In our ongoing learning process, here are 7 steps I have used successfully to get my blog up from 12,000,000 to 204,000 in Alexa rankings and it continues to go UP every day now.
1. Blog niche: Think about what you want your blog to be about. I know that sounds simple but it is very important. Blogs that have a little of everything do not get much traffic versus blogs that have a definitive purpose that DO get lots of traffic. It also lets you use chosen keywords that your niche is about to get very targeted traffic, i.e. folks that want to know more about exactly what your articles are about on your blog.
2. Do Follow plugin: Make your blog work for everyone with a “Do Follow” plugin. What this does is take out the “No Follow” attribute that Word Press puts on all comments. Why do you want “Do Follow” on your blog? In comments, the commenter gets to put in his name, email address, website address and his comment. By having his website address on your blog, that is a “Back Link” to his URL which makes his site more popular in Google’s eyes. If the “No Follow” is left in as it comes with a normal Word Press install, Google ignores the link and the commenters website gets no credit for a back link.
3. Akismet plugin: Once your blog gets popular, more blog spammers will find it and start posting junk. You will know immediately when this happens if you have the “approve all comments” checked for you to approve (which I most STRONGLY recommend.) Askimet catches these almost perfectly! It is usually installed when you get a new WordPress blog installed. You just have to activate it.
4. Check your stats: http://www.StatCounter.com has a free plugin for Word Press that lets you know where your visitors are coming from, going to and tons of other info. Not hard to install… just follow directions. Well worth the price (free)!
5. Backup your blog: Once you get your blog going, you will want to have a backup in case your host goes down or you want to transfer it to another host. http://ilfilosofo.com/blog/wp-db-backup/ is a great plugin that backs up your blog at whatever frequency you want and emails you a copy of the backup all zipped up. I get mine daily right after midnite. Then, I just delete the previous backup from my email.
6. Post, Post, Post: Post to your blog often! Every two or three days on average for best search engine results. What can you post? Articles you have written about your niche area of expertise. Articles others have written about your niche area (with credit of course). Videos of you giving advice. Just two or three minutes… not a full length movie! Google LOVES videos on blogs (remember, they bought YouTube.) I accompany my videos with a written summary in the blog post that has the video. This serves as a reinforcement of my video and also an alternative if someone does not want to watch the video.
7. Video hints: Vary the format. Some “head shots”. Some outside shots. Some screen shots. Give your viewers some variety!
Bonus ideas:
A. Ask friends to comment on your “Do Follow” blog so you both get more “Google Juice”. It drives up traffic for BOTH of your sites.
B. Make your blog Theme match your main website. This will help brand you and/or your business.
C. Use the $1 idea on my blog to get more prospects.
D. Put articles on your blog “in the future”. What does that mean? When you write a post in Word Press, you can choose to publish it (i.e. put it up on your blog website) at some date/time in the future. This is nice if you have a bunch of articles to post. If you post them all at once, Google gives you WAY less credit than if you posted them 2, 3 or 4 days apart. I did this on one new blog with about 20 PLR articles I got in a specific niche. It took the blog from 12,000,000 to 604,000 in about 3.5 months in a niche that has 117,000,000 competitors on Google. And it got me a #2 Google ranking for the keyword string = Self Help and Personal Improvement. Article posting on blogs is powerful!
E. Build Your List: Use lead capture forms on your blog to get people to opt in to your list. I currently have one on the sidebar at the top and plan to use a plug in (WP Exit) to offer the form shortly after people arrive on the site and once again when they leave the site. If you are looking to make money with your blog, building your opt in list is paramount to your success.
F. (OK this is getting a little ridiculous. This is the 13th tip in a 7 tip article!) Use “Sexy Bookmarks” OK, the title is a bit risque’ but this little plugin (gotta love free plugins) puts links to social bookmarking sites on your blog posts so you readers can pass them on to their friends. This gives your blog posts a viral effect by getting more people passing them around! And the colorful icons gives your blog a little flair to boot.
Fred Raley
Woodbridge, VA
703 203 4648
FredRaley@GMail.com
Fred’s Internet Business
