Hello out there! How to attract blog viewers: by Briana Le Goaix

Before attracting readers to my blog, it is essential I determine its purpose, and that this purpose is apparent and consistent throughout each post. This blog is being used to communicate information about academic media studies as it pertains to my undergraduate degree in Media, information and Technoculture. From this point it is possible to determine my target readership, who are likely students and young professionals either in the field of media studies or who are interested in cultural theory, media and digital studies (Ledbetter 2014).

Throughout this course we have learned the importance of leveraging social media – on this post, social ‘share’ buttons have been included on this post so if desired it could be shared through my personal social media accounts, through which I am a member of several MIT-friendly community pages and groups.  Further, this allows potential readers the opportunity to share my blog posts via their personal channels, increasing opportunity for unique visitors (Ledbetter 2014).

To increase viewership to my blog, I changed the privacy settings so that my blog content is visible to search engines (“Getting More Traffic”). Using SEO (search engine optimization) strategies are also important in driving readers to your blog. By tagging key words in both your post and title, it is more likely that you post (and blog site) will appear in the top search results for certain key words (“Keywords”). According to Male (2012) of Business Insider, a simple yet effective basic SEO strategy in the integration of internal links to your site (i.e. linking back to yourself). To increase future readership, this post has been linked to the ‘Archives’ page of the site. If I was interested in putting money towards gathering more viewers, using Google Analytics and AdWords to identify SEO keywords to include in posts would drastically help my sites numbers (“Keywords”).

As someone who works in the public relations industry I understand the importance of niche markets and using successful market leaders to your digital advantage (Ledbetter 2014). Approaching successful blogs for potential partnerships, guest posts, podcast interviews and more will allow you to leverage the readership of a blog who attracts a steady monthly viewership (Ledbetter 2014). According to WordPress, linking to successful other bloggers will help to facilitate online discussions, as they will likely see your link and mention within their own blogs stats. For example, I recently studied a book by Danah Boyd, who shares posts about youth culture on the internet on her blog Aphoneia. Future posts could continue to link posts to influential bloggers with the hopes of engaging with either the author themselves or their audience.

Lastly, to optimize potential engagement and keep readers wanting to return to my site, I have also set up comment and forum features to allow for thoughtful discussion between my peers and I, which I hope will lead to consistent viewership as this blog continues to grow.

*Note: Forum features may only be used with a (costly) Business plan. However, potential plug ins to consider include: Bbpress, Asgaros, and wpForo.

Works Cited:

“Getting More Views and Traffic.” Support. March 03, 2017. Accessed July 24, 2017. https://en.support.wordpress.com/getting-more-views-and-traffic/.

“Keyword Research & Strategy with Keyword Planner.” Google AdWords – Google. Accessed July 24, 2017. https://adwords.google.com/home/tools/keyword-planner/.

Ledbetter, Jennifer. “5 Free Ways To Get Your New Blog Noticed.” Marketing Land. November 11, 2014. Accessed July 24, 2017. http://marketingland.com/5-free-ways-to-get-your-new-blog-noticed-38658.

Male, Bianca. “10 Basic SEO Tips To Get You Started.” Business Insider. January 13, 2012. Accessed July 24, 2017. http://www.businessinsider.com/10-basic-seo-tips-everyone-should-know-2010-1.

Today, all organizations require a social media presence.

Whether it is a C type corporation, a non-profit, a small locally owned business, or even a school club – today, it is essential for all organizations to have a social media presence due to the North American public’s increasing reliance on mobile technology and engagement on certain social media sites (“Social Media Update 2016”).

 

Figure 1: Pew Research Centre Data on American Adult’s Facebook Use (“Social Media Update 2016”)

In terms of larger corporations, social media and networking sites allow massive conglomerates such as McDonald’s or Coca-Cola an opportunity to somewhat ‘connect’ on a personal level with their clients and customers. Successful instances of this are Twitter accounts and Facebook pages which allow customer service representatives to immediately engage with customer reviews and comments. When these engagements employ wit, humour, and even incorporate a meme reference, they have the potential to go viral, which increases the company’s reputation as a knowledgeable social media organization.

In terms of smaller, locally owned business, a social media presence can be as small as understanding the importance of Yelp and Trip Advisor engagements. Having real customers review real places conveys a sense of intimacy and experience that is not attainable on more curated social media platforms such as an Instagram account or a Facebook page. In the tourism industry, it is essential for businesses to attract customers and visitors through these trusted social media sites, rather than relying simply on foot traffic and word of mouth. To further the success of their social media presence, these organizations would be smart to engage thoughtfully with customer reviews on their sites, both negative and positive, to demonstrate their commitment to customer service and hospitality.

A social media presence does not necessarily need to be external – many large organizations benefit from the internal use of social media and networking sites to connect employees both across the organization and in a hierarchical manner. The same advantages of engagement with customers can be transferred to an engagement between a lower employee and a CEO – engagement communicates a commitment to employee’s job satisfaction while working towards the organization’s overall goals. According to Pew Research Centre, large shares of employees who use at least one social media tool for job-related purposes see certain positive or beneficial impacts on their job performance, in both networking, opportunity, and connecting with experts in their field (“Social Media and the Workplace”).

While personal contact will, and should, always be considered the primary method for engaging with customers and employees, a social media presence allows for any type of organization to expand engagement efforts and foster online interactions that would not otherwise be possible.

Works Cited:

Greenwood, Shannon, Andrew Perrin, and Maeve Duggan. “Social Media Update 2016.” Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech. Pew Research Center, 11 Nov. 2016. Web. 26 June 2017.

Olmstead, Kenneth, Cliff Lampe, and Nicole B. Ellison. “Social Media and the Workplace.” Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech. Pew Research Center, 22 June 2016. Web. 26 June 2017.