Now I’m not a hugely popular blogger, so take everything I have to say with a grain of salt.\u00a0 That said, I have been keeping a blog (or online journal) in some form since 1999.\u00a0 Yeah, I was an early adopter.\u00a0 No, I don’t have the archives here.\u00a0 No, they aren’t coming back anytime soon.<\/p>\n
But here’s what I’ve learned over the years.<\/p>\n
More Comments<\/strong> – Want more comments on your blog?\u00a0 Ask questions!\u00a0 Post on other blogs.\u00a0 Encourage interaction.\u00a0 It definitely works.\u00a0 Also, check your comment settings.\u00a0 Do you only allow people to comment if they have accounts with sites like WordPress and Blogger?\u00a0 Consider adding a Name\/URL option.\u00a0 I don’t use wordpress.com or blogger.com anymore (though both are great sites) and so prefer to not use those accounts to post because it won’t link back to this blog.\u00a0 So when I see those options, more often than not, I don’t comment.\u00a0 Check out your settings and make sure you make it easy for people to comment!<\/p>\n More Readers<\/strong> – Want more readers?\u00a0 Again, comment on other blogs.\u00a0 Promote yourself on Facebook and Twitter.\u00a0 But don’t go overboard.\u00a0 If you only post on Twitter when you update your blog, I’m probably not going to follow you.\u00a0 If you post every blog link eight times a day, I’m probably not going to follow you.\u00a0 Twice is good – once in the morning and once in the evening.\u00a0 Don’t spam your followers.\u00a0 That just gets annoying.<\/p>\n Link To Other<\/strong> Blogs<\/strong> – Did someone write something that inspired you to write a post?\u00a0 Then do it, and make sure you link to the blog that inspired you.\u00a0 There’s nothing wrong with taking inspiration from someone else – but there is something wrong with stealing.\u00a0 I try to always give a hat tip to someone who pointed me in a certain direction and not only does it acknowledge the source of the idea, but it also links to another blog, increasing the likelihood that others will follow the idea and link to you.<\/p>\n Write About Something You Enjoy<\/strong> – You can follow all the above tips and still not get readers if you’re not creating good content.\u00a0 That doesn’t mean you have to have to be the world’s best writer.\u00a0 I’ve found that the best way to write well is to write about something you love.\u00a0 It’s probably best if you have a general topic, rather than just “my life.”\u00a0 Focus on something specific in your life, be it running or scrapbooking or raising kids or your dogs or…\u00a0 But that doesn’t mean all of your posts have to be on that subject.\u00a0 It’s just another way to draw readers.<\/p>\n See, that’s not so hard, is it?\u00a0 It’s all very simple, but it’s a great way to get started and find your niche.\u00a0 And then get hooked!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Now I’m not a hugely popular blogger, so take everything I have to say with a grain of salt.\u00a0 That said, I have been keeping a blog (or online journal) in some form since 1999.\u00a0 Yeah, I was an early adopter.\u00a0 No, I don’t have the archives here.\u00a0 No, they aren’t coming back anytime soon. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[3],"tags":[48,155],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n