let stumble do the rest. The first Stumble link that I uploaded from my blog I also combined with a StumbleUpon thread, so 20 people added my stumble to their likes, and that day I received over 250 hits from StumbleUpon for that post. I’ll be doing an update on this as it’s still relatively new to me but from what I’ve seen so far it can be very effective.
Get your content out there!
So you’ve published a post, now is the time to promote it! Share it to Twitter and use tags and hashtags that will get it re-tweeted. I use @Bloggerstribe @Bloggerssparkle and #GRLPOWR on every one of my promotion tweets. Don’t stop there, share a photo on Instagram, have your blog link in your bio and direct people to it. If you have Pinterest, Pin some of your images to a board, make sure to put a link to your post in the description. Do this for all of your social media accounts don’t forget Google + and StumbleUpon. Finally, create a BlogLovin account to have your content automatically uploaded to BlogLovin! By doing this you are maximising your potential audience, at first when you have few followers it will be a little slow, but it’s a snowball effect so hang in there and have patience.
Engage
I think perhaps the most simple way to increase your traffic and also your following is to engage with other bloggers. Like their posts, comment on their content, make an effort. Blogging is time-consuming and generating an organic following and increased traffic won’t come by magic, set aside a few hours a day to participate in threads, have a chat with fellow bloggers and stay up to date with the community and don’t forget to show your personality, people want to see the real you.
And remember Rome wasn’t built in a day.
Great tips, thank’s a lot for this post! My blog is online about 5 month old too and I’m still struggeling a bit with consistent traffic. But definitely going to try out StumbleUpon, since I haven’t heard of it before..
xx Mouna – http://www.howimetmystyle.com
Oh yes, do try StumbleUpon! I have high hopes for it xx
Really useful, thanks for sharing. I will try to do more of these to build relationships with fellow bloggers x
Thank you! I’m so glad you found it useful x x
A useful post. I am a lazy blogger, but will follow your tips to write more and promote more. Thanks.
Glad you found something to take away from it 😀
Hey, try the facebook page. You can later ay for adds as low as $5 and promote your page or website. It has helped me a lot. I’m trying the Stumble upon, I’ve never heard of it.
Oooh thanks I might give Facebook pages a go x
Thank you so much for the helpful tips. 🙂
Thanks for reading! xx
Very useful article! Saved it to my bookmarks! Need to try Twitter Chats and StumbleUpon 🙂
Yes please do! xx
These are some great tips, and I am bookmarking this page so I can refer to it in the future. I’m just now diving into blogging again, and I’m ready to put myself out there!
Yes Melanie! Get out there girl 😀
I have never heard of the Twitter chats or Stumble Upon so I will be trying this out. Thank you for posting, I pinned this so I can come back to it later.
Thanks Kaylee! xx
Omg! I was always curious about what “stumbleupon” was, and you described so well. Thank you for that! Maybe I should try it! http://www.clairebearblogs.com 🙂
Yes do give it a go 😀 x
Really useful tips. I have read only good things for twitter chats but never tried them so far. I might give them a better look now.
Thanks Helene!! x
One of the best posts on this topic that I have read.
Thanks Michelle x
I need to do more with Twitter. I love education Twitter chats, but now I’ll have to look into blogging ones. Stumble upon is new to me, too! Thanks for all the great info!
That’s ok Jenn! Glad you found something new to try x
Oh my gosh! Thank you SO much for sharing that list of twitter chats! Definitely pinning!
Thank you, Cynthia! I have OfaGlasgowGirl to thank for creating such an amazing visual. x
I’ve never heard of StumbleUpon but it sounds so interesting, I’ll have to look it up.
I completely agree with everything you have mentioned. A very handy post for newbie bloggers!
Abs x
https://afababulouslife.blogspot.com
Thanks Abbie 😀 x
These are all great tips! I have to agree strongly with the engage tip! Connecting with not only other bloggers, but you readers is super important and is something that I found boosted my blog so much! I also love twitter chats! You get to meet some pretty awesome people!
-Danielle Ruppert // danielleruppert.com
Yes! I’ve met some amazing people through chats x
These are some really good tips! I have never done a twitter chat before – they seem so complex, I guess. But I’d love to learn! I know they are supposed to be good.
They aren’t too bad once you do your first one 😀 x
Very Helpful and headings are very effective for a new blogger
These really are some great ways to boost your traffic. I love doing the Twitter Chats but lately I have been lacking! I need to save your Chat Board and start doing them again.
Lea, xx
http://www.asnippetoflife.com
I’ve been lacking the last few days too, sometimes things can get a bit too hectic but they’re great to come back to at any time x
Love this post! As a new blogger, I’m always looking for ways to boost my traffic and am looking forward to trying out some of your tips 🙂
Thanks Tammy 😀 x
Great tips shared out here 😀 Definitely, you nailed it dear. Will be helpful to many newbies 🙂
Thank you Sushmita! xx
These are such great tips! x
Thanks Parie 😀 x
This post has helped me so much! Thank you!
Beccy Kiernan | BeccyKiernan.co.uk
Glad I could help Beccy 😀 x
Hey Sophia, great post! I’m a bit lost when it comes to promoting my blog so I will be acting on some of these tips, thanks! xx
Glad it helped Shana 😀 x
Thank you so much for all these tips!
I have just requested to join The Blogging Squad, and I’d be experimenting with StumbleUpon. I’m a relatively new blogger as well, and I’m praying so so so hard that it’s gonna work out.
http://thiscache.blogspot.com
It will all come with time! 😀
Thanks for these great tips! I’m going to give them a go and hopefully they’ll work for me too. 🙂 x
Thanks Kathryn! xx
Thanks for sharing these great ideas! The Twitter chat timetable is especially helpful to me – I always seem to miss them! I’ve put them in my phone calendar now so I don’t forget as I really enjoy them. It’s a great way to connect with bloggers you might otherwise not have met!
Beccah xx
thehonestolive.com
Thanks, Beccah! Great idea putting them in your phone calendar! 😀
Thanks for the tips! I am really curious about StumbleUpon now.
Do give it a try! I’ve had some great results from it. It took a few page submissions and maybe a week or so to start getting hits, but like any social media account the more you put in, the more you get out! xx
this is exactly how I feel! I really thought it was just me finding it hard but I guess it’s only the beginning. I do like to interact with other bloggers because not only does it benefit them but you too!
The blogging world is completely different to how some people portray it, and also how I think we often perceive it from the outside. It’s only once we’re a part of that community that we realise the hard work that goes into every post, the time spent publicising it and the effort that’s needed to really get anywhere xx Stick at it, consistency is key and you will do great! You’ve already got a great home page and beautiful content, now your audience just needs to discover you xx
This is really helpful! Thank you so much for sharing. I sometimes missed the Twitter chats because of the time zone haha. Btw, you run such an awesome blog and I love it! ❤
Lenne Zulkiflly Blog
Aww, thank you, Lenne that means a lot! x
Excellent post! Just what I need to read as I have just started my own blog and admit I do get a bit despondent when I see my post has only had a couple of views. Will definitely check out the tips and groups you have recommended
Don’t get despondent! Slow and steady 😀 xx
Love this! How do you find twitter chats so you can join them?
If you search the hashtags that are in the Twitter Chat time sheet on this post then the accounts that host them should come up! Simply follow the accounts! x
Very good work Sophia you have done. Your tips are very useful, especially I like your twitter chat tips which are very interesting. thanks for sharing it.
Thank you! x
Great tips. I do most of these but never heard of Stumble Upon. Joining now, thanks!!
Shaun
http://thelamfam.life
No problem! x
Thanks mate, I found this post very helpful.
http://www.empire007.nextwapblog.com
No problem 🙂 x
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Thank you Jerusha!