Blog traffic. Everybody wants it, few ever generate enough of it to make their blog successful. What if I told you that, in reality, you don’t need heaps and heaps of traffic in order to have a successful blog?
That’s right. You just need the right traffic.
The kind of traffic that is likely to stick around and hear what you have to say. And maybe, just maybe, sign up for your mailing list, the heart of any successful blog. So how can you generate these 3 kinds of excellent traffic?
1.) Collaborations & Reaching Out
I know, this headline doesn’t sound sexy, but trust me, it is.
Collaborating with the right people in your industry is a surefire way to skyrocket your blog’s traffic, if you play your cards right.
Don’t believe me?
I was able to get a brand new blog over 1,000 unique visitors in it’s first week with this method.
No hype, and no bull.
So what exactly do I mean?
Collaborations come in many forms, but when you are just starting out, the best way to use this method is with interviews.
That’s exactly what I did for my newest blog that I mentioned, called Sparring Mind.
It focuses on content marketing specifically for WordPress users.
So, in order to reach out to some influencers in my field, the first thing I had to do was decide who to contact.
The ideal contact is obviously someone with some notoriety, but also not someone who will be impossible to get a hold of (this part is key).
In my niche, the Copyblogger team is some of the biggest names in both content marketing AND WordPress, so they seemed liked the perfect fit. It’s a really smart and friendly bunch, and a group I really looked up to. However, I knew it would be near impossible to get a full interview with Brian Clark.
The guy must get a couple hundred emails a day from the contact form, which most likely goes through staff before it ever reaches him.
So who could I reach out to instead?
I decided on Brian Gardner (Head of StudioPress) and Rafal Tomal (Head designer of Copyblogger Media).
I discussed how content marketing improved sales of the Genesis Framework with Brian Gardner, getting some valuable insight for myself and my readers.
I later discussed how to create beautiful design that converts with Rafal, and readers loved the post as blog design is something that many bloggers struggle with.
After each post, both of these nice guys tweeted out a link to my post, and both posts were tweeted out by a variety of Copyblogger fans (my inclusion of Brian & Rafal were likely the only reason they tweeted the post out, but it gave me lots of traffic nontheless).
I’ve done this in more than the blogging & content marketing niche too.
On my electronic music blog, I’ve posted interviews with artists that have generated triple digit shares on Facebook & Twitter.
Why?
People like to hear about influencers.
Generally speaking though, there are many influencers out there who don’t blog as often as you or I.
So to get some inside info on them can be a huge benefit to your blog, your readers, and your traffic levels.
2.) Guest Blogging… The RIGHT Way
If you’ve been blogging for any time, you already know about the power of guest blogging.
In fact, I’m writing this guest post right now to get a little exposure for my writing and my blog! But are you really doing guest blogging the right way, or just wasiting your time and energy?
There are a few critical components for a guest post:
- It’s on a post with a niche directly related to your topic.
- It addresses something readers want to know.
- It’s “reader friendly”
Most people can get those first two down pat. It’s usually the third one people struggle with. So, how can you make your post reader friendly on another blog?
While you might want to submit a unique post that doesn’t fit the normal confines of guest posts, you should be careful. Generally speaking, posts that are “easy reading” and still chock full of good information perform the best of guest blogs.
Why?
People don’t typically know who you are, so if they are going to give your post a chance, it has to be inviting. You probably wouldn’t have read this post if it wasn’t a list post, or if it didn’t speak to a topic directly in the headline. I could have written a post about how Machiavelli’s “The Prince” relates to blogging (and I have!), but it wouldn’t be a great guest post for people who don’t know me here on this blog.
Why?
It’s not easy reading.
This post, while I believe it offers plenty of great content, is easy to read.
It’s a list post, it follows a specific path, and it gives you the information clearly and simply. The next time you are writing a guest post, sit back and evaluate it.
- Are you making it easy for readers to enjoy?
- Are you making it enticing for readers to click through even if they don’t know who you are?
You should be.
3.) New Mediums Of Content
This is probably the one that bloggers overlook the most.
Hint: That means pay attention! 😉
So, what do I mean by new mediums of content?
Basically, different forms in which your content creation can appear. These include things like: podcasts, videos, slides, infographics, etc.
As a blogger, people will love you because of your writing.
But in order to mix things up for long time visitors, as well as generate relevant traffic, you need to mix things up a bit.
- A video post will not only be a cool way to spice up your content, but it can also bring in traffic from YouTube.
- Podcasts can bring in traffic from iTunes users browsing podcasts.
- Infographics can be super shareable on Twitter, bringing in traffic that later subscribes to your list.
All in all, it pays to diversify.
While your writing is going to be your bread and butter, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t look to these other forms to generate excellent and relevant traffic.
Over To You
What other forms have you found to generate GOOD traffic?
Which of the methods discussed will you try out next?
Want to learn more about more real traffic generating strategies? Head on over to Sparring Mind, where I cut through the garbage and show you what actually works.