Ways to promote your blog

Figure out your reasons for promoting your blog. If you want to earn money from your blog, then you might want to focus primarily on search engine optimization tactics. Why? Because if an internet surfer has a specific problem (“How do I self-publish my book?”), and if your blog post (“5 Ways to Self-Publish Your Books”) is optimized for search engines, then readers who find your article might be more likely to click the “self-publish your book” ads on your blog. If your goal is to network with other writers/bloggers and improve your writing skills, then you might promote your blog on social media sites like Twitter or StumbleUpon. To promote your blog effectively, think about your long-term goals.

Don’t force “unnatural” ways to increase your blog readership. I’ve tried adding to discussion forums and commenting on other writers’ blogs for the sole purpose of promoting my own blog – and it doesn’t work. It’s not natural for me. To increase your readership, implement strategies that are part of the natural course of your day. For instance, I check Facebook every day to see how my friends and family are; I also upload a blog post to Facebook every time I log in. The more natural your blog promotion is, the more successful it’ll be.

Experiment with blog networks, such as Yahoo Shine. My favorite blog network for women is Yahoo Shine. Bloggers can post part or all of their articles there; I usually post my newest articles twice a week. Most of the traffic stays on Shine, but some readers do click over to my blog – it depends on how well I write my Shine post!

Try new affiliate programs. I’ve just been accepted into the BlogHer advertising program (yay!), and I think they highlight their affiliates’ blogs regularly. It’s all new to me – I’ll keep you posted – but suffice to say that some affiliate advertising programs do promote their affiliates’ blogs.

Pay to advertise your blog. I haven’t tried this tip for promoting any of my blogs, but I’ve heard it can be effective. You pay a few cents (or even one penny) per click when readers find you on big sites such as Facebook, Google AdWords, etc. You could also consider advertising on small but popular blogs in your niche.

Be search engine friendly, with strong content. This is by far my favorite way of promoting my Quips and Tips blogs! I want to help writers (and bloggers) find the answers they need, so I need to make sure my blog posts are optimized for search engines.

Spend an hour a week trying different ways to promote your blog. I’ve tried blog carnivals (with so-so success, but it depends on which blog carnival you try), StumbleUpon (high traffic, no ad revenue because readers seem to be hopping all over the place), FaceBook (good for sharing your posts with friends), and Twitter (pretty good for sharing posts, but I find it similar to StumbleUpon.