If you do anything with your blog, be sure to do these.
So you’ve got your blog set up and you have new content on your blog, at least most weeks. But you’re ready to take your blog to the next level. Here, you’ll find some tips to upleveling your blog to get more visibility.
Consistency is Key
If you walk into a store and see outdated fashions or décor that came from the 80s, what do you think? I may have grown up in the 80s but I don’t want to hang out there. I tend to shy away from stores that look run-down and aren’t keeping up with today’s (40-something) trends. So when someone visits your website and sees that you haven’t posted a blog since July of last year, they’ll wonder if you’re still in business.
Stay consistent with your blogging. You don’t have to post twice a week to make an impact; if once a month is what works for you, then go for it. But make sure you stick to a schedule so your audience (and prospective customers) know you’re still in business.
[bctt tweet=”If you haven’t posted a blog since July of last year, your audience will wonder if you’re still in business.”]
Always, Always Fresh Content
It’s hard to come up with new ideas to write about on a regular basis. I do this for a living, and I still struggle with ideas sometimes. It can be tempting to reuse a blog that you have elsewhere (a blog you posted as a guest on someone else’s site, an affiliate’s website, etc.). But just don’t do it. Not only will you hurt your own SEO by posting text that’s already online somewhere else, you’ll also damage your relationship with your affiliate or partner.
Search engines look for fresh content online. When they see that the same information has been posted in more than one place, it thinks one of you isn’t credible and won’t show either site in search engine results for that topic.
Instead of using the same content again, create fresh content. Take the same topic and write it from a different perspective. Or rewrite it and add new ideas. But don’t use the same content in more than one place.
Use Branded Graphics
When you share your content with the world, your audience should recognize it immediately based on the way it looks. When you stick a plain stock image on a blog, it doesn’t mean much. But when you brand that stock image with your colors, your font and your logo, people recognize you and you stick in their minds a bit longer. Even better is when you can use your own photos in your blogs, and then brand them.
Share Liberally
You’ve posted a blog but no one’s reading it. Did you remember to share it? Use your business Facebook page, Twitter and Pinterest to share your blogs, and don’t forget to include custom descriptions and text with them. I also Periscope about my blogs so I can share more background information and people can put a face to my words. If you have a presence on LinkedIn, create a post with customized text, then link it back to your blog.
Once you’ve shared your blog, don’t be shy about sharing it again! I use CoSchedule to quickly and easily reshare my content multiple times on Twitter and Facebook. You can also add opportunities for your audience to share great quotes from your blog by using Click to Tweet. You create the tweet for them, they click on it to tweet the information out to their followers. Content for them; a bigger audience for you. Like this:
[bctt tweet=”Once you’ve shared your blog once, don’t be shy about sharing it again!”]
Use Facebook Groups
This is where it gets a little sticky for me. If you’ve read my blog about Facebook groups, you know how I feel about promoting in Facebook groups. That said, there are opportunities you should take advantage of. Group moderators will often post threads inviting members to post their latest blog or their favorite blog. Use those to your advantage and post away! (But don’t be a spammer and post every blog within every Facebook group. Read the group rules to find out if it’s okay to promote yourself, then post within those guidelines.)
So there you have it. Five of my must-use tips for blogs. I know there are ideas I left out. How have you upleveled your blog? Share away!
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