Guest Post
According to eMarketer, 2012 saw U.S. Internet usage expand by another 3.1 percent, reaching 239 million people— 75.6 percent of the population. If you can consistently corral just a fraction of those reader's interests, you've got a massive success on your hands. However, all the ambition in the world won't help you get from aspiring blogger to massive success unless you know how to apply your savvy ideas consistently and effectively.
Managing your blog is like managing your brand. Noted internet author and lauded connoisseur Seth Godin describes a brand as a “set of expectations, memories, stories and relationships.” Tied together, they account for an audience/consumer's choice in product or service. Branding service Reputation.com knows that being on the web means “the end of forgetting,” Reputation founder Michael Fertig tells the New York Times. The double-edged sword of online exposure can be swung in the direction your blog's popularity— that is, if you use some savvy tips and tricks from the pros.
Stay Ahead of Trending Topics
Naturally, not every trending topic is going to be relevant to the content of your blog, but with some creative content strategy you can leverage the hottest tickets of the trend-o-sphere to help generate eyes to your site. If your blog is predominately home-and-garden based, for example, you could feature an article about the recently published look inside Kim Kardashian and Kanye West's new home. There is always something abuzz in the media that can help draw attention to your blog. Spending some time each day building alerts and perusing Google trends can help ensure you get the best bang for your trending buck.
Brief Yourself On SEO
Understanding Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one of the golden tickets of conquering internet popularity and reputation management. Although it seems like only super scientists truly understand the complex algorithms that make the internet zoom, teaching yourself a basic understanding of how key phrases and words can be used to help poise your blog is essential. Allblogbasics.com has an excellent run down of what bare bones SEO terms and practices means in three key arenas:
Site Layout (Site Design)
- On-Page Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Off-Page Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Look for Creative Social Media Tie-Ins
Blogger Jeff Bullas remarks that the rise of social media was once thought to be a threat to blogging by many, however that has turned out not to be the case. Micro-blogging sites like Twitter and social media titans like Facebook had some bloggers worried that their content would be pushed to the wayside in favor of shiny new ways to connect.
- Link Link Link: Spreading your words across all your profiles is an important way to increase attention and visibility, and can also help strengthen the SEO power of your posts.
- Titles and Intros: The title and first few lines of your blog post are the most important when it comes to getting people to click on it.
- Contests and Questions: Drawing people to your blog through clickable content is one thing, but bringing them there by leveraging their own interests is another. Tweeting engaging questions to your audience, can also help draw passionate people toward relevant content and get you noticed.
