Free Ways to Promote Your Blog
// September 12th, 2008 // 4 Comments » // General
If you are just starting off and don’t have a big budget to spend on advertising your new blog, there are many other free alternatives you can try in order to bring traffic to your site. When your blog is new the last thing you want to do is start spending money on it before it even starts generating any kind of revenue.
I have spent $1 on advertising since I started this blog 5 months ago and I am now getting steady traffic to the site daily and making revenue (though not much revenue!). It does take a while to generate steady traffic if you do it without spending a cent, though at least you’re not in the red before you even begin.
I have found the below ways of bringing traffic to my blog the most effective. They have worked for me over the past 5 months and may work for you to. However, it is always important to remember that what works for some may not work for others – though these are very quick, free and easy ways of promoting any blog.
- Comment on other blogs. It can be any type of blog and not necessarily one similar to your own. Make sure you enter your URL so when people click your name they can find your blog. This will also create backlinks which helps you with the search engines.
- Join forums and use your blog title and URL in your signature. Make sure this isn’t against the rules of the forum as it may get you banned.
- Join Entrecard and start dropping your card on other sites. This is a quick and easy way of generating revenue as most people will return the favour on your own blog.
- Submit your posts to social communities such as StumbleUpon and Digg.
- Add keyword rich tags to your posts. I have received some good hits as the post is found through searches.
- Join a banner exchange or find someone who you can swap your banner with. Although this takes up space on your site it is an easy way to generate traffic. Once you start getting steady traffic you can take it down and sell the ad space.
- Reply to your users when they comment on your posts. It doesn’t hurt to add to the conversation and a simple thank you doesn’t hurt anyone.
- Write a guest post on another blog. If people like your post they will visit your blog to find out more.
- Create a contest. You don’t have to spend money for this to work. The prize could be a free blog review, ad space, free link or whatever you like really.
- Post regularly so what you do in the above 9 points isn’t wasted. There is no point in trying to get generate hits when you have not got new content to show them. Remember your content is what is keeping your users coming back.
