Creating content for your blog is a great way to inform readers about your service or product. However, creating the content itself won’t attract new leads if nobody know’s it’s there. Driving traffic to your new blog posts will help you generate new leads. Here are 5 ways that you can drive traffic to a new blog post.
Sharing your content on social media channels will get your audience’s attention and let them know you have new content. The more channels you share your content through, the more you’ll increase the visibility of your blog. Just make sure that what you are sharing is relevant and of value to the community, otherwise you’re just spamming them with your links.
LinkedIn is a social media platform mostly used by business professionals. Some people think this site is only used for connecting with companies to seek new jobs. However, LinkedIn is a very useful networking platform. Share a link to your new blog post on LinkedIn and similar to Facebook, it’ll show up in the news feeds of the people you’re connected with.
It’s also beneficial to join groups on LinkedIn that are relevant to your business. It’s here that you can connect with thought leaders, and strategic partners to discuss industry trends, and business opportunities. Sharing your recent blog posts in the groups that you’re a part of will help draw new eyes to the post. Once posted, create a discussion around the main themes of your post to increase the views. The people who are a part of your group would be interested in reading what you have to say and likely benefit by the information you’re sharing. They would be more likely to share it themselves to more people who would find it useful.
Another good place to share a link and title description to your blog post is to the people who are currently looking for the information. People on Twitter are generally curating content and re-sharing it to their audience. Your Twitter followers are a group of people who value what you’re sending out on the web. That’s the whole reason they follow you!
Tweet all of your new blog posts with a link to the article and use relevant hashtags so people can find the topic of interest quickly. If you’ve referenced other Twitter users in your article, mention them in your tweet. Everyone who follows that person will see that they were mentioned in your article. This will increase the amount of people who will click on the link, driving traffic to your blog.
People respond better to photos and graphics rather than text. Visual content sparks more interest and interaction. 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual. It is important to include a blog post graphic in your text. When sharing your blog post on Facebook, be sure to add the title and link, but also attach a photo. Facebook users are on the site to view photos, including them in your post will increase the amount of people who see it.
Google Plus
Google Plus is another social media channel, where people can connect with each other based on their interests and professions. Sharing on this platform gives you all the benefits of the other social networks (as well as a little extra search engine juice ;). This platform is also very visual. Share your content to your Google Plus communities with an attached image and start a discussion.
Another good place to share visual content is Pinterest. Use your blog post graphic and upload it to a board. When writing the description, use keywords and appropriate hashtags to engage with customers.
Using all of these social media channels are beneficial ways to promote your blog posts, and help drive traffic to your blog. Aside from posting to social media networks, there are also industry based communities you can utilize when sharing new content. Business news forums are a places where professionals are looking for industry news and tips, allowing you to share links to your blog posts. To name a few from the online marketing niche:
Email Blasts
Email can be another efficient way to promote your blog posts. Create an email blast or newsletter and include your most recent articles. Send emails to thought leaders or top of the funnel prospects. This is a good way to keep them updated on the latest industry news and trends, and possibly initiate further conversation.
Repurpose Your Content
Think of other ways to communicate with your audience. Engage with your prospects by giving them other ways to view your content. Create Powerpoint slides, and highlight your blog posts main points, and include images. Upload these presentations on like sites like Scribd and Slideshare. Write a compelling description, and post a link to read the full article. Since visual content is more appealing to customers, redesign your content into a help infographic, and share it on social media. An infographic should communicate the information in a visually. Designing new ways for your audience to view your content will increase engagement.
Writing for other blogs gives you an opportunity to reach more people. Building relationships with other bloggers help your posts get featured on their blog. The more places your articles appear, the more of an influence you’ll create in your community. Posting in places where people will want to learn and hear what you have to say will help drive traffic to your own blog.
Having other bloggers guest post for you is also another benefit. Those writers will most likely share a link of their blog to where their guest posts are written. If your blog is one of those places, people will be driven to your blog.
Also, never forget about the blog articles you’ve already posted. Monitor your posts regularly. Respond to comments and questions people may have. This could be an opportunity to share more content with that person, and encourage them to visit other articles on your blog.
Promoting content will let clients, and prospects know that you have something new to share. Posting to social media channels, and business news forums will help increase the people who will read, and share your content. Giving people various ways to view your content is a good strategy to encourage engagement. Blogging is an important part of your business’ content marketing strategy, and promoting those blogs will help drive traffic.
In the comments below, tell us how you promote, and drive traffic to your new blog posts. Have you tried any of the suggestions from the article? How was your experience?