How To Grow Your Blog Audience

Please don’t think that because I'm writing this post that I somehow think that I’m a bit of an expert on this topic, because I’m really not. The simple fact is, is that every blogger is trying to do the same thing - grow their readership. As bloggers, a lot of us, write for ourselves, or for our families. We like to look back on past memories and moments, and we hope that one day when they’re old enough that our children may join us in looking back on these fond moments too. But though, for most of us this is primarily what blogging is about, we too all like to know that other people are reading our posts, enjoying our pictures and following along on our journeys. It’s a nice feeling when people choose to click that ‘follow’ button or leave a comment. And it’s an ever better to feel like part of a community of similar thinking people online. 

So the question is.. how do you grow your blog audience? It's something us bloggers all want to know the answer to, so I thought I would try and offer some of my own personal advice/insight on this common blogging topic..

Step 1. After setting up your blog, you’ll first want to make sure that your design and general layout is not only visually appealing but that it is easy to use, easy to read and that it flows. 
Choose a good, clear font (even if it’s not your favourite font), don’t overload your side bars with confusing buttons or links. Have a clear blog title at the top of the page. And it’s usually advisable to have an easy to find ‘About me’ section on your blog, so that people know a little about who’s writing the blog they’ve just clicked on. Ensure that you have ways to follow your blog via links or buttons clearly visible towards the top half of your blog page. If you don’t have this, people won’t know how to follow your blog and may forget to come back even if they liked it and wanted to return. 

Step 2. Use good images. 
I previously wrote this post: How to improve your blog photos, where I spoke about why it’s important to use good images. You don’t have to own a DSLR to do this -  smart phones or digital cameras can take great photos too. Try and take your photos when there is the most natural light available, and always consider editing your pictures using photoshop if you have it, or a site like Picmonkey which is free if you’re like me and don’t have photoshop. I edit most of my photos via the basic settings on iPhoto on the mac and on Picmonkey. Good images, help tell the story and will help your readers better visualise what it is you’re writing about. 

Step 3. Use social media to promote your content and start commenting on other blogs and interacting with those in your blogging niche. 
If you’re not on twitter and facebook yet, then I highly recommend signing up. Not only do these sites provide you with somewhere you can promote your blog and your posts, but they are an excellent way to get involved and become part of the blogging community. A quick search on either of these social networks will enable you to find and follow so many similar-minded bloggers, some with tons of experience and some who are totally new to it all. Either way, I have always found that on the whole most bloggers are friendly, approachable and willing to offer support, advice and encouragement wherever they can. On Twitter try searching hashtags such as #pbloggers (if you’re a parent blogger), #lbloggers (for lifestyle bloggers) or #bbloggers (for beauty bloggers) and you should find a whole host of tweets from other bloggers in the same blogging niche as you. On facebook join blogging groups that are relevant to your blogging niche - try using Facebooks search bar to find these groups or politely ask other bloggers who share your niche which groups they are a part of or recommend joining.

Step 4. Think about your content. 
Writing from the heart is key, as is writing about the things that you are genuinely interested in. But it's also worth taking in to consideration that a lot of blog readers like to feel like there is a benefit for them when they click on a post to read. As humans, we are all attracted to things that inspire us, so keep this in mind when you write a post that you want to attract a bigger audience. Something to always ask yourself before pressing that publish button is.. is the post you've written a post you would choose to click on yourself, read and potentially share with others? 

Step 5. Be consistent and patient. 
Blog success doesn't happen overnight. It's easy to set up a blog and to publish your first post, but it's not easy to grow a blog. In the beginning it can feel pretty frustrating publishing post after post and receiving no comments or views (trust me, I've been there), but if you stick at it and practice the above steps, you will slowly start to see growth in your stats and you'll see your readership grow. Publish good quality posts often, but always bear me in mind that it's quality over quantity. And for my last bit of advice.. as much as you'll want to grow your blog, don't obsess about your blogs stats. Always keep the focus on publishing good quality, interesting and inspiring content on your blog. 

 

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