Moz reported that on average, there are 92,000 articles posted on the Internet daily.
Now, it would be nice to know the breakdown per niche, otherwise that stat is not terribly useful. However, it still gives you an idea of the sheer amount of content posted on the Internet on a daily basis.
And that doesn’t even include social media posts.
So how in the world are you supposed to stand out and get your content noticed in an era where…
- Search engine optimization is more challenging than ever
- Some social networks are becoming more about big business (i.e. Facebook admitting to limiting your reach so you will buy ads)
- Thousands of new articles are posted daily
Here are some ways to breathe some life into your content to gain more attention.
1. Go Against The Grain
Let’s say you have an Internet marketing blog. How many articles have you seen in this space that recommend the “best WordPress plugins.”
(Yawn)
A quick google search will reveal pages and pages of blog posts with recommendations, and each list seems to have the same recommendations with a few variations here and there.
Instead, switch it up.
Write an article like 10 WordPress Plugins That Are An Absolute Waste of Server Space and explain why.
While I’d probably skim over “the best WordPress plugin” post in my RSS feed, I’d be more inclined to read the “worst plugin” piece simply because it’s unique.
Not only is it a refreshing change of pace from what we typically see in the blogosphere about plugins, but this type of article is sure to spark a healthy debate or discussion.
Take a popular topic in your niche and spin it like I did with Are SEO Plugins Overrated in 2013?
I chose that topic because I personally have found less and less value in SEO plugins so I was wondering if others felt the same way.
Whether or not you agree with me, it’s different from all those redundant posts about “the best SEO plugins” — and as you can see, it got people talking!
2. Shock ‘Em!
When I saw Derek Halpern’s post titled, Discounting is For Dummies – Here’s Why show up in my RSS feed, my curiosity was piqued.
Derek is notorious for utilizing shock to get people’s attention in both his articles and videos. Fortunately his content also backs up his great headlines.
The above title instantly conveys that if you discount your products, you’re a dummy. Whether you agree/disagree, think he went too far or not, I bet you’re wondering why he thinks discounting is for dummies.
If you want to see a great example of someone standing out in a niche that some would say is “done to death”, follow Derek.
Not only does he have a very animated, in-your-face way of presenting content in his videos, but instead of just blogging about online marketing, he uses the “psychology of marketing” angle to generate interest.
3. Stop Targeting Everyone!
I have to apologize in advance to my regular readers because I feel like a broken record sometimes. 🙂
Nevertheless, I still see too many people trying to be Amazon.com or Yahoo News — meaning they target everyone instead of zeroing in on a specific niche. (I go into detail on this in my niche website video.)
If your approach is unique and your execution is brilliant, then you can still get away with targeting more broad topics in 2014.
However, most of you need to significantly narrow down your niche by using The Google Keyword Planner or Long Tail Pro (affiliate link).
I learned the importance of having a very focused niche from creating Napturally Curly in 2010. It’s so much easier to attract a targeted audience when you significantly narrow down your focus.
Your conversions will be better too. For example, my email list open rate is 67% in a world where 30% is considered excellent, and anything over 50% is almost unheard of!
And it make sense. I know exactly WHO my audience is. The more defined your visitor is, the easier it is to target content to them.
And here’s the deal. My list is not huge by any means, but I’d rather have a small, targeted list than a large, not-so-targeted list any day!
It’s easy to get caught up on numbers, but engagement matters more.
Let’s hope I can take advantage of that engagement with my upcoming Kindle book on natural hair. 🙂
Knowing what I know now, I would never create a website again that covers so much ground like this one. Going more niche is definitely best.
4. Do You Blog Too Much About Nothing?
This may sound strange, but I started enjoying blogging more when I began publishing less.
I know, I know. Publishing less often goes against what many marketing gurus suggest, but sometimes less is more.
What I mean is a lot of people go for quantity, but quality suffers as a result.
When I first started blogging, I would post 3-4 times per week. But I remember feeling stressed and skimping on quality just because I felt something had to get published.
After all, quantity used to be a big part of the Google algorithm. The more content you published, the more traffic you’d receive. As long as you followed the basic SEO strategies, that was almost a given.
Well, that’s not necessarily the case today. Google has shown us that if we don’t get enough quality signals pointing to our sites, they could care less about how much content we roll out.
And it’s not just about Google. What about humans? You don’t want to alienate your audience by continuously producing half-baked content.
Now, I’m all about creating a schedule for publishing content and setting a rhythm to build up your momentum. But that doesn’t mean you sacrifice quality for quantity.
Less is often more.
5. Use More Visuals
Gone are the days where you need to learn Photoshop or hire a graphic designer to create awesome images for your content.
With tools like Pixlr, Canva (beta only), PicMonkey, PiktoChart and more, there’s no reason for you not to add more interesting visuals to your pages.
People love to share infographics and colorful visuals that illustrate a point. Not to mention it’s much easier to read and absorb this kind of content.
In my podcast interview with Cynthia Sanchez, I discussed how I often create tip-o-graphics for my natural hair site to get more shares on Pinterest. Make sure you check it out!
Also, see what kinds of images get shared the most on Pinterest.
6. Create Resource Posts
Mark Trueman made use of this strategy with his article, 168 Case Studies on Generating Traffic (From 124 Experts).
No doubt it took him a long time to research and organize this post, but based on the number of shares it received, it appears to have been worth it. People loved it!
Not only did he choose a hot topic for his niche (traffic), but the collection of articles was so inclusive and comprehensive, you couldn’t help but spread the word.
Once you’ve launched the post, take the time to notify everyone mentioned to maximize the shares.
7. Be Timely and Relevant
Have you ever noticed that around December of every year, you start seeing articles in your niche about what to expect in the following year?
For example, Ileane of Basic Blog Tips recently published 4 Steps to Improve Your Blog for Google Updates in 2014 by Reginald Chan.
There’s a reason many bloggers and Webmasters write content of this variety. They are timely and it’s human nature to wonder about what’s on the horizon.
What are the trends going to be in your niche for 2014? Now’s the time to share them!
8. Quote Other Bloggers
Let’s face it. We’re all human and have some sort of an ego. We love to get mentions and links from other websites.
C’mon! Who doesn’t love that?
And we also like to let our readers know that we’ve been featured too.
Many bloggers have figured this out and often use this strategy to get more traffic to their posts.
That’s why people in the Internet Marketing space often create posts where they quote other bloggers like Hector did with 15 Content Marketing Tips From the Pros.
You can either dig up quotes from existing posts (the hard way), or you can pick a relevant question and email it to everyone you want to quote.
The key to making the post valuable is to pick a very interesting and relevant question. For example, if I was going to do one for this site, I might ask…
What is the most effective traffic building technique you’ve ever tried outside of SEO?
Mediocrity is Dead!
Because Google has changed the game for everyone, we all are going to have to rely more on social media, video, email and other platforms for traffic and business.
So that means the days of writing humdrum, keyword-focused content for Google are over.
We saw this shift begin to happen in 2010 and 2011 when Google started heavily favoring brands and pushed down smaller business sites. The trend accelerated in 2013, and it’s only going to continue in 2014 and beyond.
Forget Google. Write for humans, not bots. Use emotion, comedy, shock and story-telling to further connect with your readers.
I hope these tips will help you get more eyeballs on your content.
Here’s to a fabulous 2014!
Blogging too much about nothing is what makes people ignore about blogs – this could be because some bloggers are blogging about a topic they have no idea about – and no experience either. Look at my new site, I will blog specifically because I now understand everything about creating a profitable website and thanks Lisa you are played a big role in me acquiring that knowledge
I really liked the first point, but i have a question about the 4th point. When you are starting off as a blogger is it still fine to blog less ?? I think in the start one needs write a good amount of well written posts before he can take things slowly. If you are slow from the start you are not even going to make it to the starting line of the race.
Good question. When you are starting it is important to establish a rhythm and get people used to seeing your content. So yes, you should probably post more BUT don’t sacrifice quality for quantity. More is still not necessarily better — even more new bloggers.
Agree with your there, quality is more important than quantity and one should try their best to write the best quality posts they can. Never sacrifice quality over quantity because quality is going to drive more traffic than quantity.
Hey Lisa,
Again Great Post written over here 🙂 Your points are very interesting i.e., Mediocrity is Dead!, Be Timely and Relevant, Shock ‘Em! ….Hahhaha! Interesting words 🙂
Keep it up doing this way 🙂
No doubt you could spend an inordinate amount of time chasing SEO and forget why you’re blogging…to write. I’m certainly now where near an SEO expert, but I think consistently writing quality content, over time, is a winning strategy.
Awesome blog post!
While I am a relatively new blogger, all I write about is my passion (aquarium keeping and more specifically dealing with misinformation within the hobby and business)
This point you made:
“Forget Google. Write for humans, not bots. Use emotion, comedy, shock and story-telling to further connect with your readers.”
This is how I have conducted my blog posts from day one, I have never pursued Google or any other search engine
In fact it is another aquarium keeping professional that shared this blog post with me, not a search engine.
Finally the one tip that stood out and dis so also with my friend who shared it was this:
“Quote Other Bloggers”.
Seems so simple, but honestly I never gave this much thought, BUT I WILL NOW!
Thanks again!!
This a awesome post about how to focus one niche blog….Thanks lisa Irby..
Hey Lisa,
I just got done viewing your YouTube video “Creating a Niche Website Part 1.” I am currently working on growing my site lipbusiness.com and your video really brought things into perspective for me. I love your encouraging words and how you have stayed true to your passion. I Look up to you and hope to be as successful one day. Thank you
Hi Lisa,
I think one of the reasons blogs get ignored is possibly because a lot of us are also struggling in creating back links. I for example have set up two websites and then hit the brick wall of trying to get them noticed in the sea of millions of websites.
Would you consider making us a video on how you create back links for your websites? (or if this is something you’ve covered before perhaps point me in the direction to where that is?)
Im reading various different methods whether its go buy expired high PR domains and then point them to your site (costly) or commenting on various DOFOLLOW blogs to guest posts and articles for other websites linking back to your own? Any clarification would be great on what to do really! (or all of them?!)
Thanks for your time and keep up the good work!
-Saj
Sign up for my email list in the left column for a free ebook I’m offering on an experiment and traffic. I don’t build backlinks and I do think you can still get traffic without them. Sure it’s harder but I’m not a fan of backlink building AT ALL. Not my thing.
Sounds interesting Lisa il sign up and take a look!
🙂
Hello Lisa Irby…
I am doing blogging from last two years ….
but does not able to do anything great into this.
Please help me via mentioning your helping post for a blogger like me……
This is very helpful post …
Thanks for publishing…..
Less is more. It really depends on what your audience has come to expect. I’ve had website where the schedule was 3 posts a week. Over time the long tail content ranked well and the site got steady daily traffic. Eventually I slowed down the posting schedule and I did notice a drop in traffic with respect to the newest content published. But overall the traffic remained steady. But that traffic was first time visitors typically, and you’re best audience are your long term subscribers of course.
I have revised my strategy of posting information on daily basis. Instead I am now focusing on quality and resourceful content. Readers are now fed up by reading the same content again and again.
You are right Lisa, blogging too much about nothing should need to be stopped.
Hi Lisa, this is a great article. My strategy is definitely to add more visual flare to my blog. It really does help to make it stand out with more graphics on it.
By the way, you have an excellent blog here. Good work!
Aww thanks Mikey! Here’s to an awesome 2014 for your site!
Hi, Lisa Thank you very much for article post. Will be back to your site for new info about how to create web site.
Less is more and quality over quantity. Totally agree. Publishing too much content about nothing, gets you nothing. Today, this has become two-fold. If you write about nothing, no one will read and with the increased popularity of social media, no one will share. It’s when you spend the time to write quality content and strategically share it socially, do you find the most success. Share it will key thought leaders in your niche and ask for input and comments. More times than not, they’ll share it with their followers, as well.
If they believe in the site then i think no one Ignore you people will staa following you. Overall Nice unique Tutorial
Lisa thanks for this helpful post! I’m new to this blogging & website stuff and the information you shared here has given me some more ideas on ways I can improve my site (And hopefully get more customers!). I always value your advice and this was another awesome write-up I found very informative!!
Exactly Lisa you are right!, and one more thing you can consider to bring back your visitors that is conducting a online survey in your blog, so the people would come again and again to see their results on the survey. I hope this kind of idea works most of time.
This is such an awesome post Lisa. Thanks
Big thank you for this post, gave me some good ideas for my own blog. Hopefully with these tips I can improve my blog and get more traffic! 🙂
Hello Lisa , I think Content is the only way that search engine rank you high on search engine but use mainly look for there need and trust. If they believe in the site then i think no one Ignore you people will staa following you. Overall Nice unique Tutorial
Thanks for sharing your tips and I am sure these will greatly help me in my future blog posts. Got me thinking a lot of things already. Thanks again for this Lisa.
Hi Lisa,
I completely agree with you that bloggers need to go against the grain, stand out, voice an opinion and take risks.
I had a client that called me frantically a while ago to clean all the “offensive” copy and photos from his site. I had solicited the help of some of the pilots of the flightseeing business and we posted edgy adventure photos and copy every few days. To increase business we were targeting a new customer niche of young, adventurous people that were high on life. His competitors were flying senior citizens to view the waterfall, the only attraction for 2,000 miles. We made travel to remote locations by float plane look like a blast, bordering on crazy. Someone had complained about something that was said, beers on the picnic table and a gesture made by one of the happy customers. I smiled and commented that it may actually be a good sign, and was nearly fired on the spot.
We reluctantly complied and “cleaned up” his site, making it very conservative, exactly like the sites of his competition. Our social media channels were likewise sanitized. Within five weeks he was back on the phone, very irate. His traffic had plummeted from 15,000 unique visitors a month to below 400. What can you do?
Wishing you a very prosperous and memorable 2014,
Cole
Great post List. I got every answer in the post which I had been looking for. Thank you !
Read the whole post from the start to finish and I must say, I love it. It is really informative. Thanks for sharing your tips and I am sure these will greatly help me in my future blog posts. Got me thinking a lot of things already. Thanks again for this Lisa.
This is really invaluable info, Lisa! Too many people write junk just to fill space on their website, when in fact the old adage “quality over quantity,” proves true here.
Some very useful information for beginners.This is a much better way to deliver content because it genuinely is part of some back and forth conversations they can benefit from.
thanks…!!
I absolutely agree that Search engine optimization is more challenging than ever. Thank you very much for the many tips on article ideas. I especially like the idea of going against the grain and using more visuals. I will try to improve my blog in this way!
I do not post as often now. It’s very liberating to not have to post for the sake of it. Also, I talk to my website design clients and quite often they explain some problem they’re having. Rather than try explaining it over the phone I tell them to hold on for a couple of days so I can record a video or write a blog post on the subject. Naturally, I post this content making sure it gets syndicated across the various social networks I run, as well as the email list. This is a much better way to deliver content because it genuinely is part of some back and forth conversations they can benefit from. The email open rate has been very good (Gmail inbox segmentation has been a nuisance though – The “Promo tab”.. pahh!).
wow! thank you very much for such a effective article 🙂 i do agree with you, 1. Go “Against The Grain” was so good!! 🙂
Nice Post Lisa. Some very useful information for beginners.
Great info Lisa! And thanks for the link to the 168 Case Studies on Generating Traffic. It’s just what I was looking for.
Amen to #4!!! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve unsubcribed to blogs because of too frequent posting about much of nothing. I felt like those blogs were cluttering my email. But what is strange is that I struggle with feeling like I HAVE to post 3-4 times a week. It’s what I first learned from blogging books. Nevertheless, my gut tells me to focus on quality instead of quantity.
This blog post confirms that my gut is right! Thanks for another great blog post and not cluttering my email 🙂
Happy New Year and congrats on the book!
Good point Angel in saying that so many books say to post regularly. It really goes to show that one has to be cautious when deciding which advice to follow/read. Personally I only read/follow literature by those who can actually show tangible examples of their own success, such as Lisa and a few others. Your thoughts?
Wow Lisa, what a great post!! I’m always looking for tips and tricks that will increase my readership, and you’ve given some great ideas here. #2 Shock ‘Em! is awesome!!
Thanks again and have a wonderful New Year!!
Hi Lisa,
Great Tips Here.
Though I am following few of the tips here
others are yet to follow. I am bookmarking this for my further read.
A new finding in the New Year 2014 Thanks for sharing these useful tips.
As you said: “I hope these tips will help you get more eyeballs on your content.”
Yes, surely this will work wonders and will catch the attention of many.
Keep up the good work
Lisa, what happened to my long comment I just left yesterday? It was long and GONE. Can you please check in spam folder? ~Angela
Angela, do you mean on this post? It’s there. I just approved it this morning. It wasn’t in spam, just “pending.”
Oh, hahahaha…now I see it. Awhile back I couldn’t see it. It seems like when I comment on some of my friends blogs, my comment always goes to SPAM folder because of the Akismet thingy. So it makes me nervous…this time, all of my comments will be recorded on my pad. I leave them long comments and if it gets lost, I’m not sure I can capture the same comment & emotion, so it makes me nervous when I don’t see my comment. Thank you very much, Lisa!! 🙂
Greetings Lisa,
Good stuff to end one year and begin another one. I’ve been saying for years that everyone seems to be writing the same thing in the same way and that a little bit of creativity doesn’t hurt. And visuals do help, though it was funny you mentioned that and then only had the one image in such a long post. lol Great stuff, and I hope more people see this, understand it and then work on it. Best to you for the coming year; I’m going to have to chase you down for my interview series. 😉
Ahem… guess I need to practice what I preach huh? lol Got me! Have a great new year, Mitch!
Hi Lisa,
Less is more. I could’t agree more! When I was reading on one of Steve Scott’s book he said, you don’t have to post everyday to get 100,000 traffic but posting 4-5 a month is sufficient. I used to post 2-3 times a week. And I began to resent it because I feel like I was force to do something. I was no longer enjoying it. So instead…
I just post once a week. Concentrate on quality content. Read 5-10 blogs a day, make 5-10 quality comment that adds value to their content, this my everyday goal M-F.
As far as “Write for humans, not bots” is concerned, I absolutely agree!!! I hate SEO. I have never written for SEO. In fact, I hardly check my keywords except for my headlines. But in the past, even before Hummingbird, I would never repeat words over and over again. In fact, after they launch Hummingbird, my traffic boosted up and my page rank boosted up. So I must be doing something right. Right?
Anyway, I finally have a chance to comment here. I’m so busy I can hardly breath. I want to say Happy New Year and may all the blessings be upon you always!
Cheers,
Angela
Thanks for stopping by, Angela! I know how life can get busy.
And yes, you must be doing something right… and it’s even more sweet that you weren’t even TRYING to focus on SEO. Way to go.
Hey Lisa!
I’ll make sure to keep these tips in mind when I start my new blog! I’ll be sure to let you know of the success I’ll be having after applying your tips. Your blog posts inspire me, and I hope you make more videos on this topic as well. Happy new year to you!
Wishing you the best, Young!
Excellent, excellent post Lisa! I already came up with content for two blog posts based on this post. Thanks a mil for the awesome information. I agree with Kharim when he says that this post deserves an award. I know this week I will be crafting two blog posts.
Hey Keeon,
Awww thanks! You are always so supportive. Thank you and Happy New Year!
Lisa, I love your posts. I literally stop what I’m doing to read them because I know I’m going to get some jewels of knowledge. This one is filled with them! Thanks for the great info and insight and links to some other great articles.
I love that you only post when you have value to provide and that’s why I always read your emails. Keep up the good work as always!
Eddy, that means a lot. Thank you! I know email is a sensitive medium so I try to do my best. No one wants their inbox flooded with stuff they don’t want to read. So I’m glad to hear you find the posts valuable. Thank you so much.
I really enjoyed your blog “Why is your blog getting ignored, and what can you do about it?” As a entrepreneur myself, I thought that you made some really great points! Going against the grain and stop targeting everyone, being two of my favorite! I agree that having an unique approach and great execution will make it easier to attract a targeted audience. I think I will have to implement these points!
Thanks for sharing Lisa. I think many people struggle with “going against the grain” because they struggle with coming up with content ideas and, as a result, they write posts similar to what others write. This is further proof of people needing to try to start with an original idea on a given topic. Your thoughts?
Mediocrity is DEAD!… I love it. Great way to end this awesome piece Lisa. 2014 is going to be a great year for people that follow this advice.
thanks for the mention :0)
Hey Hector,
Thanks again. Really appreciate the mention in your post!
Great information Lisa as always. Thank you very much
Useful article, Lisa. You have prompted me to write for people rather than SE bots. I have already seen better results with this approach, and my persuasive writing skills have improved because of the practice.
Thanks for giving us real techniques rather than the rehashed posts you so accurately described in your article.
I think niche site is not bad idea for business. But startup must have product and service for their content.
Hi Lisa,
Great article! This post is full of good tips that can help many of us set better goals for our blogs for 2014.
One of the best things that happen to me this year in blogging was to have known you.
Thank you.
How sweet Sename. Thank you!
hi ,
i agree with your opinion that write for humans and not for bots. But do you really think that focusing on keyword is old technique ?
I think Not so in my opinion you should follow path where you can write for both i am write an article for humans and add some keyword for google.
I would say it’s an old technique Diwaker. Google has been saying for a while that they’re moving away from keywords and moving more towards an “overall quality” approach. While I don’t think the need for keywords is completely dead, the last nail is being driven into the coffin. When you say you add keywords do you do it through natural writing?
Luke said it best. I’m not saying to completely ignore keywords, but there are still people who think they can literally build their business on Google with keywords. I still think it’s good to do research to narrow your niche but just treat Google traffic as a bonus.
Agreed Lisa. Much thanks. Although I’m not used to seeing my name and “said it best” in the same sentence. ha ha
Hey Lisa,
I must say this is an awesome way to end 2013 with a mind blowing blog post. This article deserves an award!
I am so loving the two first points that you mentioned above, going against the grain and shock em’. In order to stand out as a blogger, with so many blogs being built and posts being published daily, then we have to try our very best to be different.
You have to be unique and stand out from the crowd. Don’t try to fit in because that won’t work. We have to try our very best to write topics that will catch people’s attention and also topics which will get shared by our readers.
Most times why new bloggers fail is because they try to copy others. I myself tried to be like the bloggers in my niche that are successful, but I realized that it didn’t work. Writing in your very own style is what will work for 2014 and this is what will help a lot of people to be successful as bloggers.
Thanks for the awesome post, Lisa. Looking forward to read what you have next in store.
Kharim! lol @ the award. You are too kind. 🙂
I think it’s natural to try to emulate someone you follow/admire. I did the same thing. But it’s always more fun when you write from the heart. I think the more you blog, the more you discover that.
Thanks so much for this! So may good tips especially about narrowing down your topics. I have a habit of being too broad, so lately I’ve been trying to spread my content out between different blogs. It’s been working pretty well for me so far. Thanks again for these great tips!
No problem, Morgan!
@Lisa: I agree with Morgan…lots of great tips provided AGAIN:) Love to read your posts Leese. Have a safe, happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year!!
@Morgan: regarding being too broad. I learned this at a webinar and I thought it was an awesome tip:
It’s called the 1-1-1 method (at least that’s what I remember it by) and it solves the problem of 1) too many unfinished projects/ebooks and 2) information overload
When you write, you address
ONE problem
ONE solution, and get it done in
ONE sitting.
You get it out there and the reader gets his / her solution fast.
Anyway, thought this might be a solution for you. OK, DONE:)
Happy New Year,
Charlie
Charlie, love that 1-1-1 method! Great way of putting it.
Hi Lisa:
Yeah, when I learned that, I LOVED it right away b/c I tend to go on and on and on and eventually dragging on the solution. Hope your readers love it as much as us:)
Happy 2014,
C