How to Build Traffic on Your Blog, Part 2
Another Guest Post by Jennifer Fulwiler!
Last week we talked about how to create a blog that will entice new visitors to become loyal readers. However, that probably left many of you wondering, “How do you get those visitors there in the first place?” I’ve been asking that same question for more than 10 years as I’ve worked to get the word out about both personal and professional websites, and in this post I’ll share my thoughts on the main options for pro-actively driving traffic to your blog.
Commenting on other blogs
Leaving comments on other blogs is the only thing on this list that I would say you must do. Not only is it a way to get new readers, but it’s just good etiquette to show an interest in other people’s sites. In order to make sure your comments have the most impact, I recommend the following:
- Use a unique name: Even if people don’t click through to your site, commenting on blogs can help you build name recognition—but only if your username is unique. For example, if your name is Jessica Jones and your blog is called Writer Musings, if you leave comments as “Jessica” you’re not doing anything to build name recognition or to entice people to check out your blog. Leave comments as “Jessica Jones” or “Jessica @ Writer Musings” so that people know which Jessica they’re hearing from every time you comment.
- Be careful about linking to your own posts: It’s fine to leave a comment referring to a post you wrote if it would really add value to the comment thread, but don’t refer to your own blog in every comment you leave. Also, learn a little basic HTML so that when you do link to a post you can embed a clickable link. (Here’s a helpful tutorial on that.)
- Be sincere: As we discussed in Part 1, it’s all about generosity. Going out into the blog world with the goal of building up fellow bloggers and offering sincere encouragement is not only a nice thing to do, but it will get more people to click through to your site than half-hearted comments with the sole aim of getting traffic to your own blog.
Social media
Social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Plurk, etc. can be a great way to find new readers for your blog and keep your current readers engaged. If you’re not familiar with social media, I recommend signing up for accounts on the two big sites, Twitter and Facebook, and trying them for a week to see if you like them.
The bottom line on social media is this: It’s social. If you can find a network that you truly enjoy using to interact with others, you will end up reaching new people and driving traffic to your blog without even trying. But if you find yourself reluctantly participating in one of these sites just to throw out the occasional link to a blog post you wrote, not only will it be unlikely to drive much traffic to your site, but you may alienate existing readers as well. Don’t feel pressure to get involved in social media if it’s not for you; there are plenty of other ways to build traffic to your blog.
Search engine optimization
Search engines can provide a surprisingly significant source of traffic to your site if it is search engine optimized. All the major blogging platforms take care of the basics for you, but in order to write search-engine-friendly posts it’s helpful to understand which words search engines value most:
- Words in links: Search engines track which words show up in links to any given page on the internet, so if you’re going to link to one of your own posts, make sure descriptive words are part of the link. For example, “See my post about developing fiction characters” will help people searching on that subject find your post better than “See my post about developing fiction characters.”
- Words in titles: Search engines pay more attention to words in titles, so make sure each post’s title is descriptive of the subject you’re covering.
- Words in linked titles: If your blogging platform doesn’t automatically create a clickable link to the URL of your post from its title, check the support documents to see how you can add that feature. Not only is it more user-friendly for your readers, but it will make search engines value the words in your title even more.
Product giveaways
Giving away free products, even if they’re inexpensive, is a great idea for attracting people to your blog. I would recommend waiting until you have at least 50 visitors per day to make sure that you get enough of a response to make it interesting, but after that you may want to try hosting a giveaway, offering extra entries for people who tell others about it. Also, if you’re using social media, you can be a little more forward about promoting your giveaway posts since you’re offering something in return.
Carnival participation and blog directories
A blog carnival, broadly defined, is where one blogger creates a collection of links to individual blog posts on a specific topic (e.g. Menu Plan Monday). Submitting your blog to carnivals is not only a way to bring in a little traffic, but you often end up “meeting” new bloggers with similar interests as well.
Blog directories are sites that collect links to blogs, arranged by category (e.g. Blogflux). Submitting your site to directories can’t hurt, but don’t spend too much time on it since it’s unlikely to bring in much traffic.
Paid advertising
If you’re hoping to build traffic quickly, consider purchasing advertising. Even if you don’t have the budget to take out a billboard, you might be surprised at what you can afford when it comes to online ads. If you’re not sure where to start, I recommend Google Adwords. With Adwords you can have your custom text ad show up on search terms of your choice, and you only pay when people click through your link; you can also set a cap on how much you want to pay per day so that you don’t spend too much. Another good bet is to contact the big bloggers in your genre and ask if they sell advertising on their sites. You can often find great deals when you work one-on-one with site owners.
Guest posts and interviews
Guest posts and radio or podcast interviews can work wonders for getting the word out about your blog, and those opportunities are more accessible than you might imagine. First, define some areas in which you have expertise: Are you a published author? Did you help someone battle cancer? Do you have the best garden on the block? Be sure to cast the net wide and define your successes not only in terms of professional accomplishments.
Now, do some searching to find blogs, talk radio shows or podcasts that deal with those subject areas, preferably ones that already do regular guest posts or interviews. Email the person in charge to offer your expertise, and be specific about how you could add value to their project: For example, if you email a blogger about doing a guest post, include a bulleted list of the points you would touch on in the post as well as a paragraph about why you’re qualified to write it. You might be surprised at how many people would be happy to take you up on your offer!
Almost all of these options are free, though they do take time; and the more time you can commit to spreading the word about your blog, the more quickly your traffic will grow. However, I recommend following an 80/20 rule here: Spend at least 80% of your time working on the tips from Part 1 to craft a fantastic blog, and no more than 20% of your time marketing it. A great blog will eventually get traffic no matter what, whereas all the publicity in the world will do little to help a blog with poor writing or major usability flaws.
I’d like to close with a word of encouragement: The world is always hungry for good writers. If you love the craft of writing and are serious about using your blog to build a platform, you will almost definitely succeed. It might take longer than you’d like—it usually takes about two years for a blog’s traffic to start gaining momentum—but if you follow all the tips from Part 1 and utilize even a couple of the ideas from here in Part 2, I have no doubt that you will create a successful blog.
Jennifer Fulwiler is a computer nerd and writer who lives in Austin, Texas. She has more than 10 years of web development experience and her websites have been mentioned in USA Today, Slate, National Lampoon and The Washington Times. She is writing a memoir based on her blog, ConversionDiary.com, and is represented by Ted Weinstein Literary Management.
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64 Responses 
If you're new to publishing, please start here: How To Get Published.
You may also want to watch this 14-minute video: Advice for New Authors.
My Twitter name is @RachelleGardner.
My passion is partnering with authors to bring worthwhile books to publication. I started this blog as a way to create a community of writers, both published and seeking publication. I write about a wide variety of topics of interest to writers, and I consider the reader comments even more important than my own posts.
Click photo for my full bio.
>Great guest post, Jennifer. I'm a former full-time PR gal who started a blog recently. I've already got a magnetic bumper sticker with my URL on my car but my focus now is on regularly posts.
I'm hoping writing regularly on my blog will help inspire me to produce quality creative writing (articles, books) so I can eventually stop with my freelance marketing, copywriting and PR gigs.
Thanks for all the advice.
>Thanks for a very informative article. I've been trying to direct my focus towards building a better web presence lately – your tips go a long way towards help with that.
>Timely advice. I'm just 2 months into a bloggy life (and loving it)and wondering how to build the numbers. Thank you.
>I think a lot of people expect things to happen straight away, but really these things take time and you have to be patient and build an audience. Everything you recommend here is abolutely spot on.
>Great advice, Jennifer. I just launched my blog this week, so this post couldn't have come at a better time. I've already implemented one of your suggestions. Thanks!
>Rachelle, thank you for posting part two in a timely manner.
Jennifer, thank you for providing worthwhile information about successful blogs. I'm happy to see this post was about bringing people to your blog. I plan to incorporate many of your suggestions and hopefully increase the traffic to my dust-covered blog.
>Wow! Such great tips!!! I'd say amajority of the readers I have came from me commenting on other's blogs, or from my little links on facebook or twitter. Once or twice a day I might put a little teaser and a link in my facebook status, but I don't want my "friends" or "followers" to be bombarded with my self-promotion, so limit myself on that. I can get annoying, I'm sure, if overdone.
>A great blog will eventually get traffic no matter what, whereas all the publicity in the world will do little to help a blog with poor writing or major usability flaws.
A very good point.
Also, along the lines of commenting on other blogs, I would add that people need to pay more attention to their profile. Whether a person leaves a link in the comment or not, I often follow the link to their profile, which is automatically included. I find it very frustrating when it tells me nothing about the person and it doesn't include links to their website and blogs. The text of the profile permits limited HTML too, so I also put link to my books. The profile may be one of the biggest missed opportunities out there.
>Thanks for the great tips on this. I've been blogging since March. I have 77 followers and some of these tips I will try. I had one contest and it brought in a few folks. I think that the posting you do is most important. Thanks for all of your great posts Rachelle. And thanks to Jennifer, too.
>Thanks for all the helpful info. My question is, what do you think of group blogging? If it's done right, can that be enough? Or is it essential that each writer have his own blog?
>Great tippage. Thanks!
>Jennifer:
What a helpful post; thank you!
I am attracted to blogs that uplift, teach and are fun. I've grown as a writer and made many friends through blogging.
The only thing I tend to get impatient with are posts that go on forever. Most people visit as many blogs as they can each day. All of us are busy. It makes sense and is courteous to limit your posts to 3-5 paragraphs, so people will be more likely to read them.
Blessings, Jeanette Levellie, Audience of One
>Another fabulous post! Thank you so much for sharing your wisdom.
>This post is absolutely priceless. I can't wait to implement many (if not all) of the things discussed. Thank you so much!!!
>This post is absolutely priceless. I can't wait to implement many (if not all) of the things discussed. Thank you so much!!!
>Jennifer – that was some excellent advice! Thanks for sharing. I just changed my display name from Katie, which is pretty humdrum and common, to my full name and the name of my blog. A simple idea, but a smart one. And I didn't even realize all that stuff about the links. I always would title my links "here" as in click "here" to read…. such and such. Now I know better. Thanks for the help!
>This is such timely advice for me. I'm learning, studying, and planning to begin blogging. Thanks so much for the practical help.
>Fantastic info. Thank you Jennifer (and Rachelle, for hosting her).
The info's a bit overwhelming, but not so much that it doesn't feel within reach … if I stretch!
>Thanks for the information, Jennifer! Both parts have helped me in narrowing down the best ways to conduct my blogs as well as the social networks I join.
Also, thanks for the info about it taking about 2 years to build up a lot of traffic. That makes me feel better! I'm thankful for my readers but, of course, I'm always hoping for more! It's good to know that consistency is the key as well as hard work and creativity!
Happy weekend!
~Jennifer C.
>This is awesome advice. I'm trying to build up my platform so that in the hopefully no so far off future, I can help sell my books! Wouldn't that just be a hoot? *cheesy grin*
This was a great post! Thank you!
>Great advice! I'll have to work on getting mine more noticed.
Thanks for the tips.
Sandy Sullivan
http://www.sandysullivanauthor.blogspot.com
>See how I took your advice by the name I gave? Ha!
I just stumbled upon you yesterday, clicking from one place to another, and I'm glad I did. This is probably the BEST blog post I've ever read on this subject.
Blogging gets my juices flowing, keeps me in touch with former writing students and is just plain fun!
>Thanks for the great post – very informative! I also find that posting on a regular basis (on your own blog) helps to create an established readership.
Once upon a time, I had many readers but when I went to Korea for a year, my posting dwindled and I lost them. Now, I'm working towards building up that readership again.
Thanks again for your info!
>Thanks for the tips. I can always use some help. My biggest free advertising came when "Time"(on line)used one of my photos and put a link to my blog on their website.
>I never even thought about my name when I leave comments! There are thousands of Lisa B's out there. Thank you for your advice, I'm going to go change it now.
>Argh! Is it just me or all the @'s starting to drive other people crazy too? Why can't people just use the name they are going to use on their book? These @'s aren't helping. I'm a visual person. If someone goes by Bubba @ Tommy Joe online and later I see his book cover and it says Bubba Thomas, I'm not going to associate Bubba with the book. Slightly increased Google ranking for your profile by having key words in your id, isn't going make enough difference in the grand scheme of things to make this visual polution worth it.
>Hey, this was a great post. Very helpful and informative. Thanks for the two part series.
Have a great Fourth of July weekend.
>Thanks for the informative post about blogging. I've been blogging since January and now have over 120 followers. Most of my blog traffic came through a site called Networked Blogs which is connected to Facebook. There are over 400,000 members on this site and you can put a Networked blogs widget on both your Facebook page and your Blog itself. I also believe that good writing and interesting material is the number one way your blog will receive traffic.
>Wow, thanks! There's a wealth of info here that I didn't even consider.
>Good post. Thanks, Jennifer. I find it all a bit overwhelming, but maybe a little at a time…
>Good post – I will be sure to 'tweet' it.
I didn't know how to optimize my posts for search engines, so that's really usful for me.
I'd also like to add a point which might fit into the social networking category:
If you are a member of a forum (especially one that relates to the content of your blog), add a link to your blog in your signature.
>I just joined Facebook on Thursday, and I'm amazed at how quickly your friends find you. It's a blast and a great way to connect and reconnect with friends. I highly recommend it, and I wonder what took me so long.
>(poster formerly known as Carrie)
What a great post. I had no idea that search engines tracked links like that!
My blog is only 2 weeks old, but tomorrow I'll be running my very first blog competition: write some flash fiction, win an actual prize! ("Product giveaway" as per this post's suggestion. Check.)
I'd be chuffed if some of you guys stopped by my blog and checked it out.
>Great advice. Thanks for the insight. Question: Do you have to offer any compensation for author interviews or guest bloggers to appear on your site?
>Bryan, I think it depends on who your guest blogger is. But it's usually a win-win without compensation, because your guest gets exposure, and gets to include links back to their own sites. I've never done any interviews or guest posts that involved monetary compensation.
>WOW! You've shared a wealth of information for those of us that are still relatively new to the blogging world. Thanks you!
>Very good advice, both in part 1 and part 2–thank you! A question about the etiquette of including links to one's own posts in comments: is it okay to do this when your post is actually on the same topic as the one on which you are commenting? I feel funny leaving comments on things that I've actually already written extensively about without giving some indication where, particularly if one of the things that one hopes will happen by leaving comments is that others who are interested in similar topics will visit one's blog.
>I think it's okay to occasionally leave links to your own blog, when the topic is relevant and it will help the readers. In fact, I like being able to offer my readers even more resources. It's probably not a great idea to drop by a blog every single day and say, "I've already written about this! Click here!"
>Thanks for all the great comments!
Dandelion –
What do you think of group blogging? If it's done right, can that be enough? Or is it essential that each writer have his own blog?
I would say that being part of a group blog is better than nothing. If a person didn't have time to regularly update an individual blog, joining a group blog might be a good option. But if you can, your own blog would be better.
Timothy -
Is it just me or all the @'s starting to drive other people crazy too? Why can't people just use the name they are going to use on their book?
It's funny, I'm usually pretty sensitive to design stuff but the @'s don't bother me. I've discovered a lot of great blogs because someone left a comment as "Name @ Blog Name" on my site that intrigued me. Although putting the blog name in parenthesis is another option as well.
Just using a name isn't a bad idea, but a name doesn't give others an idea of what a blog is about or entice them to click through. To use a commenter here as an example, if I'd just seen "Katie Ganshert" I doubt I would have clicked through to her blog. But when I saw "Katie Ganshert @ Brain Throw Up" I HAD to go see what a blog called Brain Throw Up is about.
Bryan –
Do you have to offer any compensation for author interviews or guest bloggers to appear on your site?
Just wanted to echo what Rachelle said. I've never heard of people compensating for guest posts; I guess it's possible, but usually it's a win-win without financial compensation.
Fencing Bear -
A question about the etiquette of including links to one's own posts in comments: is it okay to do this when your post is actually on the same topic as the one on which you are commenting?
As a rule, yes. I would just take it on a case-by-case basis. For example, if I remember that I linked to one of my posts the last time I commented on a certain blog, I'll try to hold off on doing it again for a while so that it doesn't seem like I'm only leaving comments to promote my own stuff.
But it's not bad etiquette if you're really trying to offer more info and add value to the conversation.
Thanks, all!
>Thanks for these tips. I found your blog after it was mentioned on Simple Mom and have enjoyed reading many of your back posts.
I recently tried doing some Facebook advertising to raise my blog traffic, but it didn't really go anywhere. Maybe I'll give Google a try.
I agree that the free promotion (from others on their blogs) has been my biggest growth factor.
Jamie
>Hi, Jennifer! Great post!
Okay, I have to admit that I didn't realize this was YOU until I got to the end! I keep forgetting your last name (so sorry!)! To me, you're Jennifer @ Conversion Diary, not Jennifer Fulwiler.
And I don't think I've ever seen a picture of you. You're beautiful!
Kiss those babies for me! Can't wait to read the book!
p.s. We're heading West a week from tomorrow for our last 12 zoos.
>RE:Carnival participation and blog directories
The backlinks from blog directories should be combined with the backlinks from the articles submitted to article directories (on topics closely related to your blog's most important keywords).
A properly developed backlink program will deliver far more targeted traffic to your blog due to its impact on the search engines than due to the actual directory links themselves.
I maintain a list of The Top 101 Blog Directories & RSS Submission Sites on my blog at:
Blog Directories
Since I update this list weekly there are now 476 entries listed with NO DEAD LINKS.
Try to submit to 3-5 directories PER DAY. This discipline will pay big dividends over the long run.
If you find sufficient value in this list, please link to it in your sidebar.
Thanks.
Best of success,
Robert A. Kearse
>Awesome! First thing I did was change my name to a unique one!! Thanks!!
>Thanks. I will have to think of a name like Alicia came up with.
>enjoyed your guests posts. i've been blogging about 4 years and still don't feel like i've gained many readers. i must fall into the poor writing/major usability flaws.
>Thank you for 2 such great posts. I have been trying to increase by blog traffic and this has really helped me to look at what I am doing and what I need to be doing.
>On commenting with links. I think what comes off as rude to me is a comment that appears to have no purpose other than to support a link. A comment that actually adds something to the discussion and includes a link doesn't bother me. But I do find it annoying when the comment is just a lead in to a link, especially when the link is selling something. One comes off as participatory while the other seems predatory. I've been known to openly mock (and sometimes delete) comments that cross this line.
>Thanks for these suggestions. I feel like I've enrolled in Blogging 101~
>Thank you for the great ideas! This was such a timely article for me, as I just started blogging.
>Thanks for the help, Jennifer. I learned alot tonite from both of your posts on increasing traffic! Thanks for your wisdom and insight.I'm looking forward to trying out your suggestions. My goal is not necessarily lots of traffic, but reaching people and hopefully ministering to them. Thanks for the tips!
>That was such a useful and interesting guest post.I have been building my author blog, and found friends through links via comments on other sites.If it is a genuine link to a site/blog connected with writing, then I am happy to have them in my comments.The one thing I did not know how to do was make a link, when I wanted to leave mine.I do now, thank you for that tip.
>Thanks for the insight about taking two years to get momentum. (Has the blogosphere been around long enough to have such a rule? Amazing.) I started blogging about 6 months ago and when no one automatically thinks I'm brilliant after I've worked hard on a post I start to wonder, "Am I reaching anyone? What's the point?"
>This is a gem of a post. So glad I read this!
–Terresa Wellborn
{The chocolate chip waffle}
>Really helpful; thank you! Going to read that first post now
.
>Great stuff. Glad to see I'm doing some of it already. Lots to learn about here though. Thanks.
Peace,
Richard
>Thanks for all your extremely helpful articles. Every time I read them I feel like I'm in an exclusive writing school.
>Thank you again, Rachelle and Jennifer, for offering such great, practical helps! I've learned a lot!
>Thank you so much for this post. I just started blogging, and I have to say, I've been a bit overwhelmed with the whole process. This piece was incredibly helpful and encouraging to me!
>This has to be the most informative and awe inspiring blog on the internet. I have learned SO much from your posts, Jennifer. Thank you for taking the time to do this for the literary community.
>I just started Twittering and really social networking and I'm amazed at the time it consumes. Yet everywhere I read you have to do this to get noticed as an author. I don't even have time to write anymore. I've enjoyed learning new things, but I wish it wasn't so time intensive. I'd say I spend at least 8 hours a day (mostly night) social networking.
>Thank you Jennifer. It is indeed a pleasure to browse through your blog. Certainly, very sensible piece of advice given here. Ofcourse the most important one being – keep posting -. Most people I know, started a blog with all enthusiasm and eventually fizzled out, without posting regularly. And the other item that I do agree with is to have a central content theme for your blog. For example, over the past 5 years, I have learned to evolve my blog from random ramblings to one that doles out advice on personal finance management and general physical fitness.
I hope more people find your post and gain from all the good advise in here.
Cheers!
~Anand
>Great 2-part post, Jennifer. You can tell it was a hit. Just look at how the comments keep coming in. This is a subject that we writers struggle with. I read helpful posts and add comments, write new posts to my blog, tweak my blog, etc. While my in-process picture book manuscript sits behind me–calling me to continue the rewrite/edit.
Thanks, Rachelle, for having Jennifer.
>I'm so glad to hear someone say we don't have to get into social media to market our sites and blogs.
I tried getting into Twitter. I really did. I manage to gain about fifty followers. But I just couldn't keep it up.
I'm not even that social in real life. There's no way I can spend hours a day communicating with people I don't know. Especially when it's not face to face.
I love coming to your website! your excellent gameplan to see things is what keeps me fascinated. Thanks so much!!!!