How To Increase Blog Traffic: 10 Unique Ways

Let's be real, blogging in 2018 is not the same as blogging in 2010. Now the internet is flooded with blogs, content, and writers. The key is to stand out from the crowd and get noticed for your unique content, niche ideas, and your authentic personalty. Here are my 10 fool-proof tips for increasing readership, comments, and overall engagement on that spectacular blog of yours!

*Note that this is not a comprehensive guide on the basics of blog traffic or how to create a blog, yes you need great content! This post is 10 Unique Ways to increase blog traffic, for all the out-of-the-box thinkers out there.*

 #1 Host a Giveaway

• Its no secret that people LOVE free stuff, so why not give it away? Creating a giveaway is a fantastic way to increase engagement on your blog and rank higher with Google. First, buy a few items that are relevant to your blog. I'm a fashion blogger so great items for me to giveaway is clothes, makeup, and trendy items. 

• Then create a giveaway with the help of Rafflecopter. Rafflecopter does all the work for you, all you have to do is get people to your blog! So tweet, Pinterest, and Instagram the heck out of your giveaway and your golden! Rafflecopter asks readers to follow, tweet about your giveaway, and so on.. get ready to watch your stats go up!
• For example, this giveaway I did got 35 comments and 6000 views within a few days and this giveaway got 20 comments and 3000 views in just a few days as well!

 #2 Create a Youtube Channel/ Videos

• Youtube generates over 800 million unique visits a month, so why not benefit from that? Create a Youtube Channel! Youtube is a great way to show who you are and your personality. Having a Youtube channel associated with your blog is a great way to give your readers variety and unique content. One video can go viral, or get thousands of views! 
• One of mine got 25,000 views in 2 months (check it out here) its very possible so get started right away! 
• Common videos to start out could be: Question & Answer, A Day in the Life of..., Room Tour, Outfit of the Day, etc.  Make sure to leave the link to your blog in the description of all of your videos. 

 #3 Optimize Your Twitter

• One of the best things about Twitter is that you can add links to tweets. This alone creates a big majority of traffic to my blog. 

• My personal twitter over 3 years gained only a pitiful 160 followers. But when I created a twitter account solely for my blog, The Fashionable Affair (pictured above), and connected with other fashion bloggers I had a toppling 600 in just 2 months!

• Post pictures, videos, and polls for higher levels of engagement!

• Tweet about what you love which is a great way for readers to get to know you! This way your followers won't feel overly marketed at and bored. Check out Bitly a website that shortens your links to a more friendly version to share on twitter and keeps track of stats!

 #4 Optimize Your Instagram 

• Start posting quality pictures on Instagram at least 3 times a week (if not everyday!). 
• In the comments section of your pictures add corresponding hashtags such as "#fashion, #ootd" etc. 
• In your bio section of your Instagram make sure to add a link your blog and put a few relevant hashtags such as "#blogger."
• Engage with other Instagram accounts
• Instagram can be a slow platform to gain followers but by following the tips above it will help you gain engagement and views to your blog.
• Here is my Instagram (pictured above.)

 #5 In-Person Marketing

Picture From Zazzle.com

• When bloggers think of marketing they tend to forget the tried and true in-person marketing style. A great way to market your blog in person is to create business cards with your logo and name of your blog (and URL) as well as ALL of your social media account handles. 

• Create eye-catching business cards such as this business card or this business card from Zazzle. Hand out a few to your best friends, your family, leave them on bulletin boards and keep a few with you when you meet new people. Trust me this works incredibly well because people are curious and will most likely check out your blog!

 #6 Link, Link, Link

• A great way to get your blog at the top of searches is to have your blog linked everywhere. Share your link on social media sites such as Bloglovin, Twitter, Instagram, Stumble Upon, Reddit, and Facebook. Even more importantly (to be ranked on Google) is to get your blog linked on predominate websites such as popular blogs, online magazines, news articles and so on. A great way to do this is to guest post on similar blogs to your own. 

 #7 Get Local

• Where are you blogging from? Seattle, LA, NY, or a small town in Minnesota? If you are comfortable write where you are from in your "About Me" page and on your Twitter & Instagram bios. Getting recognized locally is actually a great way to boost up your page views! 
• For example, a blogger in Seattle got mentioned in Seattle Mag. People love to follow people that are local to them!

  #8 Create Pin Worthy Pictures

• Pinterest is the golden arena for bloggers. For each blog post, I create a photo with the title of my blog post, that will be posted on Pinterest with a link to the blog post. Some examples I have made are below. 

 #9 Reddit and Bloglovin

• These sites are great ways to gain traffic. Reddit initially brought me in a lot of traffic. If you are not familiar with Reddit it's basically the face of the internet, the whats-hot-right- now. Submit your link, with a creative and eye-catching title and you are well on your way to increasing blog traffic. 
• How-to blog posts do great on Reddit. This blog post of mine: How to Recieve a Free Influenster Vox Box and Increase Impact Score did great on Reddit. 

• Bloglovin is an AMAZING way to get people to your blog because it's a website dedicated to blogs. Bloglovin constantly gets me traffic on a daily basis. When someone subscribes to your blog via Bloglovin each new blog post will be sent to your subscribers. Follow Me On Bloglovin! 

 #10 Get Personal

• The difference between good blogs and great blogs is that great blogs tend to splash their personality all over their site. From having pictures of themselves to seeing inside their lives, to their unique personality in blog posts. It's what gets me (and others) hooked to their blog.
•  Start off creating an "About Me" page on your blog where you allow readers to get to know you and what you stand for. Read my "About Me" page. Its great to include pictures of yourself to give a face to the words. 
• On Twitter, tweet a few articles you enjoy, show off your daily outfits, your favorite dinner spots, your cute kitty, and so on. Trust me this gets people hooked to you and your blog. Win-Win! 
• Also try Google Authorship. Research has shown that users are more likely to click on a search result with an Author picture than without. 

Blogging takes hard work and dedication, so don't give up just because the numbers are not there (yet)! I would love to take a look at your blog so please leave your links below! 

Love,