How to Make Your Blog Popular: a Story of SocialMediaExaminer.com

Do you want thousands of people to read your blog?

How to build an online business beyond the competition? 

The blogging starts from creating content. But you write, you create a compelling content and… nothing happened. Some blog visitors, a few regular readers, lucky if you have 10 shares and a little to no income from the blog at the end of the year.

Let’s look at the popular online website socialmediaexaminer.com. Started in 2009, it became one of the leading community about the social media. Top small business blog in the world according to Technorati with over 10 million visitors per year. More than 800k online followers.

You ask: What do I do wrong?!

Michael Stelzner, the founder of the Social Media Examiner, shares his experience in his book “Launch: How to Quickly Propel Your Business Beyond the Competition”.

It started from nothing and step-by-step got to the top. Here are the fundamental tips based on Michael’s journey of working on socialmediaexaminer.com which will make your blog popular too.

Find people who will help your business to grow up

Yes, some people are willing to help your business to grow up. When you begin helping others to solve them problems, they start to promote your business even if you don’t ask them about it. So, who are those people who are going to make your blog popular?

First, that’s your community. They are your readers and subscribers. Your give away to them will be the interesting content which helps them to find solutions of them needs. It’s the high-quality content which worth to be shared (note, without selling!). Also, stay in touch with your audience: respond to the comments, answer the questions, be ready to help.

Second, the experts in your niche. You may think: Why will they help me? Because you will help them too. Write about them experience, work, business journey. In this case, you help them to build more authority and get access to the new audience. In return, they may help to promote your posts too.

Collaborate with other people

Involving experts and authorities in the work on your content provides valuable information to your audience and establish long-term relationships.

Use Win – Win tactic. It’s important to give value back to experts who you work with.

1. Look for authorities in your niche.
2. Give them what they need, give more and regularly: tell about them to your audience, write reviews of them books or products, have an interview, etc.
3. Meet personally if you have a chance.
4. Make a valuable offer which can be interesting to the expert. Whatever he accept it or not, keep your relationship. It may turn into a partnership next time.
5. Repeat: find a next expert.

Help people and they will help your business

Help people who cannot help you. Help without the expectation of return. Help many people.

– Guy Kawasaki

If you help to the hundred or thousands of people for free, they will help you to develop your business fast. By helping them, you make them think: if your free information is so helpful, then how valuable will be your product or service. It’s about building a trust and relationship between you and the clients.

People don’t like hard sellers. They just need enough information for make a choice and this information should be free.

Who do you want to work with?

Look at the people who you want to work with from the position «give» and «help» instead of «get» and «sell». The community will make your blog popular.

Who do you want to be your regular readers, subscribers, visitors? Who are those which you write for?

Change your focus from your customers to those who need help, whatever they buy something or not. Your clients are already in that group. However, besides of the people who pay for your product and service, there are people who won’t buy anything. Those will promote your content or will help your site in other ways. They are your support group.

Gifts for your audience

When you gift something, you don’t expect anything back. The same with your content. Providing the useful content without selling is a gift for your audience. Here are a few «gift» ideas:

• Write successful stories of other people
• Help people to solve problems
• Share other people ideas
• Publish the research results
• Organize Top 10 competition
• Host free webinars with the experts

Publish your content on other websites, but be picky

One of the great ways to extend your audience is to write for other websites. The trick is to choose the blogs which already established themselves online. Then you’ll get access to the new audience and support of the big resource.

Searching for the websites for a guest posting, kissmetrics.com recommends to look for blogs that fit the following criteria:

• The content is focused on your niche/industry.
• The audience of the blog will be interested in your industry.
• The blog has engaged readership (posts have been shared socially and commented upon).
• The blog owner is active on social media (so you know that they will be promoting your work on their site).

Treat your guest post as well (or even more) as the post on your website. It gives you traffic, makes your blog popular and builds your online reputation. Promote it and don’t forget respond to the comments.

In conclusion

There were just a few tips from the “Launch: How to Quickly Propel Your Business Beyond the Competition”. They cover only 5% of what you find in the book.

If you want your blog to stand out of thousands of others – change your marketing system. Build a community. Help people.

Even the book itself follow the same strategy. It’s full of “How to…” practical guidelines. You will learn how to create content which will be valuable and popular. Michael teaches how to find experts and work with them. You will know the different content marketing strategies which you can apply to your blogging right away. Michael simply helps you to make things happened.

Get a book on Amazon: Launch: How to Quickly Propel Your Business Beyond the Competition

What do you think? What are your practical tips how to make your blog popular? Please share in the comments below.

Marina Barayeva

Marina Barayeva is an international speaker and coach who helps women entrepreneurs become recognized experts and confidently sell their services. She is also a TEDx speaker, has presented to audiences in Asia and North America, and has been featured in such media as ArtPeople, CCTV, China Radio International, and others.