You have a new blog – or maybe you just want to grow your existing blog. One of the fastest ways to get more visibility is to connect with established bloggers in niches related to yours. There are three fast ways to make that happen: linking to their blogs, effectively using social media, and blog commenting.
As Marty Weintraub of Aimclear Search Engine Marketing taught me when I first started blogging, you can “invite other bloggers to the party” by linking to them. Many blog platforms and especially WordPress notifies bloggers of incoming links through trackbacks and pingbacks. It makes sense for you to identify and read blogs in your own niche and that provides many opportunities to link to them.
I make it a point to know which bloggers cover which topics and who is expert in what so that I can include additional resources, pertinent quotes, and opposing viewpoints in my own blog posts. These make my content more valuable to my readers and outgoing links to related information on highly regarded blogs serve as an indication of relevance to the search engines.
Every time you link to another blogger you are planting the seed of a relationship. Just as a farmer must plant many seeds and it takes time for them to sprout and bring in a harvest, so too do bloggers need to plant many seeds. Linking to another blogger – especially if you use proper anchor text – is the best way to reward them for quality content and get them to notice you.
Leaving strong comments on posts that interest you and then sharing those posts (preferably after your comment is visible) across social networks are the next best ways to benefit your fellow bloggers. You raise your own visibility while promoting bloggers with proven traffic increasing results.
The biggest mistake many people make is to follow anyone who will follow them back and comment on random blogs. The most important factor a blogger needs to focus on is relevance. That applies to what blogs you link to, which bloggers you follow, where you comment, and building your social media accounts.
IMPORTANT: Selectively link to, comment in, and connect on social media with bloggers whose content is related to your own.
The more targeted your actions are the better your results will be. Whatever your niche is, build within that niche and then branch out to related niches. There are many online tools for locating others by location, keyword and niche. Use them to search for and interact with businesses and blogs with interests aligned with yours and your readers and followers.
Stay “on topic” and what you share will be far more appreciated and spread by others more often! Start building business and blogging collaborations today and multiply your reach.
