It’s 11:30 on a Monday night and there you are, curled up in your down comforter, staring at your bleak blog stats. You’ve written so many insightful posts, but they just don’t seem to be getting any attention. We’ve all been there.
Creating an author blog is one of the first pieces of advice we give indie authors to grow their fan bases, nurture their platforms, and create community. But a successful blog does not happen overnight. Thankfully, there are some important steps you can take to grow your readership and ramp up those page views.
1. Create a Schedule
Blogging frequently and consistently is one of the best ways to signal to your readers that you’re serious about your blog and its content. If potential audience members stumble across your blog and notice you haven’t posted in three months, they may dismiss your site as unreliable, and they certainly are not going to sign up for updates.
Decide how frequently you plan to blog from the get-go. Once a week? Three times per week? Decide with your dedication in mind. Don’t plan a daily blog if you don’t have enough mental motivation to stay on track. If you can generate enough content for a more rigorous routine, great. If not, opt for a schedule you can stick to in favor of one that provides constant updates, but drains your energy.
2. Try a weekly series feature
Generating consistently scintillating ideas for blog posts can be tough. Establishing a weekly theme can take some of the pressure off your creative process while attracting readers. Themed vlogs such as Whine About It use this technique to encourage viewers to tune in regularly.
Do you have a weekly grammar tip to share? Maybe you want to post the latest addition to your bookshelf every Thursday. If you can hook your readers with an awesome theme that relates to your interests they may be more likely to check back on a weekly basis.
3. Build and email list
One of the easiest ways to keep readers coming back is to remind them. Creating a subscription option on your blog homepage, as well as at the end of each post will help you create a powerful email list. This feature will allow an alert to be sent straight to subscribers’ emails when you publish a new post.
An email marking service may be a helpful option for creating your email list. Check out some of our favorites.
4. The power of the guest post
Capitalize on your author network and other powerful connections by allowing someone to guest post on your blog. Content written by a guest will expand your blog’s reach when the post is shared amongst his/her own audience, community, or fan base.
Similarly, you can expand your readership by returning the favor: guest posting on someone else’s blog. Reach out to authors with whom you have connected, or whose blogs you frequent, to see if they would be interested in publishing a post written by you.
If they accept, make sure your guest post concept and content is stellar. A boring or poorly written blog post will be an instant turn-off for all those potential new readers within the blog host’s audience. On the contrary, a sharp, creative article will be an incentive to visit your own webpage or blog.
5. Get out there and comment
One of the most important aspects of maintaining a blog is keeping up with the comments. If you receive feedback on your blog posts—whether in the form of praise, critique, or questions—make sure to comment back. This gesture lets your readers know you are listening and that you take their thoughts into consideration.
Commenting on other blogs relevant to your interests and writing is another excellent way to get your name out there, and will show that you are active in the writing community.
6. Share those posts
Sharing your posts via social media should be a no-brainer. Save yourself some time by checking to see if your blogging platform has a widget or plugin to automatically share your most recent posts.
Another feature we love can be found on the left side of this webpage—the “sharebar.” This blog plugin provides readers with an easy way to share your post on their own Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Google+ account.
7. Create blog title clickbait
Don’t underestimate the power of a good blog post title. This feature is especially important when you share your posts on sites like Twitter, where your title is the only content seen. Don’t let your readers skim over a brilliant article just because it has a lackluster headline. Devise a title that makes your readers want to expend the energy to clink on your link—and then share it with their friends.
8. Have patience
Even the best writers and networkers need a little bit of patience before their blogs become successful. Don’t give up if your blog has not made it to the big leagues within the first three months . . . or even the first twelve. Make a game plan, stick to it, utilize your resources, generate compelling content, and you are sure to get some traffic!
Readers, how have you increased your own blog readership? Comment below!
Thanks so much for this. It’s inspiring me to definitely get more on the scheduled post bandwagon instead of lazily posting just reviews!
Thanks for tuning in, Debbie! We’re happy to hear you’re feeling a renewed sense of motivation! Let us know how your new strategy works!
Great post, I wish there had been tips like this when I first started blogging way back when! I definitely agree making it easy for people to share your content helps it get out there.