Blogging

7 Ways to Increase Your Blog Traffic

Ways to Increase Your Blog Traffic

Ways to Increase Your Blog Traffic

Blogging isn’t as easy as writing a post and hitting “publish”- that’s because after you’ve published your content you also need to get people to read it. 

When I first started this blog I’d publish my posts and that would be it. I had no idea how to grow my audience. I just hoped that eventually, my potential readers would just “find” me.

Over the last couple of years I’ve received a ton of emails from other bloggers asking questions about growing a blog, building an audience and increasing traffic- basically getting people to read your blog. In today’s post, I’m sharing a few ways that have helped me do those things.

WRITE SHAREABLE CONTENT

Pinterest and Facebook send me a ton of traffic. Pinterest alone refers tens of thousands of new visitors to my blog, on weekly basis. Majority of my traffic comes from Pinterest, which is why I talk about it so often. I probably wouldn’t get all that traffic, without creating shareable content.

So what does “shareable content” mean? It means creating content that is somehow helpful to your readers. If they find it helpful or useful in some way, they’re much more likely to share it with others, pin it for future reference or bookmark it. Analyze your posts, see which ones get the most hits, what are some things you often get asked about? What are your strengths?   Focus on that. You also need to make sure that your content can be easily shared with others- installing “share” buttons like Pinterest, Twitter and Facebook is crucial.

POST MORE FREQUENTLY

I noticed that my traffic started to grow substantially once I started posting more frequently. Other than being mentioned on a different blog, someone’s Facebook page or being featured in a newsletter (like Bloglovin’), posting more frequently brought me some of the largest traffic spikes I’ve experienced so far. Writing more will not only keep your readers coming back, but it’s also great for bringing organic search traffic to your blog- Google gives higher priority to websites with new and fresh content.

With that being said always go with quality over quantity. Don’t post crappy content, for the sake of posting. Some of my favorite bloggers post a handful of posts a month, and they’re still very successful. It all depends on the type of content you create.

CONNECT WITH OTHER BLOGGERS

As your audience grows, responding to each and every comment can be a bit overwhelming. Nowadays, it usually takes me a few days to catch up with comments on my blog but interacting with other bloggers and readers is what makes blogging so special. It lets you build a relationship with your audience and grow your blog’s community. Commenting is not just about “plugging in” your blog link- they should always be meaningful and bring some value to the conversation. Whenever I get emails from new bloggers asking about growing their audience, I always give the same answer: connecting with other bloggers is the best way to start. Getting a ton of traffic is great, but engagement is worth a lot more.

BLOG DESIGN

Your blog design should be easy to navigate. When I visit a blog for the first time, one of the first things I want to know is the blogger’s name- so make sure that it’s visible somewhere right away. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve visited a blog and couldn’t find the person’s name anywhere. I also noticed that my “About” page started to get a lot more hits ever since I added an author picture on my home page- which is something that I should have done from the get-go. If you have several categories on your blog, make sure that it’s easy to navigate and search through those as well. If you want people to comment, you also have to make it easy for them to do. Last year I switched from WordPress to Disqus and I love it. I’m getting a lot less spam comments and don’t have to moderate them anymore- which saves me a ton of time.

ROUNDUPS

If you write on regular basis, chances are that you’ve published quite a few posts. An easy and simple way to drive some traffic to those old posts, is by doing a “Roundup” post and linking to older content. This is exactly what I did in my 40 of My Best How-To Posts. I also love doing monthly Roundups, where I talk about and link to posts published past month.

PROMOTE OLD POSTS

Don’t let all that great content get buried! Reference your older content whenever it’s appropriate, always link within your posts. Re-share it on Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook. Some of the most popular posts on my blog, are ones that I’ve published years ago. They still continue to bring me traffic, on regular basis (mostly from Pinterest). If you want to know how to drive traffic to your old blog posts, make sure to check out this post.

BE CONSISTENT

Be consistent and stay patient. Most of the emails I receive say “I’ve been blogging for x amount of time, but it seems like no one’s reading my blog. What am I doing wrong?” Truth is,  growing your blog is a lot of work, but one thing that will definitely help you is being consistent- with your content, images, posting schedule. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try new things-it means that you should pay attention to things like your analytics. Which posts are most popular? What type of content does your audience seem to enjoy the most? Unless you get extremely lucky, chances are your blog will not go from 1000 to 500k monthly pageviews overnight, this is why it’s important to stay patient. I haven’t hit any major blog milestones until two years into blogging, so whatever you blog about, make sure it’s something you love, otherwise you’ll get bored easily.

BLOG-TRAFFIC-TIPS

Bottom line is, blogging is a lot of work. If you want to expand and grow your blog, you have to put in the work. This doesn’t mean that you have to spend every single free minute you have working- if you’re smart about it, automate a lot of things, you can have a blog, a job AND a life.

What are some of your favorite ways to grow traffic and promote content? I’d love to know!

 

81 Comments

  • Reply
    Kelly
    December 7, 2016 at 10:36 pm

    Thanks for this post Paula, I need to start posting more frequently or at least have a schedule to follow. My favorite way to grow is to connect with other bloggers on instagram.

    Perfect Shade of Mauve

  • Reply
    Angela Mary
    December 7, 2016 at 10:50 pm

    Hi Paula,
    What an informative post! Thanks a ton for sharing these. I’ve never done a round up before. I recently narrowed down my niche, and ever since – I enjoy blogging! It took me a whole year to figure it out but I feel I’ve gotten this new sense of direction. Blogging consistently is very important as you’ve pointed out. Lovely tips. Have a great day!

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      December 10, 2016 at 9:30 am

      Thank you so much Angel! So great that you were able to narrow your niche and enjoy blogging even more, love that! I think it definitely takes a while to figure it out and find your own style of writing and blogging.

  • Reply
    Andreanne // A Certain Romance
    December 7, 2016 at 11:18 pm

    Thank you for this post! I love your content, it’s always so useful!

  • Reply
    Macy Brown
    December 7, 2016 at 11:36 pm

    Oh my gosh I love this post so much! I just started my blog this past weekend so this was really helpful! I also 100% agree with connecting with other bloggers – I just started to connect with other bloggers this morning and it’s already helped my blog out soooo much! Thank you for the great tips :)

    -Macy
    http://www.heytheremacy.wordpress.com

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      December 10, 2016 at 9:31 am

      Thank you so much Macy! I think that connecting with others is the best thing you can do, especially as a new blogger!

  • Reply
    Jaime, GirlLovesGloss.com
    December 8, 2016 at 12:52 am

    Another helpful post Paula! After following your advice post about pinterest I’ve been trying to make my feature image more ‘pinnable’ looking. I’vr definitely noticed a little growth. I think now the thing for me is to work on getting more comments/interaction. Im struggling with that.

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      December 10, 2016 at 9:32 am

      Thanks Jaime! If you struggle with interaction, connecting with other bloggers and having a few that you visit and comment on on regular basis will definitely help with that!

  • Reply
    Marianne
    December 8, 2016 at 1:01 am

    Thank you once again for such a helpful post, Paula :)
    xx
    http://mariannelle.com

  • Reply
    Erin Azmir
    December 8, 2016 at 3:16 am

    this is very helpful! thank you paula x

    http://www.erinazmir.com

  • Reply
    Kiss & Make-up
    December 8, 2016 at 3:28 am

    I never promote my old stuff, maybe I should start doing that.

  • Reply
    Eloise
    December 8, 2016 at 4:14 am

    so helpful, thank you for sharing. the patience point is definitely something i need to work on haha

    http://www.thewhimsicalwildling.com/

  • Reply
    Aleksandra // bunniesaremagic
    December 8, 2016 at 4:23 am

    It is so hard to stay on top of posting more than once a week. Seriously. I feel like I am sleeping, working and blogging only, nothing else :)

  • Reply
    MihaBalan
    December 8, 2016 at 5:14 am

    Questions :) How did you got featured in Bloglovin newsletter?
    Thank you for the tips:)
    http://mihabalan.com

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      December 8, 2016 at 8:06 am

      I don’t really do anything to get featured, it just happens. I suppose it’s Blolovin’ staff who pick the posts.

  • Reply
    Manavi I Be For Beauty
    December 8, 2016 at 5:34 am

    So true. Sometimes it feel way too overwhelming to blog and promote at the same time. Thanks a lot for sharing this informative post. Have a good day. :)

    beforbeauty.com

  • Reply
    KELLiLASH/Kelly
    December 8, 2016 at 7:15 am

    Love this post as so much useful info and you really are so knowledgeable about it all! I always take on board your words as I definitely noticed a spike in reads which worried me, so have been implementing your suggestions! Fingers crossed ;-) Kelly xx
    http://www.KELLiLASH.com

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      December 10, 2016 at 9:34 am

      Thanks so much Kelly! So glad to know that you’re implementing some of those tips! Makes me very very happy!

  • Reply
    Frances Kayleigh
    December 8, 2016 at 9:13 am

    Thanks for the tips! I blog a lot about beauty products and things, which I don’t feel is necessarily so much ‘shareable’ content for Pinterest, but I do get a lot of traffic through search engines. I’m a perfectionist so will never post anything I’m not 100% happy with as posting something crappy does me no good!
    Franceskayleigh.com

  • Reply
    Rachael Cargin
    December 8, 2016 at 10:38 am

    Such a helpful post! Thank you so much! I’m relatively new to blogging so it’s great to get a successful bloggers perspective on things!

    Rachael xx.
    theteacozykitchen.blogspot.co.uk

  • Reply
    Paula Loreti
    December 8, 2016 at 10:53 am

    Your posts always motivate me so much to upload constantly and try to be better every day!! Thanks :)

    http://www.blossomikebana.com

  • Reply
    Katie @ Over The Moony
    December 8, 2016 at 11:40 am

    Consistency is one of the things I’m struggling with because I’m 100% with you on the quality over quantity. I’ve been trying to post 3 days a week but sometimes I just don’t know what to write. I just sit there, looking at the cursor blinking and having nothing to write lol It’s tough!

    I love all of these tips so much. I actually just was working on my page yesterday and added the categories at the top. It seems like such a no-brainer thing to do, I don’t know why I didn’t do it sooner! It automatically gives people a feel of what they’re going to find on your blog and they can get lost for a while in one category.

    I think the biggest thing is definitely connecting with other bloggers. It’s SO important. I was reading another post on a similar topic and they were saying once you realize that other bloggers aren’t competition but your biggest allies that’s when things can really start to get in motion, and I totally agree with that. Once I had that realization I started to have WAY more success! It’s such a team effort. The internet is SO big so having as many allies as possible is so helpful!!

    Katie | http://www.overthemoony.com

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      December 10, 2016 at 9:43 am

      I know the feeling Katie! That’s why I like to gather some ideas and always keep a bunch of them written down so I never run out of things to write about.

      I really wish I’d start connecting with other bloggers sooner. I think it took me like two years to actually read other blogs and start commenting and connecting with them. I think when we all support one another, it’s a win-win situation. We’re all different and unique and there’s more than enough room for all of us. :)

  • Reply
    Cattleya
    December 8, 2016 at 12:21 pm

    Love this! I’m always looking for ways to grow my blog. I’ve heard of some of these before but it’s always nice to have a reminder. Thanks for sharing!

    x. Cattleya

    alittlecattleya.com

  • Reply
    Wildfire Charm
    December 8, 2016 at 12:25 pm

    Such amazing tips!! Posting frequently is something I struggle with. Like you said, I am kind of the quality over quantity girl and I keep perfecting one piece rather than creating more. I need to get more organized and plan them out :)

    http://www.wildfirecharm.com

  • Reply
    Lauren Victoria
    December 8, 2016 at 12:29 pm

    You always post the best tips! Thank you for this xx

    Lauren | itslaurenvictoria.blogspot.co.uk

  • Reply
    Paul Nieto
    December 8, 2016 at 2:28 pm

    Promote old posts is a good idea!

  • Reply
    Hannah Lucy
    December 8, 2016 at 4:10 pm

    Great post – posting frequently is definitely a good idea and blog design makes all the difference to me as a user!

    http://www.ohjanuary.co.uk

  • Reply
    Beautylymin
    December 8, 2016 at 4:41 pm

    You ALWAYS have the very best tips!! xx

    Beautylymin| CaseAppGiveaway

  • Reply
    Sonini 92
    December 8, 2016 at 5:14 pm

    That’s right. When I started posting on my blog, anybody told me anything about how could grow up. But I thought these ideas and it works! SO thank you for the tips!
    XOXO
    Pretty Little Lawyer

  • Reply
    Cheyanne Sorelle
    December 8, 2016 at 5:45 pm

    Thanks so much! This is really handy and helpful :)

    http://www.cheyannesorelle.blogspot.co.uk

  • Reply
    Tiny Taurus
    December 8, 2016 at 9:56 pm

    Thanks for the share! I need to keep these tips in mind!

    Daniella | Tiny Taurus

  • Reply
    Hannah
    December 9, 2016 at 5:49 am

    I’m trying to post more frequently. I do struggle because I have been blogging for 2 years (since August 2014) and I have gotten some readers and traffic, but I feel terrible when I see others who have blogged for half the amount of time I have and yet have 5 times the readership, work with so many brands, etc. etc. and then I wonder if I’m too ugly to have a beauty blog. No, I have to stop being insecure. I love writing and blogging, it’s been a passion and I will not stop anytime soon. Hopefully these feelings pass.

    I feel like twitter has helped a lot with promoting my blog, especially using Buffer :) I also am a member Chronic Illness Bloggers so I have collaborated with some of their stuff.

    Hannah
    Floraful

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      December 10, 2016 at 9:49 am

      My blog didn’t really start growing until about two years in. Aww Hannah never say that again! You’re such a beautiful girl! it’s an annoying thing about blogging that everyone thinks they have to be perfect all the time. It’s frustrating because a lot of bloggers only show themselves at their best and it makes others believe that their lives are perfect, and that’s just not realistic.

      We each have something unique to offer! You have to remind yourself that you’re unique and nothing can replace you!

    • Reply
      Emmalisa Tilli
      December 11, 2016 at 11:10 pm

      I know EXACTLY how you feel!!!! I have been blogging since October 2015, so its been a little over a year now – then a friend of mine started blogging, ‘The Lady Wallace’ and she was getting like 200 views a DAY!!!! I think its because its mainly ‘royal’ focused!!!! hehehe but I don’t mind at the same time…. I am hoping to grow after a little while of doing it…. When you have something that you are passionate about, everything definitely falls into place. xx

    • Reply
      RikaConfesses
      February 4, 2017 at 11:39 am

      The first iteration of RikaConfesses started in 2008, and my readership is nothing to be envious of. In that time window I did switch from Blogspot to WordPress, and I’ve also had massive chunks of time where posts are inconsistent/nonexistent. But, I get a handful of views a day no matter what, and every new post I make gets read by some people. And I blog what I want to, I do not blog the way that everyone else has proven pulls followers. That’s worth something to me – I write things that are authentic and unique to me, and a handful of people read it. I try to balance the frustration/envy with that. (And yeah, the frustration is real.)

      You are not too ugly to have a beauty blog. 1) You are not ugly. 2) I personally would rather see someone who isn’t afraid to show their face at a variety of angle, in lighting that is like the lighting in the real word, rather than someone who only posts photos taken at their personal best angle only with the most flattering lighting possible. It tells me more about the product and what it actually actually looks like. Also, I’m so bored of seeing beauty blog after beauty blog from people with the same look – the same blended blonde bayalage hair in long soft waves, the light-but-tanned skin, the same eyelash extensions and even similar bone structure and nose shape. No offense to anyone who has that look – I’m a light haired white girl myself – but I’m just so ready to see different looks in the beauty blog space as well. I like seeing the photos where I see how you use makeup with your own look, and I like that the posts where you have pictures of yourself look like its you, in normal lighting, without a ton of filters or editing, sometimes out doing things in the real world.

      I also like how you aren’t afraid to talk about real issues, whether its health related or just life goings-ons.

      Also go look at this post and look at how pretty you are! http://floraful.blogspot.com/2017/01/wet-n-wild-liquid-catsuit-lipsticks.html
      .

  • Reply
    Darina
    December 10, 2016 at 5:02 am

    Love these good tips. I have to post more frequently, but the quality is more important than the quantity I think…

  • Reply
    LuxeStyle
    December 10, 2016 at 7:03 am

    Really great tips! I definitely wish I would post a little more frequently because I find my views and engagement is so much better when I do. I may have to work at posting more x

  • Reply
    Sophie Dee
    December 10, 2016 at 7:19 am

    My blog design is my pride and joy! Lovely tips, thank you!!

    https://copperfawn.blogspot.co.uk/

  • Reply
    Louise C
    December 10, 2016 at 1:31 pm

    Pinterest is such a good idea. I definitely need to get myself on there!

    Louise
    http://www.lipstickandluxeblog.wordpress.com

  • Reply
    Trecee Hutchinson
    December 10, 2016 at 10:21 pm

    This is such a great post! I find that Pinterest is a great tool for attracting new visitors to my blog. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

    Trecee
    http://treceefabulous.blogspot.com/

  • Reply
    Sophie
    December 11, 2016 at 2:16 am

    Love these tips! Definitely very helpful for every blogger, especially smaller bloggers such as myself. I really enjoy your posts!

    -Sophie xx || http://www.cherriesandperfume.blogspot.com.au

  • Reply
    Sharni Hastings
    December 11, 2016 at 6:21 am

    I never even thought of doing roundup posts! Very clever. Love your photography!

    Sharni // http://www.agirlandgrey.com

  • Reply
    peonies passionfruit
    December 11, 2016 at 5:39 pm

    Thank you so much for sharing these blogging tips, they are very helpful to me right now as I am wondering how to to increase blog traffic.
    Eme x
    http://www.peoniesandpassionfruit.com

  • Reply
    Emmalisa Tilli
    December 11, 2016 at 11:08 pm

    This is fantastic!!!! Something I definitely wanted to “read about”! thanks for the tips! I was hoping to grow my audience, as I have a stable 1027, but wanted to try and do something to make it grow!!!! I am just going to keep being ME, and continue to be consistent as you said. :)

  • Reply
    Lynnsay
    December 12, 2016 at 7:22 am

    These are really great tips! Your blog is literally the oracle of all blogging tips!

    Lynnsay x
    http://www.sartorialscot.com

  • Reply
    The Gossip Darling
    December 12, 2016 at 11:49 am

    Amazing tips!!!! Thank you!!! I need to work on Pinterest more!!

    Mel | http://www.thegossipdarling.com

  • Reply
    Chelsea
    December 12, 2016 at 3:02 pm

    These are all great tips! I agree with everything and definitely need to work on some of this myself.

    Olive & Ivy

  • Reply
    Amy Thompson
    December 13, 2016 at 3:40 pm

    This blog really has helped me massively, I started my blog up around a year ago now or so, but only recently I have started to be more consistent. Although I have found my views have gone up massively since I first started, I have been trying to find new ways in how to get new traffic etc. I do have Pinterest I hadn’t actually even considered sharing my blog on there as to be blunt I had no idea you could, let alone how -I wondered if anyone could point me in the right direction to sharing my blog onto Pinterest and/or Blogloving? Thank you, will be keeping up to date with your blog posts in the future! Amy

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      December 13, 2016 at 11:18 pm

      So happy to hear that Amy! Pinterest is an amazing tool for bloggers, it gets me thousands of referrals every week. You can search “Pinterest” here on the blog, I’ve published a few posts about it.

  • Reply
    Allaely Hardhiani
    December 26, 2016 at 9:43 am

    Really great tips. Still need a lot of works to d. Especially in the part of post more frequently and be consistent. I really enjoy your blog. Thanks :)

  • Reply
    Jessica Lam
    December 27, 2016 at 9:10 am

    Your posts are super helpful! One of my goals for 2017 is to figure out Pinterest, and I’m definitely going to use your tips. I’m going to try roundup posts as well!

  • Reply
    Amy Thompson
    January 7, 2017 at 11:56 am

    I loved this blog and found it super helpful, I started blogging around a year ago now and love to read other people’s blog, learn things from them and use them to help inspire me so thank you for this post. If you have time check my blog out at http://www.thatbridgegirl.com/

  • Reply
    Lydia Langston Bouzaid
    January 8, 2017 at 7:38 am

    After finding you on Bloglovin’ I just read 10 of your posts on blogging for the first time and really love them. Really great stuff and interesting to read. Thank you so much now this year I’m going to get Pinterest to work for me. Again, thanks . PS I blog at http://www.efexusa.com.

  • Reply
    Febriyan Lukito
    January 29, 2017 at 10:00 pm

    I read alot about the round up post and already made post about a round up post before at http://www.tulisanbloggerindonesia.com but never do a round up for myself. Maybe it is time to do it myself now.

  • Reply
    RikaConfesses
    February 4, 2017 at 10:28 am

    The “consistency” one is what I struggle with. I have a job that I love (I work in video games, its easy to love!) so when work gets busy, or has me traveling, I let it obliterate everything else I have going on. My blog gets a handful of views a day on its own, even during the couple of times I’ve let it sit for a several months so I really believe that mostly I’m killing my own growth by periodically failing to be consistent.

    “Shareable content” seems to be what has worked best for me – although it seems to be more that the post is a type of content that is helpful to readers than that they are sharing it. My two posts on hairstyles with a side shave – https://rikaconfesses.com/2013/03/04/13-hairstyles-with-a-side-shave/ and https://rikaconfesses.com/2013/10/03/16-more-hairstyles-with-a-side-shave-buns-and-stuff/ – still get views (mostly from search engines) every day. I posted them in 2013, and by my standards now, the photos aren’t even that great, and my hairstyling technique has gotten a lot better. But, the candid/non-manicured-ness of them seems to be what is speaking to people – those posts seem to be providing people with a realistic way to imagine what a side shave can look like, in real life, day-to-day. I even got a comment from a young girl who said those posts helped her convince her parents to let her shave part of her head!

    (Now that I’ve written a comment novel here – I’m looking for some critique on the blog in its current state – if anyone has any notes for me on what I’m doing now that you like and don’t like, please leave me a comment. I’m up for returning the favor too if you want!)

  • Reply
    Madeline Geddes
    March 30, 2017 at 2:48 pm

    Thanks for posting! I’m definitely going to work on my presence on Pinterest. As a new blogger, I’m having trouble getting traction to my blog while remaining anonymous. Can anyone share their experiences with that? PS I blog at: hikingbootscityroots.com

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