Do you care about building audience? Of course.. Yes !! No one ever starts a blog thinking “I don’t care if anyone ever reads it; I am going to write it anyway”.
Blogging isn’t just about traffic or making few hundred dollars (at least not for me). It is all about networking, building relationship and trust with your blog readers.
In this post I will 8 marketing strategies that you can use to drive traffic to your blog.
1. Guest posting
Do you know how Danny Iny, Onibalusi Bamidele, Kristi Hines and other A List bloggers got where they are today? They all did a lot of guest posting, guest posting and guest posting. It is not just about getting traffic or links. It is about building relationship/ connections with the other bloggers.
Onibalusi is a great example of what guest blogging can do for you. I think he won’t be able to get where he is today without doing guest posting. He got into freelancing business, making thousands of dollars every month and that all started with guest posting.
Danny Iny is another one. He built connection with bloggers like Guy Kawasaki, Brain clark, Jon morrow etc. It all started with a guest post that he wrote for copyblogger and recently he launched an book together with Brian clark, Guy Kawaski and many others “Engagement From Scratch”.
2. Interviews
There is nothing better than getting interviewed on big blogs. It may sound easy but it’s not. All you have to do is to ask some bloggers, if they are interested in doing an interview with you. This may be sound silly but it is still one of the useful tactics to get traffic.
However, I never used this tactic but there are many successful bloggers who are generating leads with this.
3. Be everywhere
“Be EVERYWHERE and others won’t have a choice but to notice you”-Ana Hoffman.
If you want to grow your blog, you need to be everywhere and everyone to talk about. To be everywhere you need to do better than others in the niche. One of the things to be everywhere is to - Write High quality content and engage with the blog readers.
A great example of it is Leo Widrch, co-founder of Bufferapp. He did tens of hundreds of guest posts on some big blogs including Mashable and TheNextWeb.
The key here is to focus on one thing and master it. If were you I’d choose guest posting.
4. Leaving comments
I did a lot of commenting when I first started Technshare blog. It was one of the very first strategies that I used to build relationship with bloggers like Alex Whalley and Ana Hoffman.
It may look an easy tactic to get traffic but believe it is the hardest one. I failed many times before I really started getting quality traffic from blog commenting. I did many things wrongly when I first did it.
The key here is to leave quality comments and one that contribute to the topic. It won’t work if you are leaving comments like “nice post” or “good post”.
5. Collaborate with other Bloggers
This is something I’ve learned from Gregori Ciotti of SparringMind. It is a great way to sky rocket the blog traffic.
Collaborate with big guys in your niche. Do Interviews! Write reviews about their products. Try to build genuine relationship with them and that’s what Danny Inny did with his guest post over at CopyBlogger .
6. Infographics
Infographics are something that bloggers haven’t started utilizing. Infographics have the power to sky rocket your blog traffic. All you need to do is to get a unique infographic designed and promote it on the blogs/sites related to your niche.
A great example is KissMetrics, most of their Infographics got featured on sites like Mashable and TheNextWeb.
7. Promote Others
You might be thinking how the hell will I get new readers by promoting others? Believe me, it is one of the smartest way to get traffic to your blog and at the same time you can build relationship with them.
That’s what I did when I started promoting Blokube, I built relationship with the awesome competitors
8. Fiverr
Fiverr is a great place to get the tedious jobs done in $5, get the votes, shares, retweets, followers and likes. There is a category called “Social Marketing” where you will find all sort of stuff related to internet marketing, testimonials, social submissions, social shares, votes, likes etc.
There’s also a category called “Business” where you can find some great offers on building quality backlinks and SEO.
Always filter your gigs by “Popularity”, it will help you find the best stuff from any category.
Blog Traffic: Over to You
All the above factors contributed effectively for my blog marketing and will work for any type of content in any niche, in case you find something to disagree with in this post or have an opinion on this topic, please do share it with us below.
Devesh is a young entrepreneur & founder of Blokube, a social blogging community. He is also running a WordPress Marketing Blog. Hit him up on Twitter if you need anything, Dev will be quick in responding and helping you out.
Adeline says
I’ve never thought about getting a job done on Fiverr. Most of my work is manual. maybe that’s why my blog is becoming stagnant. I’m going to look into this during the weekend and see how I can start moving things as far as SM is concerned anyway.
I was the same, Adeline. I’ve never thought about getting a job done on Fiverr - but I don’t think that’s why my blog is becoming stagnant. I thought that I didn’t have the right strategy, and thank God, I’ve read this post - I hope my blog will change in the next time. And hoping it too for your blog.
Dev says
Hey Trung,
Glad to see you here. You’re really doing great work on your blog. The design and content looks well. Keep up the good work.
Thanks for the comment, bud ;). Have a great day.
-Dev
Dev says
Hey Adeline,
Once you use start using Fiverr, I bet you would love it. You can get so many things done for just $5. For Example - get a custom twitter background, Facebook welcome page etc. I’ve good experience with it.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
Btw. Your blog has a nice design.
Amit Shaw says
Nice Post Deves. Title is eyecatching :). All are Common but Infographics an Fiverr is really unique for me. Thanks for sharing with us.
Hi Amit, I saw your blog is growing fast - How do you do that? And do you think we need to have a right SEO strategy or not?
Amit Shaw says
Thanks Trung. I know you visit daily on my site. Growing Fast? Its only 2 Months old. I know i got PR3 but now its tough job for me to maintain it. I will give my all effort to improve my rank for next PR.
SEO? I am shocked. Real Fact is I havent much idea about SEO as you know i am newbie in Blogging Arena. I just Love my blog and Love to read others blog. You will shocked by this - that i visit daily 10 to 20 Others blog to read the lattest article. And i love jane’s Blog its my 1st Tab Home page with others 10. Yes i set 11 home page on my browser. :). Thanks.
Dev says
Hey Amit,
Your welcome and congratulations on getting PR3. It seems you’re really doing well with your blog.
Thanks for stopping by.
These tips have really hit home to me that blogging is a full time occupation, there seems to be so much you need to do to keep things afloat!!!! But it also gives me a lot of respect for people who do blog full time, well done
Dev says
Hey Harriet,
Glad you liked these tips. Blogging is an business that requires a lot of hard work and patience.
Thanks for stopping by.
recently some where i header that bulk commenting is declared as spam by google .. do you think is its true? and whats the meaning of bulk commenting ?
Maybe Google doesn’t know that comment is spam - but we know and we hate them.
Dev says
Blog commenting is doing a commenting in bulk. Usually comments that are done in bulk, doesn’t really add value.
It’s like - doing thousands of comments, suddenly. It’s something that I’d never recommend.
Thanks for stopping by.
Shiva says
Hey there Devesh, quite an informational post. Many of the things mentioned here are infact basic but very important pathway that can lead to your success. If one does stuffs like guest posting, blog commenting in the proper manner then surely he/she can achieve recognition and popularity in a small amount of time.
Dev says
Hey Shiva,
Exactly. Most of these strategies are same, but if done effectively can drive good results.
Btw. Congratulations on the new blog, it looks great.
Kenny Fabre says
Devesh
guest blog posting, and leaving comments is one of the most powerful ways of driving traffic. I use them on a regular basis
Yep, Kenny - that’s power way to boot traffic to any blog. I’ve used it before and saw the awesome result.
Dev says
Hey Kenny,
Yes, Guest Posting & blog commenting are powerful strategies that can drive hundreds of leads.
Thanks for the comment. Have a great time.
Amy Turner says
Yes it’s all about personal relationships. It’s like a big neighborhood where you should be neighbor friendly and helpful to each other. Although building relationships takes time, we should really exert our effort to realize results, don’t you think?
Dev says
Amy,
Very well said. Relationships are about helping each other, but it takes a lot of efforts and patience.
Thanks for sharing your insights.
I am not sure commenting on blog has any impact on SEOing on your site. I thought only relevant topics with articles and anchor text in it carry some value?
Dev says
Blog commenting do have some impact on SEO. It can help you in building links, quickly.
I’ve been doing commenting from years and it has really helped me in improving my blog’s seo.
Thanks for stopping by.
Post something with picture that is catchy and put it in Pinterest. It’s amazing. And also Stumbleupon as well.
Dev says
Hi Ricardus,
I haven’t started using pinterest, effectively but keep hearing good things about it. Gonna give it a try.
Thanks for the comment, mate. Have a great day.
hosting geek says
Hello DEVESH!
Thank you for pretty informative review!
I considere affiliation to be one of the most important strategiies. Give referrals on really relevant resources. Write about them. Develop friendly links with writers and let them talk about you to others. You have to become an expert in the eyes of the customers. The more trusted you will be the more attractive your information and products will be.
Dev says
Hey,
Something that I’m planning to do with Blokube. Giving them referrals and letting them write about your product/site is a good idea.
Thanks for sharing your insights.
I thought only relevant topics with articles and anchor text in it carry some value, if you spread your niche and keep switching it then Google devalues the URL.
good post. we recommend collaboration and guest posting for our clients as well to expand their footprint and get more exposure to their clientele. the key is collaborating with the right businesses, not just doing it blindly
Dev says
+1. Very well said. You need to collaborate with the right people in your niche.
Thanks for stopping by.
Karo Itoje says
I agree with every many points you make as a way to get good traffic. But Fiverr? I know people use fiverr to achieve some cool task. But I really think getting people at fiverr to retweet, share or follow you isn’t targeted at all. Remember it’s not just all about getting traffic, but getting useful traffic. Traffic that will contribute to your bottom line.
And for infographic , I really don’t understand how that works.
A quick comment on guest posting. Yes, you really benefit from guest posting when you do a lot of it, but never let it take your attention from your own site, because if you’re everywhere writing, and sending traffic to your blog, you’ll end up getting the traffic down but they’ll leave because of lack of new content update. So make sure when doing guest posting you create a balance. Remember that once your post is published you’ll still have to spend extra time replying to comments. So make sure you have it all figured out before venturing into it.
Dev says
Hey Karo,
Fiverr may not work well with business sites, but it works very well with the niche sites and here’s a real example of it - http://www.dailyblogtips.com/3-innovative-ways-to-promote-your-killer-articles/
Infographics are graphic visual representations of information, data or knowledge. All you have to do is to collect the data that would be useful for your audience and hire a designer to create a graphic representation of that data.
I’m totally agree with you on writing posts and updating your site as well.
Thanks for sharing your useful insights on guest posting. Have a great time, Karo.
Gaurav Garg says
Really Awesome and Really very true…
No One can Disagree With you including me..
thanks ..
I am using some of the tips for my new blog…but ana said really great words Be Everywhere…..Its very hard to make a good traffic for your blog. we have to do our 200 percent for it……..
Rick Castro says
Many of the tips you’ve added has been widely known. Yet, we have to be reminded at times. My boss also told me about infographics. Yes, the idea is good but its just hard to think of an idea that everybody would notice.
In doing infographics, my boss told me these:
1. It has to be unique and interesting
2. It has to be well research
3. It is worth linking for
4. lastly it should go VIRAL.
Dev says
Hey Rick,
Yes, Inforgraphics need to be unique and something that no has done, yet. The best way would be doing a research/survey about something that no has done yet and sharing it as an infographic.
Thanks for stopping by.
EleonoraEOF says
hello there,
thanks for the share. I agree that a lot of things are important in order to get bigger traffic on our sites. I like the idea of Fiverr help…
Good post, nice post..lol
I love the everywhere, because I am. Blogging everywhere is one key element to building long lasting relationships that often are overlooked.
So far I have been asked to guest post on a few different blogs, but just have not built up enough confidence in how I write. To be honest I have not received any feed back that tells me, “Just go for it”.
I mean cmon, I own a landscape company and build business websites, not much talent needed there.
Truly respect those who are doing it, and believe they(you)have a true passion or calling for what you do. I love coming to blogs like these, because the reading is so easy, meaning I do not have to break out the DICTIONARY and figure out what you are trying to say.
Back to actually commenting: Promote others>>>Spot On and thus far would like to pat myself on the back, because I actually practice this.
It is great to hear it from a professional blogger like you.
Nice post. All of these tips do give nice results in getting traffic for your blog or site. Guest posting is really a good factor that can get you quite a lot of targeted traffic and in fact some loyal readers as well.
Fascinating Tips, Thanks a lot for Sharing! Social Media is one of the most important way to promote your blog with ease! You could easily promote your blog through different Social Media Platforms!
Agreed That Blog Commenting is another good approach for Building Relationship which could become vital factor for promoting your Blog With Different Niche Based Blogs!
Hi Devesh, I think with CommentLuv today, leaving comments has become a key factor in getting traffic. You also get backlinks and huge SEO benefits. I’m really loving it.
Nice post…
Just kidding 😀 although it truly is a nice post! I keep meaning to register for fiverr, I always see great deals on there but how do you know which gigs are legit?
Graven says
Great Post!! You have done an outstanding work by posting such a wonderful article. I really need this kind of innovative tips to better blog promotion. It had appreciable tips which were beneficial as well. Keep sharing this type of information in future.
Samrat Kafle says
Hey there Devesh ! Really very informative post yes i agree with the method your described about fiverr…yeah fiver works I had used it many times during blogging and still i am using it …thanks again for the post…cheers!
recently some where i heard that bulk commenting is declared as spam by google .. do you think is its true? and whats the meaning of bulk commenting ?
Pritam says
Devesh, you have rightly pointed out everything. I am most impressed with promoting others as a strategy. What many bloggers don’t realize is, People search for popular personality, events, brands, products etc. so if you promote others that might indirectly land you higher on SERPS. But you need a strategy in achieving it.
Moreover, thank you for pointing out fiverr seems a good resource.
Asma Khan says
The most important two things about this post is engagement and consistancy. Without the two there’s no drive to keep the blog going. Taking a step back it’s important to set the blogs objectives, goals & KPI’s so that it can be easier to assign your content target audience.
Jayne Kopp says
Hey Devesh, how’s my favorite genius? These are great chunks of advise Dev. You really do need to just suck in up and get out there don’t you?
It isn’t always easy but I really think it’s the only way to get noticed. Something I can definitely improve upon.
I think I will have to start facing my fears and start guest blogging again. Its funny how you lose a bit of confidence. I have days when I feel my writing just isn’t upto snuff. It’s one of those limiting beliefs that to this day hold me back.
Thanks for the shove.
Jayne
article is very good,but i am not clarify with Interview point??? explain it in brief plzz??
and also suggest me some names of the blogs which are intersted in interviewing.
thanku
Mike Cleveland says
DEVESH,
This is a nice post here. I want to guest post,but feel you have to be ready or should I say your blog has to be ready. Let me explain. The reason a person is guest posting is to drive traffic back to their blog. You might drive traffic back to your blog, and a great guest post will “prime” your reader for coming to your blog. What I mean by “prime”, presell your blog.
Now the traffic you get back to your blog are expecting the same or better effect that they got from your guest post. If you are now doing the cookie cutter post back at your blog, this might not have the effect of getting Jane or Mark to have a high opinion of you or you blog.
I feel more bloggers are not rushing to guest post, because they know their blog post are not quality as the time spent in guest posting. I read a very good article on this priming and how your blog need to be ready for the traffic and expectation of the traffic. I can’t remember the post.
Thank you for this info.Ive just started to use blogging I don’t have a blog as such ,just use the google one ,is that any good ???.We are a catering company and I have been commenting on loads of blogs. Is this the right thing for me to do??? Could you please email me on this. We are a small family business and don’t have the funds for seo so we try ourselves
Kind Regards
David Head
Like info-graphics there is another very easy option to increase traffic and back-links and that is to create your own images rather than just copy pasting other. The benefit is huge barbecue when someone use your image on his/her blog he or she will include your blog link as image source and you will get traffic and links.
Hi Jane!
I must just compliment you on an incredibly valuable resource of strategies to drive more targeted traffic to your website.
I am a particular enthusiast of guest posting and I must add, that after my first guest post got approved about 3 weeks ago, I got unexpected results with comments well over 80 the last time I checked. As you should know, this helped my own traffic a great deal!
I am certainly looking out for every guest posting opportunity I can find. Key is to provide quality content and then to adhere to the basics after it has been approved and published, like responding to comments, accepting advice and even critics in a professional manner.
Thanks for a valuable article my friend! Keep them coming!
I don’t have a blog as such ,just use the google one that I have just set up.Is this anygood or can someone help me on this to get a better one,please reply on this as we need to get something for our website.We are looking at getting more backlinks to it.Need help on this ,Any help from anyone for us ,please .
Kind Regards
David Head
Excellent information and I also agree that fiverr is a great place, however you need to carefully examine before you go ahead at fiverr. Thanks for sharing an amazing post.
Bestesolution says
These are definitely great ways to skyrocket blog traffic, but a blogger must be highly disciplined and consistent to perform all these activities. Thanks for sharing good tips.
Juli Becker says
Devish,
I just recently got introduced to the concept of Infographics through Pinterest. There are so many Infographics being pinned and repinned that I figured I needed to start paying attention to what they are and the value they provide. And now here I see them mentioned in your blog post as a way to get more traffic to my blog. I think you’re right about this. I believe I need to learn how to create one…or two…or three!
Thanks for sharing your insight,
Juli
We have found a site it’s called People per hour and it’s great for anything that you need for your site.I heave used it twice to sort a few things on the website out,and there are many things that can benefit us.Put up what you need and they bid for your job.
Kind Regards
David Head
Bhavesh Sondagar says
I was using only blog commenting and guest posting to get traffic to my blog but you have mentioned here some other best way to get traffic to my blog.
Thanks for sharing.
Free guides or e-books still is good way to get traffic. I remember one case study from Kim Roach with e-book syndication.
Shruti says
As a blogger myself, I can say that I’ve incorporated these tips into making my blog successful and they work. Most of them can also be used on social sites. For example, if you have a Facebook fan page, view those demographics and get an idea of what audience you are working with. In my previous position as a Social Media Marketing Manager, I was sometimes surprised at the discrepancies between what I thought our target audience was and what it was in reality.
Thank’s
Shruti
Another option would be to conduct a study of your industry
that you know your audience interested. This reminds me of a post I published
Christian von Eaten. He interviewed 28 bloggers to know how long it took to
write a post. It was an article widely shared and especially interesting and
useful for all who have a blog.
The interviews also work very well. One way to bring a touch
of freshness and first-hand information from a relevant person in your area.
Depending on the approach you give her and the questions you make your guest,
it could also be a very inspiring post.