Written by:
2009/10/06 09:40 AM 

If no one knows your blog exists, then it is very unlikely that they will find it and come to read. Perhaps even stay and become loyal followers. Yes you will get a few stopping by through search engines, that’s if your SEO is done correctly and they can actually find you on Google. Blog promotion is an essential aspect of blogging.

If you are just starting out blogging or your blog is relatively new and you do not know what to do, I would suggest you spend some time throughout your day connecting with other bloggers online. The old saying; “it’s not what you know but who you know” is all important for blogging.

Networking.

Many important and successful business people as well as bloggers spend a fair amount of time networking. Networking is about building a community around your. Even building a support group.

• Where can you start to build your social network?
• Commenting on other blogs
• Answering comments left on your blog
• Emailing bloggers in your niche when you write something that might interest them.
• Emailing new commenters and users of your blog
• Making helpful suggestions to other bloggers.
• Answering questions others pose
• Connecting via Social Networks like:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Gatorpeeps
  • Friendfeed
  • LinkedIn

This is just a short list. There are so many other resources available to us today. Perhaps you can list a few I have not mentioned.

How to Network

There are so many ways to network today. I am just going to list a few here.

Generosity – So many bloggers out there are all about what they can get out of it. They are too consumed about promoting themselves and their blogs. Now this might sound like a bit of  a contradiction, but don’t promote your blog first off. Promote others, give to the community, offer help. Encourage others, highlight their best work, give rather than take. You know - “It is better to give than to receive”.

Prove yourself first – A new person on the scene does not have much credibility. You need to spend time proving yourself first. Proving yourself in your niche, proving yourself in the blogosphere. Once you gain credibility people will read and listen to what you have to say. In fact they will look forward to it.

Be patient – Don't expect your blog to take off like a rocket. Some do, but this is an exception to the rule. It takes time to build relationships. It takes time to build up a following. Think of it as a courting or dating arrangement where you need to impress you partner. You take it slow, making sure everything is about them.

Look to connect to B-List bloggers – There are a great list of what we call A-list bloggers, the top dogs in their fields. How we would all like to be connected with them. However that is very unlikely unless you have a good name and a highly credible blog. So don’t waste too much time trying to befriend the Darren Rowse’s of the blog world. You might get lucky, but most times not. Rather look for what we call B-list bloggers. These are bloggers that are established, but they are not as important as the A-list bloggers. However they still carry a punch in their niche. Approaching  less known bloggers you stand a greater chance or working out, and they can still bring a lot of traffic to your blog.

Join Blog Collaboration network – This is where a group of bloggers get together with the express purpose of collaborating together. Helping each other out, promoting each others blog and blog posts. Commenting on each others posts. This is a great resource for networking. Take a look at Twitter12. Twitter12 is a community and forum where bloggers work together.

Search out neighbouring niches – I spoke about connecting with people in your niche. It is important for bloggers to connect with other bloggers in your niche. But don’t box yourself in. Spread your wings a bit. Don’t overdo it though. A great source of encouragement is to connect with bloggers in your demographics. You won’t believe how patriotic people are.

Ask Questions – Ask questions about others, try to get to know them. Find out what their goals and dreams are. Try to determine their strengths and weaknesses. All this is done so that you can better serve them, help them, encourage them. Many bloggers go into networking with a single agenda, how can I benefit from this?  Networking is best served when you know who your friends are, what they are, and how you can make them better. If you don’t ask questions about them, you will never know. A bonus is that by chance you might flatter them.

Host a blog carnival – A blog carnival is a space set aside on your blog where you expressly promote other bog posts. Then encourage users to read that post as well as the posts listed at your blog carnival. A Blog Carnival is a particular kind of blog community. There are many kinds of blogs, and they contain articles on many kinds of topics. Blog Carnivals typically collect together links pointing to blog articles on a particular topic. A Blog Carnival is like a magazine. Read my Blog Carnival – Call for Submissions post.

I hope this has helped you know more about promoting your blog through networking. How has your networking been going? I look forward to hearing more about your own experience of promoting your blog through networking and how it’s helped your blogging grow. Why not leave us a comment below.

Related Reading:

Promote your blog the easy way.

Promoting other blogs will help promote yours

A successful blog takes hard work

15 Things to do on Facebook that will help promote your business.

Blog Carnival – Call for Submissions

How to create and host a blog carnival – Part 1

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