Do you ever feel like your blog is stuck in a rut? It happens to all of us. But have you ever thought this - why wouldn't it be in a rut when you wake up day after day and do the exact same thing when it comes to your blog? You write a post, ask a few friends to Stumble it, announce it on Twitter, and broadcast it on BlogCatalog. You might get some decent traffic, but it always seems like the same amount. Your blog just doesn't seem to be growing. Guess what...its probably not! When you do the same thing over and over again, you are becoming visible to the same people over and over again. These people have seen (and hopefully like) your blog already. In order for your blog to grow, you need to do something to get exposure to new and different people.
Here are a few ideas that might help get your blog in front of a new audience.
- Guest Post - This my favorite way of finding new readers. It gives you a chance to show off your skills to a whole new crowd. My recent guest post on ProBlogger brought in tons of traffic and many new feed subscribers. If your post is good enough, almost any blogger will be glad to post it now matter how popular the blog is. If you've got a great post, shoot for the stars and ask the A-Listers!
- Follow Blogs In A Dfferent Niche - Could your blog appeal to more than one niche? Most can. A great way to find new readers is to start participating on blogs outside of your niche. You've probably gotten familiar with many blogs in your niche, but there are millions more out there. Becoming a regular on a blog in a new topic will introduce yourself to a whole new croud of people.
- Pay for Advertising - Yes, its true what they say...you don't need to spend money to have a successful blog. You don't have to, but you could. Spending a little money is a great way to get a kick start on some new traffic. Project Wonderful has some very inexpensive ads, but to be honest, its a little hard to find ones that get good results. If you are going to spend the money, my recommendations are with a StumbleUpon campaign or Google AdWords. StumbleUpon is great because it is so simple. It costs $0.05 a visitor. Period. You tell them how many visitors you want and that is what you pay for. I do recommend trying Google AdWords for one very important reason. It helps you really understand the keywords in your niche and who might be using them. Click here to
- Run a Contest - Personally, I am not a fan of contests when they are nothing more than pure self promotion. However, running a contest is a great way to get some traffic and new subscribers. The best kind of contest is one where everyone gets something out of it no matter what. What's in it for people when all they have to do is subscribe to your feed? Make people contribute something of value to everyone else. Maybe the funniest joke, for example. That way, all your readers will get something out of everyone's contribution. It obviously doesn't hurt to have an awesome prize too. If you don't want to spend a lot of money, why not enter a few contests yourself. Anything you win you could then give away yourself.
- Classifieds - Do you even realize how many people read Craigslist? My wife and I put a few things in the community yard sale this morning. Last night I posted an ad on Craigslist describing what we had and specifically asked people to stop by and say hi. I cannot tell you how surprised Mrs. Buzz was when people came by just to say hi! She didn't think anyone would read it! We sold everything and made a few hundred bucks. Craigslist is great, but just be careful. They are SUPER intolerant of spammers. If you post even looks or feels like it might be spam it will get flagged. If you have something that people will like, just choose your words carefully.
- Think Outside of the Box - I know...I hate that cliche too. But sometimes thinking outside the box is what you have to do to grow your blog. Who was the first person to run a contest on their blog? What about the first person to post a meme? I don't know who they are, but I bet they had amazing success because they did something that no one else had ever done. Think of something new and something original. If it catches on, it will not only bring traffic, but it could bring a huge amount of exposure and attention! (if you've got a really good idea let me know if you need some programming help!
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Its pretty easy for a blog to fall into a rut. Hopefully some of these tips will inspire some new ideas that will keep your blog flourishing.
Jeff
