How to Get More Blog Followers
If you just started your blog, you may be wondering how to get blog followers and more importantly, how to increase your blog traffic. I started this blog back in 2015 and let me tell you, the blogging industry changes constantly.
Back then, growing your social media followers was fairly easy. Nowadays it’s harder to increase your traffic using social media channels. Instead, you should focus your energy on growing your blog traffic using SEO strategies.
Over the years, SEO became my #1 one source of traffic. In fact, I now work as an SEO consultant and I have my own SEO agency.
In this blog post, we’ll talk about the best ways to generate traffic to your blog so you can get more blog followers and readers.
Before we start talking about how to get more blog views and followers, you should consider the following:
✔ Are you serious about blogging? If so, make sure to own a domain. By that, I mean you shouldn’t have a free blog that looks like this: yourwebsite.wix.com or yourwebsite.wordpress.com.
✔ You should also be self-hosted which means you’re paying for a hosting provider. I personally use Bluehost because the support is helpful, you can host multiple websites under one account and you get free access to Cloudfare which makes your website faster.
Alright, now that you’re set for success, let’s see how you can get more blog traffic and followers. If you still need to start the blog, take a look at our article about blogging for beginners.
Become an authority within your niche
The first step is to become an authority within your niche. If you’re still new to blogging, you may have picked multiple niche, or a broader niche. A niche is a specific area within a market that has its own specifics.
Let’s see an example.
The travel niche is very competitive, so having a specific niche regarding a specific destination, city or a traveling style can help you narrow down your niche. You could write about traveling with toddlers or traveling as an English teacher, etc.
The goal here is to become an expert within the niche chosen. To become an expert, you’ll write to write a lot of content about your niche. Try to write about all the angles using content pillars (2-3 subtopics within your niche).
Once you wrote about 30 articles about your main niche, you’ll be able to rank faster on Google because you’ll be recognized as an expert. Here, I’m talking about long in-depth articles that show you know what you’re talking about.
Tips to help you increase your authority within your niche
✔ Make sure to establish yourself as an expert on your “About me” page. If you have any qualifications or certifications, you should add them there. Tell your readers why they can trust you.
✔ Look at Google Frequently Asked Questions or take a look at the questions that come up on a regular basis within Facebook Groups. Having blog posts that can answer your ideal reader’s questions will help you build trust. You could also share your blog post in these groups when you see the questions pop up.
✔ Participate in podcasts, guest posts, or interviews and establish yourself as an expert on your topic/niche. In theory, you should be able to get backlinks to your site this way.
Make Your Website User-Friendly
While the look of your blog may change often, you should always make sure it’s responsible and that it looks great on mobile too. Many readers will consume your content from their phones, so you want to provide a great experience on all devices.
Having a user-friendly website means your website loads fast, and is easy to navigate. Your readers should be able to navigate from your homepage, from your menu, and from your important articles easily. Add related content to your blog posts and make sure to have a menu that is easy to understand.
If you’re not a web designer, you can use a template to design your blog. Mine was made with Elegant Themes. It’s a drag and drop template that provides a lot of templates and fun features so you can have a beautiful blog design.
Write Good Quality Content
Writing good content sounds easy, but what exactly is good content?
Valuable content should answer a query, a problem. Think of when you google something. “What is good content”. When you google such a query, you’re hoping to find an article that will provide you with the best answer possible. You expect to see tips on what is good content and how to write good content.
Understanding the search intent helps you write content for your readers. The goal here is to provide the best answer possible out there. While many websites compete with their answers, it’s more important than ever to pick a less competitive niche, do keyword research, and write with SEO in mind.
SEO is a technique that helps you optimize your content so readers can find it on Google.
Learn more about SEO here.
Be Active on Social Media
As part of your blogging strategy, you should also be working on your brand and that’s done via social media. Think of your ideal readers and where they hang out. Are they on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter? Knowing where your ideal blog followers are will help you decide on which social media channel invest your time. Here are some of my favorites.
Back in the days, driving traffic to your site with Facebook was very easy. Nowadays, you’re playing against the Facebook gods and it can be challenging. This is why I rely mostly on SEO to increase my blog traffic. A great way to use Facebook to generate traffic is to promote your blog posts in Facebook Groups within your niche.
Twitter is a great platform if you wish to connect with other bloggers or with brands, but your readers aren’t necessarily there. If you have a tech blog or a gaming blog, then Twitter is probably one of the important social media where to go.
Pinterest is a visual search engine which means you need to know about keywords and SEO in order to succeed on Pinterest. But, it’s not all about keywords since the results appear visually. You must be great at pin design to stand out on Pinterest.
Instagram is also made for visuals and videos. It’s a great way to connect with your potential audience, but it won’t necessarily drive a lot of traffic to your blog.
Frequently Asked Questions
In this section, we’ll answer all your burning questions regarding blog traffic. Without further ado, let’s get you some quick answers.
How do I get people to view my blog?
The best way to get more readers and people to view your blog is to link all your social media to it. This will show Google that your blog is a real brand and therefore, Google will start trusting your website. I strongly recommend you learn SEO to implement strategies to grow organically.
Then, you could promote your blog posts on Pinterest and on Facebook. Although, the most sustainable way to get blog readers is by solving their problems using SEO strategies.
How many blog posts do I need to get traffic?
It really depends on your niche. While so less competitive niches could get decent traffic with just a dozen of articles, competitive niches will require hundreds of articles. I suggest you pick your niche with SEO in mind. To do so, make sure to take a look at the competition when doing your keyword research and even before buying a new domain.
How can I see traffic on my blog?
The best way to see the traffic on your blog is by connecting your blog to Google Analytics. You could also just add a Google Analytics plugin and add your tracking number within the WordPress Plugin. Then, you’ll be able to track your analytics easily without having to manually add a code to your WordPress blog.
Final Thoughts
After blogging since 2015, I can tell you that the best way to get more readers to your blog is by learning and implementing SEO. SEO brings organic traffic to your blog so you don’t need to waste your precious time promoting your blog posts on social media. It’s the most sustainable way to get blog followers up to this day. If you’re ready to get started with SEO, take a look at my online course SEO from Scratch. The course is specifically designed for bloggers. You can enroll or join the waitlist for the next round here.
If you prefer to learn using free resources, take a look at this Youtube Channel (it’s mine!).
BEFORE YOU GO
☑ Book your flight: If your flight isn’t booked yet – check out the flights on Skyscanner or via Google Flights. My top saving tip is flexibility. If you’re flexible, you should be able to find a cheaper flight.
☑ Book your accommodation: I always use Airbnb and Booking.com. If you’d rather stay in a hostel, you should take a look at the options on Hostelworld. If you click on the Airbnb link and you don’t have an account yet – you’ll get a $30 discount on your first booking.
☑ Protect your cute face: Oh, you may want to protect your cute face with a travel medical insurance. I would suggest SafetyWing as they offer the best rates, especially for long-term travelers. Otherwise, you can also take a look at World Nomads.
☑ Pack the essentials: You can consult this list when it’s time to pack your bag! Do not leave without a universal charger, a power bank and your passport!
☑ Do you need a visa? If you aren’t sure if you need a visa, it would be a smart idea to take a quick look before you go. You can use iVisa – it’s super useful and easy to use.
Disclaimer: This post may include affiliate links. If you click one of them, we may receive a cute commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you.
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