If you have managed to set up a blog and update it frequently, congratulations–you are halfway there. Now, if you’re simply interested in sharing your words and unique perspective with the world, you have already found a kind of success. However, if you are looking to turn heads, grab the attention of advertisers, and find a readership, you will have to push your blog into the stratosphere. And that is going to take some more work.
Think of it this way: Your blog is a living entity that you have to care for and cultivate. It’s not enough to merely write it, post it and wait for the results. There are some specific things you can aim for that increase your traffic. Without those things, your blog might not be discovered, and of course, nearly every blogger wants some type of spotlight.
You might be surprised to read one of the best ways to raise your blog’s visibility is to link away from it. Sure, you might have heard the old adage of, “if you send them away, they might not come back,” but that’s usually more of a concern for sales. It is not always a bad idea to link away from your blog. In fact, it will lend some weight to your modest venture.
Here are some tips to get you started.
Use More Studies and Official Resources
Nothing says reliable like supporting your statements with real world implications. Simply linking to a university website, government agency or important study can give readers confidence that you have an interesting voice and care enough to back your statements up with verifiable sources. It is also possible those sites might decide to link back to your blog. According to Problogger, using research and statistics gives your blog credibility.
Remember: It’s a Mobile World Now
Maybe you have noticed this in your own behavior, but more people are accessing the Web on their phones. According to TechCrunch, 15 percent of all Internet traffic comes from mobile devices. So, when you link to a site, be sure it’s mobile friendly. No one likes to have to zoom in, tap away or put their smartphones in weird angles because a website isn’t technically meant for mobile viewing.
You might not always have control of that (sometimes a link is too good not to share), but be wary if it is not optimized. If you are not sure, just click the link on your phone and give it a try. Google even offers some tips to obtaining responsive web design, which is essential for smartphones.
Keywords Are the Key
Sometimes you have to think beyond the confines of your blog to get in the minds your potential readers. These days, full sentences are effective, as are keywords in the front of the headline. For example, if your keyword is “cat nip,” your headline should read “Cat Nip: The Wonder Drug for Your Feline,” instead of “The Wonder Drug for Your Feline: Cat Nip.” Be as creative as you need to be with your headlines, but keep it under 65 characters. Also, try to be as intuitive as possible–in your URL, separate keywords by dashes. If possible, use your key words in the first part of the URL.
Give Them ‘Educational Links’
If you are writing about something specific and new, like the new 2015 Mustang, it is a good idea to provide some links as examples, particularly if there is a unique angle you want to dive into. By linking to other resources, you give the reader a deeper understanding of this subject. By leading the way, oftentimes that general nod can open a door for your blog that you may not have expected. Try to teach something new when possible. Don’t forget to include social media into the equation, but don’t place too much emphasis on it.
According to Mashable, social media won’t deliver your content to the world alone. It offers value for brands, but won’t necessarily drive up your customer base if you’re selling a product on your blog. What social media does quite well is increase your quality visits.
Tag, You’re It!
Okay, so it is likely you have incorporated some search tags into your blog and that’s a good thing. However, too much of a good thing is never good for you, or your blog. With tags, a certain finesse should be utilized. Too many tags can penalize you in search engine rankings.
The key is to be sparse about it. Use them when necessary, but don’t make the mistake of making them too similar. For example, “Car,” “Car Tunes,” and “Car Make,” are liable to show up as separate aggregative pages. This means people will have a harder time finding your content. Lighten up on the tags and the search engines will serve you well!
What kind of links are you using on your site? Let us know in the comments below!
asmithblog says
Great post, Courtney. Love your advice here, especially the external links. It is something we recently talked about and love the confirmation from you.
RobinWC@TheRadioActivePeanut says
Hi I LOVED the post! I got a lot of info out of this post that I wasn’t aware of. I discovered this blog because I was liked on twitter and I liked you back. Thanks! I’m so new to this whole social media thing. Just started on Twitter but I am still tying to figure out how to use it as a tool… Do you have any posts regarding this subject?
Thanks Robin
Nick says
On target post. Well done. These are essential tips, and they work.
External links in blog posts add validity and credence to the content. Kind of like references in a research paper. I like the line about “educational links”. Thanks for this.