This past August, I started a new blog. I’m not really a stranger to blogging, but I forgot how hard it is to have a new blog gain traction. Can I get an Amen?
Experienced or not, I think most people set up their blog, write some great content, and expect the whole “if you write it they will come” theory to be true. But it’s not. At least it hasn’t been true for me. 
That said, here are some tips I’ve put into practice recently to help my blog gain momentum and move in the right direction (engagement, community, traffic, and profit – your direction may be different). I hope I can save you some headaches!
1. If you can, go into a new blog with an idea of what your goals are and who your ideal blog reader is. Map all of that out before you begin to avoid being super frustrated later.
2. When you launch your blog, make sure it looks good (first impressions are important), but don’t stress out about it. What’s most important is to “ship it”, as Seth Godin would say. Get it out there and get it seen by people. We spend a lot of time tweaking when we could spend that time creating (me included).
3. Lead with pillar content. Make sure you have some awesome content for readers when they arrive. That way when people land on your blog, they’ll be so impressed with you that they’ll just have to subscribe.
4. Make sure every post includes a call-to-action. One of the reasons blogs don’t gain traction is because there’s no reason to come back or get involved. Ask them to leave a comment, subscribe, click on a link, buy your product – ask them to do something to keep them engaged.
5. Go grassroots. Email blog owners and introduce yourself, comment on blogs, share other people’s content, and network. Focus on meeting people where they already are versus trying to move people to a new place (your blog) immediately. This can be time-consuming, but it’s always worth it in the end.
6. Guest post. Put yourself in front of new audiences regularly.
7. Treat your first readers like gold. When people feel great about something, they share it with their friends.
Your turn. What are your tips for putting a new blog on the map?
{ 29 comments… read them below or add one }
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 18th, 2010 at 9:30 am
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I’m going to take your pointers and work on a few of these I hadn’t considered.
Thanks!
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 18th, 2010 at 10:09 am
Figuring out your niche and your voice takes time and both of those constantly evolve, in my experience. I think it’s a delicate balance of being focused, but also being fluid and being willing to change directions as time goes on.
You may lose readers in the short-term when you find a topic to focus on, but you’ll gain readers (actionable ones, who comment, subscribe, and purchase things) in the long-term.
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But there’s always this internal battle raging in my head. Okay I’m going to do this promotional thing…which blog do I promote? The flagship or the underlings? I’m struggling with this right now!
Than there’s the amount of work that starting from scratch takes! LOL
Tips for a new blog though:
1. make a twitter and facebook account ***this is a MUST, people expect it from blogs nowadays
2. participate within your niche
3. Save your best quality stuff and submit it for guest posting…at least at first. The most awesome article in the world does nothing for you if it sits on your low traffic blog. Get it on someone’s high traffic blog? Gold!
So basically re-iterating what you have to say here. I wrote an article on this topic (except it was why do new blogs fail) on quick online tips recently that got some buzz!
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 18th, 2010 at 10:16 am
I get the internal battle too. One thing I’ve learned is that you can’t rely on people to do what you want them to do and make the connections – if I want someone to comment, click on a link and go somewhere, subscribe, buy something, I have to straight-up make the offer and ask. So as far as where to promote, wherever people would assume the promotion to be – probably the flagship site, with not-so-subtle hints to head over to the new site.
Great additional tips. Can you link up the post in a comment (assuming the Savvy Blogging ladies are OK with that)? I think it’s totally relevant.
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Heather@Family Friendly Frugality Reply:
November 18th, 2010 at 10:28 am
Why New Blogs Fail
Hopefully that link is clickable.
I haven’t done much on blog promotion for my new blog. I think I get nervous people will just roll their eyes, LOL. “another blog Heather?”
Ideally I have several blog ideas in mind for the future, so I guess I better get over that!
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 18th, 2010 at 10:19 am
I see that yesterday was your birthday! Happy Birthday!
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 18th, 2010 at 4:49 pm
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 18th, 2010 at 4:53 pm
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 23rd, 2010 at 10:19 pm
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I have gained quite a bit of ground on my first blog, which is in the frugality niche. My second blog that I just started a month ago is in the weight loss/health sector, and I find that I have no idea about this niche! I don’t even know where to go to find the good blogs in that area to ask to guest post. On a different note, for both of my blogs I struggle to get reader participation/comments. Anything you would suggest for that?
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 20th, 2010 at 1:40 pm
As far as finding blogs in the health/weight loss market, there are a couple things you could do (off the top of my head):
-Google search and Google Blog search (blogsearch.google.com). Type in good keywords (like “weight loss blog” or “health blog”, etc) and you’ll turn up some good blogs. As far as guest posting, I don’t think you need to immediately guest post on the biggest/best blog in the market. Focus on smaller ones (small blogs have loyal followings too) at first.
-Find applicable weight loss/health online communities (forums, Ning groups, Facebook Fan Pages and groups, etc) and get involved in those.
-Find out who the Twitter powerplayers are for that market and start engaging. You can just search on Twitter by keyword to find people talking about things you’re interested in, or you could use a directory like WeFollow to find people by keyword. Also, follow hashtags specific to weight loss/health – you’ll meet lots of people that way.
As far as getting reader participation and comments – pay attention to your stats. What posts get the best response? What are those posts about? Blog readers are the same as everyone else in the world – they want to know what’s in it for them. As blog owners, we have to provide a good call-to-action, and make it clear – and ask for it. So if you want comments, ask a thought-provoking question at the end of the post. If you want them to buy something, make the offer. I think people are encouraged to respond when they think their response will be heard – so engage right back at people.
Also, there’s the strategy of going where the people already are (depending on your market, it could be Twitter, Facebook, a forum or message board, their email inbox, and so on) and engaging them there. If your market hangs out on Facebook, hang out on Facebook with them. Be where they are, but make your site URL plainly visible, and eventually they’ll follow you over and engage with you there.
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Melissa Reply:
November 20th, 2010 at 1:53 pm
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
November 25th, 2010 at 4:54 pm
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Thanks for sharing.
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 11:18 am
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Thanks,
Michele Scism
The Results Lady http://www.UltimateBlogChallenge.com
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 11:20 am
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 11:27 am
It’s all about giving people an incentive to get involved (and this is very much the case with new blogs). A lot of people won’t say or do anything because we never asked them to! Bloggers shouldn’t be afraid to just tell people what to do. If you want them to comment on the post, ask a question and ask them to comment. If you want them to purchase a product, write about it, make links to it obvious, and ask them to go check it out and make a purchase. And the list goes on.
But as a sidenote, in regards to the frugality niche (if we’re talking deals and coupons), perhaps comments isn’t the best metric to use. Because often times, people just post deals. And the reader reads it and thinks, “OK. Got it.” There’s no real reason to comment on that. Better things to measure then would be traffic stats, clicks, profit, Facebook “Likers”, etc. Comments aren’t the end-all, be-all. Lots of blogs have a moderate amount of comment participation, but lots of participation in other ways (email sign-ups, actively purchasing audience, Facebook).
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 11:17 am
Just like any other business, it has to be a commitment. And in terms of reading other blogs, I think if you only have time to do one, you should always err on the side of producing (creating for your own blog) rather than consuming (reading someone else’s blog). While reading someone else’s blog can help you network and give you ideas, creating for your own blog is really the only way to move forward.
Thanks for your comment!
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Lisa Morosky Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 11:14 am
One of the biggest factors in gaining subscribers (of all types, I think), is giving them a reason to subscribe, and making it painfully obvious.
Simply saying “subscribe here” just doesn’t cut it anymore because blog readers (and people in general) are being pulled in a thousand different directions when they go online, and end up at your blog. Don’t be afraid to tell people WHY they should subscribe (free content, weekly entry into a contest, giving away an eBook, whatever). And don’t be afraid to make the ask obvious (noticeable opt-in at the top of a sidebar, banner across the top of browser, mention after each post).
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Great advice and thank you!
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I am trying to learn before I launch.
Wish me luck…
Cami
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THANKS AGAIN….
Melony
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I did find this article really helpful but it also makes me realise how little I do know about what I’m doing. I don’t understand the questions never mind the answers! I would love to make my blog look good but I have no idea how to do it. Does anyone do “Blogging for Dummies”!!
I just started my blog mainly focusing on knitting and crafts. I went live this week and have had a lot of visitors (my Facebook friends I assume) in just a couple of days. At least I assume it is a lot. I have no idea how many I should be looking for.
I do know that I am enjoying it and I am also enjoying reading and looking at other peoples blogs.
Thank you for taking the time to help out ‘newbies’ like myself. It all seems a bit intimidating at the moment and it’s nice to hear a friendly voice.
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I am changing careers and online selling is my mantra. I am having to learn a great deal. Looking at the women involved with your site is inspiring.
My new blog is my fourth, one has been quite successful on men’s pro cycling It’s About the Lycra.
I couldn’t think of anything more different to my then legal career. So my new blog will hopefully support my new adventure in hot water bottle covers. Wish me luck and many thanks.
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I am so inspired by your tips here. I never thought of giving away my best but that is a sound principle. HOW would I find where to guest post though? I asked a few places and received no reply.
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