Today, one of #TeamDamyanti , Vidya Sury , tells you how to spread your blog far and wide via social media.
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A blog hop is all
about interaction, making friends and getting to know new bloggers. The
#AtoZChallenge is a readymade opportunity to connect, interact, and take your
blogging motivation to new highs.
So you've signed up for the A to Z Challenge (do it now if you haven't), and perhaps even the A to Z Theme Reveal Blogfest where you join a huge group of AtoZers
to post your theme reveal post. You're also busy outlining your posts and scheduling them for April, so you can be free to
party.
Yes, it is a
month-long blogging party that will change your life forever!
So, besides visiting
other bloggers, how can you amplify your blogging presence?
Use social media!
Social media is a
great way to attract new readers and engage with your existing ones. As
bloggers we cannot afford to ignore social media.
If you’re still
wondering why you should use social media…it helps you
·
invite collaboration opportunities
· get a book written (yes!)
· get gigs
and so much more!
How to get started?
1. Clean up your
sidebars
2. Place your
"follow/subscribe" buttons prominently so your visitors can find them
easily and follow or subscribe to your awesome blog updates.
3. Display Social Media Connect buttons for the networks you frequent. The most common are: Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest and of course, email. You can get combinations of the set. Don't forget to customize the buttons with your own profile links.
3. Display Social Media Connect buttons for the networks you frequent. The most common are: Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest and of course, email. You can get combinations of the set. Don't forget to customize the buttons with your own profile links.
4. Add Social Mediasharing buttons - so your visitors can share your posts on their social network of choice.
5. Have a Facebookfan page? Add the widget in your sidebar so you can build your audience right
from your blog. All your visitor has to do is hit "Like."
6. Create readymade tweets so your readers can copy and tweet. Like this:
#atozchallenge
tip: Visit AZ bloggers before Challenge begins, follow their blogs-build your
network! www.a-to-zchallenge.com @AprilA2Z
Try
clicktotweet so your readers can directly
click to tweet.
7.
Use a dashboard like Hootsuite to manage and schedule your social media posts.
Install the Hootsuite “hootlet” for your browser to tweet/schedule a tweet for
any page you are on. If you follow the blogger, don’t forget to tag them when
you tweet. The Hootsuite dashboard lets you see your tweet stream, sent tweets,
mentions and scheduled posts.
8.
If you use Feedburner, use the “socialize” feature to autoshare your own post on
social media as soon you publish.
9. Use
the #atozchallenge tag across all media to make them easily discoverable. Tag +April Hosteam on G+ (run by Pam), tag @AprilA2Z on Twitter (run by Nicole) and Blogging from A to Z April Challenge (run by Heather) on FB to get RTs and Shares of your posts.
10.
Big on images? Add a Pin it button
so your readers can share your gorgeous images on Pinterest.
11.
Use LinkedIn? Import your RSS feed to your LinkedIn profile using the blog link
application on LinkedIn to show off your posts on your profile.
12.
Go to your Twitter settings - and set it up to share automatically to your
Facebook profile.
14.
Spend some time every day acknowledging shares and engaging in social media.
Thank people publicly, give them a shoutout!
15. And while you are at
it, give your "About Me" page the once-over! Now is a good time to tweak
that, too!
16. Don’t forget to TELL
your readers to share your posts! For more tips: See
this post by M J Joachim's Aztech, C. Lee McKenzie.
17. The A to Z Challenge is not just about you. Consider using Twitterfeed to auto-tweet your favorite blogs’
posts and you'll have a bunch of RTers for your own posts soon!
18. If you have a twitter account, consider joining Triberr.com. This will ensure a lot of bloggers RT your posts.
19. Use Roundteam.co to automatically RT tweets on the #atozchallenge tag, or from bloggers you like.
20. Finally, check that
all your links work.
To summarize, sidebar must-haves:
- Subscribe / Follow button
- Social media connect buttons
- G+ button for your blog (different from the add to circles)
- Facebook Fan page Like Widget
- AtoZChallenge badge
Go forth and connect! Questions, problems? Ask away in the comments and Vidya will do her best to solve them for you!
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Have you signed up
for the #AtoZChallenge Theme Reveal Blogfest?
Do it now!
