Last week, we shared resources for monetizing your blog and it got me thinking about the growth we’ve had with The Blog Market. When I ran only my personal blog, I never paid attention to my pageviews. I looked at followers, referrers, and number of comments, but never pageviews. Developing TBM, I realized that pageviews are actually important and can bring in a lot of amazing opportunities (collaboration, monetization, etc). We have been running TBM for about a year and a half now and we’re still consistently growing in many different ways. Here are a few simple steps we’ve taken to boost our traffic over the past year!
1. Optimize Pinterest and pin your posts
Pinning each of your posts is one of the easiest ways to get your content out into the world. But aside from just pinning, there are a few other ways you can take advantage of Pinterest to grow your readership. By now, you probably already know that vertical-oriented images perform better on Pinterest. Try to always include one Pinterest-optimized image in your blog posts that is tall and include text if relevant (like if it’s a “how-to” type of blog post). Next, you’ll want to make sure you don’t have any mistakes talked about in this resources blog post. You can also try to include a CTA in your captions or enable rich pins (that way the viewer will automatically know what kind of article they’re clicking into). Lastly, make sure your content can easily be pinned by readers! We’ve used this plugin to add a custom pin-it button over all of our photos on hover.
2. Get active on a new social media network
Is there a social media channel you haven’t tried yet, like Twitter or FB groups? If so, try one of these new networks out for a month and see what it does! Different people hang out on different social apps, so this is a great way to get your name out to new people.
3. Tweak your titles and include buzzwords
Titles are the first thing most of your potential readers will see. Put yourself in the shoes of your blog readers and ask yourself if your title would be intriguing enough to make you click through to read the rest of the post. Add some buzzwords like “how to”, “free” or “the top ___ ways to ___” But only if they’re relevant to your blog post. ;)
4. Try advertising with a blog you admire
Purchasing an ad from a blogger with a similar vibe as you can get your blog introduced to a whole new group of people. Remember to make sure you’re advertising with someone who has an audience relatable to your ideal reader (you want to attract people who will love your content). Also, check out their stats before purchasing an ad to see if it’s worth it to you.
5. Feature other bloggers and blog posts
Blogging is about community so you might find that when you give a little love, you get a little love. I hesitated to list this one as a way to increase pageviews, because featuring others should always be genuine and you really shouldn’t expect anything in return. But if you can find ways to naturally shout out to your favorite bloggers, go for it! Engaging in the blogging community is an amazing way to grow your blog authentically.
6. Leave comments on blog posts you enjoy
Along the same lines, leaving comments is an effective way to lead people back to your site. Of course that should never be the goal. Notice how I said to leave comments on posts you enjoy. Keep your comments honest and genuine and the author of the blog will probably click back to your site (we always do!).
7. Utilize your Bloglovin’ account
We love Bloglovin’ so much! Nowadays, most creative/lifestyle bloggers and readers use BL as their primary blog feed. We have gained so much readership through it and we also use it to discover new blogs. A while ago, I shared 5 ways to make the most of your Bloglovin’ account. Check out the list to see exactly how we’ve used Bloglovin’ to grow TBM!
8. Revive Your Old Content
It’s always unfortunate when your valuable content gets buried in the archives of your site. Bring it back into focus for your new readers who may not have seen it! You might try posting something like “10 of my top DIY projects” and highlight your older posts. Or you can add a “related posts” section to the bottom of your entries. The most natural way for us to share old content is to link to it in our newer posts (like I did in the last paragraph).
9. Show excerpts rather than full text
If you’re like me, you’re not a big fan of scrolling. Sometimes I just don’t make it through a whole long page of blog posts (I know, what a lazy millennial). So I love when posts on the blog home page just show excerpts with a “read more” button, maybe in a grid layout. This isn’t particularly necessary, but it can be nice for your readers and for you since it’ll encourage readers to click around your site more.
10. Add another weekly post to your schedule
Disclaimer: I think you can experience blog growth whether you post twice a week or six times a week, so don’t be discouraged if you feel like you can’t post every day (especially if you’re blogging solo!). But if you have time, test the waters out by adding an extra post to your week. Since Bloglovin’ is one of our main sources of traffic, we usually find that an extra blog post will bring in more pageviews and more new readers.
If you can make a habit of incorporating a few of these tips into your blog writing/promoting process, I’m sure you’ll experience growth in your site’s traffic. Let us know if you decide to try one of these methods or if anything different has worked for you!
Alex says
I read a bunch of blogs, and I’m picky. Honestly, I really dislike the ‘read more’ button. It’s not a problem if I have already subscribed…I’ll deal with it. But if I’m new and deciding if I should read more, I quickly scroll through the first few pages–judging the pictures, length of text, font, layout, etc.–and I like to view the whole post for that. I will actually read the blog later (and maybe never get to it) if I have to open a new tab / be redirected to another page. I get why the ‘read more’ button can be better. I just have a personal preference.
Ariane says
I didn’t know that BlogLovin’ had such an influence nowadays. I thought it wasn’t used by anyone anymore, to be honest. I have to reinvent it, haha!
Amy says
Thanks for the tips! I’ll definitely have to give the Pinterest button plugin a try.
http://www.amycummins.com
Ariadna says
Those were such helpful tips!! I used to post every single day a while ago but now I try to post two or three times per week instead and try to give better content, I find that this way people engage way more with my posts! x
Ariadna || RAWR BOWS
Breshana says
Already trying a few of these, but thanks for the great tips. Keeping my head and blog in the game!
Lucie says
Thank you for this post. It’s helpful. ;-)
Have a nice day xx
Jessica says
Thanks for the tips..always interesting to learn more..
http://vodkaandarose.blogspot.co.uk
Linda Kinsman says
Love your style and tips here. I found you through Bloglovin, so my big take away today is to spend some time on my Bloglovin account and add more content to my planner. Thanks for the inspiration.
sheridan grady says
Great tips, I really need to spend some time reviving my old posts! And using pinterest! x
http://www.shayholly.co.uk
Anne @ Yeys.com says
I have a lot of work cut out for me reviving a few old blogs. There’s quite a few things you suggested there that are already on my (extremely long) to-do list. Good advice!
Grace says
Thanks for the tips, they are really helpful
The Sunday Mode says
I enjoyed reading through all of your ideas, some of them were reminders, some new ideas. Thank you!
http://www.thesundaymode.blogspot.com.au
Momina Arif says
this was very helpful. gonna try working on pinterest more.
Lori says
Hi,
How do you buy ads from bloggers? I didn’t realise this was possible, so I’d like to know more about it.
Thanks
Lori
Hallie says
Thank you so much! This helped so much!
Nancy says
Oh Yes… One: I see a huge jump in views when I pin my blog.
and What? Three: Why did I not think of incorporating buzz words in my titles? duh.
THANK YOU for the idea.
Kate says
Thanks for sharing! This was super helpful :)
VioletDaffodils
xx
Jaype Bayon-on says
Great article. Thanks much. It makes sense to me since i’m new to blogging.