2 Create a Website Blog

How I Doubled My Blog Traffic in 2 Months

Filed Under: Blogging, Build Traffic 485 Comments

I just got serious about blogging in December of 2007.

I had a blog on Blogger.com for 2 years, but rarely updated it.

Then in November of 2007, I installed Feedburner and discovered I had 430+ subscribers. I was shocked due to the fact I hardly ever blogged.

I didn’t want to lose those subscribers or the traffic, so I decided to challenge myself and see if I could generate an even larger readership.

After switching to WordPress last December, I got more serious about my blog efforts.

I subscribed to Darren Rowse’s blog, ProBlogger.net – a very informative and inspiring blog to newbies and seasoned bloggers alike.

Then I started doing some key things…

1. I am More Selective With My Topics

When I had my Blogger blog, I would often re-write information that was already on my site. I didn’t put much effort into the subject matter of my posts.

(Yawn!)

Now, I’m much more selective. I try to think more about my audience’s needs and what they would find interesting.

And even if I choose a topic that has been blogged about a lot, I try to add my own spin to make it unique. For example, how many articles have been written about “How to Write Good Content” or something similar?

Too many, right?

Well the reality is, most people don’t write good content and they find it a chore or get writer’s block.

So I blogged about this very issue and addressed it from a new angle in a blog post titled “Is Writing Content a Chore for You?” An email I received inspired much of the content in the post.

2. I Make Use of Some Handy WordPress Plugins

Some people go hogwild on the WP plugins. While there are some really cool ones out there, you don’t want to make your blog so plugin-licious that it’s difficult to navigate and read.

You can have too much of a good thing, but there are a few that really come in handy.

Two plugins I believe made a difference in my traffic and readership have been the SiteMap and Related Post plugins.

The SiteMap plugin is important because it generates and submits your blog’s sitemap (an XML listing of all your posts) to all the major engines. Once you install it, the plugin works its magic automatically.

Some of my posts get found in the search engines only hours after I create them.

The Related Post plugin is useful because it encourages people to read more of my blog. It helps them discover posts they might not have discovered had they not seen the “Related Post” link at the end of a blog entry.

Before installing this plugin, I noticed my most recent posts always received 95% of the traffic. Now, older posts are getting more traffic.

3. Visual Appeal

I doubt my graphics have made a huge difference in my traffic, but every now and then I get an email or comment from someone who says they love my blog images and graphics.

One lady says she can’t wait to see what kind of graphic I’ve created to go with the post.

Some of my graphics include pictures of people and things found on Photos.com (I’m a subscriber because I want to make sure I have rights to use the images on my site.)

Usually I’ll add my own flavor to the images with good ole’ PhotoShop.

However most of the graphics like the one in this post were created by me. Learning PhotoShop has been a great asset to my business.

While the content is what really makes or breaks a blog, a few appealing images and graphics can help round out your blog’s appearance and give it a more professional feel.

4. I Blog More Often

Blogging more often is not always a good thing. If you don’t have anything interesting to say then no point in blogging just for the sake of blogging.

It’s not worth losing your subscriber base so be sure your posts have substance.

When you blog often, the search engine spiders will visit more frequently, and this could help your traffic. Blogging often also keeps your subscribers coming back regularly and keeps you on their radar.

5. I Interlink My Blog With My Main Site

I am fortunate enough to have a site that already receives over 7,000 visitors per day, so of course that’s a huge help. When I create a new post, I look for relevant content on my site and provide a link to that entry.

When I used Blogger, I didn’t cross promote all that much. Now, I’m much more conscious of opportunities to interlink the two. So if you have a website and a blog, keep your eyes open for ways to link the two together.

6. Competitor’s Blogs Keep My Juices Flowin’

First and foremost I want to make it clear that I am not suggesting you copy someone’s content. Not only is it illegal but it’s highly unethical and dishonest.

But there’s nothing wrong with getting ideas from another blogger’s topics.

For example, if you see a blogger has written about the iPod Touch features (a topic that is overdone); rather than just re-wording what they wrote, create your own entry but take a different approach.

Maybe your post could be something like, “10 Reasons the iPod Touch is Better Than the Zune”. You’re writing about the same topic, but you’re taking the content in a new direction.

Not to mention you could capitalize on a new audience – people looking to compare the Zune and the iPod.

I encourage you to take a look at your competitor’s blogs, get ideas and look for ways you can create your own fresh, unique content.

7. I Switched from Blogger to WordPress

I wrote a post about this a while back, but it is worth mentioning again. I really do believe WordPress is a much better platform because of all the plugins and flexibility.

Blogger is probably easier to setup, but WordPress is pretty user-friendly too – especially if you have a Web host that offers CPanel. (I use HostGator and setup this blog in 5 seconds.)

I have much more control over my layout without having to edit the raw code (like you do with Blogger). Plus, WordPress breaks up the template into separate files so it’s easier to figure out what file controls what section of your blog.

Not to mention, WordPress has much better design templates, in my opinion.

And as I said above, additions like the SiteMap Plugin also help get your posts spidered and indexed faster.

8. I Craft My Titles More Carefully

I discovered titles that pose a question or contain a bit of shock value generate the most clicks. My recent entry “Would You Like $57,000 In One Month?” has a little of both.

Usually my newest post wins the “Daily Traffic Award” but this post is 2 weeks old and still beats out my newer posts on some days.

Taking time to develop a good title can make a huge difference. Particularly since more and more people use RSS to keep track of their favorite blogs.

You never get a second chance to make a first impression, so make that title count!

9. I Give Away More Freebies

Who doesn’t love something free, right? Plus, it’s a great way to build loyal fans and viral traffic (because they’ll tell others who tell others and so on.)

But I have to be careful with this one because I want my freebies to have value. I hate it when I see Webmasters giving away items that have been distributed over and over again, or freebies you can find anywhere.

How insulting and unoriginal.

If you want your freebies to go to work for you, take some time to develop something useful and unique.

Here are some of my favorite freebies I’ve offered from my blog…

10. I Share My Personal Success

I wasn’t comfortable doing this at first. I felt I was bragging, but I slowly found it builds credibility. And I noticed other successful people often do the same thing.

If you’re trying to teach people how to do something, it helps to show them how your advice has worked for you.

While I don’t offer specifics about my income, I may display an AdSense check here and there or remind people I am making a living online.

It’s important that my audience knows I am actually walking the walk since I often talk about making money. See my record AdSense video below.

In Conclusion…

Doing the above things has not only helped double my blog’s traffic in 2 months, and my subscriber count is up by nearly 100 subscribers.

Which of the above strategies can you implement on your blog?

And if you’ve done anything to help boost your blog’s traffic that I haven’t mentioned here, feel free to share.

Comments

  1. web site designing It is used as a general term to describe to creating and involve in any type of web page.The intent of web design is to create a website—a collection of online content including documents and applications that reside on a Web server/servers. Web design is a broad term used to encompass the way that content (usually hypertext or hypermedia) that are delivered to an end-user through the World Wide Web, using a Web browser. The website may include text, images, sounds and other content, and may be interactive.

    Reply

  4. I have started reading in your site since 2008 if I am not mistaken, By that time I am only 18 years of age and still studying at college. That is the time I have realize that I have chosen the wrong course, and I need to study a course that relative to computer, such computer science. But now I am at my 5th year level at engineering course and graduating but I guess I love to start my own blogging site after my graduation. Not to teach or to instruct like what you are doing because I am not a good teacher i guess ^_^ , but I love to give free information to some topics like technology ^_^ Hope I will succeed too.

    God Bless you Lisa.!

    Reply

  8. Thanks for the information, I am just getting started. I am really excited and I will come back to your site for more information! Keep it coming!

    Monica

    Reply

  12. There’s some great useful information in this post. I’m always looking for new ways to get more traffic to my blog. Right now I do have a lot of free giveaways going which has helped a lot.

    Reply

  13. This is just awesome. Thanks for the great info. I’ve tried both Blogger and WordPress as well and really REALLY like WordPress. The ability to install WordPress on your own server is also a big plus, as opposed to being stuck with bloggers limited tools.

    That said, when my wife (with limited online knowledge) wanted to do a blog for fun, I started her on Blogger. The learn curve is much lower so it’s a trade off.

    Reply

  14. good article for increase blogs traffic an good ideas. i think Social sites are too important for create more trafic and ranking and facecook and twitter. finally thank for article

    Reply

  15. Thanks a lot Lisa. the information you are providing here are truly helpful. I have just started an online auto classified website targeting UK market. http://www.car7.co.uk . it is getting good response now. I think for those who would like to start an online business, a classified website might be a good option. Anyways, your help if much appreciated.

    Reply

  16. Thanks for the useful post, Lisa.
    You have highlighted the key points, with adequate explanation for each point.
    I like your style of writing. It’s very free flowing and natural, and at the same time very logical also.

    Thanks again.

    Reply

  21. I switched to WP several months ago. Being hard-headed, I didn’t want to switch from blogger-so much easier to use.

    But I took the plunge and and it’s all ok 🙂

    Thanks for the great advice, like usual!

    Reply

  22. Lisa,

    Great article. I get so many emails about the latest product launches that I start wondering off course. You help keep me grounded and focused on what I should be doing. I keep coming back to your blog, forum and youtube channel for great advice.

    Reply

  24. I always like Lisa’s stuff and this blog .She’s been around for a while and shoots from the hip. Very good stuff. Keep up the good work.

    Reply

  26. Wow.. I took notes, I’m now following you on twitter, i book marked this page… this one article was so informative! I switched from blogger to wordpress last week… i have been looking for some answers to some questions after making the switch… all the questions has been answered after reading this…. thank u so much!

    Reply

  27. My host offers WP, but it isn’t really up to date and security was a bit of a concern, Updating it myself on the server was beyond me (needed python and programming experience). I opted for blogger, a little more limited, but more secure (I felt) and since its owned by Google, I had a mindset, maybe my posts would be more quickly indexed in google, than if I ran a WP off my .com. Was this the right choice?
    I also use an app that feeds my blog posts straight to my websites index page via java. Will the search engines grab this content? I know in the old days (like 6 or 7 years a go) java and this sort of dynamic content wouldnt get read at all, but I have heard mixed answers to how google works now.
    Or would it be wiser to have static content on my index and just stick with a link to the blog?

    Reply

  28. Hi lisa I have been reading all nice information you giving and it motivated me to start my own web site but I don’t know what to do. I really need help since I need to start my own website. I don’t know how this business work and what product you sell or what you do. Would you please give me more details about how this business work for somebody doesn’t have his/her own product but still need to start business.
    Thanks for your time
    Abdi

    Reply

  29. Hi lisa I have been reading all nice information you giving and it motivated me to start my own web site but I don’t know what to do. I really need help since I need to start my own website. I don’t how this business work and what product you sell or what you do. Would you please give me more details about how this business work for somebody doesn’t have a produc but still need to start business.
    Thanks for your time
    Abdi

    Reply

  30. hey lisa i am a big fan of your website. you have really helped me and walked me trough the baby steps of building a site. i thought it was so easy but i was wrong. now my main goal is to get traffic on my site. but comes to find out that is the hardest

    Reply

  33. Hi Lisa
    If it wasnt for you i wouldnt be where I’m at now. You’ve convinced me to use wordpress, not that I’ve use anything else so I’ve no comparison. I find it a little complicated at the moment but I’m getting there. Next I installed Thesis and love it. 18 mths ago I never had a clue about html and CSS now I’m finally getting there
    I have one problem though, I have read you items and videos etc about content and so I bear that in mind whilst writing but I’m not sure about how to get traffic to my blogs from other blogs, ie. like this one. Could you point me inthe right direction if you have a link on your extensive sites. many thanks
    .-= Lee´s last blog … Creating a new Blog with Thesis. =-.

    Reply

  34. Always very good articles Lisa. Very impressed.I was on the voyage to start working from home and emailed the CEO and staff of http://www.Mail-Lounge.com
    they have truly helped me and mentored me and im raking in $xxxxx per month. Cheers to our success..!

    Reply

  36. As always Lisa, very informative.

    Thanks for going into detail like that. It’s amazing what a little bit of traffic does for encouragement.

    also you are right, if you have a blog, it should have strong original content. On one of my blogs, I only post when I feel inspired to post, because I don’t want to write a blog post, just to do it…I want to be inspired and make sure if meets my reader’s needs.

    Reply

  37. wow interesting sharing and tips. I have moved from blogger to wordpress since a year ago, I like their features especially the plugins. But now I still try to improve my traffic, I’m trying to look for appropriate way to get more traffic. Thanks for your sharing, it encourage me to make a better blog.

    Reply

  38. dear Lisa,
    I just cannot disagree all statement above. thanks a lot for the tips. I’am also would like to add 1 tips, it is “write what you good on it and loved most”. Hopeful my blog would become like yours^^best regard

    Reply

  40. Lisa,

    Great site and great advise you offer. How do you place the adsense code next to the youtube videos? Can you share the code? We started a blog called http://www.rhinoplasty.ws and we are building up content and want to use this tip in particular.
    I appreciate your assistance.

    Thanks
    Michael

    Reply

  41. Hello Lisa,

    you are first person from whom i got inspired about writing my blog for which i have already taken initiative step , i want to write about you on my website as a motivator to me.
    Need your support

    Thanks
    Rajneesh

    Reply

  42. I personally feel that 99% of blogs out there deserve to fail, they are quite frankly crap. It doesn’t matter how many plugins you have, if you cant write articles that people want to read it aint going to happen for you.
    .-= William K Wallace´s last blog … =-.

    Reply

  43. I am updating my blog on a regular basis. This is not really creating enough traffic. But thanks for your post. I’ll apply some of those strategies and see if they work out.

    Reply

  44. GREAT information, Lisa! We’re starting work on a blog for our business’s website (www.posturenow.com) and I really appreciate all the good information you share. Keep up the good work!

    Reply

  45. Hey again Lisa, can you notify me by e-mail, what font is this? I mean the one you use on your site and for your content? Please tell me, I think its nice lol 🙂

    Reply

  46. Hey Lisa, your blog is superb and you’ve got a lot of info here…your sites and blog is like a library for website building and blogging. I think its amazing, post more and more!

    Reply

  48. There are a lot of things that one can do to boost the traffic they get to their website.
    Here are some of the techniques that I found helpful in increasing my site visitors:
    – writing articles and submitting them to ezines
    – using pinging services
    – submitting my content to blogcatalog
    – getting involved in blog carnivals
    – commenting on other blogs
    – building backlinks
    – using social bookmarks to build relationships
    – using web 2.0 websites such as hubpages and squidoo

    I hope they are of help to you

    Reply

    • Follow these Steps for free traffic
      1. Submit to open directories like dmoz
      2. Open twitter/facebook account and use automation softwares to add new followers instantly
      3. Leave hyperlinks in forums after commenting
      4. Write guest post to blogs
      5. Buy customised content at cheap rates and put it in your site if you are out of ideas to write.
      6. Follow expert blogger sites like dailybloggingtips,mashable or fastgush.

      Reply

    • Hey Create Your First Website, Im new to the whole idea of blog carnivals so thanks to you, Im going to research that, same goes for pinging and blogcatalog.

      And thanks to Lisa, for the 10 points. I ended up scribbling the points in my notebook so I wouldnt forget to implement them lol

      Reply

  49. Interesting tips you gave here. You are quite right about WordPress being much better than Blogger.com. What I have also found is that the variety of plug-ins and widgets available make WordPress a better Content Management System (CMS). One plug-in that has worked very well for my blog is the All-In-One SEO plug-in.

    Reply

  50. it is very helpful article thanks for that
    I have an e-books blog
    you can download(free) E-book for SEO

    “Get to the Top on Google”
    http://free-ebooks-for-u.blogspot.com/search/label/SEO%2FGoogle
    Enjoyyyyyyyyyyyy
    my other blogs
    http://government-it-and-engineering-jobs.blogspot.com/
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    http://sample-papers-free-download.blogspot.com/
    .-= vikas´s last blog … Run Your Diesel Vehicle on Biofuels =-.

    Reply

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