Today we’ll wrap up the two part “Engaging Your Readers” series. You can find the first post HERE.
Isn’t my snappy wit and sparkling personality engaging enough?
The last thing to discuss in Engaging your Reader is connecting with other bloggers. This, in my opinion, is one of the MOST important things you can do. Not only do you make some really cool friends, you get the opportunity to expose yourself and your blog to readers who might have never found you.
Elaine said, “I’ve found connecting with other bloggers has been one of the most surprising and rewarding parts of blogging.”
When I first started blogging, I had no idea of the amazing connections I would make. I wonder if all blogging niches have such a wonderful community?
So, how exactly does one go about connecting with other bloggers?
Comments
Comments are important. When I get a new commenter, I ALWAYS head over to their blog and check it out. I think that’s a nice thing to do, and I think most bloggers do that.
Caren Gittleman said, “These are all wonderful tips. Another thing I try to do to increase engagement, is to respond to as many comments as I can. You would be amazed at how many bloggers do NOT do this and nearly every “Blogging 101″ item that I read, lists that as one of the top things on their “must do” list. People like to feel as if they are appreciated and heard………on Dakota’s blog I am not nearly as good about responding (because I do not get alerts when people comment), but on Cody’s blog I am quite good about it…I am proud to say that every brand I have been (and am) aligned with, listed “engagement by ME and my readers” as being more important than actual numbers…A brand once told me, “I would rather advertise on a blog that has 50 ENGAGED readers, than one that has 5000 who are doing nothing””
Responding to comments is good too. But as you may have noticed, I don’t respond to every comment. (Once upon a time I did, back when I had a few comments per post, but some posts have a large number of comments and it’s just not feasible for me to answer every one.) What works for me (as most of you know) is my Follow-Up Friday post, where I answer questions and highlight awesome comments. I think it’s a great way to connect with my readers and share the linky love as well. If answering comments works on your blog, you should stick with it. Why fix it if it ain’t broken?
I think that’s awesome that you found a brand that feels that way about engagement.
Sand Spring Chesapeakes said, ” I have gotten so bad at replying to peoples comments on my blog, that was my new years resolution to respond more and I’ve failed at it. I blog each day and I run out of time which is a lame excuse. If someone asks me a question I answer it on their blog because really do people remember to search back to see if you answered their question? I know I don’t have time for that unless it was something I really needed a answer to. I do a blog hop each day which your right I need to switch it up as I don’t think it helps me get any more followers but it does help me with a plan for the week.”
This is more along the lines of the way I think. Unless I ask a specific question on someone’s blog, I rarely go back and look to see if they responded to my comment. Blogging is a lot of work, especially if you are posting daily and reading blogs and leaving comments. At some point, something has to give!
As for the daily blog hop, see my response to Jackie’s comment below. BUT you do have your Nothing But Norman, which is unique to your blog. 🙂
Clowie said, “When a post sparks comments from people that don’t usually comment, I try to figure out why – but I can’t say I’ve figured it out yet!”
That’s a very good point. When you have a post that gets a lot of comments, look at it and see, what is different from what I regularly post? Did I personalize it? Was it funny? Controversial? I would say if it’s vastly different from what you have been writing, then perhaps the new material is something your readers are looking for.
Blog Hops
Blog hops are a great way to connect with other bloggers.
2 Brown Dawgs said, “One thing that I would add is that if you join a hop, engage with the other hoppers. The idea of a hop is to help build readership, but if you don’t engage then others will not engage with you. Hops are great tools for people that need direction or suggestions for post topics and a great way to meet new bloggers.”
Exactly. Linda and I do our best to visit each of the blogs participating in our hop and thank them. Not only are we sharing our readers with you, you are sharing your readers with us. That’s a very valuable resource!
Jackie Bouchard said, “I guess I’m predictable since I pretty much only blog on M & W so I join Mon Mischief and Wordless Wed.!”
I wouldn’t necessarily say that Jackie. If you like it and your readers like it, that’s the whole goal.
Other ways to connect
Of course, there’s always the direct approach. Many times I reach out to other bloggers via e-mail or directly on social media, whether it be a Facebook IM or a direct tweet.
Non-Blogging Readers
Talent Hounds said, “What is challenging to me is to reach beyond the blog groups, which have been a wonderful start, to a broader audience and engage them. ”
I think one of the keys to this is to share on Social Media. A majority of people on Social Media aren’t bloggers, if you can get your posts into their hands, I think that’s awesome.
NOW, my question for you, how do you get people to share your posts on Social Media?
This is the Thursday Barks and Bytes Blog Hop hosted by 2 Brown Dawgs and Heart Like a Dog. Grab the badge and the linky code and join us!
While Barks and Bytes is for everyone, we request only blog posts be linked up and as a courtesy to other hoppers, please add the code to your post or link up to Linda or I.
I’ve really enjoyed reading this series. Being new to the blogging community – I’m always learning something new. These posts have really helped me clarify some of the do’s and don’ts of blogging. Thank you for putting so much thought into these posts!
Great tips again! Thanks for sharing such thoughtful posts!
I used to blog maybe 4-5 days a week when I was new, just to create that bump in traffic that needs to help drive the SEO. Now that the SEO is pretty on track, I’m good to cut back without seeing a decrease in blog traffic. Now that I’m only doing about 1-2 posts a week, it just frees up my time for the engagement piece. Largely that does happen on social media and Instagram, because these come in bite size nuggets and are very visual and shareable/taggable, it’s just easier to engage with new friends that way. I agree that comments on the blog is still important, but somehow, at least locally, people tend to stalk blogs rather than comment on blogs LOL. So it’s just easier to talk to them on Instagram in particular. 🙂 Hahahaha
These are such awesome tips! Thanks again! How do you feel about blog hops that have a break in them? I always try to put breaks in my post so only the main photo and a bit of text shows through and you have to click to get to the blog hop, that way readers who are not interested in them don’t have to see the full link list without clicking? If that makes sense?
The one way I got people to share my post on social media was when I wrote my incredibly snarky “Respecting other dog owners” with the funny memes. People really liked that post and it’s still my top one.
I loved that one!
Hi Y’all!
Most of the time my Human is too busy working to worry about whether I have a chance to check on responses to my comments. I comment blogs and reply to comments on my blog when I have time.
Since my Blogger problems and move to WordPress, I’ve been neglecting my round-up and hope to go back to it soon. I’ve found devoting a post, like Follow of Friday, to answering comments works best. Though I no longer follow up on Friday. I was doing it Thursday, until I moved that is.
Y’all come on by,
Hawk aka BrownDog
Wonderful tips Jodi, generously shared as always. These are real, genuine, helpful tips from an expert who admits it’s not always easy – thanks for your dedication (so sorry to hear about your great aunt).
Do you look at your blogs Google Analytics to see which posts get the most views, most time spent reading etc – just interested in your opinion.
In answer to your question: Yes, Delilah, your snappy wit and sparkling personality are enough for me.
Love and licks,
Cupcake
I probably should have added to my comment that it helps to add a new post to the hop and not just recycle a post for the sake of joining the hop. People enjoy new content and that is a huge way to engage the reader.
Clever to write a post on engaging your readers by engaging your readers in the post. You are a smarty pants, Miss Jodi. 🙂
If you discover the secret to writing shareable posts, I’d love to see it. Everything I think will capture lots of traffic doesn’t and I’m very surprised by what does.
I’ve also had an interesting experience with evergreen posts–things that people visit from search engines years after you wrote it. My “What Do You Do After You Scoop The Poop?” post about the options for getting rid of dog waste is like that.
It gets hits every day and generates a small income from people buying doggy septic systems and flushable poop bags. But I’ve never seen anyone sharing it on social media.
I guess no one wants their SM feeds to be filled with poop related content. 🙂
We find commenting and responding to comments is really important for us and people really like it. As for what we post, sometimes the posts we can’t wait to publish turn out to be bombs, and others we almost delete because they are so bad are a huge hit. It is really hard to say what people will love, so we just post what comes to mind and hope for the best.
I used to reply to all of my comments, but I wondered how many people ever really saw the replies. So when I re-did my blog, I had it set up so that people get an email when I reply to them. But that means I no longer reply to every comment because I don’t want people to get an email for something like just thanking them for their nice comment (unless it’s someone new to my blog, and I’m thanking them for coming by).
I think that has made things easier for me…it was hard to keep up with replying to every comment (it amazes me that blogs like Emma’s are able to do it!), now that I get more than I did before.
I will go back to a blog if I’ve asked a question in their comments. If they don’t reply to me in some way, that really turns me off.
That whole not going back to check responses is why I respond to most comments via email. It’s not visible to the general public, sure, but it creates dialogue with most people. It’s definitely a more introverted response. But plenty of friendships have come of it.
You took the question right off my lips! How DO you engage readers on social media without just pasting links to blog posts? Most of the time I feel extremely lucky just to get a blog post written, let alone work Facebook or Twitter. I realize we all get the same 24 hours a day, but I feel like I need staff to handle social media since Sam points out that he has no thumbs and can’t help. 😉 If the dishes have been done, the dog walked, the house not too terribly pitted out, and a post written, it’s been a VERY productive day when you work full time. I’m not sure how to cleverly work the other stuff in addition to that, short of getting a roommate.
Awesome follow up as always! I do try and respond to my comments. I usually get about 10 to 15 comments right now, so it’s not really an issue, but I love how you do these follow ups. You answer the main questions or comments all in one post. Very efficient!
ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!
I always forget about blog hops and by the time I get around to reading blogs Pacific time, the day of the blog hop is almost over. I try to answer questions by email, but I never go back to a blog I’ve commented on to see if there is a reply to a comment. Do commenters ever do this? (rhetorical question, Jodi)
I’d love to know what a secret behind what makes some posts so shareworthy – it’s a complete mystery to me when I look at which of my own posts resonated vs ones that fell flat. I have read that people like to share articles that make themselves look good; which is a really weird way to look at it but perhaps it’s true some of the time. I know I’ve seen stuff that’s gone viral that doesn’t follow the typical formula of ‘must be a list post with crazy adjectives in the title. I can’t even really pinpoint exactly why I choose to share certain things – at the core I know they’re things that have resonated with me on some level but that can be anywhere from being funny, thoughtful, or sad.
It is a mystery.
Such valuable info. I just started doing the blogs a few months ago and just changed over to one through our Aussies. These are great tips!
Yes, the social media sharing is a mystery sometimes. I try to write posts that people will find interesting or helpful and then just hope for the best, haha! I do like to reply to comments on my blog because I really appreciate that someone has taken the time to write a comment but I also like the Followup Friday style that you use Jodi, because it can expand on several viewpoints from different posts from the week which is interesting.
These Engagement posts have been really interesting and helpful, both the articles and the comments!
I know the skill behind sharing stuff on social media, my big problem is I don’t have the time to do it. Basically look at my accounts and do the opposite! But if you would maybe like to work up some social media sharing tips together…?
I love this! Thank you for the information, and all the comments from other bloggers is a huge help. As a newby in the dog blogging world, I’m trying to find a place, and find that everyone here is quite helpful.
This has been fascinating, it’s been great to hear the views of so many other bloggers.