Hey! Check Out My Blog - Part 4

One of the questions I had when I first became a blogger was, How do I get people to read my blog?  How do I promote it?  Other than commenting on other people's blogs, I've found entering posts in blog carnivals to be really good way to get the blog 'out there'.

Here are some sites which I have entered posts into:

1.  Christian Blog Carnival
2.  Best Posts of the Week
3.  Photo Friday

Check them out and see if they appeal to you and fit with your style of blog.  They may bring a little extra traffic your way and introduce you to some new blogs.

Hey! DON'T Check Out My Blog!

You may be thinking that this is a rather odd title for my post considering I nearly almost retired this blog due to a lack of readers.

However I think many bloggers out there feel the tension between wanting some readers and yet not wanting others. I will explain....

When I first started this blog back in June 2006, I was extremely wary of sharing the URL with some people that I know in the 'real world'. The reason I know I'm not the first blogger to feel this way is that I have found and read the blogs of others I know in the 'real world' even though they did not tell me where it was. If they wanted me to read it, surely they would have shared the URL. The fact that they didn't seems to indicate that they like to blog in as much secrecy as the net will allow. And sure enough I have read blogs which contain some rather unsavoury things that are obviously about particular mutual acquaintances of ours.

I don't blog so I can bitch dramatically about friends and family on the internet. Rather I intend to share about general joys and problems that I experience. Even though I have realised that I cannot have everyone I know reading my blog. In order for me to enjoy blogging I need to be honest. Otherwise what's the point? I could build up a fake persona online and brag about how perfect my life is but I would much rather be real and hopefully help a reader along the way.

But some people I know are far too argumentative and if I am to voice my opinion on a certain issue then I'd never hear the end of it if they disagree. I'm fine with people disagreeing but it really gets my goat when people leave controversial anonymous comments. If people want to be anonymous that's fine but if you've got something confronting to say, then say it but at least have the guts to put your name.

So how can you limit who finds your blog? Well, it's on the net for a start so the potential is there for anyone to find it when just a random Google search can pull up any number of blogs. But you can be careful about what names, words and phrases you use in your posts. Here's what NOT to put.

• Your full name. Yes, people do get bored and Google their friends' names. If someone searches for "Joe Bloggs" and that's your blogger username, then chances are they'll find your blog. That's why I'm just 'Sarah' and I also don't put my surname for security reasons.
• Your workplace. Yep, your workmates could get bored too.
• Your church or any small group you belong to. For example, 'Salvation Army' would be fairly safe as that's a huge organisation but 'Fremantle Anglican Church' is much more specific.
• If you want to read others' blogs secretly, then don't link to them from your blog. Otherwise they can just go to Technorati and see who is linking to them.

A lot of people have found my blog through Duncan's because he linked to mine and then sent out a mass email telling everyone that he'd started a blog. At first I was like "Noooooooooo" but now I don't mind people reading as long as they are prepared for posts that they might not like. If people randomly find my blog I don't mind but I do ask all my readers NOT to share the URL with everyone they know. Yes, it's on the internet and chances are they could find it anyway but I'd rather people randomly find it. I'll do my advertising myself.

Oh and it's a lot of fun seeing what people are Googling when they randomly end up on your blog. I might just have to make a list someday.

Hey! Check Out My Blog - Part 3

Very, VERY long time since I've updated this series!

Another way to attract readers to your blog is to link to other blogs. If you look on the right hand side of my blog, you will see a list of blogs that I read regularly. You can also check who is linking to your blog by going to Technorati. I'm sure all you gurus already know that anyway but this is for the newbies.

I'm sure we all feel chuffed when we see a link to our blog from someone else's. Why don't you check Technorati and see who is linking to you. Or install Sitemeter and see where your hits have been coming from. If they're fellow bloggers, check them out (their blog that is hehe).

Link to others and they will link unto you.

Sharing and caring should be the way of the blogosphere :).

Hey! Check out my Blog - Part 2

Back in November, I talked about how easy it is for new bloggers to feel disillusioned at the lack of readers and comments their blog attracts. One way to introduce your blog to new readers is to comment on other people's blogs and they may just come and have a look at yours.

Another way is to make sure you blog regularly.

I know it's hard sometimes. Quite frankly, there are days when I just can't be bothered putting up a new post. I have plenty to say and I try to blog every few days but sometimes I just get lazy. But I know that I'm personally a lot more attracted to blogs that are updated regularly (ie. every few days) than blogs that are only updated once a month or every few months.

Of course, as bloggers, we all have lives in the 'real world' too and we shouldn't feel we need to be chained to our computers just so we can entertain randoms in cyberspace. If I spent more time blogging than with my friends and family then that would be pretty sad. My point is though, if you have a blog but never write on it, then why do you have one in the first place? There are many bloggers out there who are excellent writers but the frequency of their posts is so sporadic that soon my visits to their blog become more and more sporadic too. Then I forget to even check their blog at all.

So, if you want more readers, remember to keep posting regularly. And don't use the excuse that you have nothing interesting to say. Bollocks! People have a tendency to find other people's lives more intriguing than their own. Some lurker on your blog probably finds you the most interesting person on earth ;)

P.S. Another way to get more readers is to join the Community of Bloggers. Check it out! I might do that too.

Hey! Check out my Blog - Part 1

Since becoming a blogger in June this year, I've inevitably started comparing myself to the 'gurus' in the blogosphere. You know the ones I mean - the people who seem to have a readership of hundreds and commonly get up to 50 comments on a single post. They can just say "hey I had spaghetti for dinner tonight" and suddenly people are crawling over each other to comment. "Was it nice?" "You should try out my recipe." "I find your life so incredibly exciting". Blah blah blah. Then a new blogger posts on a controversial topic, hoping to spark up some debate....and gets 0 comments. Can you relate? I honestly feel sorry for some bloggers. I read some blogs regularly and find what they have to say very interesting, yet not many others seem to. Then they feel like giving up because the whole point of putting something on the net is so others will read it.

I'm not having a go at people who have large readerships. Many are fantastic bloggers and I read their blogs myself. What I want to raise for discussion is the fact that having a lot of comments doesn't mean they are the best writer. Good writing is often a matter of opinion anyway. Sometimes it's who you know/who you are and not what you know. If Tom Cruise starts a blog, he's bound to get lots of readers simply because he's Tom Cruise and not necessarily because he's a certainty to win 'blogger of the year'. So if you have a blog and aren't getting many people commenting or maybe even reading, take heart. Even the kings of the blogosphere had to start somewhere and probably stared at '0 comments' on the end of their posts for quite some time before their readership grew. Persevere!

My blog turns 5 months old on Sunday and sometimes I get disheartened because of my seemingly small readership. I am greatly encouraged by others' comments but sometimes I wonder, "what's the point?". Am I boring? Then I read this article which gives ways on how to attract readers to your blog. The fourth one is Comment on others' blogs. This lets others know that you have started a blog and they may like to read it. I think many of the people who comment on my blog, first came to read it because I first commented on theirs. I also told some of my friends about it and I know some of them read it, although some haven't commented. Now, you don't need to comment in the hope of 'luring' others to your blog so you can boast about the size of your readership. I only comment on blogs that I'm interested in and feel I can contribute in some way. There are also a great number of blogs that I read that I haven't commented on yet.

Which brings me to my next point. Why do we (myself included) become regular readers of certain blogs yet NEVER comment? I know sometimes it's because they're the blogs of people I know or sort of know and I'm afraid of exposing my blog to them. I'm not sure why this is when I haven't written anything greatly offensive or sordid. I could comment as an anonymous person but I prefer to use my blogger ID. Some people genuinely think they don't have anything interesting to say - which isn't often the case. Sometimes I don't comment because all the other people commenting seem to be friends/acquaintances of the blogger and I feel stupid being the only stranger. Also, if you don't know the blogger personally, is it weird to be a regular commenter on their blog? Is that stalking? Some of the people who comment regularly on my blog, I haven't met or perhaps have seen but not met properly. I love the way they keep coming back as it gives me motivation to write. Yet, maybe some people see it differently and the purpose of their blog is more to keep in touch with their circle of friends and not to meet new people as much.

I'm going to make an effort to comment more regularly on blogs, knowing that it might just encourage someone to keep blogging, that what they write is worthwhile. How about you? Do you comment on the blogs you read? Why/why not?

Lastly, just to inflate my own ego, I'd like to give you all a challenge. If you are a regular/semi regular reader of my blog, please leave a comment on this post, even if it's just to say 'hi'. I'd especially like to hear from you if you've never commented before. I'm not that scary - really ;)