How to drive Traffic to your Blog: Identify Top Influencers and choose the right time.


It's no secret that the right networks will increase your probability of getting new followers. Hub Spot provided some guidelines on their Facebook page on the importance of reaching out to top influencers. Klout revealed to be the new way to conduct research in the attempt to again identify the people who are most influential online. Palms Hotel in Las Vegas is working with Klout to introduce a new concept, "The Klout Klub," which relies on the idea to reward social media top users based on the Klout influential score. A person will show up with an existing reservation, connected to a Klout score. The higher the score the more access to special amenities the person will get during his/her visitation. There is an assumption that if you are a top social media influencer most likely you will tweet or Fb about your experience at the hotel, meaning that the potential reach will be higher. So if you want to understand who your top influencers are in the field of food, fashion, or social media, you can use Klout as a starting point. Once you create a list for your own, start approaching these people, follow their blogs, become friend. A common mistake is visiting random blogs, living a meaningless post and expecting feedback. While it is true that by commenting on other blogs you may receive visits to your blog, these visits will be sporadic and short-term unless you invest in getting to know people. So here few basic rules.
1. Approach your friends. Introduce your blog to your friends. They are your biggest supporters and they can share your passion with their friends. My top influencer for my fashion blog is a girl from my hometown who has a clothing/accessories store. I had been friend with her online because she posted really cute items. Once I created my Fb page she started sharing my photos which resulted in more than 100 followers from her list of friends. We keep in touch almost everyday because we care about what we do.  I am not her friend to take advantage of her and this is why many people fail to reach a stable readership. I have noticed that many bloggers would comment and leave their link. Ok, I do it too, but make sure to provide meaningful feedback. Give the person a reason to wanted to click on the link. You want to be credible and considered an expert in your field. A simple "I love those," won't do it. Think about this: "Among 15 comments with links which one would I most liking click on it?"

2. Approach top influencer outside your circle of friends. This is tricky. Why would 'popular' people want to hear from you? For the simple reason that you write well and the content of your blog is intriguing. Start identifying 3 people and build a long-term relationship. The more you get to know them the more they will want to share your information. I had been a follower of Curly in the City a fashion blog run by this girl I met one time only few years ago in Chicago. She recently posted on her FB page that she was trying to revamp her blog. I volunteered to share the info on my platforms. If I see something I like I have no problems helping out and others will do the same. Just be patient and set long term goals and relationships. 

For today this is all, but there are obviously short term and long term strategies you can follow to increase readership on your blog. I guess more reasons to follow me. 

I do want to mention really quick the importance of selecting a time to post. Look at your readers. Who is your target audience, where are they? Have you ever noticed how Dr. Martens's shoes posts are right on your face when you get up in the morning? Think about your own routine. For example, currently my larger audience is people from Italy, therefore I try to post according to their time zone and habits. They are usually online at midnight and very responsive, which is perfect for me because I finish work at that time;)

If you have questions or want to suggest a topic please let me know by leaving a comment. Dr. Gin