We all know that you can use social media like Twitter and Facebook to drive traffic to your blog, but here’s a proven way that bloggers pull traffic in organically.
Every year Technorati publishes their “State of the Blogosphere” report which contains the results of very detailed surveys on topics which include: blogging and social media, bloggers and traditional media, traffic and analysis, brands and marketing in the blogosphere, bloggers’ motivations and consequences, monetization, and changes within the blogosphere.
Specifically regarding traffic, Technorati asked professional marketing bloggers what the top three overall drivers of traffic to their blogs were in 2011. These were the results:
- Tags on their blog posts
The occasional blogger, or the small business blogger may not even be taking advantage of using tags on their blog posts, but if it works for the pros, it can also work for you.
Whichever blogging platform you use, whether it’s WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr or something else, you have the ability to add tags to your blog posts. Do it!
In order for your tags to actually drive traffic to your blog, they need to include words and phrases that people are searching for. And the tags need to actually be closely related to the content in that blog post.
Tips for adding tags to your blog posts:
- If you sell or service name brand products of any type, be sure to include them in your blog posts and in the associated tags. For example: dryer repair, Sears, Kenmore, Whirlpool, GE etc.
- Include mention of your geographic service area in your blog posts, along with your services and then also include service + geo information in your tags. For example: appliance repair Dallas
- Include the main topic of your blog post as a tag. For example: swimming pool maintenance
- Include industry-specific terms and abbreviations in your tags for readers who are knowledgeable along with plain English tags for the average consumer. For example: accounting, npv, net present value, nav, net asset value
- Include date or year info in your tags where appropriate. For example: 2011 tax help
If you’ve been neglecting to add tags to your blog posts, or your tags are not as specific as they could be, you’re missing out on a powerful way to help drive the right kind of traffic to your blog.
