Tapping Into the Blogging Community to Build Your Blog’s Following
In my opinion, being a blogger is one of the most rewarding and exciting things you can do on the internet. But because every day there are dozens, if not hundreds, of new blogs, it can be pretty difficult to stand out from the pack and get any attention or engagement. Don’t let this get you down – with a little effort and marketing know-how, you’ll be engaging like the best of them in no time.
Jump Into the Community – The Water’s Fine!
When you are blogger, there can be a great sense of community, not just within your niche but with other bloggers as a whole. In general, most bloggers on the Internet do it for fun and as a hobby, not to try and make big money or build a media empire. Sure, they might be able to get a few bucks out of it, but it’s nothing that most people turn into a career.
Connecting with other bloggers can be pretty easy. Generally, you can start from similar blogs to yours and go from there – build connections with those bloggers over Twitter or Facebook, and learn about their audience and try to connect with them too. Write some insightful comments on their posts, engage in discussions, and soon the community will be knocking on your door!
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Guest Post Away!
Guest posting is one of the best ways to get your name out into a different pool of viewers. Not only will your name be attached to the post, but typically you can link to your blog. Soon their audience will start to become yours.
Try to stay away from deliberately promoting your own blog. You are a guest on their blog, so your goal is to add value and make their blog better. Be sure to follow their rules for topics, images, length, and links. This will usually be laid out if the site owner has a submission guidelines or “Write for Us” section to their website. Only write something that their audience can gain value from; steer clear of writing about squirrel traps, for example, unless you are referring to how this ties in with their niche.
In your byline you can put a little promotional plug for your blog. A byline is a short, one or two sentence description of the writer. Include your name, link to your blog, and if you have a Twitter handle, this is a great place to share it.
So when it comes down to it, communication is the best way to connect with other bloggers. They have similar interests to you and love to chat. Reach out to them to get a guest post and maybe you’ll have a new friend in your future!
Aaron Walker is an internet marketer who more recently made the jump into blogging. You can catch his more social media oriented work on his blog Social We Love, or follow him on Twitter under @aaronwalker77 to see his newest work.
