You’ve poured your heart into your blog, built a solid foundation, and now it’s time to welcome in the crowds! We’re here to cheer you on with five simple strategies to boost your blog traffic – let’s get this show on the road!
1. Craft Content with Purpose
The golden ticket to increasing blog traffic? You guessed it – top-notch content. “Content is king,” after all, isn’t just a catchy phrase. But crafting “better content” goes beyond just quality; it’s about aligning your content marketing with a clear strategy.
The most successful content scratches a specific itch. Consider your audience – what gets them fired up? Today’s content usually falls into two camps: entertaining or informative. Choose your weapon wisely! Need inspiration? Dive into Quora to uncover burning questions in your niche. Explore existing content using Buzzsumo and create something even more epic. Or, tap into the magic of these eight handy blog topic generators. When it comes to style, think eye-popping statistics, visually engaging infographics, and captivating video narratives. Create content that begs to be shared!
Evergreen Content: Your Blog’s Timeless Treasure
Prioritize evergreen content – content that remains valuable and relevant over time. A post about this year’s hottest trends might fizzle out quickly, but a guide to timeless style tips? That’s evergreen gold.
Headlines That Command Attention
Your headline is your blog post’s first impression – make it count! Some argue that your headline holds more weight than your entire post! A stellar article hidden behind a dull headline is doomed to obscurity. Presentation is key, and just like you wouldn’t show up to a gala in your pajamas, you can’t expect lackluster headlines to draw in a crowd. Don’t be afraid to play around with different headline styles. Share your post multiple times, tweaking the headline each time, to see what resonates best.
Hungry for More Blog Traffic? Download Our Free Guide, 25 Ways to Increase Site Traffic, Here.
Newsletter: Your Blog Post Showcase
Promotion is your content’s best friend – don’t let those hard-earned blog posts languish in obscurity! A simple yet powerful strategy is building an email list for a blog newsletter. Once you’ve gathered those precious contacts, send out regular emails showcasing your best work, enticing your audience back for more. Familiar faces are more likely to explore further – who knows what treasures they’ll find?
2. Embrace the Power of Keywords
To catapult your blog traffic into the stratosphere, keywords and SEO are your trusty sidekicks. Don’t let SEO scare you – search engine optimization, when done right, is a thing of beauty. Think targeted traffic from Google and happy users finding exactly what they’re searching for. So go ahead, shout it from the rooftops – “Keywords are my jam!” The key with SEO? Everything in moderation. Sprinkle keywords naturally throughout your text? Yes! Force-feed keywords into your content like a Thanksgiving turkey? No.
Link to relevant content within your own blog? Yes! Turn your text into a hyperlink frenzy? No.
Let keywords guide your outline and shape your post’s direction? Yes! Prioritize search bots over your human readers’ experience? No! Google processes billions of searches daily – make sure you’re claiming your share of the pie with strategic keyword use.
More, please! With countless websites and advertisers vying for those coveted keywords, how can you stand out? Enter: long-tail keywords.
Long-Tail Keywords: Your Secret Weapon
Long-tail keywords are like phrases – longer and more specific, typically consisting of 3+ words. They’re easier to rank for (and more budget-friendly for paid advertising) because there’s less competition. Targeting these niche phrases might be your golden ticket to a top spot on Google’s search results page.
Long tails are cool. They’re also fire types. Let’s say you own a health food store and dream of ranking high for “health food.” Tough competition, right? “Health food” is a broad term. But if you zoom in on “health food meal plans” or “health food on a budget,” your chances of ranking for those longer, more specific phrases skyrocket.
SEO for Bloggers: Unearthing Long-Tail Keyword Gems
So, how do you brainstorm these magical long-tail keywords? Start with your trusty friend, Google. Begin typing in a relevant phrase and pay attention to the autocomplete suggestions – those “aha!” moments are pure gold.
Now, plug a few of those phrases into Google and jot down the related search suggestions at the bottom of the page.
Next, gather all those juicy long-tail phrases you’ve collected and feed them into the Google Keyword Planner.
Identify the phrases driving the most traffic (and peek at Google’s additional keyword suggestions). Focus on phrases with high search volume and low competition – those are your golden nuggets! Now, create content tailored to those keywords.
SEO WordPress Plugins: Your Blogging Sidekicks
Supercharge your SEO efforts with these handy WordPress plugins designed specifically for bloggers. They’ll help you nail your URL structure, write captivating meta descriptions, generate sitemaps, and navigate other technical SEO aspects that might seem like a foreign language. Two fan favorites:
3. Find Your Tribe: Where Does Your Audience Hang Out?
When it comes to promoting your blog, strategy is key. While a presence across multiple social media platforms is nice, trying to conquer them all will leave you burned out. Dip your toes into different waters and see which social networks feel right. Are you a visual storyteller? Instagram might be your jam. Does your blog cater to a specific niche? Reddit could be your gold mine. Think of it like this: if you’re looking for seashells, you head to the beach. To drive blog traffic, you need to meet your audience where they are. Understanding your audience is crucial for building strong referral links from relevant websites.
Use Google Analytics to pinpoint the websites sending the most referral traffic your way. Identify the online communities your target audience frequents, and become an active member. Engage in discussions and share links to your blog posts or relevant content within comments when appropriate. The key here is to be genuine – avoid coming across as spammy. Position yourself as a valuable community member sharing something worthwhile. If someone’s struggling to plan healthy meals, guide them to your resource! If they’re discussing their latest knitting project, it’s probably best to move along.
Once You’ve Found Your People, Dive In Headfirst
Once you’ve identified your key networks, focus your energy there. Neil Patel highlights how Upworthy, known for their curiosity-driven headlines and emotionally charged content, strategically limits the number of social sharing buttons on their pages. The paradox of choice suggests that too many options can overwhelm users. While we often assume more choices equal more happiness, studies show that most people prefer a curated selection over an overwhelming number of options. Upworthy sticks to just two share buttons – Facebook and Twitter. Consider streamlining your social sharing options to the platforms that yield the best results.
Craving More Blog Traffic? Just Ask!
Sometimes, getting what you want is as simple as asking for it. A study by Social Bakers revealed that users who directly asked their followers to “RT” their tweets received an average of 73.48 retweets per tweet, compared to a mere 2.09 retweets for those who didn’t ask. If you want your content shared, don’t be shy – ask for the share! This applies to all sorts of calls to action. While your intentions might seem crystal clear to you, explicitly stating the desired action significantly increases the likelihood of your audience following through.
4. Speed and Mobile: Your Website’s Best Friends
In today’s fast-paced world, no one’s going to wait around for a slow-loading website. If your blog takes its sweet time to load, visitors will bounce faster than you can say “page load.” Need to check your website’s speed? No problem! Google’s Page Speed Insights tool will analyze your site’s performance and provide personalized tips to give it the boost it needs.
Along the same lines, we live in a mobile-first world – most users access the internet from their smartphones. nearly 3 hours a day on their tablets or mobile phones. Optimizing your blog for mobile is no longer optional, it’s essential. If your current blog isn’t mobile-friendly, explore these WordPress plugins that can help you create a seamless mobile experience:
- WPtouch Mobile Plugin
- Jetpack by WordPress (includes a built-in mobile theme option)
5. Play Nice in the Sandbox
Good online etiquette goes a long way. If you’re serious about growing your blog traffic, focus on building genuine relationships with other bloggers in your niche. Sometimes, this might even involve joining forces with your friendly rivals – Game of Thrones style. Engage with other blogs by leaving thoughtful comments and participate actively in relevant online communities. Consider interviewing prominent figures in your industry or featuring fellow bloggers in roundup posts (e.g., “Top 10 Blogs Rocking Pinterest”). When you mention or feature another blogger, tag them in a tweet – they’ll likely return the favor by retweeting and sharing your content, expanding your reach. While linking to your own content is great for SEO, don’t forget to link to external sources as well. This signals to Google that you’re not a spam bot and fosters positive relationships with other blogs in your sphere. Plus, building strong connections makes it a whole lot easier to pitch guest posts. Embrace these five principles, and watch your blog traffic soar to new heights!