Sure, an active blog can increase your website’s authority, but we don’t publish written content in a vacuum. We want other people to read our work, like it, share it, and link back to it again and again. These social signals and backlinks are a critical part of improving search results and the way we’re perceived online.
So how do we drive more traffic back to our content?
Here are some of my favorite strategies:
Social Sharing
Perhaps the most obvious way to get people to see your content is to share it on social media. Post it on Twitter with a couple of popular hashtags. Share it with your connections on LinkedIn. Give it a chance to shine on Google+ and Facebook.
I suggest that you share a combination of your own articles along with those of peers in your industry. That way, you don’t come across as wholly self-promotional and people come to respect you as a source of interesting aggregated information.
My other suggestion is to set up an automated direct message on Twitter using Crowdfire. My direct message thanks new followers for following me and then points them in the direction of my most recent article or latest project It’s a good way to get traffic from people who have already shown an interest in your content.
Repurpose Your Content
I give an in-depth look at repurposing content on Day 17 of this challenge. To reiterate briefly, the idea is to take all your hard work and repackage it for another audience on another platform.
You can turn your article into a slideshow, use the content to answer questions on Quora, or republish on another publishing platform like LinkedIn Pulse or Medium. As you explore these options, try to remember to link back to your original article. You’ll direct more traffic back to your website and encourage people to read/learn more.
Comment on Blog Posts
Bloggers see a lot of comments, but the truly illuminating and remarkable ones are few and far between. If you can keep your comments consistently high quality, you’ll get the attention of the author and other viewers as well. This is an easy way to increase your visibility and start the networking process for guest posts in the future.
Your comments on industry blogs can also impact your reputation in a negative way. Be careful not to link to your articles too much -- the last thing you want is to become known as spammy and self-promotional.
Share in Communities
Sharing your article in communities is different than just sharing it on social media. Have you ever explored those LinkedIn Groups? What about Google+ Communities? If not, you’re missing out on a big opportunity to get your content in front of an engaged audience in your industry.
The nature and style of your conversations are going to depend on 1) the specifics of your online brand and 2) the social norms of the social network.
For specific examples of starting conversations within social media communities, read Day 24 of this challenge.
Paid Promotion
Paid promotions can be an incredibly useful supplement to a solid ORM campaign. You can earn engagement on Twitter, grow a wider audience of followers on Facebook, and send more traffic to your articles thanks to Stumbleupon or Outbrain. For an in-depth look at paid promotional campaigns, check out Day 25.
Bonus: Explore Your Own Ideas!
Have you thought about sending out a regular newsletter to your email contacts?
What about sending direct messages to your connections on LinkedIn?
How about this one...
When’s the last time you took a good look at your email signature? Chances are, it’s been a while.
Most people send out dozens of emails every day. Your email signature can be a terrific way to unobtrusively get important information to people who matter in your professional and personal lives.
Consider adding a line that encourages people to visit your blog or connect with you on social media. For reference, I’ve included what mine looks like here. I’ve recently added Bitly links on each hyperlink so I can keep track of how many clicks I’m earning.
Have some other fun ideas for driving traffic? Let me know in the comments :)