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March 3, 2011

8 Surefire Ways To Build A Popular Blog

Filed under: Blogging,Pop Posts — Tags: , , , , , , , — John Paul Aguiar @ 6:26 am

Popular Blog – How You Can Build One

A few weeks back a blogger friend asked me how I got my blog to be popular and at the time I really didn’t have a real answer, all I said was hard work over time. Which was true, I worked my blog hard everyday doing many things to get noticed, I’m not really sure which one thing or combination of things are the cause of building a popular blog.

So I decide to put this post together with the things I focused on in the beginning that has got me to where I am today.

What I will say is when I started I was everywhere, I commented on 50 blogs a day, I posted my posts on numerous blog sites, I tweeted out every post, if there was a place to put my blog url or post urls, then I was there 🙂popular blog

Being a stubburn Portugee that doesn’t like to fail help motivate me haha

Let’s get to it…8 Steps To A Popular Blog

.

Your Content Has To Kick Ass

Now more then ever your content has to be kick ass. With so many blogs out their competing for the same readers your content is what will make you stand out.

Tell a story, share your experience, be yourself, share with pictures and video, no matter what at the end of that post you need your reader to walk away knowing they just learned something.

The more you can help people, the faster they will come back for more.

Use Titles To Grab Attention

Your titles are very important to building a popular blog. Your title is like “your foot in the door” The trick with titles is to grab attention, tease and share a little bit about what the post is about.

But for a killer title to work all the way thru, your title has to match what the post is about. I know for me, seeing a title that takes me to a post that has nothing to do with what the title was about is the fastest way to lose me as a reader, since I won’t believe your titles ever again.

So be creative, but stay on topic.

Is Your Blog Branded

Your blogs design is your brand, be unique, then share that design everywhere.

For me I take my blogs design and color scheme to any site that lets me customize the look.

The more places they see your design/brand, the easier it will be for them to remember you and your blog. Building a popular blog is about getting in front of your readers as much as you can. Do that thru your blog or your Facebook page, your Twitter page or YouTube page any other place you can design to show your brand.

Use Strong Images

I like to use one strong image for my content, funny works too. One example was this post 19 Entrepreneur Blogs That Will Change Your Life

Numerous people said they read that post just because of the image I used.  That is the power images have on your blog.

Keep your images on target to what your content is about and simple for people to understand.

Are You Still Here

To build a popular blog, you need to post on a regular basis. I recommend 2-3 post a week on the same days each week if possible.

Being consistent and reliable is what your readers want. So give it to them if you want to be remembered long term.

Build Conversation

Building a popular blog comes down to how well you engage your readers and build a community on your blog.

Do you ask for your readers input in comments? Do you ask for their take or opinion? Do you reply to comments positively showing that your care for their insight?

Asking for comments is the first step, replying to comments is where you can stand out.  Many bloggers ask for comments, but much less actually reply to all comments and show their appreciation for each and every comment.

On a few blogs I like, I have stopped commenting, just because the blogger almost never replies. So why should I take my time to share if they wont take the time to acknowledge?

This is what you don’t want on your blog. So ask and follow thru to stand out.

Social Media Boost

With the addition of social media, I think it is that much easier to build a popular blog today.

The trick is to learn what works on each social site.  What works on Twitter doesn’t work on Facebook and what works on Facebook won’t work on LinkedIn.

But once you figure out how to use all social networking sites correctly, then you will start to get more RT’s and shares and stumbles etc.. once you get a few shares, you will have the social proof to build off of and get in front of more and more readers each week.

Social sites is also where you can build relationships, the more relationships/friendships you can build, then your goal of building a popular blog just got a little easier.

Get Your Guest Blogging On

Want to get in front of 1000’s of new readers in one day? Then do some guest posts on bigger blogs and on smaller blog.

Guest posting will automatically make you important and someone to listen to. Since a bloggers readers trust him/her and if they let you GP on their blog then their readers know you are someone that knows their stuff.

But getting the GP opportunity is only the first step, the same way a GP can build your name and blog, it can also hurt just as fast.

Just like I say “No Social Media Is Better then Bad Social media”   I feel that “No Guest Posts is better then a Bad Guest Post”.

So once you have the opportunity to do a GP, then make sure you come with the best of the best you have to share. If you take 2 hrs to write post on your blog, then take 3 hrs to write a GP.  The better the GP post you do the more of those readers will move to your blog and become your readers.

As you can see building a popular blog is all about great content and sharing that content and being available to interact with that content.

This won’t happen over night, but if you stay with these steps and stay consistent with it, you will have a very popular blog before you know it.

Let me know ways you use to get you blog popular in comment.. and I promise I will reply 🙂

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61 Comments »

  1. After that gentle slap on the head, I had to come for more wisdom! =P

    Lots of great tips here! =) Great to hear your opinion on branding and posts per week. I hear a lot of people say that only blogs that directly help people can be successful. What’s your take on blogs that have a specific niche? Can they still make it in the blogging world? =)

    Comment by Samantha Bangayan — March 3, 2011 @ 1:44 pm

  2. Nice to see you here Samantha..Ill try to be gentle 🙂 Glad you like the post. Niche blogs can be successful, but its all about great content now. you have a smaller playing field to work in,, so great content will help you win readers.

    Comment by John Paul — March 3, 2011 @ 1:58 pm

  3. Those are some great tips. You do write some great content on your blog, which I am jealous of. I find that many of those tips does take some practice, especially since it requires some creativity. For me, great post titles don’t come easy, and I still struggle to create a good, catchy title.

    Social media is something that I have been getting into more and more. I have sort of been ignoring it the last few years, but am now realizing the true power it can have over a site. By being active, not only have I been introduced to new, great content, written by good people, but also have seen traffic to my blog increase.

    In the end, it takes quality content to attract quality visitors. I’d rather read a blog that publishes one quality article a week, than one that publishes 15 useless, copied articles a week.

    Comment by Paul Salmon — March 3, 2011 @ 1:49 pm

  4. Paul TY for the comp, glad you like the content I share.

    All the steps do take time.. hell I didn’t see a big change on my blog until after 5 months. bUT THE TIME IT TAKES TO LEARN, IS WELL WORTH IT AND WILL PAY OFF BIG IN THE END.

    Social media is now a NEED to do, SM has more and more benis year after year that it makes no sense to not be active in a couple sites.

    You nailed it by saying SM has helped you meet great people, read great content and is now driving traffic for you,, thats what it is about.

    I also agree, that I would rather read one monster post a week then 5 half ass pots published just to bring in a lil traffic. But why bother if when they come they leave because your pots suck? silly to me.

    Comment by John Paul — March 3, 2011 @ 2:02 pm

  5. Nice post here, John Paul. It’s good to get some feedback from someone who is actually “winning” at this blogging game. I’m still in the starters block, and it’s encouraging to see that with some dogged hard work, the readers will come!

    Comment by Jennifer — March 3, 2011 @ 2:23 pm

  6. Jennifer,, readers will come trust me,, if you stick to it, be consistent and spread those posts all over the net.. trust me they will come 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — March 3, 2011 @ 3:02 pm

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  10. John,

    This does sound like a recipe for success. I can spot a few areas where I fall down, like guest blogging. I have found my plate a little too full and I have committed to do more guest blogging this year.

    Being consistent has worked well for me. I blog on the same schedule every week and others have taken notice.

    Comment by SheilaAtwood — March 3, 2011 @ 3:22 pm

  11. Staying on a reg blogging schedule is key.. Guest posting is great but I would spread them out and not do to many to quickly.

    Comment by John Paul — March 3, 2011 @ 3:29 pm

  12. Nothing new, but very nicely written!

    Comment by darkduck — March 3, 2011 @ 3:27 pm

  13. haha Thanks Duck.. glad you liked the writting at least 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — March 3, 2011 @ 3:41 pm

  14. Hi John,

    Another great post and I’m falling short on a few areas. First off, I just started a new blog and it’s my baby at the moment. My downfall is I prefer simple themes and can’t stand the busy look. So will have to work on that in the near future for branding purposes.

    Another weak area of mine are blog titles. Darn, I’m just not very creative but I want some attention grabbing headlines. But again, I’m working on that.

    Guest blogging is something I would like to take on this year if time allows. Right now, my plate if so full I have no extra time.

    I’m only blogging on this one once a week mainly because it’s my report on what I’ve been doing all week to drive traffic to my site. But I visit 10 blogs daily and comment so I’m getting plenty of traffic from that as well as social media and articles. I’m still a work in progress but I’ll get there.

    You’ve brought some great point to my attention that I need to definitely take notice. Thanks for reminding me that I still have more work to do…

    Adrienne

    Comment by Adrienne — March 3, 2011 @ 11:42 pm

  15. Adrienne we all started at the beginning. Now you know what you need to work on, and slowly you will and slowly you will get better at it.

    I’m glad the post was helpful 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — March 4, 2011 @ 12:15 am

  16. Nice tips man. 🙂 Using custom made images for each post will certainly impress your readers 🙂

    Comment by Mani Viswanathan — March 4, 2011 @ 4:49 am

  17. Yeah, these tips will help me a lot in the outlook. And, quality content, good images, and social boost up these things would be more important then the other part. Thanks a lot for given a great article on here.

    Comment by Kavya Hari — March 4, 2011 @ 12:30 pm

  18. Big believer in the first point John, content is king. I write about things that interest me, things I utilise and am passionate about. For me a top tip would (obviously) be write about what you know not what you think you know.

    If your passionate about a particular subject, write about it, your passion and enthusiasm for it will encourage debate and comments. Writing a post about something because it’s the latest thing trying to capitilize on a keyword is the wrong way to go.

    My blog is an an oline reference guide for me personally, where I store and write up my thoughts on things that interest me so therefore I have passion for them and I (hope) that this passion shines through by creating something people may want to read.

    I believe the main problem is a lot of people think they can become the next mashable with no real effort on their part. It’s simply not possible. Hard work genuine interest and knowledge of your subject will speak more volumes than just blogging about an array of subjects none of which you know nothing about.

    Guest posting is another great way to get exposure as John has pointed out, but you obviously need to guest post on something you actually know about!

    Great tips John, a good read as ever!

    Comment by fuzzly aka Ben — March 4, 2011 @ 12:35 pm

  19. Ben.. glad you liked the post.

    Content will always be king, but a close queen is promoting that content.

    I have no problem writing a post for a keyword,, but it is harder to write those posts, but if your willing to take the extra time to make it real then do it, and I always write content I know. Its the only way to share exactly what is real and working or not working. To many bloggers just share what they read other places, not even knowing if the info is good or not… big mistake.

    Comment by John Paul — March 4, 2011 @ 4:38 pm

  20. Really great post John. What I liked best? Definitely your introduction. I really appreciate your thinking, that you don’t believe to be able to reconstruct the success you had with your post, because it just always happens to forget things, or you just don’t know how it happened.
    As for the post, I believe these really are the core things one should look after. Atm I have my focus on guestblogging. Fortunately I have a friend helping me pick strong pictures, which really gives a whole new perspective on a post. Many thanks for this post, I will be back for sure! 🙂
    Let me Buffer this.

    Comment by Leo Widrich — March 4, 2011 @ 1:32 pm

  21. Leon.. Thanks for that man.. Glad you liked the intro 🙂

    But I agree.. it would be impossible to remember exactly what i did and what worked,, when you start you just get in and work..you don’t really know what works for your blog or not untill success comes.

    But I know the core things I did to get success.. I know the core thing I did to help the other things grow my blog, and thats what I shared.

    Yea GP’s are great man.. just go with a monster post when you do one.

    Comment by John Paul — March 4, 2011 @ 4:41 pm

  22. Hey John, nice list of tips. I remember noticing your blog because of its design first. Had to shoot you an e-mail straight away. When you told me you did it your self I was hooked and have been a regular reader here since.

    The little boy image is one of my favorites, definitely. I agree that anything you do that leads to connecting with people, like GP and replying to comments is gonna bring more and more people to come and come back.

    Comment by Brankica U — March 4, 2011 @ 4:06 pm

  23. Brankica..Glad you liked the post 🙂 I’m glad you been a reg reader.. I really Appreciate that. The little boy and his evil twin on another post are my favs haha to funny.

    Yea,, doesn’t matter what it is. just interact,, people like that.. shit even a simple TY on Twitter for a RT is powerful. You have to follow thru to get the full beni of the relationships your building.

    Comment by John Paul — March 4, 2011 @ 4:47 pm

  24. HI JP,

    I agree with you… it takes a LOT of work and it’s a cumulation of things… definitely not an overnight thing. Also you point on ‘Your Content Has To Kick Ass’ is so right on. I wrote a post some time ago that good is just not going to cut it anymore. You see a lot of good… but you see much less of “great”; and it’ these great blogs that are the ones that stand out from the crowd and hold the test of time.

    Awesome post. 😉 (definitley NOT a train wreck…lol)

    Comment by Michele Welch — March 4, 2011 @ 5:31 pm

  25. Thanks Michele for coming to see the “Train Wreck” haha Glad you liked the post.

    I agree, that now with Googles new found focus on CONTENT.. you have to be great to be seen and remembered. You can get away with good content as long as it is helpful.. but at some point the great has to show.

    Blogging 5 yrs ago was easy… I wish I was here then haha but today there are so many great blogs and bloggers that the hard work is doubled now just to stand out a lil bit…interesting to see where we will be in 5 more years 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — March 4, 2011 @ 5:35 pm

  26. As always JP, great post. You mentioned how much you commented at first on other blogs and promoted other people’s stuff for your initial ‘launch’. I made the mistake of not doing this my first year of blogging, but once I did, it really took off. I’ll also add a few more to your post:

    1. Positively promote other people’s blogs often within articles through links and kind words.
    2. Have an opinion with everything. Don’t do gray. Only black and white.
    3. Reply to every comment, show gratitude at every opportunity.
    4. Kidnap Seth Godin and make him link to you in his blog with a wild promotion 😉 .

    Just my 2 cents

    Marcus

    Comment by Marcus Sheridan,The Sales Lion — March 4, 2011 @ 5:36 pm

  27. haha if I could do your number $.. I would be all set.

    But Yea I agree with all your added tips. Blogging alone is almost impossible to win.. you need blogging friends, you need people sharing and you sharing to get in front of the most readers possible.

    Comment by John Paul — March 4, 2011 @ 6:05 pm

  28. As always, great post John Paul. I really need to start guest blogging! Thanks for reminding me (again). Eventually, I’ll listen to you and do it. 🙂

    Comment by Sherryl Perry — March 4, 2011 @ 7:07 pm

  29. Thanks Sherryl.. Glad you enjoyed it.

    haha Yes.. you need to listen to me to be happy ok well maybe not be happy, but get a GP done haha

    Comment by John Paul — March 4, 2011 @ 7:17 pm

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  32. Great tips here. The thing I am having problems with at the moment is finding a blog alliance to guest post of each others blogs and also share ideas.

    Where did you find your guest post partners at the start?

    Comment by Adam Grant — March 7, 2011 @ 12:13 pm

  33. Adam.. glad you like the post. It is more about asking bloggers to let you GP on their blog.. but you have to ask in the right way…

    Comment by John Paul — March 7, 2011 @ 5:10 pm

  34. Excellent article and of course all the tips are true, it takes passion and dedication but also a little bit of luck too.

    Comment by Justin Germino — March 11, 2011 @ 4:23 pm

  35. Thanks Justin… yea you def need a lil luck. But harder you work it seems the more luck comes your way.

    Comment by John Paul — March 11, 2011 @ 4:27 pm

  36. Good article that I agree with, apart from having guest bloggers. Have built up my blog the same way and it really works.

    Comment by Catarina Alexon — April 8, 2011 @ 3:28 pm

  37. Thanks for the comment Catarina..

    Glad you liked the post.

    Comment by John Paul — April 8, 2011 @ 4:03 pm

  38. Yes I’m just learning about the “so what” of blogging. It seems like a no-brainer now. But now I think “so what” when I write. I’m always asking for an opinion or a question at the end to build community. I think that’s where I failed to hit the mark with my other blogs. At any rate thanks for the info.

    Comment by BiancaFace — April 20, 2011 @ 12:19 pm

  39. TY for your first comment Bianca 🙂

    It’s ok to care what people think of your blog or posts, but not enough to control your choices.

    Comment by John Paul — April 20, 2011 @ 12:45 pm

  40. “This won’t happen over night” You can say that again! Excellent
    post! There’s only one problem with it. You should have written it
    three years ago and found me when I first started blogging. It
    would have made my life much easier! 😉

    Comment by The Redhead Riter — May 24, 2012 @ 6:08 pm

  41. haha ok my fault on that. But we are blogging friends now 🙂 I’m
    glad you liked the post even though it’s 3 yrs late 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — May 25, 2012 @ 12:15 pm

  42. All great points John Paul especially when you point out that it takes time and effort to build a successful blog. Those that promise over night success or magic software that takes care of everything are misleading people into expecting success to be easy or quickly achieved. It just doesn’t work that way as we both know all to well as blogging is work and it takes a plan and regular effort to be successful. So thanks for both an insightful and a truthful article we need more who tells it like it is.

    Comment by Frank Woodman Jr — December 31, 2012 @ 4:46 pm

  43. Thank U Frank for the positive comps man. Your, right we def need more people hat say what it really takes. Yes software’s and programs will help, but that doesn’t mean it will be easy or fast to build up a successful blog.

    Like the old saying goes, if it was easy, then everyone would have one.

    Comment by John Paul — January 2, 2013 @ 7:35 am

  44. These are some very solid tips you’ve shared here, John Paul! You mentioned many practices I haven’t quite mastered just yet, but you also shared a some that I might need to consider incorporating. Awesome read, my friend. Thank you for the incredible insights. They will definitely come in handy. 🙂

    Comment by Deone Higgs — January 1, 2013 @ 11:25 am

  45. Good to see you here Deone, been a long time my friend 🙂

    I’m glad the post was helpful. Following these fundamentals will get you on the right track to growing that blog. Work the fundamentals as you test and tweak new ideas. Find some that work for YOU then keep doing them, if they don’t stop them and test others.

    Comment by John Paul — January 2, 2013 @ 7:38 am

  46. I definitely will, John Paul! Thanks again, my friend. 🙂

    Comment by Deone Higgs — January 3, 2013 @ 10:11 am

  47. anytime Deone 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — January 3, 2013 @ 10:18 am

  48. Hi John Paul

    I write a lot about content, SEO and blogging, and yours is one of those rare posts that I agree with 100%.

    Great stuff!

    Comment by David Rosam — March 19, 2013 @ 10:56 am

  49. Thanks David. I Appreciate that.

    Comment by John Paul — March 19, 2013 @ 8:22 pm

  50. Great post here John Paul. I definitely agree with your point on post frequency. I have noticed that trend on my own blog as well. Thanks for sharing your wisdom and insight.

    Comment by Tom Jamieson — June 19, 2013 @ 9:28 am

  51. Glad you liked the post Tom 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — June 20, 2013 @ 4:36 pm

  52. Hi John,

    Title for any post is most vital as it invites to visit post but once they land it is your ‘kick ass content’ to make your blog popular.

    I agree social media and guest posting are great tools to boost your popularity. Thank you for the good suggestions.

    Comment by Suresh Khanal — August 26, 2013 @ 8:28 pm

  53. Thanks Suresh.. I agree, that the title gets them, but the content has to keep them.

    Comment by John Paul — August 27, 2013 @ 3:04 pm

  54. John,

    Great tips here John. This is a great refresher. Things I try to do all the time -but admittedly fall short on sometimes in a few aspects.

    Great reminders of the areas I need to work on: post frequency, striking images and better social media connections.

    Very sharable content you have here 😉 and something that is a resource I hope that everyone starting out will dig into.

    -Steve

    Comment by SJ Scott — October 29, 2013 @ 6:41 pm

  55. Thanks Steve,, Appreciate that.

    Comment by John Paul — October 30, 2013 @ 7:26 am

  56. Hi John Paul; I totally agree with you on guest posts. You have to put more into them than you put into your own posts. But this also applies to promoting them and replying to comments on them. I am proud of the fact that people have considered me a great guest. I even wrote a post on promoting guest opportunities that included some unusual suggestions. I think I need to repost that one to my new coaching blog. thanks for sharing, max

    Comment by maxwell ivey — September 30, 2014 @ 5:43 am

  57. Maxwell. happy you enjoyed the post my man 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — October 8, 2014 @ 8:53 am

  58. j p my man, i always enjoy your posts. and i wish more people were reading them. keep rocking it, max

    Comment by maxwell ivey — October 8, 2014 @ 2:11 pm

  59. TY for that Maxwell so do I haha

    Comment by John Paul — October 9, 2014 @ 6:00 am

  60. One of the most powerful blog I’ve came across and very helpful and ton of value.

    Comment by FREDDIE ROSS — December 29, 2014 @ 9:49 pm

  61. TY Freddie, glad you liked it my man 🙂

    Comment by John Paul — January 5, 2015 @ 7:45 am

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