As a website owner, you know the importance of blog traffic. You’ve put in countless hours to create content and make sure everything runs smoothly – but it feels like no one is reading it. You can’t help but feel disheartened at times and wonder if all your hard work is worth it.
But don’t give up just yet! We have been in the same boat and we’re here to tell you that with a few simple steps, you can increase blog traffic and get more eyes on your content.
Anyone with a small business can benefit from having a blog page on their website. A “blog” or “news and updates” page is crucial to helping drive traffic to your website and to give you a chance to get noticed by potential customers. You’re more likely to gain more blog traffic if your website ranks higher on search engine results pages (SERPs). To do this, you need to be creating content that is SEO-friendly, relevant, and engaging.
Let’s look at seven ways to increase blog traffic and get more attention to your website:
1. Figure out the ideal length for each blog post
Blogging is a nuanced field where word count matters, so make sure you understand the optimal length for each post. There’s a good amount of research on the ideal length of a blog post, but generally, blog posts should fall into two categories: long and short.
For best results, aim for the sweet spot of around 1500-2500 words for long posts and about 500-1000 words for short posts.
Benefits of longer blog posts
Longer posts are beneficial when you have more detailed information to share with your audience. Keeping someone’s attention for a long-form article can be challenging in this digital age. That’s why your article should be clear, concise, and deliver concrete information so that people will read it all the way through.
Benefits of shorter blog posts
Shorter blog posts are great for when you have a particular point to get across but don’t need to provide a lot of detail. This type of post will still provide important insights that your readers can take away with them.
Remember that Google and other search engines don’t have a preferred post length. However, with shorter blog posts it can be hard to rank higher in SERPs since the post won’t include as many keywords. The smartest thing you can do to hit the bullseye on blog length every time is to get to know your target audience and determine the length that works best for their search intent.
2. Understand your target audience
If you know your target audience, you can create content that speaks directly to them and caters to their interests. Doing so will make it easier to get more targeted traffic as your content will be more visible in search engine results.
Find who you are writing for
First, you need to do your research and find out who your target audience is. Identify the age range, gender, interests, and challenges they face. This way you will be able to come up with topics that they want to learn more about. If you’re not sure of your target audience, try creating a buyer persona to help you narrow down who your content should be targeting. Check out our article on how to create a b2b buyer persona if you need help getting started.
Create content tailored to your target audience
Next, write content that speaks to your target audience’s needs and interests. Use language they can understand and provide solutions to their main problems. By writing content that is relevant to them, you will be able to engage your readers and keep them coming back for more. There are lots of online marketing tactics you can use to help increase blog traffic, but understanding your target audience is the key.
3. Focus on quality content
Your readers will be more likely to visit your blog if you provide them with engaging content. Quality content is essential for getting traffic to your blog and helping your blog stand out from the crowd. When creating content for your blog, always remember to keep it original, informative, and entertaining. Here are some things to keep in mind so that your content can be the best of the best:
Write about trending topics
No matter what niche your blog is in, you should always make sure that you’re writing about topics that are currently trending in your industry. This will help ensure that your blog post will generate more views and website traffic.
To find out what’s trending, keep an eye on Google Trends. There, you’ll be able to evaluate what people care about at any given time. Though this is a solid strategy, it’s a bit more complex than it sounds. You can’t just write about any trending topic. Instead, you should focus on topics that are relevant to your niche so that you’re attracting the right type of readers.
Look for inspiration from well-written, popular articles
When deciding what to write about, check other websites for well-written examples many people have liked and shared. This practice will be a good indicator of what people are drawn to. Note the content and structure of the other articles and see if you can determine what makes it a quality piece. Then see if you can write your article with your own research, content, and style while using the examples for inspiration.
Do your research
One of the worst mistakes you can make as a writer is using inaccurate facts and statistics. Make sure you do your research and get all the facts straight before you start writing. Not only will this help keep your readers engaged, but it will also make you look more credible and help increase website traffic.
If you are quoting a source or statistic, provide a link to the original article. This way, you can back up all your claims and give your readers more information. And rather than using someone else’s blog or article as a secondary source, go back to the original as often as possible. For example, if you’re reading an interesting article from another blogger about a new government bill, rather than trusting their research, it’s better to do your own. Read the bill yourself before commenting on it.
Proofread your articles to avoid errors
Other significant faux pas in publishing include grammar and spelling mistakes. Give each new blog post a good proofread before publishing. If you’re not comfortable self-editing your work to a flawless degree, outsource it to a professional — or even an amateur writer looking to gain experience proofreading.
4. Utilize tried-and-true search engine optimization techniques
SEO is an essential tool for any blog. It can help you increase website traffic as it allows your post to be seen by more people. A few tried-and-true SEO techniques include optimizing titles and meta descriptions, using relevant keywords, and writing descriptive alt tags for your images.
Here are some easy tips to help you optimize your blog post:
Use relevant keywords
SEO and keyword targeting are great tools for increasing your search traffic. To find relevant keywords, first brainstorm words and phrases related to the topic of your blog post. Then you can head over to a keyword research tool and plug in those keywords. The tool will then provide you with related keywords and phrases, along with their search volume numbers. Check out our list of the best keyword research tools here!
There are other tools such as Google Analytics that produce statistics of the most relevant and current keywords in your industry. It provides important information about the popularity and competitive nature of a keyword so you can optimize them accordingly.
We also encourage you to read many other articles in your field and note words and phrases you see repeating themselves across articles. This SEO strategy is a more organic way to research, but it pays off to survey your competitors and other websites you admire to determine trends in your specific niche.
Add internal links
One way to increase website traffic is by adding internal links. This means linking other pieces of content on your blog post that are relevant and likely to keep readers interested. Internal links will help keep readers on your website for longer and view more of your content, increasing the chances of them subscribing or purchasing something.
Also, by adding internal links, you are ranking your blog post higher in search engine results. This is because the more times a page is linked within your domain, the more authoritative and relevant it appears to search engines.
You can also utilize external links — linking content from other websites. Just make sure you are linking to reliable and trustworthy sources, as this will help your blog post appear more credible.
Get quality backlinks
Backlinks trace your article back to other websites that link to yours. They’re a little trickier to procure than internal links, but they help rank in search results because Google will view a website as more credible when others recommend it. Check out our blog on link exchanges for more info on a successful link building strategy.
5. Share your blog posts
Once you’ve written an engaging blog post, it’s time to share it! There are a few different ways to go about this:
Social media
Social media is one of the best tools for getting the word out about your blog post. Share it on all of your social media channels, and even consider scheduling posts for the future so you don’t have to worry about manually sharing each time.
Free tools like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter are all great ways to promote your site and build an online presence. On these platforms, it’s critical to engage as much as possible — both with your audience, your competitors, and others in your industry.
The more exposure your name gets through comments and shares, the more likely organic traffic will head to your website. This is due to Google’s ranking criteria, as more high authority sites like social media platforms send signals to Google that your site is reputable, they’ll favor your site against others in the search engine listings. Learn more about Organic traffic and how to increase it here.
Conversely, this may also drive a lot of direct traffic. Brush up on the differences between direct and organic traffic here.
Post a quote or teaser from your latest articles on social media with a link to the whole article — just enough for the reader to want to know what you have to say.
Hashtags are also useful on social media — they make it easy for users to discover your content in searches. Just make sure you’re using the right hashtags so you don’t attract the wrong audience!
Use Quora and similar platforms
Quora is a helpful but often overlooked platform for writers to share their work. There are benefits to using Quora, such as its many millions of users and the question-answer structure. People go to Quora when they specifically want an answer to a problem or for entertainment on a specific topic.
Monitor the question forums in your field and weigh in on some of the threads, posting links to relevant articles that people might be interested in reading further on the subject. This method is great for expanding your popularity and leveraging opportunities to share your work.
6. Improve your blog’s UI/UX
Having an easy-to-navigate website is a must. If readers can’t easily find content or get confused by the design, they won’t stick around for long.
Optimize your design to draw people in
Make sure your blog looks attractive. You can use design tools like Canva or Adobe to create a color scheme. Research color choices, font styles, and proportions to see what works and what’s popular. You’ll also want to make the interface and website design as aesthetically appealing as possible while considering the probable tastes of your target audience. For example, the style of an outdoor sports blog will probably be different than that of a beauty salon.
Include pictures and videos
Videos, infographics, and other visuals are excellent for engaging your readers. People love to watch and quickly digest information that can be processed in a few seconds.
Be sure to use images that are free to source. There are lots of websites like Unsplash where you can use free images without having to worry about copyright issues.
Add a table of contents
A table of contents is a great way to break up long-form blog posts. It allows readers to quickly jump to the section they want and dive deeper into the post. Your readers will appreciate not having to scroll endlessly for information, and it’s an easy way to make sure your content isn’t overwhelming or confusing.
Break up text
Readers will likely be discouraged by long blocks of text, as it’s less visually appealing. Breaking up content with headings and subheadings makes it easier for readers to skim the page and quickly find the information they need. You can also break up text with images, quotes, or bulleted lists.
7. Optimize your website for speed and mobile devices
Optimize for speed
Optimizing your website by making it fast and user-friendly is extremely helpful for retaining traffic. Even if you have to hire a professional, ensure your website is up-to-date with efficient software to keep your website speed competitive. If images take too long to load, or if the user has to go through unnecessary clicking to get to the content they’re looking for, your site won’t have much success.
Optimize for mobile devices
In recent years, mobile surfing has surpassed desktop surfing in terms of usage. If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, you may be missing out on a large portion of traffic. Spend time upgrading your website for mobile optimization so your site is accessible to people anytime.
Conclusion
Anyone who wants to increase their blog’s traffic can follow these simple steps to climb the SEO ladder. Remember that the more exposure you get — shares and likes, as well as collecting backlinks — the more keyword targeting and SEO strategy you use. Also, how much effort you put into website optimization will determine how popular your website becomes.
Further Reading
For more marketing best practices and ideas, check out our blog on digital marketing best practices to get you started!
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some other tips for getting more traffic to a blog?
Here are a few more suggestions to get more visitors to your blog: post regularly, use keywords and meta descriptions, create content that people want to share (e.g. informative and entertaining), write guest posts on other blogs, participate in social media groups, engage with commenters, and use tools like Google Analytics to track your site’s performance. By using a combination of these strategies, you can increase the visibility and popularity of your blog!
How do I make sure my content is SEO-friendly?
To ensure that your content is SEO-friendly, focus on creating original, high-quality content that’s targeted to the right keywords. Use headings and subheadings to break up the text, include images and videos, and optimize your website for speed. Lastly, make sure you’re monitoring your SEO performance with tools like Google Analytics. With a bit of effort and dedication, you can ensure that your content is optimized for search engines!
What are some ways to make my blog more visually appealing?
Try using images or videos to break up the text, use different colors and font sizes for headings and subheadings, create an eye-catching header image, and use hover effects. You can also add a table of contents so readers can quickly jump to the section they need. With a bit of creativity, you can make your blog look professional and visually appealing!
